Kitchen + Living Room [Slow] Progress

The past few months have been crazy for Brice and I. Brice is in his busiest months of the year with his lawncare business while balancing working full time at the hospital. I've finished up the school year and completing my masters degree, while prepping for our biggest market we've done with etre. All great things to be thankful for, but all of them piled up. Which means that there was extremely little room left to work on our house so we've been in a bit of a lull.

To give a backstory on the kitchen:

As you'll see if the before photos, there's a wall dividing the family room and smaller living room. There's a larger family room on the opposite side of the house by the back deck, which is more formal. The smaller living room off the kitchen is where we would "hang out" the most just Brice and I. It's right by the hallway leading to all the bedrooms, so it's a high traffic area. 

Our goal is to open up the kitchen and small living room by knocking out the wall and moving the kitchen out farther to make it a bit bigger. We had a weekend we had free, and both our parents were free, too. They came out and helped demo alllllll of it. What started out as, "Oh, maybe we'll just tear out the carpet and pull the trim off the walls.." quickly turned into, "While we're all here, why don't we just bust through this wall and rip out all the ceiling lights and fans, too?"

BEFORE PHOTOS

kitchen + dining

small living room right off the kitchen

PROGRESS PHOTOS

..yikes! We tore up all the carpet but the tile proved to be more of a challenge. It took us a few nights, but we knocked it out! Definitely a less enjoyable project.

That wall that we wanted to take out is a supporting wall so before we could officially knock it all down, we have to put up a support beam. We needed Brice's dad's help with this one, so the kitchen project was at a standstill for awhile until we could line up a Saturday where Brice wasn't working at the hospital and Benj was free. 

MORE PROGRESS

The beam is up!!!! This means we can keep progress rolling! We envision having a bar with stools on this side 'dividing' the living room from the kitchen and a big wood exposed beam up above it. This will open it up far more than having a huge wall in between. 

They had to try out its strength. :)

I will say I never realized how much I actually enjoyed cooking until it was incredibly hard to do so. I love coming home and going into the kitchen by myself, turning on an audiobook, podcast, or music, and cooking for Brice and I. I always viewed it as something I had to do anyway, so I might as well find a way to enjoy it. Not having a kitchen has showed me how much I really actually do enjoy it. 

What I'm Reading | April + May

Echo | Pam Munoz Ryan

I listened to this on audiobook and would for sure recommend reading it that way. I loved the way that all the stories and characters, who could not seem more opposite, weaved together to one powerful moment. I enjoyed how I didn't see how the characters intertwined until the end of the novel. It's a mix of historical fiction and fantasy, which I know, those genres do not go together whatsoever. But trust me--it'll make sense when you read it. 

[goodreads excerpt]: Lost and alone in a forbidden forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and suddenly finds himself entwined in a puzzling quest involving a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica.
Decades later, Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California each, in turn, become interwoven when the very same harmonica lands in their lives. All the children face daunting challenges: rescuing a father, protecting a brother, holding a family together. And ultimately, pulled by the invisible thread of destiny, their solo stories converge in an orchestral crescendo.

4.5/5 stars

The Magician's Nephew | C.S. Lewis

I've always been a fan of C.S. Lewis' writing, and lately I decided to start listening through the Chronicles of Narnia in chronological order. I've only read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (forever ago) so I wanted to swing back and reread them all in order. The narrator is fantastic and truly brings the story to life. I love how much this fantasy story reflects the gospel in such intricate ways. I love Lewis' writing, the way he brings the characters to life and makes you so absorbed in the story as if you were there. The first book explains how Narnia was created and gives a backstory of the characters in the 2nd book. If you haven't read through the whole series, do it along with me. :) 

[goodreads excerpt]: NARNIA...where the woods are thick and cold, where Talking Beasts are called to life...a new world where the adventure begins. Digory and Polly meet and become friends one cold, wet summer in London. Their lives burst into adventure when Digory's Uncle Andrew, who thinks he is a magician, sends them hurtling to...somewhere else. They find their way to Narnia, newborn from the Lion's song, and encounter the evil sorceress Jadis before they finally return home. 

5/5 stars

May Happenings

May always seems to be a hectic month, and this year it was more than normal. I completed my third year of teaching second grade at Ridgeview, I graduated with my Master's in Teaching & Learning from ISU, Whitt + I were vendors at Peoria's French Market on Moss with our art business, Mother's Day happenings, and then there's the crazy remodel we're diving head first in! Let's just say I wish I could nap more and I'm thankful for summer to be here.

My mom comes into my classroom every May and does a floral arranging workshop with my students. It's so much fun and they take tons of pride in their creations that they get to gift to their moms for Mother's Day. I love this tradition. 

It was a bittersweet end of the school year. I'm so ready for summer and a much needed break to re-energize, work on our house, and get a break, but this group of kids will be missed. The first half of the year was really, really, really challenging, and included many tears and frustration, but God has totally given me a new perspective on my job through it. 

The patience and grace I've acquired this year is unmatched to previous years teaching. I don't say that to boast, but to proclaim that only through God's grace I am able. I've learned to love the most challenging of students in ways I didn't know I could, and be intentional about knowing [even on the most exhausting days] that each kid is worthy of success, belongs in our school, and deserves unconditional love (and believing each of these things, too). 

Year #4 will be here before I know it, so I'm going to soak up this summer. :)

I graduated with my Master's in Teaching & Learning from Illinois State! Woohoo! Although it's a bit of a tease because I technically have two summer classes left to complete. I'm really glad I decided to go for it, as I've really enjoyed my learning experiences over the past year and a half. It was a lot of work and I have a very patient husband who supported me through it, even when dinner wasn't on the table, the house was a mess, and his clothes weren't washed. :) 

Whittney and I took our little hobby/side business and were so honored and excited to participate in Peoria's Spring French Market on Moss this year. We've always loved attending every year, so it was surreal to get to be a vendor there this time around. It. Was. Amazing. We nearly sold out of most of our products and made so many new connections. 

We sold tea towels, canvas wall banners, bookmarks, greeting cards, and prints. It was a fun day that challenged us and definitely put us outside our comfort zone. It's tough to willingly put your artwork out there and hope others view it through the same lens that you do. My mom is amazing and helped us decorate and display our work, and she even sold some bouquets, too! (& sold out, of course!)

We did a giveaway, too! If you made a purchase, you could enter to win a complimentary custom home portrait.

These two stayed with Brice and I for the weekend while Dev + Leah were away with friends. We had a blast hitting up garage sales, going to the library, going hiking, and having a cookout. I love being their aunt so much, and I hope they always want to have auntie time. :)