#letsbuildafarmhouseTX Update 2015

If you've been reading my blog since the beginning, then you know Mark and I have dreamed about building a house on our land in the country since we got married.  It's taken us 10 years to decide what we wanted and about 3 years to make it become a reality.  We started from scratch.  We had house plans drawn to perfectly fit our land.  Before we started any of the building process, we got bids from different custom home builders and we selected the builder that was right for our project, budget, and family.  Our land in the country was a blank slate when we moved forward with building.  There were several things that had to be done before we were ready to build.  We didn't even have a physical address (also called a 911 address) or any utilities.  Once we took care of all of the start up, which included getting electricity, water, putting in a driveway, and having dirt work done by a bulldozer to build the house pad, we were ready to go.  Since our home is completely custom, I've often told people it is a blessing and a curse. The fun part of a custom home is that you have unlimited choices. The stressful part is that you have unlimited choices. Did that make sense?  Many people are frustrated when building a new home because they don't feel like they can personalize it.  With our home there are endless possibilities and it is 100% a reflection of our style.

If you're new here, and the title didn't give it away already, our style is farmhouse, which most of you already knew.  Have you ever heard the song by Barbara Mandrell, "I Was Country When Country Wasn't Cool"? I feel like, "We Were Farmhouse When Farmhouse Wasn't Cool".  We started planning this home about 3 years ago (before Fixer Upper) and we didn't know the farmhouse style would become so popular.  It doesn't bother me that so many people are building homes that are this style.  It is classic and timeless in many ways.  There are numerous benefits of building something that's a popular style and one is that finishes are readily available.

I haven't been as good about blogging about the process as I thought I would be.  I plan to share more of the specific details about finishes on Angela's blog Unexpected Elegance.  For now I've put together a timeline to help me remember all that's happened this year in regards to our new home.

Photo taken in November

Here's a timeline of how things have evolved.

2015

January 

Received bids

February

Chose builder/general contractor

March

Worked to get utilities, address
Link {here} to a blog post as we prepared to start the dirt work.

April

Dirt work for house pad

We were very fortunate that we had a few days of dry weather to get the dirt work done because May brought record amounts of rainfall to Texas.

May

Not much since it was the rainiest May on record

June

Continued to get utilities put in place

July

Worked on selecting interior finishes

August

Continued to work on selecting finishes, specifically plumbing

September

Foundation work, piers were poured

October

Foundation was poured
Decisions were made about exterior siding, exterior doors, etc.

November

Framing 

December

It was a BIG month!

Soooo much that I don't even know if I can keep a record of it all. 

Follow my instagram @redbirdblue and you can see progress updates.  I've kept a record and dated most of the photos so I can remember all of the details.

This photo below was taken (by my mother-in-law) around December 19, 2015 and shows the progress made to this point.  We don't have a rigid timeline of when the house will be complete.  It could be end of March or sometime in April, and if it is sooner then we'll be pleasantly surprised.  We have a place to live currently and that takes away the pressure of needing it completed by a certain date.  

Of course there have been challenges along the way, but overall we couldn't be happier with the house.  We feel very thankful that this home has become a reality.  I know I say this often, but I truly mean it.

Christmas 2015

Christmas 2015

This year the boys received more electronics than in the past.  I guess they are growing up (boo hoo!) and the days of receiving all toys is slowly fading away.  

They asked for PS4 games (they saved their money and purchased a PS4 earlier in the year), 

baseball cards--for Will, football cards and Pokemon cards--for Ben.

They also got a new Nerf glow football, basketball, and glow basketball goal set, and hoodies, movies, and Santa still brought them each a Disney Pixar Cars car.  Their stockings had candy and flashlight glow sticks and a headlamp, which came in handy for the scary tornado situation that occurred the day after Christmas.

Here are a few pics from Christmas Eve.

The boys exchange books.

Mark and I also gave the boys some books we thought they would enjoy.

Can't go to bed on Christmas Eve without checking the Santa Tracker. 

Merry Christmas 2015

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

These photos were taken this fall 

and used on our Christmas card.

As always, Lauren, our friend and photographer gets credit for making us look good.

Thanks For the Memories

This is our house in 2003, a year after it was built.  

Here's a final photo with the boys taken on Sunday after church in front of the house that was their first home. 

Today is a big day for our family.  We are scheduled to close on the sell of our home.  It's been a whirlwind the last few months, and I've been unusually silent on the blog.  There are several reasons why.  The main focus of our lives lately has been preparing our home to sell.  It feels strange to share some personal details of our lives, even though I'm open about things, the sell of our home just didn't feel right to blog about.  The other reason I've been distracted from blogging is that things are full steam ahead on construction of the new house.  Throw moving to a temporary home into the mix  and I don't know if I'm coming or going.  I haven't even had time to stop and process all that is happening, which may be a good thing.  There's no time to worry about things, we just have to get it done and move on.  

I don't have very much time, but I wanted to take a minute to slow down and reflect on the last 13 years in the house that's been our home, I feel overwhelmed with emotions.  This home has been full of such wonderful memories.  I can't even begin to describe how many happy moments I've experienced here.  I stood for a moment in the middle of the empty living room trying to think of all the good times, and the memories flooded through my mind.  It felt like a movie montage--all the faces, people, and moments.  Maybe one day I will write down some of them, but for now, I can only say that I am grateful for these four walls and the roof over our heads.  It's been more than just a shelter, it's been a home for my family.  First a home for Mark and I, and then for us as parents to Will and Ben.  It's hosted beloved family members who are no longer with us and numerous family and friends who we plan to have as guests at our new home where we will hopefully make many more happy memories together.

I'll be honest, as I sit here and type I'm crying and I can't stop the tears from coming down my face.  I think it's because of all the emotions I feel right now.  It's difficult to process the letting go of the tangible reminder of all of the memories I associate with this home.  Even though I'm sentimental with a touch of sadness, I mostly feel love and gratitude for the memories of all the good times that I have to cherish from this home.  It's been better than I could have imagined.

Thanks for the memories sweet first home.  
You've been good to our family.