Life Don't Stop

For about a week prior to our move and three days after our move, our family life was chaotic to say the least. But now we are moved into our new house and we are back to our normal busy schedule. Here are a few pictures of places we've been recently...

The park along the river in our new neighborhood

To see Nana

McBee Dairy Farms (that's a cow jaw in case you were wondering)

Seven Islands Wildlife Refuge on the day, unbeknownst to us, that TN Forestry had planned to do controlled burning. An entire field was completely burned in under 10 minutes. The kids were amazed. We decided to leave before they began burning the grassy field you see on the right because we would've been enveloped by smoke.

A cabin at Standing Stone State Park. We joined friends who were staying in the nearby campground.

House For Sale

We are now moved into our new (which is old) house, and the old (which is newer) one is officially on the market. Check out the listing here and pass it along to anyone you know who is looking for a great family home in the Knoxville area.

Photos of Our New Home

We are getting all packed up and ready to move! We close on the new house on Monday and hope to be moving the following Saturday. Because this is a downsize for us, we are paring down our belongings. This has made the packing process a little more complicated because every object and piece of furniture is being scrutinized. We will be eliminating 1,000 square feet so not everything can go. I'm sure that sounds crazy for a family with 4 kids. But with homeschooling and the way we live, we think "less is more." We are a busy family, always on the go, and we enjoy outdoor activities. Our home is a place for learning, discipleship, meals, and sleeping. There's some playtime, too, but we have found that our kids are content with just a few favorite things. More stuff causes stress for them and for the Mommy and Daddy who have to clean it up. Despite my affection for farmhouses on little country roads, we are excited to be moving into an urban neighborhood close to downtown, parks, greenways, and the like. 

Front view from the street

Side entrance

Two-car detached garage (Yes, the neighbor's garage is that close!)

Kitchen

Dining area with access to back deck

Playroom

Master bedroom

Living room

Charlotte's bedroom

Upstairs hallway and stairwell

Boys' room - this is only a partial view of their massive bedroom

Lily's bedroom - only a partial view

We Are Moving!

Right now it all seems so sudden, but it has actually been in the works off-and-on for a year or two. In three weeks we are officially moving into a new (65 year old) house. We are super excited that we have found a house and neighborhood that fits our family perfectly and still accomplishes our downsizing goals. Do you know how difficult it is to find 5 bedrooms and 3 full bathrooms with an open kitchen-dining area in 2400 square feet or less in a family-friendly neighborhood located perfectly between BJ's office on the west side of town and church on the east side of town with a level yard and with great places to bike and walk (and, if it's not too much to ask, a space for my painting studio)? Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's a one-in-a-million house. It was a real fluke that we even found the house since it was in a neighborhood we hadn't previously considered due to the prices of houses in the area. The house had only been on the market 24 hours when we viewed it. We were scheduled behind 8 other potential buyers. Turns out our offer was the third one received, which goes to show how amazingly priced the house was. So we were super surprised when our realtor called to let us know that the sellers had accepted our offer, despite the fact that even more offers continued to roll in on the second day. If everything goes according to plan (fingers crossed) then we should close on Sept. 13. We plan to list our current house for sale as soon as we get mostly moved to the new one.

For the fact that everything has fallen into place so perfectly, we can't help but believe God's hand is involved in the details. He does things so perfectly like that! I'm a little anxious about the moving process and transitioning 4 kiddos to a new house, but I'm confident God will walk us through it. If you live in the area, we'll be excited to have you come and visit once we get moved in. I hope to post more photos soon, but the one above is all I have for now.

For Sale

We've got a few items around our house for sale. We've been starting some early (or late) Spring cleaning - or maybe its nesting. But I'm hoping to sale a few items that take up extra space and use that money toward the purchase of these beauties:

For sale...

1. ProForm 1200 treadmill

2. Small TV (maybe 16") and DVD player (both were used with the treadmill)

3. Graco highchair - White with dark blue and green seat cover, reclining seat, height adjustable, removable dishwasher-safe tray

If you are interested in any of these items we can work you up a really good deal. Really, I'd just love for you to remove them from my house.

Cheap Products I Love

I figured it was time to curl up with the laptop in my bed tonight since BJ is cozying up to Elementary Greek textbooks and homework right now. BJ and I have been looking for all sorts of ways to cut costs here and there. The cable went out the door first (well, technically we have cable channels 2-9 just because it's cheaper to do that and still get cable internet). Then it was our home phone. We now use Magic Jack and Google Voice, which is very cool by the way. We can give out one phone number and it will ring our land line at home, my cell phone, or BJ's cell phone. We never miss a call when we aren't at home. Unwanted callers can be blocked or directed directly (is that redundant?) to voicemail. Very cool!

And, BJ has me on a serious tight budget now. I'm not quite used to it yet. I've been a very lucky girl. I've pretty much purchased what I want when I want. I have the Sugar Daddy that I've always dreamed of. LOL. Honestly, though, I've always been a frugal gal and I enjoy the challenge of coming in under budget - sort of like one of those HGTV shows where they re-make an entire room for less than $1,000 (for me it's more like $20). We know we'll need to make some changes (more like a lot of them) on a preacher's salary so we are making preparations now.

I've been pleasantly surprised with some of the new products I've found that are quite a bit cheaper than what I had been using. I don't feel like I've sacrificed quality and that's always a nice perk when saving money. Without further ado, here's a list of my favorite "cheap" products:

Beauty Products:

1. Suave Rosemary Mint shampoo and conditioner. The scent has been perfect for the spring and summer months. It reminds me of a glass of iced mint tea. My hair is actually softer and more manageable after using these products than when I was using a more expensive brand ($2.87/ea at Walmart).

2. Softsoap Moisturizing Body Wash Juicy Pomegranate and Mango Infusions. I love the scent of this stuff! I seriously want to eat it when I use it in the shower. And it's very moisturizing. ($3 at Walmart).

3. St. Ives Apricot Scrub. Smells nice and makes my face shine! ($3.27 at Walmart).

4. Covergirl Clean Liquid Foundation. Perfect for summer. Light, but smooth, coverage. (Various prices but generally under $6).

5. Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion. This product works well, and even our dermatologist has recommended numerous Aveeno products for Griffin who has sensitive skin with eczema. (I think it was about $5.99 at Walmart).

Household Products:

1. Great Value Tranquil Lavender Laundry Detergent. This was quite a bit cheaper than Tide, I don't remember exactly how much but it was like $3-5 per box cheaper. I've used different things, such as All and Dreft, but I've always come back to Tide for it's cleaning performance. But this time I think I'll stick with Great Value since it seems to work just as well. The lavender scent is not too strong and does not linger - like Gain. (Price ?)

2. Clorox Clean-up with Bleach. I buy this stuff in the refill-sized jug to refill my spray bottle. I dilute it about 1 part Clorox Clean-up to 3-4 parts water. I like the smell of my bathrooms and kitchen when they've been cleaned with bleach. You can use this stuff on almost anything - a great one-size-fits-most cleaner. Nothing fresher or cleaner smelling! ($2.99 for 32 oz bottle; refill bottle cost more but a better value).

Now it's your turn to share with me your favorite "cheap" products. I'd love to hear!

Home Tour: Update

We enjoyed our tour today of the house for sale. It has a nice layout that flows well and would accommodate our family well. I totally forgot to take pictures while there, so here are some of the photos from the listing.


Here's a back view. It has lots of large original wood windows. We have a love-hate relationship with original wood windows. They are beautiful to look at, but not energy efficient.


You can see in this photo the massive windows with lots of wide trim and the beautiful hardwood flooring - but not so beautiful wallpaper. This was one of the bedrooms. All 5 bedrooms were upstairs along with 2 full baths...more on that in a minute.


The landscaping is pretty and mature. I took note of all the azaleas, crepe myrtles, and other ornamental indigenous shrubs.


The living room was quite large and attached to a sunroom. The sunroom attached to a sunporch. Lots of light!


The home did have a few drawbacks. The 2-car garage had been converted into a workshop in such a way that the entire structure would need to be demo'd if we ever wanted a working garage. But the workshop could serve as extra storage and/or painting studio (Yay for me!). The laundry room is in the dark, damp basement (Boo for me!). The closets are teeny tiny.

And then there are these...

Yes, that's pink tile and avocado green fixtures (Jen, those are all yours if we get the house).


The kitchen was last updated in the 70's. The 70's were good, partially because I arrived on earth in '76, but the 70's were not good to kitchen designers. Luckily the kitchen has tons of potential with plenty of space for a renovation.

On a positive note, the home was very well kept despite the lack of updating. It didn't appear to need many repairs. And the backyard was level and a nice size. There was a separate gazebo/outdoor dining area that would be very awesome for Summertime dinners and having friends and family over.

Home Tour

Tomorrow we are going to take a look at this house that's for sale. From the description it sounds like a good fit for our family (5 bedrooms and 2.5 baths in a smaller and older version of what we already have). I'll take some photos during the tour and update soon about what we discover, which hopefully won't include a colony of bats - flashback from another old house we once owned!