It's beginning to look a lot like home now...

Step 1 of attic: stripping layers of wallpaper

Sailboats under the white paper

behind this plaster area lies an original window and the new roof to the addition Mrs. Womack added. We will cut a new door and finish out the attic for the boy's new walk-in closet.

What a mess!!! Layers of dust and paper cover the room on Nick's side.

 

A view of the awful mess on the hardwoods near our bedroom.

The attic after first layer was stripped away.

See the painted-on foot prints tracked on the hardwoods in the playroom? :(

A new layer of wallpaper reveals....ballerinas!

Who's gonna clean this mess?

My trusty helpers Alex...

Adrian....

and Nick.

These hardwood photos keep sneaking in. This is the condition of the hall outside our bedroom. So sad.

I doubt this is how we buff the floor honey.

Even Ash gets a job putting Adrian's bed back together.

boy's future loft hang out

Welcome to the jungle. My OCD killed me when we were living like this. 

More chaos.

It's finally coming together.

The living room is nice and cozy now.

More photos to come soon!

Hardwoods revealed

Thank goodness Jarred was feeling better today. While I worked at daycare, he and Nick pulled up the remaining blue shag carpet from the house. I got to come in to the hardwoods revealed.

The living room floors are in pretty decent shape. A few patches faded or stained here and there but overall not too shabby.

It appears that before the carpet was laid, paint was dropped onto the hardwoods...and tracked from room to room... without a care.

The playroom has tracks all over it.

So does the master bedroom. 

On the plus side though, I kind of developed a weird liking for the task of pulling up all the carpet staples. I'm a bit OCD and for me, the satisfaction of seizing each little nail and wrenching it from the flooring is akin to the obsession I feel when peeling a sunburn....all of it must go and I cannot stop until it's done! Told you it is a little weird. :)

Now onto the dining room. Two layers of linoleum are hiding some worn hardwoods. Maybe someday soon we can get this stuff outta here.

My grandparents used to have this same red brick linoleum. I could live with it better if A) a huge chunk weren't missing B) it matched the adjoining room and C) it was pretty.

The breezeway presents a slight issue as there is still a leak somewhere despite a new roof. Lots of ceiling tiles are falling out. At least we got the nasty indoor/outdoor carpet up off the concrete floor tonight. 

A pile of dirt and insulation tumbled out of the ceiling. We can't fix this room until the leak is no more.

My side by side refridgerator found a home, thanks to my husband and some very nice moving men. It was a tight squeeze all around, from having to remove the breezeway door to taking the baseboard off the kitchen floor just to be able to tightly fit it in it's new home. Poor Jarred--we realized that we hadn't put the drawers in until it was too late and the fridge was already packed in. Since there is a wall beside the door, it wouldn't open all the way. Not sure how Jarred did it but he got all the parts back inside without once yelling, crying, or kicking something. Or having to pull it back out again. Bravo, bravo! :)

Well, it's been a long day as the last week has been. Tomorrow starts a new long day. it's almost 3 am and I'm zonked. 

Catch my ramblings another time,

Lynn

Step 2: cleaning and clearing new house

Shelving and fireplace cleaned; baseboards to be washed; leaving this wallpaper alone for now. The fireplace, once cleaned and checked, will be delightful in the winter. I am so excited to live (again) in an older home with a beautiful fireplace.

My cleaning supplies; kitchen is very musty smelling. I am armed and dangerous. Will someday repaint cabinets, doors, and trim work. Can't stand the linoleum so I hope to pull it out asap. Would like to have new cabinet handles eventually or paint them. Curtains must go. Kitchen is tiny but there is a good sized dining room on the other wall and a breezeway from back door leading to garage.

Dining room cleaned and ready. We're keeping the eight-person table. Wallpaper is ok for now but will change it someday. My big dislike is the flooring. There are two layers of linoleum on here that are peeled back in a huge chunk by the kitchen door. There are hardwoods under it all so we hope to strip it off and expose the wood. I hope to get some different dining chairs one day as these are not very comfy. We currently have a decorative fireplace in our living room that will look wonderful in this dining room. We have never had room for a china cabinet until now but we are looking into getting one.

Before the new roof was put on there was a leak and water damage to a few rooms. This breezeway going into kitchen from garage will need new ceiling tiles, new flooring, and new walls. The cabinet on the end will become a pantry and this will become a mudroom with shelving and coat hooks.

Still stripping off the old wallpaper from the attic stairwell and we like the wood walls beneath. Cleaned, shined, with new lighting, and this will look wonderful.

Jarred pulled a muscle chucking the attic carpet out the attic window. 

Mine and Ashleigh's bath. Again, paint is needed on the cabinets. The wallpaper is peeling badly in here so I might be able to get it done over the weekend and paint before moving in. Going with a bright, happy color palette as this bathroom adjoins the playroom (which will be bright hues and polka dots). Washer and dryer hook up are in here but will be changed back to basement.

Getting all the excess furniture out of attic rooms today. This area must be stripped of wallpaper and repainted first due to allergies/asthma the boys have.

Stripping the nasty wallpaper off reveals beautiful wooden walls. We will leave these exposed, cleaned, and sealed.

Nick's side of the attic room minus carpet. 

Not only will this be Adrian's bedroom but we have enough space to put the boy's futon, a coffee table, and TV area up here for a teen crash area between their rooms!

The "Elvis bath" gets a cleaning. Toilets were NASTY! Jarred cleaned them so I wouldn't gag from the layer of SLIME built up in them. Gross! I have no idea how to make this room look masculine until the wallpaper comes out, but it won't get done right away. We must work around the black toilet, red shower, and gilded ornate gold medicine cabinet which is bolted to wall. lol

Another view of the boy's attic space. Under the eaves of the house on Nick's side is an entire room the size of his. Jarred has plans to turn it into a huge walk-in closet/storage area. It is very exciting to see the potential here. :)

I'll add basement photos another day. The basement is unfinished. It has half cement-half dirt floors. Our washer and dryer will go in it. We also plan to add a wood stove for heating and cooking during storms/power outages. Eventually some of the leftover previous owner's furniture will go down there along with a rug remnant, to at least give it a cozier feel and to provide seating in our storm shelter. Our dogs, Callie Roo and Oreo "Cookie" plan to sleep in the basement every night. That's what they told us anyway. ;)

Well, it's lunch time and time to head back to the new house to work. 

Blessings,

Lynn

No place like home has a NEW home!

  Some of you have kept up with my family blog in the past, and you know how my husband battled with some life or death illnesses, and eventually lost his job from the missed work time. You know that I had to give up homeschooling and returned to work and college, and that I am now finishing up my ECE degree from Western Governors University (visit my teaching/daycare blog at www.Iteach16kids.blogspot.com). You may also know that in addition to my Bachelor's degree courses I have already taken one course on running a preschool from home and am now taking an additional course on starting a preschool at home (I want to have plenty of job options upon graduation so I can repay those big ole student loans!). Some of you know that in the midst of all this we have been looking for a more affordable home, and we looked and looked and looked. We found a few we loved that were too pricey or ended up having structural damages, and it was heart-breaking. But the first house we looked at ended up being the one we got. Life's kinda funny that way.

  So these long-time country dwellers are moving back into the big city (hah!) of "McVegas" as we call it here in jest. The street we're moving to is actually very quiet considering it's basically in the heart of downtown. We will be within walking distance of all our town's main street events, and I love that.

  I always told people I wanted to live in a two-story home and I'd like to remodel an older home. Well, be careful what you wish for! ;) Our new house on Highland Drive, aka the Blue Cottage (if I had a home preschool one day wouldn't that be a cute name for my small business--"The Blue Cottage Preschool"?) fits that bill. It is a 1940's cottage style home with a solid, sound structure, new windows, new roof, new water heater, new wiring...just needs a LOT of cosmetic updating. It's an answered prayer as we needed a budget-friendly home that was good and solid and this is it.

Here are more "before" photos of our home. It was once occupied by a school teacher from Warren county, a Mrs. Womack. As she is elderly and in assisted living, much of her old furniture remains to be cleared away. That is step 1. 

back side of the house

Ashleigh's room

dining room

the "Elvis bathroom" (guy's bathroom)

entry way

blue bathroom (girl's bath)

blue bath

living room (looking into master bedroom and attic rooms)

living room view 2

master bedroom

Nick's attic room

future playroom

another view of playroom

recessed shelf in playroom

entry way

breeze way (future mudroom)

Jarred's future work room/office

another view of Jarred's workroom

Step 2 is massive cleaning, because of the mold and dust accumulated from the home sitting locked and vacant for a couple of years. Step 3 is removing the blue carpeting/kitchen linoleum to reveal the hardwoods that are underneath. Step 4 is to try to strip the wallpaper from the rooms where it is already peeled or falling, and to try to paint those rooms for now. Step 5 is to move in by next week! Whew! Steps 6-1000 are to work on a room at a time, stripping wallpaper, painting, laying new flooring in breezeway and entry way, updating and just generally making this house our home. This will take some time and money. I am slightly short on both at present. :) I told my family I feel as if I just enrolled in the "Room-of-the-month Club". Ha ha. My mother in law shared her wisdom with me yesterday in the form of a saying. "Lynn", she said, "how do you eat an elephant?" (pause for dramatic effect). The she answers her own question with "one bite at a time." So there you have it from Meme's own mouth-- this will indeed go on for a very long time.  But all in all, we are EXCITED! We've had the chance to view a lot of updated homes in our search for a house and we can see the potential this house holds to be beautiful. Jarred fell in love with it the first time he saw it. And as we are both big history buffs and love old things, I think this house is a perfect fit for us. So as I have time I'll continue to add photos of our progress, and I hope you'll check back often.

Blessings,

Lynn

Blog revamp underway and Honey-Mud facial recipe

I haven't posted to this blog in quite a while. I've taken a "season" in life off as a homeschooling mom to return to the working world. What a change the last two years has brought! I began trying to clean homes and continue to homeschool when my husband became ill, but wasn't able to bear the load and meet the children's educational needs as I liked, so they went to public school and I began a search for a new job.

 I spent some time as a SPED teaching assistant, or parapro, at the local high school where my son had begun attending, but I really always felt drawn to younger children, so when an opportunity to work in a preschool classroom at a local daycare opened up, I went for it.  I have been at Smarty Pants Learning Center for just over a year now. Although I spent over 6 months as a teacher in the pre-k 4's and 5's, I recently opted to return to being an aide in the 2's and 3's to give me more free time to do my homework ( I also went back to college online through Western Governor's University where I am finishing my ECE degree).

When I graduate I'll be able to teach in a public or private school or preschool/Headstart, or open my own childcare or preschool. I am hoping and praying that it works out for me to start a small in-home preschool program.

You can read more about my preschool adventures on my other blog, www.Iteach16kids.blogspot.com

I  also would like to find time to resume my crafting one day. I enjoyed making and teaching hand-made crafts such as bottlecap and glass jewelry, and homemade soaps and other beauty products. I miss my two Etsy stores! I hope to continue to post ideas on beauty blog at www.SugarSweetBathShoppe.blogspot.com

While this blog will no longer be about homeschooling, it will still feature ideas of interest to those who believe that faith and family come first in life. I hope to add ideas for things to do to make life easier for working moms, fun ideas to spruce up the home for less, and ideas and tips I run across.

Today's tip (which really might be more appropriate over at my beauty blog) is taken from a mixture of wonderful homemade facial recipes I found online and at www.Pinterest.com.

 "Honey, is that MUD on your face?" Honey-Mud Facial

(I keep my facial "base" in a pint canning jar, labeled DO NOT EAT. I have not tested the shelf life of this homemade product and make no claims; use it at your own risk. I picked ingredients that are fairly easy to find and good for your body).

3/4-1 full box baking soda
1 TBS. vanilla extract (optional, but smells so yummy!)
2 TBS. ground oatmeal
15 crushed aspirin
1 small honey bear bottle, all of it
2-3 crushed vitamin E caps (optional) or 1/2 tsp. olive oil or coconut oil (optional)

Mix these ingredients in a large bowl. It should come out like wet, loose cookie dough. You can add more oatmeal or baking soda to thicken, or a little more oil or honey to loosen the base. Keep this base stored in airtight container.

To use, mix a TBS. of base in a bowl with 1 tsp. of sour cream or yogurt and 1/2 tsp. lemon juice. Smooth over cleansed face and let sit for 20-30 minutes. Rinse off with lukewarm water and pat face dry.

My skin feels really smooth after I use this. It can be used 2-3 times a week. I have normal skin with an oily zone with large pores that clog easily, so the aspirin and honey and yogurt are all excellent for these types of problems. Feel free to experiment and see what kind of facials/scrubs your pantry will yield. The only problem I have when using this mask is it makes me crave oatmeal cookies. :)

***BONUS TIPS***

Another tip I saw recently online (can't recall where) is to put a thin layer of mint toothpaste over clogged pores/blackheads and let dry for about 5-10 minutes. Then simply rinse off.  I tried this this morning during my shower and let me say, it did tingle considerably. I wouldn't try this if my skin were sensitive. But it sure did seem to feel as if it were cleaning my pores and they looked a little smaller afterwards.

Mole removal- I have always been prone to moles; unfortunately I have a few on my face that are very unflattering. I have been looking into using Dermatend and Wart & Mole Vanish but the price keeps me from ordering. I was looking for safe remedies online and it seems many people have great success with using Tea Tree Oil to remove moles. I happen to keep a bottle of the stuff in my medicine cabinet for fever blisters and minor cuts and scrapes. I also add a bit to my shampoo bottles to keep lice away ( another teacher pal shared this tip with me). I get mine at Walmart for about $7 a bottle and it lasts. The smell can be offensive to some but I have gotten to where I actually kind of like it. According to various websites, you simply apply tea tree oil twice a day to the offensive mole and with a few weeks and patience, the mole is supposed to just sort of fall off. I'll post again if I see progress with this. The mole I have is about the size of a pencil eraser and I can't wait to be rid of it, one way or another.

Blessings,
Lynn