Just comin' along...

House update:



After a week of patching drywall, mudding, sanding, texturing, and painting the entire ceiling downstairs, I am proud to say that ONE thing is now checked off the list as being COMPLETE.  The ceiling is done 100%.  That's progress and I'm pleased.  However, this process has caused me to finally throw in the towel and not spend my time here...due to the drywall dust in the air and on EVERY surface possible, I decided to take Shan up on her offer to sleep in her guest room.  What a great decision...and one I should have made weeks before!  I'm so thankful to have a good friend so close that looks past my stubbornness and loves me anyway.  I have enjoyed good nights' sleep with the cool breeze coming through the window and my lungs and nose are finally clearing up.   It was sad to see my flooring be taken out...but I'm super happy I'll get to visit it in Kristi and Gary's office!

Part of the ward crew I was
blessed with...helping me choose
flooring!

You can't see all the dust in
the air...but it was there!

Yesterday was our stake's Day of Service activities.  My ward chose ME as one of the projects that needed help with and I was certainly grateful for it.  I ended up with over 20 young women and ladies in my home scrubbing the thick layer of drywall dust from every surface downstairs and the thinner layer upstairs as well as helped clear out my laundry room shelves.  I've never had so many people in my home at once before!  It was amazing and even though I have no flooring and the walls are covered in texture and ceiling paint, it finally felt CLEAN.  No longer to I have my fingers covered in white every time I touch something.  Later on I borrowed Shan's great vaccuum (I don't own one) and got the carpets upstairs and the stairs done.  It was pretty gross.  I've had the windows open all night and day and the dust seems to be clearing out of the air.  Tomorrow and Tuesday should be painting days (sleeping away again) and then I'm crossing my fingers that the cabinets arrive on Thursday and that my contractor will begin installing them.  I'm soooo excited to see them put in.  Then the floor will be put in and baseboards and I'll be on my way to normalcy.  I'm waiting to decide on countertops and the red for my accent wall until all that's done.

I'm kind of surprised at how calm I've been during all this.  This was not the case during the first week, but since then, I've been pretty OK about it.  I'm just taking it a day at at time.  It doesn't help that my stress level at work rose during that first month as well.  But, I'm trying to do all I'm supposed to in order to receive the blessing of peace and patience.  I can tell I'm being blessed and have witnessed several tender mercies throughout the process. 

Friday night we celebrated Sarah's birthday (oldest niece...23).  She's 7 months pregnant and is soooo cute!  I can't wait to see her as a mom to this little guy...I call him Sylvester.  Also, Katie (17) got her senior pictures done - she's beautiful!!!!  Kristi and Gary have "done good."