Thankful

It is Thanksgiving week, and this year Daniel and I have so much to be thankful for. Honestly, every Thanksgiving we have many blessings to celebrate, but this past year we have been overwhelmed with God's provision and an outpouring of love from family and friends. In the spirit of gratefulness, let me give you a tour of our new home!

Our library/office. I am thankful for a fully functional

fireplace, as well as for the opportunity Daniel has to 

work from home 4 days every week. And yes, that is

a classic Wolverine poster on the mantle :)

I am thankful for my rocking chair, given to me by my

father in law. He received it as payment for allowing

a local Amish woodworker to use some of the wood on

his land. My rocker is made of hickory straight from

his backyard, and it is my favorite piece of furniture!

I am thankful for bright windows, my afghan that my

Grandma Heotzler made, and for an old brown couch that 

has been in the family for generations.

I am thankful for those who gave us furniture - we

have truly been blessed with generous friends!

Thankful for a kitchen with beautiful wood cupboards,

a stove that heats evenly and the luxury of a dishwasher!

Please note the chic plywood countertops as well :)

Thankful for a refrigerator that doesn't make awful

noises in the middle of the night!

Thankful for a soft mattress, warm blankets and

blackout curtains in our bedroom.

Thankful for the curtains on the doorways as well

as my mother in law's hard work trying to get the old doors

stripped and sanded. It's going to take a while, but they

will be beautiful!

I am thankful that we had an extra bed and mattress 

(given to us!) so that my parents could sleep on 

something better than an air mattress when they came

to visit. 

I am thankful for a huge bathroom and a shower that

drains properly. Compared to our apartment bathroom,

this is a suite!

Thankful for my finally unpacked books (the rest

 are in the library). Apologies to everyone who had 

to carry those boxes. 

Thankful for a wonderful view every morning!

We've also been able to get a few "house-ish" things done as well. No big projects, but we're making some progress.

I stained and sealed the porches on an 

unusually warm November day. It came out

more blue than it should have, but at least they

are sealed against the winter weather.

I'll be repainting these a darker shade of grey once

spring rolls around.

Doors! We had to buy some new doors for the house -

not all of the old ones were usable. These two, once the

stain and polyurethane dry, will go on Dan's office. Mom

in law has been working on these, and they look great!

Despite the chaos of moving and unpacking, we have managed to have some fun. Every November we celebrate the birthdays of our "November Boys" - Daniel and two of his friends, Bryan and Aaron. We dubbed the big celebration Operation Trifecta. Tradition dictates that presents must be wrapped in girly wrapping paper, birthday cards must be silly and fun must abound. For the first time, we had a party in our home!

We truly have been blessed - a new house, working from home, furniture, a fuzzy kitten, a real backyard, wonderful neighbors... the list could go on for pages and pages. Thank you to all of you who have helped us with the move and with fixing the house. We are forever in your debt!

Though the big projects are done for this year, we'll be working on the inside of the house during the winter. We have trim to put up, baseboards to cut, windows to frame in and doors to finish. We will be sure to post more once we start!

Happiest of Thanksgivings to all of you! May your turkey be moist and your pies sweet :)