Home, Sweet Home

We bought our first house in June 2011, just two short months before we got married…looking back I don’t know why we did that to ourselves!  Wedding planning was a stressful enough, but then adding house hunting and the buying process—what were we thinking??

 To make a long story short, we ended up with a beautiful home.  Correction, we ended up with a beautiful home that just might be a lemon.  We bought a property that had been on the market for just about two years.  We got an INCREDIBLE deal thanks to my husband who negotiated the whole thing with some support/resourcing from our families.  It’s way more space than we need right now, but the house has been wonderful to host showers and parties and allows for my family to visit. 

 

However, in the last year we’ve had an AC unit with broken condensation pipe leading to leakage through our ceiling twice, a leak from our roof, a shower that has to be gutted because it was installed incorrectly and most recently a broken furnace that turns out to be a fire hazard because of incorrect installation.  We are in the midst of the last two issues and they are going to require some major work.  In addition to all the problems, we have done considerable yard work, added gutters and have a never-ending list of projects.  We are definitely learning a lot about maintenance and home ownership and I’m pretty sure Hubbs has the home warranty number memorized.

 I could go on and on about these issues, the financial drain and stress that they are causing, but I choose in this situation to trust that God is in control and He will provide, in His way and in His time.  We have so much to be thankful for: the fact we have a roof over our heads, our health, our jobs, great family and friends and each other.  This is not to say I don’t have my moments of freaking out and pure panic about what we will discover next, but I am choosing (sometimes it’s a daily reminder) to let this experience grow our relationship and grow our dependence instead of acting as a barrier.  In the end, it’s only money, and you can’t take it with you.  Amen? Amen.

 

All that aside, I LOVE having a house.  More importantly, I have loved making our house a home.  I love having a space that is ours, a place that we can decorate to show our personalities, a place of comfort and a place to welcome others.  There are so many spots in our house that have “my” touch.  I’ve been able to develop my style and taste and am so proud of what I’ve done thus far.  There are many works in progress going on at all times, but look for some house updates soon!