Wild Hare Daze

Sunny Thoughts for a Happy Heart

I got some bitter news of possible rough seas ahead at work this morning. Then a fire forced us to evacuate the building. However, I've decided that I don't have enough emotional energy to dwell on the negative right now. I've been making a concerted effort to try to do and be a bit better every day and it has done unbelievable things to my personal, inner feelings of peace and worth. It's worth too much to me to be frittered away by succumbing to thoughts of possible doom and gloom.

Instead, I am making an effort to be grateful for the blessings I have today and to be positive about where I am.  Instead of being irritated by the disruption of the fire, I am relishing the chance to enjoy a lovely bit of the afternoon outside. Instead of worrying about my job, I am choosing to celebrate even the small achievements of each day. Instead of dwelling on gloomy thoughts, I'm sharing happy ones.

So, without further ado, here is a little bit of sweetness for today. It made me happy and I thought I'd share with you.

First of all, these words:

"We are in a period of stress across the world. There are occasionally hard days for each of us. Do not despair. Do not give up. Look for the sunlight through the clouds. Opportunities will eventually open to you. Do not let the prophets of gloom endanger your possibilities."
-Gordon B. Hinkley

And this happy music:

House and Home

This time in my life is such a strange one, as the seasons are changing, my children are growing, my job is evolving and my home is shifting. Sometimes it feels like a stop motion film, where there are jumps and subtle gaps and things seem to move simultaneously slower and faster than you would think that they ought.

At the moment, our new house is progressing toward livability and inching toward being a home. It’s funny that we have been distinguishing between our two current places as “The House” and “Home.” But as she becomes more our own, those lines of “house” and “home” are becoming blurred. The kids have made fast friends with the neighbors and often beg to go over to the house. Aiden begged for us all to just stay over in sleeping bags. The other night, at the end of a very long day, I walked into the kitchen and went to set a handful of things on a table I had seen there in my mind so many times but had not yet been moved in.

As I wander through the rooms of our new place and drift in the neglected garden, I find myself dreaming about the things I want to do and wondering what it will really feel like when “The House” finally becomes our one and only “Home.” What will the dynamic be like? How will it feel on cozy winter nights and warm summer mornings? What will it be like when it is filled with friends and family we love? What little quirks will I grow to love and which ones will drive me nuts? Will the love I feel for the new house ever be enough to make it OK to leave the other house behind?

As thrilled as I am to finally own a house of my own, I’ve had to force myself not to think too much about leaving our beloved Eaglefield behind. It’s too painful and I’m not ready to face it yet. This lovely little nest on the brow of the hill has been so good to us for the past 6 years. I love the space and light it gives. I love the views of the ocean and trees and canyons. I love watching the birds fly eastward up the canyon or circling in the drafts over the house. I love living with good friends who became dear ones. I loved being able to take in those who needed a safe place to stay when things got a bit rough. I love that this is where I brought my daughter home when she was born and that it is the only home my children remember. I love standing until the wee hours of the morning in the kitchen chatting about things both trivial and life changing. I love seeing the foxes and the deer and the skunks come pay their calls. I love leaning on the railing of the deck and watching the sun set behind the hills and the sea. I love so very much about this place that, despite its down sides, it will be very hard to say goodbye. Will the next people who live here be able to feel the many years of love in these walls?

I have the comfort of knowing that this is the right decision at the right time. I also have the chance to say a lingering goodbye and an extended hello. Eaglefield is saying goodbye in her own way. Lights bulbs are burning out here and there. The water heater went out a couple of days ago. The nest over our door that sheltered several generations of avian families and watch over our human one was found lying on the door mat. At the same time, our new house is blossoming under our attentions. She glows with fresh paint and new floors through most of the rooms. Shower curtains were hung and baths were happily taken by the kids. Recently pruned roses have rewarded me with new blooms. Hummingbirds zoom close by and honey bees buzz happily in the bushes. And so, for a brief time, it seems that I’ll get to savor the joy of two homes before stepping fully into a new season of life.

Gorgeous Grosgrain Gown Giveaway

I was poking around Blogland and found this breathtakingly generous giveaway over at Grosgrain. Kathleen Dougherty makes amazing costumes and children's clothes that she gives away on her blog. Having made a number of costumes in my time, I can't imagine how she can bear to part with some of her creations

She has made an amazing child's Marie Antoinette inspired gown and is giving it away. It is made from Isabelle's favorite colors - pink & blue. I keep picturing what she would look like and the stunning photoshoots we could have with a gown like that. All Kathleen asks is that people who want to enter to win it post a link on their blog. I never win anything, but this confection is too lovely to pass the chance to enter. So here's the link: Marie-Therese Gown Giveaway

Go take a look at the gown and take the time to browse through the lovely things she makes. It's worth it.

No Place Like Home

Well, it's official. The new start I mentioned in a previous post finally happened and Tim and I are now new home owners!!! In 33 days, we went from being given two months' notice on the house we had been renting to owning a home. It all happened so fast, that it seems surreal.

I am very happy with our new home. She needs a little elbow grease and "sweat equity" to make her truly blossom, but I think our family will be very happy. She comes with 1/2 an acre of level, cleared land (which isn't easy to come by in this area) in a charming rural neighborhood. There are several fruit trees and an abundance of rose bushes, plus lots of other garden touches the just need some pruning and attention.

We got the keys on Friday afternoon and worked with my in-laws until after midnight to get walls washed and ready to paint. It was long, arduous work that was made worse by the fact that previous owners had dogs that used every door jamb corner in the house to repeatedly mark their territory. It was on the walls and soaked into the carpets, making the house smell terrible. We found out from neighbors that stopped by to introduce themselves that the last owners kept pygmy goats, in addition to breeding beagles. Apparently, they sometimes left the doors open and the goat would come in the house. Now, I'm not saying that goats and dogs can't be clean and wonderful pets, but judging from the smell of the house, a clean and sanitary living environment wasn't a high priority. Yuck!Fortunately the hours we spent cleaning walls paid off and things smell better.

On Saturday, Barrett, Tasha and Tasha's mother came over to help. We spackled, sanded and taped all day long, just to get to the point where we could prime the walls. The 2 teen-aged boys used about 1,001 staples and tacks in their walls. frequently opting for a staple gun as their weapon of choice. Someone also was content with painting over large dollops of spackle without sanding it down, or leaving massive, gloppy drips of paint to dry on the walls. We also taped off miles of trim and ceilings. At times, I thought the prep work would never end. Fortunately, we were able to get it all ready and my father-in-law sprayed the whole house with clean, white primer. The difference was remarkable and things smelled even better. 

Eventually, we were able to break out the long awaited paint. It was so gratifying to see it going on the walls. Tim and I spent hours going over our choices and thought we picked good colors, but there are always those moments where you hold your breath and aren't sure. Once the colors were on the walls, and had a chance to dry a bit, we were delighted. The front room is a warm, rich, sandy brown. We painted the ceiling in that room a warm, off-white. Tim wasn't sure about it at first, but once the wall color went on, the room was transformed. It's so welcoming and we can't wait to see it all finished. The hall and master bedroom are a fantastic color that is grey, green and taupe all at the same time. It blends well with the front room and I'm so proud that we were able to pick colors that worked so well together. We're not going to paint the kitchen or bathrooms right now. We decided to tackle other rooms that needed it more, first. We still have 2 rooms left to paint and then we can start ripping out the nasty 1970's era brown textured carpet. I think once that's out, we'll be rid of any lingering doggy/goat smells.

We let the kids pick the colors for their own rooms. Isabelle picked the loveliest pale chiffon pink and was so happy that it matches her sheets. She insists that she want blue accents, too, so we'll have to see how we can work that in for her. She was disappointed that we weren't able to get hers painted this weekend, but we had some problems with the poor job of the existing paint and needed to do some extra work. Aiden was all about intense color. He always went for the darkest and most vibrant color on any swatch, so we tried to steer him a bit lighter, so that the room was not overwhelmed. As it is, he ended up picking a bright blue that really pops. It's probably brighter that Tim and I would have gone for, but Aiden really liked it. He was happy that his room was the first to get painted and kept checking in to see how it was going.

 We've got a long road ahead of us, but it's exciting to be able to do this work on a house of our own. We have lots of dreams and projects to make this slightly run down house into a lovely home. With lots of elbow grease and a ton of help from friends and family, I think we're going to be able to make a lot of those dreams come true.