The Saturday Six

One.

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I really really {really} love Shauna Niequist's writing. Planning to tell you more next week about how her book Bread and Wine inspired one of my scrapbook projects. Anyway. She just turned 37 {which makes me feel like she should want to be my friend since we're practically the same age} {as if that is a friendship requirement} and she wrote this blog post which I loved.

Two.

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Speaking of blog posts. If you missed this post of Lynne's on the Mid-Morning blog, you really need to read it. I love her love story. More than her love story, I love her marriage redemption story. And I adore, adore, adore, how she recognizes the gift her marriage is and she celebrates it every. single. day.

Three.

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Blogger Mandy finally had her baby - and he weighed TEN POUNDS. I hurt just reading it. I am always intrigued by blogging birth stories - mostly because I used to be obsessed with the TV show "A Baby Story" - and I've been to 4 childbirths. But her birth story takes the cake. Read it here - part 1 and part 2.

Four.

My mother-in-law gave us this little sign for our kitchen. It needs no further explanation. :)

Five.

I just finished reading this book by Anne Graham Lotz. I adore her writing. She knows Scripture so well and her writing always moves me. This one is painfully vulnerable from her perspective, but if you've ever been hurt by people who claim to love Jesus {and actually probably really do love Jesus!} check out her insights on being wounded by God's people. It both convicted and comforted me.  

Six.

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In light of the post I wrote yesterday...I found this post by Holley Gerth to be another reminder of how God's plans for each person are so different. And how we really do not live a formula - even when we want to.  

Still No Formulas

When Ryan and I were engaged, I wrote this blog post - about formulas, because we had some pretty strong questions asked/opinions shared about the speed of our relationship. I still stand by everything I said in that post - and it's just TRUE. Life doesn't go by formulas.

Ironically...after being scolded for getting married too quickly, we now find ourselves the recipients of the question. You already know it, don't you? "When are you going to start having babies?" It makes me giggle. We got married TOO fast and aren't having babies fast ENOUGH.

I wasn't even going to address this whole thing on the blog, but last week, I read this fabulous post by Tayler Beede. It was comforting to know we're not the only ones in this boat.

Just like there isn't a formula for how long people should know each other before they date...or date before they become engaged...or remain engaged before they get married...there isn't a formula for how long people should be married before they have babies...or any shame in NOT having babies at all.

Some thoughts:

* Bottom line: it's nobody's business - when or where or why or how. Lynne and I talk occasionally about how the onslaught of social media seems to have given "permission" to people to ask any question or say any comment to absolutely anyone out there. I say "permission" because...it's not real permission. Just because you can't see the person over the Twitter feed or Facebook page or blog post - doesn't mean you have the freedom to badger them with questions or opinions. And I admit to being one who has been tempted {SO MANY TIMES} to make a snarky comment to someone on a blog because I know I can comment anonymously. I'll vent and feel better - they'll be hurt by my comment , which is what I secretly want anyway - and no one is the wiser. Except God. And my conscience, which would proceed to eat me alive. So just because you CAN ask or comment doesn't mean you SHOULD. {And I say that largely to myself.}

* Don't assume that because a couple isn't pregnant...they aren't trying. Also do not assume that they are. My mother would crawl under the table in mortification if she knew how many times my friends and I have had conversations about trying and succeeding and cycles and charts and temps and such. Back in the day, people didn't talk about that kind of stuff. Today, I can offer you that information about women I don't even know in real life, but I've read all about it on their blogs! People talk about it all the time now and many of my friends are no exception. But for those who don't talk about it - there's a reason. What is the reason? Refer to the previous paragraph.  Maybe they're trying and it's not working and if you ask, they feel worse. Maybe they're not trying and it IS working and if you ask, they feel judged.

* When you say things like "You guys would have the cutest babies!!" or "You look awfully good holding that baby..." we know what you're getting at. I went to visit my friend Jeri and her new baby last week and I was ACHING to hold that sweet little thing. In fact, when I'd been there an hour and still hadn't had a chance to hold the baby, I kind of started to panic that I wouldn't get a chance! But just because I wanted to hold her and smell her cute newborn smell {the clean diaper kind} - and just because we looked sort of adorable together...me in my yellow dress and Ellie in her zebra stripe dress...didn't mean I wanted to have my own. It just meant I wanted to hold a baby. And then I wanted to give her back to her mom and go home and cook dinner for my husband.

* God has His timing. While I'm not going to specifically address the future of Shafferland at this time, I will say this. I waited 34 years to find a husband. I ached and prayed and cried and hurt and wondered if I'd ever get the chance to love and be loved in return. And for the last year, I've enjoyed the company of Ryan. For the last 10 months, I've known for certain that he was the one I would marry. And for the last 8 months, I've had the privilege to be his wife.

I love this life.

I love waking up with arms around me. I love packing lunches for two. I love snuggling up next to him for morning devos and prayer. I love hearing my phone ring as I commute and knowing he wants to talk to me even though he just saw me. I love texts coming to my phone throughout the day that say things like "I love you" and "I miss you today." I love coming home to cook dinner for him. I love planning menus for us. I love grocery shopping together. I love folding twice the amount of laundry I used to. I love using the phrase "my husband..." I love feeling my wedding ring press against my finger. I love planning dates for him. I love being surprised by dates BY him. I love naps in the hammock. I love scrapbooking our memories. I love getting all cute for a weekly date night. I love dreaming about trips with him.

I've waited my entire life for THIS. This is what I prayed to experience. This is what I longed to received. I'm so content with this life. THIS is what God has called me to and my world is not in any way incomplete. I don't feel cheated or left out of the deepest possible kind of love because I'm not a mom.

If you'd asked me what I wanted out of life ten years ago, I would have given you a very formulaic answer that included 2.5 children and possibly a dog. But this is my now, after God has ripped away every formula. My story doesn't look like I thought it would and that's okay. It's better than okay, actually. My story doesn't look like yours and that's okay too. My timeline isn't yours. My dreams are not yours. His plan for me is not His plan for you.

And I say to that - isn't life grand that way? The way God works it all out?

He answers to no one about it.

And I Had No Idea

We're doing some August spring cleaning at work, and earlier this week, we received an email saying we would find a box of old pictures that we were welcome to pilfer through...and if we wanted any, we could have them.

The pictures ranged from about 1984 to around 2004...you know...until the digital age arrived. I decided to take a gander - more to giggle at emerging hairstyles than anything else. I mean...hello!! What were the late 80's and most of the 90's if not an adventure in Aqua Net??

So I sat in my chair, thumbing through photos of the guys...some before gray hair...some WITH hair...and the ladies with all manner of mom jeans, big glasses and bigger hair.

And then I hit this one:

I sat there and thought...boy this brings back memories. I remember going to a remote almost like this one once. Phil came to do the morning show on the road...yes, I remember.

Wait.

It was THIS one.

Wait.

That's ME!

Do you see me? If you guessed the girl in red and blue on the bottom right, you'd be dead WRONG. That was my friend who talked me into going in the first place.

If you guessed the girl on the bottom left with questionable clips in her hair, and skin as white as the coffee cup she's holding, then you'd be CORRECT. That nose is a dead giveaway every time.

It's true! The year was 2001 and I was working in Financial Aid at Indiana Wesleyan. While I was a fan of WBCL back then, Sarah was a diehard fan - listening nearly every moment of every day. She heard that the morning team would be doing a live show from the Wellness Center in Marion and she begged me to go with her.

I said, "But that's before work, and I don't believe in mornings!!!"

You can see who won that argument.

So I put on my white nurse hose and my Mary Jane shoes and my maternity looking jumper with the white shirt and clipped my hair and clutched the coffee I was still very new at learning to drink and sat there for the morning show.

I found it entirely interesting...how they did the whole thing. And I had NO idea that ten years later, I'd be on the other side of the mic, in a {thankfully} whole new wardrobe.

Still clutching coffee. Some things about mornings never change.

{Slightly More Than} A Three Hour Tour

So here's the thing.

A couple of weeks ago during our BLT show, we posed this question: What places across the US have you visited that you think everyone else should visit too?

One of our callers said she and her husband were making a point to visit all 92 counties in the state of Indiana.


You see where this is going, don't you?

PEOPLE!!!


Can you even imagine? The chance to go to every single county in the state and find those hidden little treasures that hide within it? The little sights that scream "PHOTO OPP!!!!" The coffee shops that need to be tried. The trails that need to be walked. The amazingly cool buildings that need to be seen. {And by seen, of course, I mean photographed.}

I know...I know. It's Indiana. It doesn't typically land on a top ten destination list. But there's stuff in this state. {There HAS to be!}

I was so excited about this idea that I started researching right away. Turns out some counties are tougher than others when it comes to uncovering hidden "attractions." Case in point: I searched for attractions in Blackford County and near the top of the list was the WIC Office. Now it's true I've not seen the building that houses it. Maybe it's really cool. But my gut says the Blackford County WIC Office is probably not an attraction.

And so I come to you.

Because many of you live in our fine state and IN some of these counties. And if you don't live there, you might know someone who does.

Obviously we can't hit everything in every county. It's going to take us long enough to get to all 92 counties! But I'd love to find unique, unusual, photo-worthy things in each county.

Here are some of my starting points:

* Coffee shops. I'd love to visit one in every single county

* Outdoor attractions. Parks, nature trails, stuff like that.

* Interesting statues, buildings, bridges, etc. More photo opps and stuff with a story.

Anything else you think we NEED to see in a county.

Here are the first four counties I'm working on: Blackford, Jay, Wells, Adams.

{And if you need to know some towns in those counties...here they are: Hartford City, Montpelier, Bryant, Portland, Bluffton, Markle, Ossian, Decatur, Monroe, Berne, Geneva.}

So all of you who live there...or know someone who does - tell me what we should go see! Leave me a comment or email me at readingrebekah at yahoo dot com.

Can't wait!!

Living Room Overhaul

You're probably wondering if we're about done overhauling. YES. WE. ARE. The dining room, living room, and hallway all flood together, so when we did the carpet replacement...we kind of reassembled each room as we went.

We really didn't do a ton to our living room - other than offer a heavy sigh of happiness when the hardwood floors were once again protected and we could drink our evening coffee without the worry that the mug would take a spill off the side table and shatter.

I just painted the living room two years ago, so we didn't have to mess with any paint - other than touching up a bit of the trim that had taken beatings from furniture here and there. So, without further ado...here are my pics!

Before:

 After:

* Carpet was the biggest change in this room. {As if Braeya's presence does not vouch for that.} It may not look like a huge change, but it was.
* We replaced the ceiling fan, which was ridiculously old. I had replaced the globes on the one that was up there...but we put in a more modern looking one and I love it.
* Replaced the curtains on the door and window with light tan ones that let in more light and look softer. We love them.
* I used my Christmas money to purchase a cabinet to put under the coat rack so we have something other than a basket to hold our hats, gloves, scarves, etc. Looks SO much better. I love that thing!
* Swapped out a lamp from our den {sort of a burlap/twine look} with the one in the living room just to keep the theme going.

Before:

 After:

 * I moved the little decorative balls out of a flat, rectangle basket into a different basket I already owned. And while it's hard to see here, I added a grapevine tree by the fireplace.
* We purchased a shelf to hang on the wall between the clock and the fireplace to hold my little candle holder I love so much. I love the way it brought presence between the clock and the fireplace.
* Took the 2 smaller picture frames that had been on the mantel and hung them on the wall with the two larger frames already there - just to finish up that space.
* You'll notice Braeya had to be in EVERY PICTURE.

Before:

 After:

 * This view didn't really change - except for the carpet. And the obvious start of football season.

Before:

 After:

 * And the main change here...the cool cabinet for our gloves and such.

Details

Words cannot adequately express how much I love this cabinet!! We just happened upon it, fell in love with it, and I was so happy I still had my Christmas money so we could get it. It is literally THE perfect solution to all the foyer clutter. {Since, you know, we have no foyer.}

* Like having four frames on this wall instead of two - and one day they'll all have pictures going the same direction. My OCD cannot handle it otherwise. :)

*The distressed shelf. I pointed out to Ryan that we ran around with a paint can fixing the blemishes on the trim and then spent money on a shelf that looked exactly like what we covered up. EXPLAIN THIS TO ME???

* I'll just say it. Those curtains in the before picture were a mistake from day one. I went shopping on an impulse to try to jump-start myself back into real life after Isaac left me and I bought them without ever liking them. BAD. BAD. MOVE. These are so much better. So. Much. Better.

* Hello, this century!!! And it kind of looks like an asterisk. That makes my writer's heart happy.

* Just so you can see....the carpet before:

*...and after...

Even though the changes weren't as radical in here...it feels polished. Finished.

Home.

Bathroom Overhaul

When I moved into this house after college,the main bathroom had soft pink walls, rose pink carpet, and came with the washer and dryer the previous owner left behind. In the time that passed between moving in and marrying Ryan, my Dad had done the first phase of renovation of this bathroom.

This took place back when Angela was my roommate and this was her bathroom. She chose a paint color called Oatmeal that I felt never fully covered the pink...Dad ripped out the pink carpet and laid a tan flooring...and ripped out a little half-wall that separated the toilet from the dryer. That in and of itself made a huge improvement to the place. But this year, we kicked it up another notch.

The main goal of this overhaul was to make this bathroom a bit more manly - since it is Ryan's bathroom. I cringe when I look at the before pictures and see what I asked him to move into when we got married. I'm sorry, Baby!!

Before:

After:

We changed....

* The paint color on the wall {no more pink undertones - YAY!}
* The medicine cabinet - updated it to this century. And no more flowers.
* Painted some color onto the vanity.
* Gave the counter top the same treatment we gave to the kitchen counters.
* New shower curtain {no more purple!}
* New rug...but you can't see that in the first picture

Before:

After:

We changed...

* Changed out the towel hook
* Removed the impractical decorative towel holder and added a practical {and cute} cabinet
* Again - the shower curtain and the paint.

Before:

After:

We changed...

* Hard to see it here, but we put up a new curtain at the window
* Painted the door
* Painted the ceiling and walls
* Changed the washer and dryer for a stackable one to open up the floor space. HUGE change.
* Added floor storage to match the cabinet above the toilet
* Different wall art {no more pink and purple!}
* Curtain to pull in front of the laundry area

Now for the details:

Ryan picked out almost everything in this bathroom - which I love, because it is, after all, his bathroom, and I wanted him to feel absolutely at home in there. We worked on it together, but I love it that he took the initiative in the choosing!

* The medicine cabinet still said "Sears Roebuck and Company" on the inside. Time to upgrade. We were limited in what we could choose because the light was INSIDE the old cabinet and to redo the lighting in there would have meant busting out all the tile and we didn't want to do that. So he chose a more modern version of the same cabinet. At least it's not all yellow-y. 

* And in the mirror, you can see the new, more manly shower curtain we found. Our tub has glass doors {which I HATE!} - so we cover them up with this curtain.

 * Ryan replaced the faucet {the good ole faux glass knob situation} with this more sleek version THAT I LOVE. We also did the counter top treatment to give it a granite look and painted two colors on the vanity just to spice it up. Since we bought the counter top paint for the kitchen, that overhaul in the bathroom had zero cost attached to it, and we used paint we already had for the vanity. We got the faucet on sale - so not a lot of cost attached to a really good change!

 * Ryan found this hook when he was cleaning out a drawer - someone gave it to me as a gift. It had a picture of a high heeled shoe in it, so we just covered that up with a picture of us {can't imagine why he didn't want to stick with the shoe!!} and he LOVES this hook!

 * After we visited Doug and Lynne's house back in July {the night before we were in the parade} - Ryan decided he wanted a cabinet similar to the one Lynne had in her house. The bathroom doesn't have a lot of storage and we don't have a linen closet or anything, so we have to be creative. He found this cabinet and loved it, so it went above the toilet in place of the non-functional decoration that had been there.

* Also at Lynne's, he found the idea of using glass jars to hold supplies like Q-Tips and Kleenex, so we found a couple of nice square jars for 50 cents each at Goodwill! Added a photo of him skydiving last summer - in a frame I already had - and the cabinet was done!!

 * Well. Almost. On top of it we added a picture of us last fall at the Colts game {another frame I already owned} and he found this little lawn ornament Colts football that he LOVED, so I told him he should get it to complete the shelf. I think it works very well. :)

 * That was supposed to be the end of the overhaul, but one day...I mentioned in passing that I'd had the idea several years ago to get a stacked washer and dryer to open up room in the bathroom. Those appliances took up literally half the space. Ryan's mental wheels started turning and before long - we had a stacked washer and dryer!! Of course to put those in, we had to knock out some storage shelves, so then he got this cabinet to match the one on the wall - so he could store his towels and things.

 * Little tiny lamp for ambiance, a frame from our frame stash with a picture of us, and a section of burlap to make a runner....and this space is ALMOST done. I'm thinking maybe a plant in that empty area??

 * We got a second shower curtain and Ryan's aunt altered it to fit the window. We still have material left and it kind of matches our color scheme in the pirogi...so I'm thinking pillows are in order sometime....

 * And last, but not least, some sale priced {from Hobby Lobby!} wall art to go over our new laundry area. We got one panel of a regular curtain and had Ryan's aunt hem it to the proper length so we can cover up the laundry area and all the pipes and such. This hangs above it. The "check your pockets" sign is very appropriate as we have ruined MULTIPLE loads of laundry washing Ryan's chapstick and ink pens. Those things HIDE. I'm serious. Thank goodness for stain remover or we would be broke buying new clothes every week!!

We ADORE our new bathroom and Braeya has adopted it as her personal lounge. You might have noticed her food dish is now in there {easier to clean up from tile than carpet} - and the washer has become her personal TV. We call it Braeya-vision. She camps out to watch every load as it washes.

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday we welcomed part of the family over for a cookout - our first entertaining since we did the renovations in our house. I've always loved entertaining but had never found a man who shared that love until I met Ryan. YAY!! Looking forward to more of these fun days. But in the meantime, we so enjoyed having our company there...and watching them enjoy the day.

* Monday was, as you might remember, the day my car broke down on the way to work. It was a combination of unbelievable frustration, fear, and thankfulness - as I realized how much worse it could have been. Another great thing about Monday night...we finished up the landscaping in the front of the house. Outdoor work is not my forte, but I appreciated Ryan letting me be part of it!

* You know what's great about being an adult? If you're tired on a Tuesday night, you can come home and go to bed at 6:00 if you want to. And then if you don't wake up until 7:30 - that's okay too. And we may or may not have done just that on Tuesday - followed by kicking back for a night of America's Got Talent! We love that show.  

* I was SO EXCITED on Wednesday...to get my car back! I was a bit nervous to drive it - worried it might break again, but I was in good shape! And in more exciting news, Ryan and I returned the dump truck that night - and about a mile from its home, it ran out of gas. So we had to go retrieve a gas can {a one gallon gas can, no less} to feed the dump truck enough to get it home. I cracked UP!

* Thursday after work, I had the opportunity to go visit my friend Jeri's new baby girl...little Miss Ellie! I'd seen her live and in person once, but I'd never gotten to really hold her, so it was much fun to drop off a gift and hold a sweet baby!!

* Friday, Lynne and I had a big old planning palooza for the upcoming months of Mid-Morning. I love the chance to be creative for a while! I also love it when my brain cooperates and actually spits out creative ideas! When I got home...headed to the mother ship...the Hobby Lobby...where I fell kind of in love with this frame. I managed to not buy it. Yet.

* And yesterday was crazy busy. Ryan worked in the morning, so I got up really early and scrapbooked for the morning. In the afternoon, I went to the baby shower of one of my college friends who is expecting her first baby soon. And then last night, Ryan and I went to dinner with some friends of ours - and I can't wait to tell you more about that night! We went to the Melting Pot. Yum...yum...yum!!!

The Saturday Six

One.

OUR WEDDING ALBUM CAME!! All 143 pages of memories in a hardcover book...oh yes please. I've passed it around at work and looked at it over and over...sigh. of. happiness.

Two.

I forgot to show you this! We are carb addicts in our house, and Ryan got tired of the less-than-aesthetically-pleasing bread wrappers littering the end of the counter, so he found this kind of retro looking bread box online. I confess I did not think I'd like it - but it is the perfect fit for our kitchen. I'm SO glad he went for it.

Three.


Another of my favorite songs right now: Meredith Andrews' Strong God. Gives me chills every time I hear it. Good chills.

Four.

This is one of those things that I feel strange posting, but I also feel God nudging me to do it. One of my friends, Rebecca, just got back from a mission trip to Colombia, and she posted to Facebook about a particular kiddo down there that is about to run out of time to be adopted...because he'll be considered too old. Rebecca's family has a passion for adopting older kids to give them a future, and I thought I'd share her words here - and this is the link to the organization's Facebook page if you want to read more!

Rebecca said, "Ferley (Fare-lay) is an 11 year old boy at CRAN orphanage, and as with all Colombian orphans (and orphans around the world), being this age means that his days at the orphanage are numbered. If a family does not step forward to adopt Ferley in the coming months, he will be transferred to a different orphanage and will no longer be available for adoption. He will spend the next few years learning how to survive in a cold, cruel world, and when he is 18, he will be released into that world with no family to fall back on, and no government programs to assist him. No food stamps, no free health care, no government housing.

While in Bogota, we saw so many adults living this terrible life - hungry, cold, and hopeless. That's why meeting and spending time with Ferley this week was such an emotional wakeup call to me. All of those people were Ferley at one time. They were children. However they came into their circumstance, they were once an innocent child desperate for someone to give them hope.

This is not a generic call for awareness, although advocating for these orphans is one of my missions. I'm telling you about Ferley because I want Ferley to find a family. Did you know that there are 3500 families on the waiting list for a healthy Colombian baby (which is a wonderful thing), but that it is rare for any of these families to even consider adopting an older child? Meanwhile a loving, servant-minded, smart young boy waits out his years in an orphanage as his "expiration date" draws nearer and nearer every day."

Five.

In much shallower news than what you see above...received this promotional piece in the mail this week announcing the new Caron's store opening in Fort Wayne. This is my publicity love language. Well done, Carson's.

Six.

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Last Sunday I got up early to work on the lunch prep, and guess what was on TV? The American President. I have seen this movie probably over 20 times and still don't even remotely get the political storyline because I'm not smart about stuff like that - but this may be on my top 5 list for love stories. I. Cry. Every. Time. "My name is Andrew Shepherd and I AM the President." {Sob.}

Dining Room Overhaul

Today begins a series of days I'm SO EXCITED to share with you - because we've been working so hard on our house since...well...really since Memorial Day Weekend, and this round of renovation is FINALLY coming to an end. FINALLY! No more living with tool boxes in the hallway or bathroom doors propped up on sawhorses in the dining room or anything like that. I can finally start showing you the overhauls!

Our dining room was one of the rooms I'd worked on the least since moving in. The woman who lived here before me painted the walls a nice neutral color I really liked and installed a chandelier that was, in my opinion, beautiful, so I had absolutely no complaints about the room.

As for the decorating, the dining room became sort of a hodge podge of furniture and decor that didn't really fit anywhere else. So my hope with the renovation of the dining room was to create a space that said "Ryan and Bekah live here" - and to create a space where we have room to entertain, because we both are aching to do that.

One of the things I have learned from blog reading is that you can accomplish a nice change from shopping in your own home...and buying spray paint. And so it was with this dining room reno for us. We spent relatively little money, but I feel the change was big - in a simplified sort of way!

Of course the main change in this area was the carpet. You'll see from the pictures below that the old carpet was...old. It was a neutral carpet but needed stretched badly - or replaced. We went with the replacement method.

Let me show you the before and after pictures and then I'll zoom in and let you see some of my favorite elements.

Before:

 After:

 Things to note in this corner:

* For the record, the ceiling is wallpapered, and no, we did not do that. Melissa, who owned the house for 4 years right before I moved in, applied this amazing textured wallpaper to the ceiling in the living room, dining room, and hallway. It looks kind of like a tin ceiling. Love it. We did not change any of the wall/trim/ceiling colors. And the chandelier is the one Melissa installed when she lived here. We've raised it up so we don't hit our head on it, but no change.

* We moved the dresser into the hall and moved the bookcase from the opposite corner of the dining room and put it on an angle here. I also decided to scrap the idea of using this bookshelf AS a bookshelf and instead - use it as shelving for decorations.

Before:

 After:

Things to note in this corner:

* Not much changed in this corner other than some wall art. AND our commitment to not keep the dining room table cluttered ANYMORE.

* We did put up new curtain rods. The ones I had up were about $4.00 gold ones I'd purchased many years ago and we wanted something with just a little more presence to them. So we found some nice black ones at a discount store - for about $8.00 each. Not too shabby!

Before: 

 

After:

Things to note in this corner:

* NO MORE FLOWERS ON TOP OF THE BOOKCASE! This was a good wife understanding her husband was kind of over the florals. :)

* As I said, this bookcase got moved to the other corner and was repurposed as a basic shelf.

* Braeya's food was relocated to the bathroom so we can keep it cleaned up better. And Braeya herself, apparently NEEDS to be in every photo.

* This table came from the hallway. 

Before:

  After:

Things to note in this corner:

* The mirror is the same...just spray painted!

* The lamp {part of a pair} was hidden away in the attic and was being saved for our someday house, but I decided to bring them out of hiding.

Now for the details.

* The three decorative pieces on top of the bookcase were purchased earlier this summer from the 90% off aisle at Hobby Lobby for about $2 each. The two black ones were green, and we spray painted them.

 * Everything else on the shelf was already in the house...I just repurposed it to this spot.

* The pottery vase had been in the hallway - and I love having it back here in a prominent location, since it holds significance for me.

* The other vase has sand in it from our wedding beach. We plan to add sand from every beach we visit. Excited to get that project going! {Another Pinterest find.}

* We left most of the wall art the same on this wall - just added the new picture I found at Hobby Lobby - which we got 50% off, thankyouverymuch.

* Table stayed the same...just bought a roll of burlap at Hobby Lobby and made a criss-cross runner to dress it up a bit.

* We got that wooden bowl for our wedding and I found some red and black decorative balls at Hobby Lobby and used that to fill the bowl. Quick, easy decorating!

* We don't know the people in the frame, but I could not pass that thing up from the 90% off aisle - for $4.60!! Waiting for the perfect picture for it.

* The table was in the hallway, but we like it here. The lamp is one of them I'd stashed away in the attic. The calendar was a gift from one of my blog buddies {thanks, Shari!} and I used our engagement picture and the rose Ryan gave me for our engagement as decor here. Already had the candle holders - just added the S - which I got for $5 at Hobby Lobby. 

* Not much changed over here - just cleaned it up a little. Spray painted the gold mirror black and we LOVE it that way. Turned out so good! {Got that 90% off at Hobby Lobby several years ago.} The other lamp goes over on this side - and we're ready to entertain!!

* The one thing left to decorate is this little guy, which we got as a hand-me-down from Ryan's mom. I love it. I just haven't figured out what to put in it yet.

I love the way the room reflects who we are...where we came from...what we love...and it's cozy enough for two, with room enough to set up our long table and have great conversation together!