Katie the Scrapbook Lady

Preparing for some really big changes

Remember how I picked “refresh and renew” as my phrase for the year? Well, it’s time to fess up the reason behind that motto. We will be putting our house up for sale in about 6 weeks or so. We are currently in the process of building a new home (not too far away) and also getting this home ready to hit the market. It’s all pretty overwhelming some days because we’ve been here almost 9 years now. When one of my readers asked me a few weeks ago if I have more time now that Riley is in school, I realized that I probably would, if it weren’t for these huge projects! lol!

It’s funny that you spend years making a house into a home and then when it’s time to move, you have to reverse the process and make a home into a house. You need to put away the personal stuff and present the house as livable for anyone who might want to purchase it. You have to detach yourself emotionally from the place and that has been really hard for several of the people residing in this place. Not to mention how much people with autism do NOT like change in general. My poor son told me the other day that he needs a few weeks without any changes. I’m trying to honor his feelings, but also accomplish the things that need to happen. It’s a balancing act. I can also understand where he’s coming from because I have been working like a crazy woman this month and we had some big things done like a wood floor refinish and some painting that meant he had to move out of his room for a bit.

 

Here are some of the projects I’ve gotten done this month. This was a HUGE undertaking – I took down our “hall of fame” and had the stairway patched and repainted. We went from this:

to this…

I have to say that was the hardest change we have made. I really miss all the photos and my kids and husband have regularly commented on how empty it feels now.

 

Alex’s room was another enormous project and his room is the one place in the house where I just really can’t put away all the personal stuff. He NEEDS his books and certain belongings like his stuffed animals. His room has been covered in maps and postcards for 8+ years so we went from this:

to this…

The fleece blanket was a Christmas gift made by Riley (with some help from me). The print on the dresser is from Pottery Barn Teen and will go in his next room which will have a rock and roll music theme.

 

 

I asked him if there were any books he would be ok to have packed away for a few months and he picked out 3 for me to pack. Is that cute or what?! I can’t take his books away from him because he reads them all the time! I’m not going to take everything out of kids’ rooms because I don’t want to make their life completely barren for the next few months. I have done some major de-cluttering though and we’ve all agreed to pack some stuff away in boxes for awhile. However, I have to say that there has been some grumbling about those boxes when someone realizes they want to access something that has been packed away. *Sigh*

 

The living room didn’t change much, but I did pack away the photographs and personal things we had on display. I also took down most of the wall art and had all the paint freshened up. I have to say that I love this space and all the wonderful natural light that the north facing windows give me.

We went from this:

to this…

 

Our office (which can also be used as a formal living room or dining room) has been the hub of our home for many years while we’ve homeschooled. I can’t think of a room that has worked harder!

We went from this:

to this…

 

I’m feeling pretty pleased with all the progress that has been made! The house is feeling really nice right now and I’m wishing I had made some of these changes a little sooner. We have loved this home and have so many wonderful memories that have happened here. We also really like our neighbors and the area that we live in. So you might ask why we are moving? Sometimes we ask ourselves that same question. It’s funny how things change though. While we don’t necessarily need more space, we need different space. As our kids have grown and our family needs have evolved, we needed some things that we just couldn’t get if we stayed. We are happy that we will be staying close enough to keep in touch with so many good friends. It will still be a big change though! Actually, it’s been a long series of little changes already. That’s just going to get worse before it gets better. Wish me luck!

 

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Refreshing and Renewing

I picked one little phrase of Refresh and Renew to inspire me this year instead of one little word. I’ve been enjoying the focus so far and spent a lot of time and energy putting it all into play in the month of January. I cleaned out drawers, closets, and got rid of 3 carloads of old junk. It’s amazing what accumulates over the years, even if you try to be organized! Once I started looking at everything with fresh eyes, I began to realize how much refreshing and renewing could be done. Of course, the principle applies to more than just our physical belongings, but it seems like a good place to start.

 

We were tired of our old flatware and it was pretty scratched up. I found this pretty set at Target (I like to call it Tar-jay in a fake French accent). The name is Metra and the simple design makes me happy.

 

We’ve had a nice master bedroom bedding set for 6 years now and even though it was still in good condition, we were both so tired of it that we decided it was time for a refresh. We both love the simplicity of the white and it feels so cozy and inviting with the covers turned down a bit. I still want to get new lamps. Again, it’s all from Target – pinched pleat comforter set.

 

I went to Pottery Barn and bought this fun vase and flowering branches. I thought it was just the right touch of springy happiness and I love the way it pulls together the white, green, and yellow in the room. Hubby was not a big fan, but too bad for him because it’s staying. lol! He’s so uber-practical when it comes to design that he doesn’t always understand that sometimes we just need to have something pretty to look at.

 

I’ve been working on several other projects that I’m not ready to photograph yet:

• Cleaned out and organized every bookshelf in our house. Donated books we no longer use to the library.
• Took down all the maps in my son’s room and am working on currently removing all the postcards. It’s a big job and it’s been a hard change after more than 8 years of looking at all of these things. It’s
• Reconfigured our office space
• Rearranged guest bedroom and moved treadmill to family room area
• Cleaned out and organized our game shelves
• Cleaned out and organized our closet
• Cleaned out and organized 3 kitchen drawers

 

I think I picked a good phrase to inspire me this year!

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Refresh & Renew

It’s official, I’ve finally picked my own one little word for the year. I decided I was totally overthinking the whole thing and I told myself I just needed to pick a word that would be meaningful as well as helpful. I considered a lot of different words but finally settled on more of a phrase – Refresh & Renew. I couldn’t decide which word I liked the best but I was leaning more toward “renew” until I saw this page in a Pottery Barn catalog.

 

I thought about it and realized that I really like the two words together. That’s what I want, to refresh and renew! Either word on it’s own did not seem to capture what I was feeling. So I guess I’m going to be a bit of a rebel and go with more of a one little phrase type of thing this year. There are other words I probably should have considered, but this is what spoke to me. This is what I really want to happen this year. I’m so ready for this!

 

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Trying to decide on One Little Word

 

I usually know my word (a year-long focus idea from Ali Edwards) for the upcoming year by about mid-December, but this time it has been more difficult. I love the words I’ve chosen in the past:

• Nourish (2012)
• Healthy (2011)
• Do  (2010)
• Learn (2009)
• Create (2008)

I like Ali’s word of Open for this year, but I feel like I need to find my own thing. I’m honestly considering not even doing a word this year and just taking a break, but I have 5 consecutive years under my belt and I kind of hate to interrupt that. Ali has a list of words on her blog that others have chosen. I always love reading those. It’s inspiring to think about what can be accomplished by using one little word as motivation.

Now I’ve almost convinced myself to pick a word. Then again, I feel like I took on way too many projects last year and I need to step back and catch up a bit. Hmmmm…. what are your thoughts? Have you picked a word? Is this something you usually do?

I guess I’ll think on it for a few more days.

 

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My One Little Word for 2012

I have gone through several choices on this matter during the last few weeks. I usually know my word for the upcoming year by about mid-December, but this time it has been more difficult. I love my word from 2011 (healthy) and I feel like it had a real and lasting impact on my life. It was my favorite word so far. I also love the other words I’ve chosen in the past:

• Do  (2010)
• Learn (2009)
• Create (2008)

So in my 5th consecutive year of using Ali Edwards’ one little word approach, I’ve finally found my inspiration:

Source: etsy.com via Katie on Pinterest

 

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I want to nourish myself in the literal sense of physical nourishment. It’s amazing how I can put random bites in my body all day long without any real nourishment. I feel so much better when I focus on nourishing my body instead of just feeding it.

 

Source: etsy.com via Katie on Pinterest

 

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I want to nourish my relationships with my husband, my children, my family, and my friends. It’s so important to keep these relationships well taken care of.

 

Source: etsy.com via Katie on Pinterest

 

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I want to nourish the people I love. I feed them with daily food (which I want to be nourishing), but I also can feed them each day with many other gifts including my time, my knowledge, my support, and more.

 

Source: etsy.com via Katie on Pinterest

 

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I want to nourish my mind by reading, learning, and continuing on with projects and ideas that I love. I want to be open to new experiences. I want to nourish my soul by focusing on my spiritual beliefs, inner peace, thoughts, and actions.

 

Source: etsy.com via Katie on Pinterest

 

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Nourish is my guiding word for 2012. Do you choose a word each year? You can check Ali’s blog for some ideas if you are still searching, it’s certainly not too late to add this type of inspiration to your life.

 

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