Finding The Right Family Calendar

One of the big goals for the new house was to find a way to keep a family calendar we could all depend on and to put it in a place where it was passed by frequently yet not too much of an eyesore. I looked on Pinterest at so many of the wall-size chalkboard calendars and had mixed emotions. I liked the idea in theory but when I thought about having such a public display of our calendared events I felt it lacked a good deal of privacy.

image via Paper Source

So I kept looking and happily came upon this calendar at Paper Source that I think will be quite perfect. In fact I bought two of them, one for our back entryway/kitchen and the other for my office. I love the clean look and down-to-earth styling. I think it will be quite lovely for tracking music lessons, doctors appointments and other activities.

I happened to be cleaning out my email inbox today and realized Paper Source was having a 20% off sale for two days so I grabbed the cold and saved some bucks on my investment. I did like quite a few different calendars at Paper Source. I have always believed that my calendar should be something I really like if I'm going to depend on it and need to look at it every day. This calendar will for sure keep me cheery. Can't wait to set up out little entryway off the garage with a spot for keys and our family calendar. It will be just inside our door from the garage and the spot where we'll keep bags, coats and boots, grab or drop car keys and stop as we go in and out the door.

I am thinking I will try to find some sort of wood frame or patterned bulletin board to hang this pretty calendar on. Once it comes I'll have to experiment with it in the space above the foyer table we've put there so far. Having our family organization area put together will be a big step towards making the house our own and feeling settled there. Each day we make improvements it feels a little more ike home. It's fun to think that in six months we'll be comfortable and happily settled there.

Year To Shine: Looking Back

In Fall 2014 I started thinking about my theme for 2015. I settled on the word SHINE and made 2015 my Year To Shine. I had hoped to write a post about SHINE every week but that certainly didn't happen this year. But I did do my best to live SHINE.

I created this fun sign for my office as daily inspiration and I looked for things I could to to make myself more shiny and energetic. I found exercise helped me to be more shiny. Remembering to smile made me more shiny.

Shine was perhaps one of the most challenging goals I could've chosen for this year based purely on the year we've had. It has been rich, joyful and exciting and at the same time lonely, sad, difficult and discouraging. Isn't it amazing how rich life can be with ups and downs! Wow, wow, wow.

I am learning though that what we most remember as we go forward are the beautiful, grand days and joyful, magical little moments with people we love. Somehow this allows the grandly disastrous, heartbreaking days to pass a little easier and be forgotten more quickly. A strange life truth.

As the days are getting darker with the oncoming winter, I am thinking about shining a light in the darkness. White lights on the trees, candles burning on tables and mantles. It's a great reminder to shiny myself. With a few more weeks to focus on letting my light SHINE I starting to think about what my theme will be for 2016. It's coming up quickly. Ah, an idea just came to me as I was typing this. That will have to wait for another day.

Did you have a goal for 2015? How has that been going for you? I'd love to hear about your journey.

Heights House 4: The Good, Bad & Ugly

Never let it be said that buying, renovating and moving into a new home is glamorous and fun non-stop. Anyone who would say that has probably forgotten about the long days and late nights of work, the trial and error of DIY projects, the heavy lifting and all the negotiation that goes on to get decisions made and moved to completion.

To say we are feeling a little weary would be a bit of an understatement. But we have to charge forward and wrap things up. Two weekends ago we went through our storage unit from CA and thinned through everything and took a big load of stuff to the house. The past week we have been going through two small pods from LA.

There is very little left in the ABQ storage unit now. There is some stuff at the house that can probably go to storage from one of the other loads but we'll figure that out when we have a chance - and clear that unit out soon once and for all. Moving and merging two households is not an easy feat. There is a big yard sale in our very near future. That too will be a big feat but hopefully a happy and cleansing one too.

We had been waiting for flooring for two of the bedrooms and the laundry room. We got the laundry room done a week ago Friday. About the same time I called Home Depot to check on the carpet we'd ordered several weeks earlier only to find out that they had never put the order through. Not wanting to wait another month we decided to just stay with the old tan carpet for now. Frustrating but an $800 savings.

On cheerier notes, we do have the dining table and chairs set up in the dining room and have begun to arrange the living room. Rug and couches and chairs are in order and we are really happy with how things are looking. Little by little it's beginning to feel like someplace we'll want to live. It's taking a lot of time.

We took all but one night off this week and just relaxed, cooked dinners at home and watched movies together. It was much needed and quite therapeutic to have a rest. We were all feeling a little extra tired and I think a break was well-deserved.

Hopefully this week we'll be able to get the office, kiddo's bedroom and laundry room set up which will give us a lot more space in the house once we get the furniture moved into place and all the laundry room cabinets in the family room put back into place. That right there sounds pretty fantastic. That will be a great step forward! Right now there is a mountain of boxes and furniture in the garage and on one side of the family room and living room.

I think this blog posts reads as jumbled as I feel. But this is an honest update as to the glamour of home ownership for sure, haha. It's not all a Pinterest board! Hopefully this time next week we'll have three rooms set up and livable. Hooray for that!

In the meantime I am loving the view from the dining room and kitchen windows over the beautiful back patio and pool and overlooking the city. Such a gorgeous place to sit, eat dinner and relax or do dishes by the sink. From the living room  we have a full wall of windows and a beautiful mountain view. In the midst of the chaos there is much to appreciate it.