The last 3 weeks...

I realize I've been very bad at this blogging thing lately...I mean, what a teaser?! Start back up and then take a 3 week hiatus just so I can paint, move in, decorate, have family over each night to see and eat dinner, then decorate for Christmas?! Yep, that's exactly what I did. BUT we are now nestled into our sweet nest and are SO excited and blessed. I guess I should begin with the stories of painting...where we tried to match each color and were so ecstatic to have records...oh but they didn't match perfectly which left marks all over the walls where we had excitedly covered those spots and scuffs that proved a family had lived here. Let's not even go there...and let's not go to the fact that my mom ended up hiring our family painter to paint three rooms because she saw that it would be virtually impossible for us to finish before the move-in date. (Bless her...and I don't mean that in the way most Mississippians do ("You stupid idiot"). I mean it as a plea to God to bless her for the gesture. Since we aren't talking about that, we definitely won't talk about the fact that my sweet daddy followed through on his offer to have a cleaning service come to the house and take over for a day...again, unspeakable gratitude. And while we are covering up all these unpleasantries turned miracles, we will also leave out the 3 days of help from my mother-in-law (cleaning, laundry, trim, moving, etc.) and the fact that my father-in-law gave us an epic washer and dryer as a housewarming gift. No, I don't think those huge dilemmas and happenings in our lives would interest you enough for the pages they would occupy if told in grateful detail! However, I DO think these pictures will interest you...these are what came AFTER all of the above...these pictures are what happened between the tears and laughter and what is our little (or BIG) holiday miracle!

Signing on the dotted line! (Homeowners)

Mashed potato utensil turned dish towel rack

Sifter turned lamp shade

Tool drawers used as recipe and spice drawers

Coke crate shelves

Vintage suitcase shelves

Birdcage turned lamp shade

Formal seating area (my favorite room)

Foryer..where "together is a wonderful place to be"

Cross wall (between book shelf and TV armoire)

Mantle

Memories/Heritage Wall

Smallest guest room

"Family tree" in bigger guest room

Kitchen/Dining room

Guest room

Dining table

Cheese grater turned vase

Saws turned into a magnet board for vintage photos

Family keepsakes above the laundry room cabinets

Laundry room shelf

Vintage water pump in kitchen

Industrial cart turned coffee table

That covers just about every room (except the master, the loft, and the largest guest room which are incomplete to say the least)! We have definitely budgeted and made the most of our taste for the vintage/flea market style. I absolutely loved decorating this house and showing my very DOUBTFUL family members just how I would make use of all the "junk" I had bought, taken, and saved for the past few months. Apparently, they thought I was crazy as I bought the individual pieces and didn't see how it would be cohesive. Hopefully, they changed their minds! Lee and I are so pleased and took a break on the last three rooms in the house in order to decorate for Christmas! We LOVE Christmas, family, entertaining, and all that comes with the holiday season! Here are a few glances into our work so far...despite the snow/rain the past week. All that is left is lighting the two trees in front of the house and putting out the new spotlights Daddy purchased for us! (Outdoor pictures coming soon)

Kyle enjoying the decorations...or maybe it was the new reclining couch?

Someone is always watching you...step away from the frig! ha

"Oh Owly Night" flag from Sissy

an early Christmas gift from the hubs (made by Bootsy McFarland)

Front door

Santa is always welcome at the Tull house

Garage door

Back Door

Christmas Tree (only owls)

Christmas blankets :)

Merry, Merry!

Our cozy mantle (reindeers from mama and daddy :) )

Where I will be baking Christmas goodies this week

Christmas Owls (Surprise!)

My indoor tree (also from Bootsy McFarland)

That is a bit of writing with a hodgepodge of pictures to explain what we have been up to much better than I could have done with 100,000 words tonight. I hope you will continue to check back for updates. This Christmas season will be our first as homeowners and could get very interesting. So far, we have been blessed beyond measure by friends and family...and family's friends! Cakes, pizzas, brownies, etc. have come our way and have been devoured to the point of embarrassment! No words could express our gratitude to God and all who have helped to make this enjoyable. The only thing that could make this move sweeter would be to get word that all these safety caps for our electrical outlets should come back out of our drawer (where we safely keep them waiting), since we have a new niece or nephew coming!! What a glorious Christmas gift that would be. We already know where Baby J will sleep :) Keep praying, friends! Good night!