Thursday, January 5, 2012

The big TA DA!

Justin has always wanted a wood burning stove and over the summer, he got one from a guy at work. He wanted to just take out the existing fireplace and put this one in its place. That sounds easy enough....right?! He was trying to take it out and it just wasn't working so this is what happened....


He got in a fight with the fireplace and lost! It didn't want to simply come out so his friend Joey B. came over with a torch and helped him out!
Notice the ugly hearth gone! My favorite part:)



Now he was ready to frame the base, then lay the backer board. This had to be solid and sturdy since the stove is super heavy!

The wall in this room wasn't sheetrock and since Justin, without thinking, tore into it we were faced with another problem....how to fix it? Oh well, just tear down the whole wall and start fresh! This wall had a barn feel to it and I never liked it so I was now more excited about the walls then the fireplace:)Notice the beams above Justins head....

Yes, those ugly things had to go too!

Base is framed and starting to put up the black granite tile, beams are gone, and since our walls were gone-why not go ahead and put in ceiling fixtures?! This room wasn't wired with any and our awesomely handy friend Blaine knew how to do it so he helped Justin out!


Next, tile the marble on the base!

Here is the light fixure going in!

Before I painted the ceiling....

After I painted.....

Just to learn that it would be better to just scrape the entire ceiling rather than repopcorning where the beams were.....I think I may have cried a bit during this process! My arms and shoulder blades were so stinkin sore after this!
Fireplace surround is ready for tile!

Walls are up!


Since this is the dining room it needs to flow with the kitchen so I have started painting the kitchen to match!

Walls in progress!

Walls finished and ready to paint!!



Painted!!




My accent color is red and this wall will have a built in of some sorts eventually so it won't always be a big red wall:) These chairs were green and white but needed a make over! So first I painted them red....

Then black with a little scuffing and voila!
Love these chairs!


Wood stove going in! Thanks to Blaine, Brett, and Brock for helping get it in!

Light fixure is up! This table was Justin's moms:) I need to get a table cloth and chair covers to match the room but it works for now!

Justin finished tiling the surround last weekend and it looks awesome! It will have a mantel and columns but thats a whole other project!

I found this saying at Target on clearance and have been trying to figure out where to put it. I knew I didn't like the walls in this room so I didn't want to permanantly put it there.....then I found pinterest! I found this idea and love it!



We still have a lot of projects to do it this room but I am thrilled with the results so far! It looks so great and I am so thankful that we had friends to help, especially Blaine! He helped out A LOT!! Justin learned a lot too:) So there you have it, my big tada!

New Year, new job!

Justin has worked for Brent Scarbrough for nearly 8 years and during that time construction took a big hit due to the failing economy. We were always happy that he just had a job but ever since he started driving the lowboys, about 3 years ago, it has been a huge stresser on him and the pay never went up, his work depended on the weather and we couldn't really budget since we had no idea what he was bringing home week to week:( We really wanted him to get a new job with a retirement option last August since he was turning 30 but it didn't work out. It wasn't our time and we were ok with that. I felt strongly that we needed to have something new lined up for January. He needed to have his Christmas vacation and bonus and match for his 401k. I applied for a few different jobs for him and the one that we really wanted,Sygma, called him after only 1 week! I thought they just really needed drivers but he just learned that for every 50 applicants they receive, only 1 gets hired! So we know that we are blessed that he got this job. His first day off for his vacation he had a driving test and passed with flying colors! He started Tuesday and has been in orientation all week. He should start his routes really soon. The schedule actually sounds pretty good but we will have to wait until he starts driving before we really know. Justin is a hard working and is capable of making great money with this company as well as bonuses and promotions! We are excited to get out of debt, to have family vacations, and to be able to breath a little better in 2012! And he is excited to get some toys of his own! It's hard to work 60 plus hours a week and never get to spend it on what you want.......

Happy Birthday Ethan!

We had a fun day celebrating Ethans 6th birthday~! We started the morning out with a few presents....





Then we went to Toys R Us to pick out his new bike!



Next was off to Chuck E Cheese with our friends the Clarkes!

This boy is full of different facial expressions.....

Sadie and her friend Mika!

Of course she loves the horse ride....

She was SOOOO happy she could finally reach the peddle and do this ride!

Of course my biggest kid wanted to play too!


Gage and Ethan C.

This machine took your picture and printed it out on a card for 1 token. Sadie ended up with around 6 cards! lol

Ethan and Eman :)

My kids adore these guys! So glad they came with us:)

Then we went to Burger King for lunch! (oops no pics!)
Back home for a few more presents....


Ethan wanted a Scooby Doo Cookie Cake so he helped me make the cake and I decorated it! No too shabby:)

Make a wish!

Me and Sadie Lynn:)

Checking out his new frisbee!

We were just going to stay in for New Years Eve but decided that we didn't want to be lame again so we spent it with some friends...more like family! Kids had fun with sparklers




and Justin and I enjoyed being with our friends who we don't get to see that often:)We were actually awake to see the ball drop! First time in many many years! lol