step it up

We are preparing our townhome to become a rental, and the one big improvement we must make is replacing the carpet upstairs and in the stairwell. We have lived with this carpet since we moved in and it is showing some wear and tear (understatement of the century). While pricing carpet, I was determined to at least explore the idea of refinishing the stairs if the wood underneath was suitable. So one Friday evening, on a whim, we ripped up the carpet on the stairs...

And the treads were in pretty great condition! We were pleasantly surprised, to say the least. Especially after finding out we were going to save over 200 bucks by not having to carpet them!

So the next 24 hours were spent pulling out every staple that was ever manufactured on earth from the treads and risers. How did I get so lucky to have them all on my stairs? Did the original carpet guys have some sort of vendetta out against me? My forarms and hands are still sore.
We did have help, though.

I used wood filler for all the nail and staple holes, any big divots or crack, and then we got busy sanding these suckers smooth.

Then the fun part arrived (not really). Paint! I chose to use paint instead of stain (which I would have preferred) due to the overspray from the white trim when these were installed. We sanded and sanded and sanded without any luck. So staining them was not an option.

I painted the risers first with basic white paint, and then moved to the treads. I started by painting (black cashmere - couldn't tell you the brand) every other tread since we still needed access to the upstairs. So our gluts got quite the workout over the course of this week! It was like the world's best stair climber machine.

I painted two coats of black and let them cure completely before I used poly to seal them. After three coats of poly (sanding lightly in between coats), and 24-36 hours to cure, I got started on the other set of alternating stairs, and used the same process.

Phew. Long project.

I still wasn't totally pleased with them, since I'm a little OCD bit of a perfectionist. See that gap in between the wall and the stairs? It just didn't look finished. We were already planning to put quarter rounds where the black meets the white to finish it off, but that gap needed some attention too. So off I went to the hardware store for quarter round and - my solution to that unsightly gap - lots and lots of caulk.

Matt cut the quarter round and we glued it into place. Like with liquid nails, but still. How's that for a shortcut? I then got busy taping off the stairs like so...

And then ran a line of caulk up a few stairs at a time.  



I think I learned this tip from Sherry at Young House Love, but if you dip your finger in water before smoothing the caulk, this process goes a lot...well, smoother. It gets rid of any ridges or bubbles or lines that you may create otherwise. I always feel like a caulker-extraordinare when I use this tip. Thanks Sherry!

Pull the tape off while it's still wet, and you should have a pretty darn crisp line!

There were only a couple of spots that I had to touch up, but that was because the wood was somewhat splintered on the sides in a few places.

Overall, I'm really happy with the end result. I think it's perfect for a rental property - no carpet to get worn down and grimy on the stairs. And it's kind of pretty too!

Hopefully the next project I post will be in our NEW HOUSE!

-Lauren

a-door-able

Another part of our new house that will need some updating is the front door. The shutters are black, which I love on the brick, but the door is a fabulous, nineteen-eighties burgandy.

I am itching for a little subtle-brightness and I think a sweet, rich teal is just the answer...

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I've tried to talk Matt into a buttery-yellow door with no such luck. He's just recently warmed up to pretty teals in home decor. Let's not push it... too much, too fast!

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The very first one is my very favorite. Our front door will be flanked in brick as well, so that photo helps me visualize it better. I think this will be one of my very first updates... such a rewarding little project!

Lauren



ch-ch-ch-changes

Some exciting news around these parts... Matt and I are in the process of buying a new house! We adore our little townhome and it holds extra-special memories for us, but we are really excited to make this new place our home. While I have no idea what I'll do with all this new space, I can't wait to start the process of making it ours. We are MOST excited about the gorgeous back yard... we've had a little 12x12 outdoor patio to call our own for the past 3+ years so this is a major upgrade!

There is lots of updating to do throughout this 25-year old house, so I've, of course, turned to Pinterest for every last bit of inspiration so far.

I'm thinking dark gray, putty-colored cabinets and we will be covering the current tile backsplash with a beadboard one...

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Like I mentioned before, there is lots of updating to be done - like eighties-style brass fireplace fronts and shiny, brass door hardware. There are lots of awesome tutorials out there, though, from great bloggers like Young House Love and Centsational Girl. Don't let the brass frighten you!

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I'll even have a space to turn into the mudroom I've always wanted!

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All in all, I'm super excited. Even with all the work to be done, the house is completely turn-key, so we're able to do all of these updates at our leisure. We feel so blessed and can't wait to show you all the changes!

Lauren

Not Our Home

Today we are on the first leg of our trip to Haiti...

I am a lot little nervous and way excited. We will be working in various capacities at the Hands and Feet Ministry and Orphanage for the week... so I basically get to spend my days loving on sweet kiddos! Excited and grateful is an understatement.

Matt and I have talked a lot this week about our expectations - our hearts - going into this. I spent a short time in orphanages and a refugee camp in the Czech Republic right after high school with my church... I loved my time there and walked away knowing, even more so, that I would adopt one day. But this time around, despite not being a "mother" quite yet, I feel like I'm going in with a more maternal heart. I feel it. I think it will be harder this time, for me... To look at these children and know that I could really, truly take them home with me. I am no longer a teenager or a care-free college student. I am an adult. A grown woman. I have a spouse, a home, a real-life, big-girl job. And most of all, I have the capacity in my heart to love them all the days of their lives. I do. I would love them with every fiber of my being. Perhaps I'm setting myself up for some majorly-tearful goodbyes, but it is a fact that my heart can't ignore. I could do something.
My heart is already aching for these children that I've yet to meet. I have cried big, fat tears on my drive home this week after hearing the lyrics to a new favorite song of mine. 

Don't lose heart

Don't forget

This world is not our home

There's a better place where we belong

This place of heartache and strife and orphans and widows and poverty and suffering. It's not our home. Thank you for that, Lord.

Lauren

happy birthday, my love

Happy happy 30th birthday to the man I love most in the world!

I hope that you feel extra loved and special this weekend.

You are one of a kind!  You make everyone's lives way more fun just by being in it.

I am so grateful that I get to spend my years with you. You are extraordinary.



Happy 30th birthday, my love! Can't wait to celebrate with you.

Lauren

embrace the camera: family edition

We spent a weekend at the end of July making our way around family birthday parties. When you live out of state, there's nothing better then seeing tons of extended family all on one trip!

Ironically, both baby birthday were Mickey or Minnie Mouse themed. Hmmmm...

Here is the two-year old birthday boy... I got his cape from an etsy shop called Applesauce. It was a big hit! (he never took it off.) And the quality was outrageously awesome.

My sweet (tall!) baby sister. She is a high school junior as of today!

Three generations!  I love getting my grandmother in photos!

embracing the camera,

Lauren

Linking up with

7

Anyone read 7, by Jen Hatmaker?

I've tried for weeks now to put something onto paper. Some arrangement of words that would describe what's going on in my heart and my head. I read 90% of the book in two days... I couldn't bear to put it down. But once it started to conclude, it's as if I developed a bad case of the butterflies.
I knew I was different for reading it. I knew it had stirred something in me. I knew that it had fed fuel to a small flame that had been burning inside of me for a while.

You see, I've always had a thing about stuff. I like to simplify. I hate junk. I have no qualms about tossing things into a garbage bag to be donated and never seen again. I appreciate sentiment, but I am not one to save something for a rainy day. If I haven't seen it, used it, or worn it in a year then see ya.

But even with that attitude, we still have lots of junk. Things. Stuff. Just in case. Sure, it is all neatly (for the most part) tucked away in closets or under beds (ssshhhhh!), but it's there. It's slowly but surely taking over my house, and maybe it's a startling reflection of the condition of my heart.


Are my wants blinding me from the needs of others? 
Are my abundant blessings keeping me from seeing how fortunate I really am?
Is my desire for comfort taking up room in my heart where the desire for justice and mercy for the oppressed should be?

I don't know yet how this has changed me. I just know that it has rocked my comfortable little world. It's not just about throwing away stuff. It's about minimizing. Reducing. Trimming the excess....to allow the important, the eternal,  to fill our hearts and minds.

"For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."  2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NIV (emphasis mine)
  



Lauren

instagrammed

I figured since it's been a month since I posted, I should probably update with some pictures. What better way than with instagram?

We spent a long weekend at the lake with sweet friends to celebrate our anniversary! This man lives and breathes the lake....

I think it's important to note that this was not the worst beating that the guys took in canasta. Noted.

We painted bathroom cabinets (hooray) and framed out mirrors. They look so so nice and I can't wait to show you!

We did our fair share of relaxing too...

...and made time for froyo with sweet babies! Elly bear has this man's heart!

What's better than a nakey baby belly? And why can't I say something other than nakey when talking about babies?

We paid off a credit card, too! What a great feeling.

We cruised around town to let Molly do some people-watching.

And even stumbled across two-for-one on a Sunday afternoon... isn't that weird??? Or are we just old and making it uber obvious that we grew up in a dry county?

Lauren

Embrace the Camera - 3 years later

We enjoyed the [tremendous] pleasure of having our friend Sarah do a little photoshoot for us to commemorate our 3rd anniversary last week!

I am in l-o-v-e with the pictures and feel so grateful that we have these sweet memories to keep forever.

Embracing the camera,

Lauren

linking up with Emily!