A Fresh New Start

One thing we started doing when we returned was buy some new furniture. A lot of our stuff was borrowed and had to be returned, so we got to add our own flavor to our home. Our city is seriously limited on the kind of furniture you buy (meaning not much American looking stuff), so I bought most of my stuff online...a website to the equivalent of Amazon but much much bigger. It was a huge gamble not knowing exactly what you were buying, but we took the risk. I do believe it paid off and I'm super happy with the result. Our home is feeling much more homey :)

The first thing arrived and took Britton a good little while just to open it up! At least it wasn't broken!

 In case you were wondering what was in the big box, it's a buffet! I absolutely love this so much. It was a very random find, but I'm so glad I ordered it. It's a beautiful piece and didn't cost much. It added a lot of storage too. The painting on the wall is a painting my best local friend here painted for me...so special.

 Next our "entertainment" center came together. It's not really an entertainment center, but since we mounted the TV on the wall, I found something that could function for storage in the space. I can't believe Britton and I put this together with no bickering!

 This is a wider shot of our den, but that's the shelving unit put together under the TV. Oh, and let's not forget curtains!!! For over 2 years we haven't had curtains on this huge window. The curtains in our bedroom were huge, so we put them in this room and they cover the whole wall. Every night I enjoy the privacy AND it makes it much more quiet from the noisey car horns on the major highway just in front of our balcony.

 The other side of the den with our new sectional and recliner. LOVE the new furniture. Local couches are not very comfy, but I'm more than thrilled to be lounging on these every day. The couches and TV were the only thing we bought in our city. Everything else we got online :)

 Haha. Random. I know. Most days while we were trying to put things together, we improvised for the boys. This was one of those ways...

 They enjoyed a movie inside their pirate ship. What kid wouldn't?!

 Since we put our bedroom curtains in the den, we got new curtains for our room. We also got the blackout curtains making our room dangerously dark for sleeping late!

 One big task Britton tackled was removing the wallpaper behind our bed. We have bad mold problems in there because our landlord or a previous tenant put up this grassy wallpaper. The moisture from our bathroom stuck to it and made mold grow on the glue and sometimes would even grow through the grassy wallpaper. Yuck! So, he tackled this one day removing the paper and scraping off all the glue. He and our friend repainted that wall...

 So much better! We have had NO mold problems since taking that off. You can breathe so much better now. Nothing like a fresh coat of paint. Hoping to get some pictures hung up soon.

 Since the boys stayed in a room together their entire time in the states, they really wanted to stay in the same room. This used to be Grady's room, but now it's both their room. The transition was nonexistent for Caden even though he remembered his old room. I love having them both in the same room now. They don't wake each other up, and it's nice having them both right next to our room. This is Caden's side of the room.

 And this is Grady's side of the room.

 The last big thing to come was a big bookshelf for the playroom/school room (Caden's old room).

 Up it went! Love all of our new storage space.

 I also got a custom made school table made for school time. Love their new little room and all the learning that happens here.

The kitchen and guest/office room stayed pretty much the same. I love our home. So grateful for the laughter and love that fills it.