Roger & Rosaleen's Overseas Adventure

Archive for February 2015

An Exhale

Saturday, February 28, 2015

Life exhaled for a whole beautiful hour.

An experience that has become so very rare,

Roger gathered the cluster of noise-ies and hauled them along for errands at Home Depot

Marion my lovely, offered to tuck the baby cozy like into the stroller and let him join her for a stroll on this cool early spring afternoon.

I hesitantly - hopeful like, made my way to the bed for a nap.

I slept solid.

My rousing senses so pleasantly greeted with my favourite classical music softly drifting into my room, the smell of warm and welcoming wafts of cinnamon joining the pleasures of fresh picked blossoms catching the afternoons light.

What a moment of beautiful peace.

Marion my lovely thought through the details, tuned in the music, baked fresh coffee-cake, and kept the baby hushed.

A precious gift of thoughtfulness.

{ And the noise-ies have yet to return! }

Oh La La Spa

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Such a lovely celebration

For my two lovely little ladies

How precious it is to journey with these two remarkable girls through life.

Each stunning in her own, a true treasure, both gifted in February.

What lively joyfulness a birthday party spa can be.

This Week

Friday, February 20, 2015

A great amount of celebrations are taking place, two birthdays and a birthday party.

Thats just about as much extra time as this mama has, and I offer it all to the festives.

I hope to get a few quiet moments in this weekend to share more of the house.

See you then.

Living Room

Sunday, February 15, 2015

It was the outdoors, trees and land that drew us in, convinced our souls there would be breathing space and nature.

A healthy spot in the crazy busy of this new city to raise our brew of beauties.

Yet the house is where I spend the bulk of my moments, and for me it is essential that there is beauty with-in the mundane and constant duties of home life. Lovely touches to home and hearth has been a sustaining joy for me. Wherever I have lived be-it a camping trailer, apartment in Asia or flat in Africa, I have needed beauty, order and peace. In part to add familiarity of home but also to create a space that is personally refreshing, so that when all is new and challenging and changing there is one place, just a spot on the map that is you, familiar and our own.

It was this room that both Roger and I saw a future here, we could picture it, the memories that could be made within this space. We could hear the laughter and the dancing, the noise… oh the noise of all our precious littles causing ruckus! We could also feel the peace and beauty of the room, a spot for us to meet and unwind at the end of our long days, a place to visit kindling friendship between us and others.

Once we owned the house we went about fitting it to our personal likes, we first tackled a very dirty soon-to-be stunning row of french doors and windows that lead out to the covered patio and pool yard. Once light was able to filter into the space we decided the walls needed painting. We also put hardwood floors in and refinished the balcony railings to match the entrance stairway. We replaced all the beige outlets for white and the brass fixtures for oiled bronze and then replaced the fan.

Our back patio is screened-in and runs the length of the back of our home. I know I am going to love this outdoor space during the heat of Houston’s summer. But it does limit the amount of natural light that comes into the living room, kitchen and master bedroom. That said it does help keep our home cool and inviting when the temperatures rise outdoors.

It truly has been filled with the memories we envisioned, noise and all! We have hosted friends and family and even tonight we are having a church gathering in our home. The kids dance and jump on the couches, they climb over the half wall from the kitchen to the living room and launch toy-parachutes from the balcony! It is all it’s name declares, much LIVING happens in this room!

I am pleased.

It is just as I hoped, beauty and blessings, living and loving!

{ Before }

{ During }

{ This Moment }

The Great Overwhelm

When all the boxes were delivered into a half renovated home, the very day my sweet husband left for a week long business trip leaving me with my half-dozzen littles and hours upon hours of unpacking to be done and a house to finish renovating!

I sat there smiling, completely unsure of where to start, I guess I just thought to smile instead of cry.

It all worked out.

I still love my husband! The house is unpacked and the kids intact!

{ After }

{ This Message, Hanging in the main spot, a constant visual of truth! }

Enter

Sunday, February 1, 2015

I have been thinking about this post all weekend, well since I took these photos, it was Friday afternoon and the beautiful lulling moments between the busy week and the beginning of the weekend. It is usually my only moment of true pause all week long; the food is prepared, house clean, laundry put away, kids are relieved from school and duty and most often already pursuing weekend modes of play and adventure. If I get to this moment of hushed content early enough, and the sunlight is still bonny and the babies are still napping I grab my camera. That’s the capturing window of moment, its then or not again for a week. So Friday I snapped up what I could, then laid my camera down, those peaceful lulling moments were gone, but not my thoughts. I find I keep coming back to this welcoming space of my new home.

When I first saw this room I new instantly what I hoped to do for it. What I wanted this room to be and express. The feel I wanted to create out of it. I sensed the way the light could work to lift the muffled dimness. It had an elegant feel but lacked the character it deserved.

This room took on some life and story of its own. On our first night in the home Mr. Wild took a stick to the glass and cracked it, front and centre! It took some time to hunt down an artist capable of repairing it to it’s original state. Roger and I went back and forth on if we should stain the whole stairs or paint the risers and spindles white. Re-finishing the stairs was a huge job and much time went into the details of the woodwork and carpentry yet it was so worth it, the stairs are now beautiful and bright adding character all its own. We painted the walls a warm grey which brings out the slants and character of the room. We re-stained the door matching it to the stairs, we had the window casings of the door painted white and replaced the tile floors with hardwood.

I had the desire to do this room justice by bringing out its charm and really allowing it to become a welcoming space for those who come into my home. I believe hospitality begins in the entrance, the warmth of a welcome has a way of setting tone to a visit and friendship. My observation has been that a warm welcoming space brings out the best in all people, regardless if the details or decor are even recognized. It is more about creating an atmosphere of invitation, a space within your home that beckons and warmly welcomes.

My hope is always to be welcoming

Offering hospitality

Allowing room within our walls for something Holy to be extended.

Inviting those into the beauty and joy of our family and home.

{Before}