what have the Maple's been up to?...making their NEW house a HOME!

I have yet to blog about our new home, etc., etc. Yes, we did move at the end of March. We are still in the Kingwood area just a different villiage and a bigger, better home. We were blessed beyond our imagination w/ this whole house ordeal. It all happened so quickly...we put our house on the market. Someone came and looked at it the very next day, and bought it (at our asking price, but we helped him w/ closing). Absolutely amazing!

So then we had to find a place to live...we looked and looked...nothing. Well, not totally nothing, but not EXACTLY what we were looking for. Then one of Mike's (mowing) clients, was casually talking to him one day after Mike had finished up his yard. He had mentioned the idea of putting his house on the market. Mike asked, "how much would you sell it for?" He said, "well I'd give it to you for $******." It was much below market value and already had many upgrades.

Long story short, we got a bigger and better home, that was exactly what we were looking for for the price of our old house! I just thought this to be such a beautiful little story...If you can't see God's Hand in this, well, maybe you need to look a little harder :).

So here are some pictures of a few things that are making our house a home.

This is my "portrait wall". It is in our office area.

These are a few garage sale finds :)...don't you love finding a great item at a great price...even if it is used!

this shelf was red, and pretty rugged...which i tend to like. I painted it black:

love the funky colors of this rooster:

another rooster...funky colors again, but with paisleys...my FAV! Found him @ Steinmart.

If you love to shop and have never been to Canton, TX, you must go. That is where i purchased the next 3 items:

and the newest member of our family, SCOUT...he is a cocker spaniel pup! (he also came from Canton, TX) I have a personal shopper. Her name is A**, and she is aka my MOM! Isn't she wonderful :). love you mom. The ever so generous man we bought this house from left a lot of stuff...both good and bad. Here is some of the GOOD:

this precious little table

and this beautiful antique piece of furniture: These are pictures of my glass-top table in our breakfast room. One of my oh-so-creative step-sisters had this idea. In an effort to "hide" the fingerprints, etc. that make a glass-top table look so yuck, she decided to decoupage it. So, w/ her (and some other's) help, we created this unique table. It is colorful, funky, fun, and most importantly, PERSONALIZED to our family! I love it! It always looks clean even when it is not :). As for Mr. Cade...every morning, he wakes up and puts on this pirate outfit with yellow rainboots and tells us that he is going to work for the day! We just play along with him...you gotta love a child's ability to IMAGINE! One day i even took him to the park in this outfit :). As a mother, i choose to pick my battles, and this was one i was willing to let him win :).

And Drew...Well, Drew's latest obsession is anything DADDY! Here they are as they worked putting mulch in our flower beds:

There is nothing better than a good book to read while on summer break. I finished Night...it is a great book based on a man's experience in an Auschwitz concentration camp. Also, very good, but sad, was A Child Called "It"...so good that i finished it in one day! I will begin reading The Innocent Man next...i'll let you know how it is. Happy Reading!