making adult decisions ...

want an update on the house? well she's coming along.
proof, you say? today she looks like this:

woo hoo! beautiful! right!?!

though i say that sarcastically, i'm actually THRILLED about that 100ft hose & black tarp parading through our foyer and living room. today we're having insulation blown into the attic! did you know that 37% of your energy loss is through your roof!?! (nerdy homeowner talk!) we knew that our sweet home like many in east nashville didn't have sufficient insulation when we moved in, and that it was a big priority! we're going from zilch insulation to about r-44 (between r-38 and r-49 are recommended for our climate zone). then next week we're insulating the basement as well. 3 cheers for efficient heating and cooling!

instead of running out to buy furniture + art for the house like i really really really really really want to do, we're spending some big bucks on maintenance. along w/ the insulation, we're having debris removed from the basement & vapo put down to seal it from moisture. we're also getting a termite contract to protect from future infestation (it's only a matter of time in this area). next we'll research gutters AND then ... THEN if nothing else crazy comes up (which i know it's bound to in a 100 year old home!), we'll start investing in the fun stuff.

(this pic is basically a before/after --- the foreground shows what little insulation there was before!)

i'm highly aware that this isn't the stuff you blog home about!
but i'm doing it anyway! family work day - part 2 starts bright and early tomorrow.

what's the best investment you've made on your home?

may i introduce you to ...

saturday turned into family work day around the new house - so i didn't get around to blogging as promised. but we knocked so many things off the "to do" list. i'll blog more about a few of those things separately.

first let me tell you a bit about our move ...

we agreed that the seller could occupy the house until 9 days after we closed. unfortunately this pushed our move to friday, december 21st - yes 4 days before christmas. though we hired movers, we were blessed by a whole heap of friends dropping in on saturday morning before each of them went their separate way for christmas.

then it got cray! wade and i drove to his parents' that afternoon for christmas with his siblings. the next morning, we welcomed his brother and sister-in-law (and 6 kids under 11!) over for a quick house tour. wade's parents dropped by in the afternoon and we had in-town-for-christmas friends over sunday evening. by 8am on monday morning, we were back in the car and headed to christmas, part 2 w/ wade's family. from there, we drove directly to illinois for 2 days with my family. i ended up spending the 2nd day in bed w/ the flu. we packed the car and drove back to nashville on the 26th despite a snowstorm and recovering stomach adding 3hrs to our usual 6.5 hour trip.

we agreed to have the seller's repairs finished after our move bc of a quick closing & christmas and bc i was off the week between the holidays to oversee. thursday at 8am the contractor & crew arrived.*** over the next 3 days, our house was a mess of drywall, sanding, paint, caulk, plumbing, roofing, debris removal, and electrical projects ... and lots and lots of dirt + dust. the seller was awesome and had the house professionally cleaned the day before we moved in, but in the aftermath of repairs, the house was even more of a mess than it had been on day 1. now it was still in boxes and GROSS.

in the midst of all that crazy, we adopted a dog! hattie - a 4-year old english bulldog - came home to live w/ us on the thursday following christmas (yes - the day the contractor arrived!). if you follow along on instagram, i apologize. i've already become "that" dog mama. a few favorites:

poor hattie had all kinds of health problems after 6m of being passed around from foster to foster - double ear infection, impacted anal glands (def the only time you'll ever read that on my blog!), a skin rash from poor diet (hattie is gluten free like me!), allergies and the dreaded f-word ... fleas! talk about major pet ownership orientation! we're medicating and babying her back to health. i have to get over my ocd tendencies and find my loving, nurturing side. good practice for future little mundays? maybe.

my BIGGEST concern - fleas! say "flea" and i begin to itch! ick! i'm using a spritz of 5 drops lemon essential oils + 5 drops lavender oils + 1c water on her skin and her bedding in addition to her monthly flea/heartworm treatment and i sprayed the living room as a preventative w/ natural defense flea/tick spray. hopefully the essential oils will also be good for her skin. any natural suggestions to keep the fleas away? any other fun tips for new pet owners?

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*** 2 random things:
1 // i recommend seller's repairs finished before a move. there's already enough on your moving "to do" list. :-\
2 // our realtor blake campbell from village real estate went above and beyond! he was there the entire time watching over the repairs! moving in or around nashville? call him!

holy cow - it's 2013!

i've been so busy busy w/ the whole crazy move that i haven't even stopped by to wish you all a very happy new year! what the!?! it's already almost mid-month! have you set any resolutions? me? well - no. i'm currently trying to feel like i'm not a stranger in our new home! resolving to do anything other than exist and unpack is a bit over-whelming.

mom flew into town last friday and she has been so helpful. it's amazing what little things like a waste basket in your laundry room or a night light in the bathroom do to make a house a home. she's also determined to get me to put things on the wall. she claims it will make us feel more settled. and you know what? she's right! so thankful for all the furniture wade's parents and grandparents have given to us. and my dad drives down today w/ 1 final truck load!

i have a confession. our new house was featured on apartment therapy this past week - go here check it out ... it looks amazing. however ... it's felt a little discouraging. everyone's all "WOW your house looks amazing" and i'm all "oh if you only could see it now." we look like such a downgrade. boxes, temporary decorations, furniture that needs refinished, tweaked, yada yada. and this is where you all remind me that the former owner lived there for like 8 years. yah yah, i know.

how about  few pics of the OUTSIDE of our house. it still looks pretty pretty. these were part of the christmas shoot we did w/ the amazing alissa saylor prior to our move. please check her out!

{photos: alissa saylor photography}

my honey-do list and personal to do lists are growing! we have so many fun ideas for the new place. first off however we have to do the practical things like buy gutters and install insulation and get a termite contract. woot woot. things that really look impressive on the blog. :-/

back tomorrow w/ a fun little update!

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas ...

despite our crazy holiday schedule (oh - and packing to move!), we took some time off this past weekend to hang out w/ photographer alissa saylor. we are so blessed to have talented friends.

as excited as we are to have our very first home - i have to admit it's a little bittersweet packing up our apartment. we have so many memories of our first 2 years of marriage here - and we will definitely miss mornings in our little kitchen. not to mention i nearly cried telling our wonderful neighbor jerry (and his kitty lily) that we were moving out. *enter watery eyes again* ... we were so very thankful that alissa could capture pictures of us at both our brand new home & at our current apartment.

i especially love w/ the pictures of us decorating cookies --- a vickroy family tradition that we will someday pass along to our kiddos.

per wade's usual, he makes one, eats one. :) which yes - means all our of christmas cookies have already been consumed. an excuse to make more!?! (can i find time - and get this house packed!?!)

head on over to alissa saylor photography to see more of our pictures & more of her amazing work!

ps - here's my gfree sugar cookie recipe! definitely the yummiest gfree sugar cookies - and to be honest ... we like the better than the glutinous ones we ate before we realized my allergy. these are sooo delicious bc of the oat flour! and this time i substituted almond extract for vanilla. let's all say it together ... yum!