{a fresh spring breeze}: We built a house...part 1

I was never opposed to house building, but I always thought we would do it one day. A dear friend of my built a house a couple of years ago and I walked with her through it and thought it was insane! I was right.

We looked at houses around Edmond and prayed for two years about if we should move/buy/build. In November 2013, Patrick found a lot he loved in a great neighborhood a few miles South East of our old house. After that, as they say, the rest is history.

We had originally wanted several acres. But the price is high for such a thing. After much prayer, Patrick laid down those desires and God really gave him such a great peace and conviction about living in this neighborhood. Land means a lot to a man, I suppose, and I'm proud of Patrick for seeing that right now isn't the time for that. But it would have been fun!

The good news is that our house has a good back yard that backs up to a green belt and there are trees to the south for miles. The boys have little back rubber boots that they wear and spend hours in the "forest" -- digging and exploring and making things and being boys just as boys should be.

Anyways, we easily found a house plan that we both liked and tweaked it slightly to fit our desires. It's not too much bigger than our old house, but it does have an office and an extra bedroom that is currently a playroom. But if the Lord gives us another child, or we need family to live with us for a bit, or we need to host a multitude -- we feel prepared and ready to use this home to do all of those things. SO by December we were ready and we gave our downpayment in January. They broke ground and got started in early April 2014.

House building is not for the faint of heart. And friends, I am THE faint of heart. I'm too Type B to handle all these things and decisions. But by the grace of God, I survived -- although a little wore and weary. Patrick handled, extremely well and joyfully, all of the construction type things. His eyes were always opened and ready to text or call our builder with questions or concerns. I barely saw blemishes. I only saw chaos.

I made every.single.decision regarding the design and decor. Brick and paint and lights and hardware and plumbing and counters and appliances and tile and floor -- you get the point. It was so hard. I don't make decisions well and I don't have an "eye for design". I was grateful for my friend Jodi that helped along the way! I cried many tears during the process and lost a little of myself to the stress. I don't mean to be dramatic, but it was crazy!

I went to most places with three small children, sometimes two and rarely one. They were mostly unhelpful, but this was their home too {and it was the middle of summer}. It didn't help that I still had post-pardum hormones in me, was learning life with three babes, my gramma was very sick and Patrick's job changed a bit causing him to be less available. It actually was a perfect storm. And I learned a lot through it.

Lesson #1: Never build a house again.

Needless to say, when everything came together and nothing looked awry, I was simply delighted and praised God for His sovereignty -- even in house building. I prayed and prayed that this house would feel like home from day one and that people would feel comfortable and peaceful here. I still pray that and hope to see the Lord move in this place.

Here are house building process pictures: