Pond Life to Salt Life

I know, I don't write. Ever. So, I don't think many of you will see this which is why I am posting it all :)

In yet another crazy crazy turn of events, we are leaving our lovely South Carolina home and headed full circle back to Virginia Beach. When I earned my Surface Warfare Pin I treated myself to a painted piece of wood that reads, "Home is where your story begins..." Well, Isaac and I started our married life in Virginia Beach and now our children will spend some time growing up there!

When we bought our home in SC we saw it for maybe 20 minutes, I wasn't overly impressed, but we liked the pond, the open floor plan and the price tag. We took a leap of faith, which at times seemed like a BIG mistake but God always works everything out, am I right? And boy has He, but that is another post.

The closing was horrible, the house was an even bigger mess than when we first saw it and we were so sad that this dirty home was where we were moving our babies to. Hopefully these photos prove that with some elbow grease, paint, a few upgrades and a whole lot of scrubbing, sometimes a pig with lipstick can be a beautiful thing. At least we like to think so :)

All photos are the before and then after!

Painted front door Red, Shutters a brighter blue, added a storm door, MAN HANDLED the front shrubs and removed one, added a flag as any good patriot does, the Texas Lonestar, and had a local company fertilize our yard and installed a fence to keep our curious kiddos out of the pond.

 So, the kitchen and living room was a HUGE problem for me as we bought this home. The wall color, the lack of storage in the kitchen, the lighting, the dark counters that had melted and missing parts from years of misuse. I was SO happy with the paint color. My FIL helped us install some cabinets from Lowes to make a coffee bar and give me much needed storage for larger kitchen appliances, we changed out the light with a steal of a deal from the Ballard Outlet in West Chester, Ohio. I loved this space when it was finished...It only took us 6 months to buy a couch and we packed it into storage less than 6 months later...I digress.

 

 We took out the old counters when the price started going up on the laminate to cover the new coffee bar. Granite was a lot more affordable than we thought and East Coast Granite would match the Lowe's pricing and they had about 3x the selection. We tiled the backsplash our selves (don't look too closely) and purchased it at Lowes along with a new pendant light for over the sink. I took down the broken and slanting vertical blinds on the door and hung a curtain rod with some home made drapes. Oh, and a new faucet over the sink with our new deep sink that came with the granite. There is that "Home is where your story begins" sign that is over the sliding doors.

 

I'm just not a formal sitting room kind of girl and my toddlers and carpet don't go well with food! We installed pergo floors in the dining room and entryway and painted the room BM Elephant Gray. I was going to put the Ballard light in here but the chandelier, although hanging slightly askew, grew on me and kept it's spot. 

The bedrooms were just some paint and our decor. 

 

I need storage space! We added these cabinets from Lowes and I painted the walls Sherwin Williams, Glass Slipper. It was a sample I got but decided it was too light for the entire home. It was just enough to cover the walls during nap time one day! 

 

Sherwin Williams Silver Bullet Gray (I think). Must check on that! 

We doubled the size of the deck, changed the location that you walked down into the yard and then put a good thick coat of stain on it so the old and new would look alike. We had big plans for that deck this summer and fall. The shade falls on it around 2pm in the summer and with a bit of a breeze it's perfect.

Well, that's it. Our little SC home. I know a lot of our friends and family waited for one reason or another to visit and man, did they miss out! Peaches, fireworks and bbq. Not to mention the fishing, laughing and neighborhood pool! We will miss not only the home but some great friends and some incredible loving people we met in our short amount of time there. I know SC is in the news a lot right now, but for the most part, you can't find any better people. Kind, loving, peaceful and willing to help anyone in need.

I also was sad to leave this chapter for our kids. They grew up so much in the year we lived there. Both are so much physically bigger but they are much more brave, opinionated and curious.

The frogs won't miss them though. Not. One. Bit. Well, at least those that survived!