When we first moved into our house we didn’t realize something was wrong with the master bathroom initially. But I started to smell some funk and noticed the warping on the baseboards from previous leaks. We tried to clean and seal the door and the grout in the shower where I suspected the smell was coming from, but between the leaky door and the hard water that had rotted the wood under the shower through the grout, we quickly realized we were not going to be able to fix this problem ourselves. Long story short, we got insurance involved and we did our first major remodel in our house. Not exactly what we planned or what we had hoped to do, but we are blessed we were able to fix the issue before it got worse.
Luckily, the vanity didn’t need to come out, but we have all new flooring, paint, and baseboards. The vanity also got refinished which was nice.
I decided to ditch most the gray and go much lighter and classic with a modern accent on the shower floor and wall. I left the tub because it really wasn’t in the budget to do a standing tub. I don’t really mind, I don’t exactly have time for long baths all the time anyways, haha!
I’m personally really glad I got to reuse these curtains from A’s old room. The bathroom feels light and airy now. I’m also excited not to have a shower door. Spoiler alert, they are IMPOSSIBLE to clean. The curtain rod they installed is a little short and needs to extend more but the contractor is going to fix that. I’m really pleased that there are no crevices that need cleaning any more, even the shelves are completely flat. We also have put in a water softener so the grout will not struggle and age quite as fast.
That’s a little house update! We’ve been busy with weddings in the family, figuring out this crazy winter here, and our social and work schedules. I’m hoping to get a recipe and a family update here soon. Until then, peep what kind of sunrises we get here each morning!
Here it is! This is our super cozy movie room. We have had some wonderful movie nights here already and can’t wait for more. We went with a patriotic theme which was Husband’s suggestion and we all love it!
The bean bag was on my wish list and we just LOVE IT!
See the long wall behind the couch? We plan on putting all our favorite movie posters on that wall, but in a smaller version so we can fit LOTS of them. This is going to be our “cool hang out” place. We plan on starting some tween movie nights this winter and combined with the mini fridge, snack shelf, and bean bag, I think we’ve nailed it! The coffee table and school table can handle several board or card games at once which we will be testing out this coming weekend in our first Soup Night open house.
Up close shot of our canvases showing some epic/ pivotal times in American history.
We’ve done some reading aloud on the couch/bean bag with the fire place on and woah, it is warm! I do really miss our real fireplace, but I’m hoping we can have a fire pit outside someday, so we can still split wood and get that crackly fire experience.
Ha! You can see me in the reflection- hi! Note the huge bin of blankets- we got allll the cozy going on.
I think that’s all of the house for now folks. C did not want his room shown and the storage room is kinda boring. Once I get our workout room finished, which will be awhile, I’ll show it to you all. Until then, I’ll be giving updates on our activities learning our new area and a few recipes I’ve developed recently.
Nature’s first green is gold, Her hardest hue to hold. Her early leaf’s a flower; But only so an hour. Then leaf subsides to leaf. So Eden sank to grief, So dawn goes down to day. Nothing gold can stay.
Robert Frost
Hello, friends. How has autumn been treating you so far? Maybe it’s doesn’t feel like fall where you are, but here the night temps are starting to drop to the high 30s, which is a pretty swift change for us. Temperature hasn’t been the only big change, we’ve gotten a pretty rough introduction to the high winds that Eastern Idaho experiences. Randomly during the day, although the weather report didn’t alert us, the wind became so extreme that it picked up my chicken coop, yep, the steel and heavy duty Omlet one, and rolled it across the yard. It didn’t stop there. It swept the extended aluminum run, which is quite large, across the yard, bent it like a paper clip, and flung it over a water spout, breaking off said water spout which proceeded to flood part of the yard. I was able to grab the run and stop it before it ravaged the neighborhood. Even then I had to sit on the ground gripping it so it didn’t take me with it. Needless to say, it was a pretty devastating situation. We’ve gotten things battened down better now we think. Pro tip: staking it all in the ground does nothing. The good news is: all the chickens are just fine- they didn’t even turn a feather.
I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.
L.M Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables
We have been winterizing as quickly as possible between all our activities and the various repairs that the house needs. But despite that I still feel so busy that I can’t get everything done around here. I had hoped to have a fire pit built and some trees put in, but it looks like we won’t get to that till next fall. Along with being busy with work and school and the house, Chris and I are deeply involved with the leadership aspects of our extra curricular events, which is very fun, but very time consuming. I’m hoping with football ending, and our 4H club meeting less often, that we get a few more free evenings.
The kids and I have a goal to read The Lord of the Rings aloud over the next year. We’ve read The Hobbit last year, the whole Chronicles of Narnia the year before that, and we finished the whole Harry Potter series earlier this year, so I feel like it’s time! They can handle the density of it. I had contemplated doing the audio book version but… I feel like I would be tempted to turn it on and then do other work. I think this is the best way to keep it a bonding activity between me and the kids. However, ask me how I feel about that half way through The Two Towers. haha! I’ve already gotten a comment that my “Dumbledore voice and Gandalf voice sound a lot a like.” Well kid, I’m trying. I’ve only got so many old man voices in my repertoire. I’ve been able to reinstitute tea time to much general excitement. Lil C just loves setting out tea time, which buys me some points with her and some good read aloud time to the bigs. Usually, we plow through the school readings first then get to “the good stuff.”
(why is the clock crooked? Ugh)
Ah, yes. I forgot to mention, I turned 34 this month! It does feel strange. I don’t feel nearly as together and grown up as I imagined I’d be around this age. But I have some lovely role models here in the women I’ve met. They are quite admirable and I hope to learn a lot from them. As usual I was quite spoiled on my birthday. Husband got me several of amazing cast iron pans (the ones I’d worked on for ages to season got lost on the move! We think the guys didn’t pack them). He also got me this epic set of sourdough starter jars that measure the temp and growth of the starter. I’m quite official now.
I am hopeful to get another tour update soon: the tv room! It’s very different than the rest of the house because it was Husbands choice in the decor. I really like it! We look forward to hosting some tween movie nights over the fall and winter, as well as open house soup nights, so I imagine it’s gonna get quite a bit of use what with the weather being so snowy in the winters here. The big kids are very excited for all the happenings we’ve planned, hopefully we parents can keep up.
Sing a song of seasons! Something bright in all! Flowers in the summer, fires in the fall!
Decorating this room was one of my favorites because I’ve decided to fully embrace that I LOVE neutrals, and I’m going to implement that in our bedroom (Husband doesn’t really care what the room looks likes as long as it’s not a bunch of girly patterns, haha!) I sometimes get a lot of guff for decorating in so much white, grey, and brown, but these tones feel peaceful and clean to me, so that stepping into this room is instantly calming.
As you can see we still have a little buddy sleeping with us in here, her bed decor is totally throwing off my vibe, haha! When she snuggles into the middle in the wee hours all cozy, I know it’s worth it, and I really don’t mind. She will sleep in her own gorgeous room when she is ready, but for now, the adjustment to the new house is proving enough for her to cope with at the moment. Plus, I feel a little more secure having her close by in this big house- I feel like I lose the kids in it all the time.
That quote above our bed in from one of Husband’s favorite Luke Combs songs, and I got him the print for our anniversary (12 years!).
Our morning coffee nook that I just adore! This has been a bucket list item and I love it. Looking out at the back yard, and all that sunshine, AND hot coffee? I just *swoon*!
I got this wall mount for Husband’ s guitar last Christmas in the hopes that if the instrument was more readily available, he’d be able to play more- it’s worked! Now, he’s not quite singing me love songs over our morning coffee, but that’s okay, we make up for it by being the scourge of many a campground with our evening practice of duets…but that’s another story.
Big C assembled this desk totally by himself. It is so fantastic that he is so handy, he helps me a lot. I got the Celtic crucifix for Chris for Father’s Day and we had it blessed and it was such an epic blessing! I am so grateful for our priests here. The sign below I made myself (woot!) it says “I am with you always” which is my very favorite Bible quote.
You can’t go wrong with a couple of Anne of Green Gables quotes when you wake up each morning. I just love these quotes; “It’s been my experience you can nearly always enjoy things, if you make up your mind firmly that you will.” Yes! None of this waking up on the wrong side of the bed for me, happiness is a choice! The other says, “Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes in it.” Maybe this quote is more fitting as a reminder before you go to bed, especially if you like to mentally doom spiral, like myself.
That’s all for today folks! I have just a couple more house tours coming up, before I start to document daily life and our plans for development in the back yard. I’ve got lots of ideas, but in the mean time- anyone know of any plants that love alkaline soil?
As a Friday treat you get a tour of two parts of the house! First up is the entry way from the garage. This is where we enter the house primarily.
This isn’t all our coats and such, the rest are in the garage on some storage racks C and I assembled so you’ll see that once I tour the garage. I’m working hard to make sure this doesn’t just become a “dump” zone, but better here than the kitchen.
Right off the entry is the laundry room- pretty great! What is not great is that we were suppose to get a washer and dryer on the 11th and it got pushed to the 20th now. Ah well, I’m getting lots of appreciation for our daily comforts by hauling everything to the laundromat a few times.
Next up is one of my very favorite tours I’ve been looking forward to! The SCHOOL ROOM!
Hallway to the basement. Check the sweet safe. The basement is open concept and is shared with the movie room. But! School room first.
C and A’s desks and our communal school table. Also peep Lil C’s tiny table to work at! C assembled the desks and all the chairs himself. He’s such a help. I am so excited to do school here!
Our awesome storage cubes! Best $50 ever spent.
Eee! I’m so excited for her adorable set up. She’s very excited to do her “work” she says.
All my school stuff fits in this closet. It is the absolute BEST. We also could fit all the games on the top shelf because I’m sure our school table will double as a game table. It has an extra leaf we can put in if needed.
This is for the movie nights, guests, and busy school days. I’ve wanted a snack bar for guests and movie nights since I started designing my future house at eight years old. Dream come true✔️.
This is two of the three of my “shelves of inspiration”. I was so excited to make these. It took a lot of time to find all the prints/art, I’ll tell ya. However, I’m not going to give you a closer look at what exactly they say/are. You’ll have to visit to see 😉.
We have our school binders all ready to go, and I’m nervous/excited to jump into 4th and 6th grade on Monday. Wish us luck!
Down the hall to the guest room is our big maps and our timeline for history this year. Last time we used this timeline C was so wee! Now he will be filling it out with A this year with pretty much no help from me. Time does fly. I’ll just go color with Pickle to assuage my mommy woes. Boy, I’m so excited to finish the guest room which has been a labor of love, and… badada! The LIBRARY! Another bucket list house item since I was a little girl. Come to think of it, this house has a lot of those! I am so blessed!
That’s all for now folks. We have our first guests coming over this weekend, I’m excited to serve up some yummy healing food to our new friends to further christen the house. I’m sure it will help the wave of homesickness I’ve been battling this week. Have a wonderful weekend all!
P.s. Bonus picture of our new kittens, Tonks and Hermione❤️
I was in the middle of cooking dinner so decided to make the most of my time and take some pictures for you all of our new kitchen! It’s pretty fabulous and wowza, it’s big.
I’ve already got plans to ditch that microwave and put in a hood. Miss A suggested a mosaic of bread baking too- I love the idea!
Folks, I’ve got a PANTRY. Dreams do come true😍!
AND room for cookbooks!? So blessed. I’m not gonna lie, some of the cabinets annd drawers are actually empty or very close to it because this kitchen is so much bigger than our last one. However, to my undying shame, I already have a junk drawer. Woe.
You know things are going well when there are full homemade granola containers, fresh eggs (the chickens are home, YAY!!) and spruce tip beer brewing.
My view for dish washing. You can see the hens and Lucas in the distance. I’ve got big plans for this yard I can assure you. First, I’ve gotta figure out this alkaline soil situation. Any ideas? I’m thinking all container and/or raised beds.
Well, that’s the kitchen ya’ll! I’m already working some yeast magic here as you can see above, so that must be a good sign, right?
I’m so excited for the girls to each have their own room. Their age gap is five years which at this point, merits some space so we opted to not have them share a room. Miss A decided to go with a more grown up theme, which as bitter sweet as that is, I’m charmed to see her sense of style develop. I still have a lot of creative control for Lil’ C’s room, yay! Luckily, she folded on her room being “alll black” because she’s decided that her favorite color is not only black now but also pink. Come see their lovely rooms!
Can you tell I’m excited to embrace the swan/ballerina theme for our Little Swan!? C approved of the crown on her canopy naturally, haha.
Okay, that hammock chair is THE BEST for book reading to Pickle. It is probably the coziest seat in the house.
So. Much. Storage. 😍
Before I forget! Here is the hall to the girls rooms. We put all the birth frames and rulers here together because I didn’t want C’s all alone downstairs. Without further ado, here is Miss A’s room!
“I need a seat to look out the window while I write my book mom”, you got it girl!
Although it wasn’t her favorite, I think that little shelf is perfect for A’s trophies and special things. She asked for the icons over her bed especially. 🥰
She didn’t want any “pink” but asked for “mint and rose” colors in her room. I like it! She’s got great color instinct, makes sense; she is our resident artist.
Heirlooms. Soon to be closer to home, as A is starting harp in addition to continuing piano this fall.
Again, much untapped storage which I’m sure to be extra thankful for in the teen years.
She really wanted a cork board for all her special things from friends, mementos, and photographs. She also really likes having a calendar to know what’s coming up.
We’ve been in the house we purchased for one week and I am super proud to say, there is only ONE box left to unpack! It helped that we packed up only 1200 sq feet and now those possessions occupy over 3500 sq feet; so much storage everywhere! I’ve had a blast decorating and making this house home. I was particularly determined to get things set up so that the kids could really start settling in. I’ve made bread, granola, and marshmallows so it’s just about home, all it needs is a spruce tip beer fermenting on the counter (coming this weekend!). I am so anxious to share the house with all of you, so here is the first peek. And I do really mean a peek. Before I am able to take pictures, obviously I have to clean up a bit (believe it or not my house is not spotless 😜) so I plan on going through the house one room at a time. Here is our living room!
Pictured is the view right when you walk in the front door. You can sneak a peak of our dining room table to the right.
Over the gas fireplace is some decor and family pictures. I like it, but maybe it’s a bit crowded? I’ll muse on that. To the left is our icon corner.
The space to the right is eventually going to have a harp in it. Aren’t we blessed!? Azelie is starting harp this fall. Yay! To the left of the icon corner is …
Oh, how excited we all were, especially Caidoc, to get the piano back! I’m excited that this is a music room AND living room. It’s going to work so well for gatherings and supervising practicing. To the right of the piano I am planning on putting the … cello! Extra super blessed! Caidoc is starting cello this fall as well. Aren’t we lucky to have so much music in the house? That is all for now friends! Remember, you’re always welcome to come visit.
I typed a lovely Christmas letter and then promptly got over whelmed with running another theater camp (Beowulf!), schooling my kids, and traipsing to all their activities that I completely ignored my blog. I tried to write a couple times, seriously, but it just didn’t make it all the way to publishing. I’m here now though, to update you all on a very huge step our family has taken.
We’ve moved to Idaho Falls.
Does that seem random? It kinda was. Husband has been job hunting for some time, and we knew we wanted our kids in a more wholesome environment but we weren’t quite sure where that was. But, after Husband prayed a novena to St. Joseph, he got offered this job here at Idahoan Foods, on the feast of St. Joseph. It felt divine so up we packed, and a month later, showed up in Idaho Falls knowing no one, never having been here before, and knowing next to nothing about the place. Husband and I are not ones for huge spontaneous decisions, but this wasn’t really that; we truly believe we’ve been sent here by God. For what reason? I’m sure we will find out.
Thank you for the memories
It’s been two weeks so far of Chris loving his new job, and the whole family throwing themselves into finding some roots. The journey to get here was quite exciting and I am blessed that we had so much help. I still find myself staring outside and wondering what the heck we are doing here but everything will be okay as long as we have each other. I tell the kids that when they mention that they miss home; “what made our house a home was the people we shared it with” and I hope that helps, at least, it’s what helps me. So, while we continue this adventure of setting up our lives here in Idaho, please think of us- send prayers, good vibes, what have you. I will try and keep the blog more updated on our lives here in Ida-home, while we navigate this leap of faith.
Merry Christmas to one and all from the Brock family! We are so abundantly blessed and 2022 has been no exception.
Cosima (3) is the sweetest little love and occasionally a spicy Pickle. She bravely and excitedly goes along with the flow of the big kids busy schedules. She loves ballet, her kitties, doing art or playing Barbies with “Lelly” (Azelie), and being wild with Caidoc. Daddy is her “bestest buddy”. I spend a lot of time chatting with Cosima when the big kids are busy and I absolutely love hearing what is going on in her head, she has so much to say; “Stickers are my best. Sometimes, I love ripping dem.” One of her new favorite things to do is run around clanging pot lids together yelling, “party!” I aspire to that level of enthusiasm and energy. We love our little Pickle, Cozy Bear- toddlers are so hilarious!
Azelie (8) got her ears pierced last year in celebration of receiving her first confession! She loves playing tennis, soccer, and baseball. She completed piano guild auditions for the first time this past spring, scoring exceptionally well. The Christmas recital was her favorite event in piano this year. 2022 was her 3rd year in 4H and she participated in the spring fair and state fair. She won a blue ribbon for her art project in the spring fair and another ribbon for her poster in the state fair. This year she joined American Heritage Girls and is loving earning all the badges! Azelie participated in a week long Shakespeare camp and played Hermia where she discovered she loves acting- no surprise to this momma. Azelie is my big helper and Pickle whisperer. I am so grateful for her encouraging comments to me and her tender, sensitive heart. She always looks on the bright side of things which impresses me to no end.
Caidoc (10) I’m a little freaked out I have a TEN year old, but Caidoc doesn’t feel like he’s growing up fast enough. He got glasses this year! He has played piano for four years now and is really bursting with talent. He participated in his third guild auditions and scored exceptionally well. He has been in 4H for three years and got first place for his Lego invention at the spring fair. His true love is baseball and he absolutely loved playing for another season this past summer. Caidoc played Lysander in A Midsummers Night Dream during Shakespeare camp and while it was not his favorite role, I was proud that he embraced the experience with confidence. Caidoc has joined Trail Life and is really enjoying making friends and taking on extra responsibility. He loves our kitties and chickens and takes good care of them. His most recent thrilling experience was being able to finally sit in the front passenger seat of the car. He is as good a co-pilot as I always knew he would be. He did express disappointment that the role of “shotgun” didn’t actually come with a shotgun. I am so proud of my boy, he is incredibly helpful to me on a daily basis. I am loving watching him grow up.
Abby (30 something) My greatest joy and privilege is being able to be a wife to Chris and a mother to Caidoc, Azelie, and Cosima. While I usually feel like I have no idea what I am doing, I love homeschooling them and nurturing their growth. I spend a lot of time cooking, reading, and making ambitious plans like putting on a week long Shakespeare camp this past summer for 10 kids. At least that keeps me busy from acquiring any new animals much to Husband’s relief. I shamelessly spoil the chickens and cats. I guess I am becoming a pet person- wonders never cease. Between Field Trip Fridays with my Adventure Crew, long days spent explaining math concepts and Latin roots, and helping fundraise for the kiddos clubs, I am quite busy during the school year. Despite the sports, clubs, camping, and general shenanigans, I still find time to experiment with my herbal brew making, most of which doesn’t explode, and I try to forage as much as possible, usually conscripting my children and Husband into joining me; “it’s for your health” I say. Interpret that as you will. I look forward to more traveling, and as always, not taking a single day for granted.
Chris (basically 40) Chris works tirelessly at his job as engineering manager to provide for us in a most ample and generous way. We are so spoiled by him. When he is not being volun-told (not sure who would do that… )to coach the kids sports teams, or become a leader in Trail Life, or a volunteer in 4H, he is dropping everything to help me out with my wild ideas. Chris travels quite a bit for work which is always an exciting experience for both of us; he can occasionally explore new places and I get a reminder that doing this parenting gig without him would be impossible. Still an avid soccer fan, he hopes to start playing regularly in the coming new year, and possibly picking back up the trombone. I suppose I should count my blessings that it’s the trombone he’s settled on and not the bagpipes which was his original thought. His current favorite hobby is making sure to have his beard comb with him at all times in case the opportunity arises for him to mortify Caidoc and Azelie with a good combing sesh. Classic. We make a great team and I can’t wait to see what our future holds together. He’s my best friend and I am the luckiest wife in the world.
Well friends, that’s our year end update in a nutshell. I always look forward to reading y’all’s Christmas letters during these long dark evenings so don’t forget to send yours our way, be it paper or electronic, we will gladly welcome it. I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Much love,
