passing the time durning those long winter months

making these...

Ice-coated trees outside mean only one thing inside an old farmhouse: layer up! Even with the super awesome new windows our incredible land-lord put in last spring, we get a bit chilly. So, Maya and I made several of these to keep us warm this winter. So supper quick and easy. You'll need to know this: front post triple and back post triple crochet stitch. And I can get the Simply Soft yarn at Wal-mart which means I don't have to drive into Dublin to get my supplies! Go here for free instructions.

...reading this...

Cool thing about this book, it's a fictional account of an "unsinkable" ship called the Titan that hit an ice burg and sunk... written 14 years before the sinking of the Titanic. No kidding. Free for Kindle here.

...and this...

True account of the sinking of the Titanic written just months after the disaster by people who knew the survivors.

for the love of an old house

September marks our official 2-year anniversary on our small hobby farm (and I stress small and hobby) and in this old house. We are project people and this place defines project.

One. Big. Never. Ending. Project.

But we bore easily and this place always has one more thing to do. Now what I love about it is it's not ours. So the projects we take on must be little to no cost which is my favorite way to do things and reminds me of that first little apartment we had on campus that I decorated with hand-me-downs and Odd Lots specials (I didn't say it looked good, but it required some thinking and creativity). "Something out of nothing" mentality, which is where I flourish.

Now, I  will paint anything at the drop of a hat, but anything cosmetic that requires money gets either a whole lot of ingenuity or is done in such a way we can take it with us. Preferably both. Anything major and impossible to ignore gets a call to the owner (who, by the way, is so very good to us). It's the perfect way to live in a very old project kind of house!

These are some of my favorite pieces that keep me organized. The house is actually the same square footage that our neighborhood house was, except I lost my huge finished basement in exchange for a creepy dirt cellar that I wouldn't even store canned goods in (and the house would have to be falling in around us before I'd consider it a safe place in a storm). Plus, it has a fraction of the closet space. A very small fraction. So I have learned to get creative with storage.

S built me these massive shelves Mother's Day 2010 to harness all the stuff that comes with being a homeschooler and a project junkie. We began using the room as a guest room this summer, so I added the coverings when we are not using them. The dust covers are Velcroed at the top and when I open them I pleat them so they have a gathered look, like an opened drape. One set holds all our art and handicraft supplies. The other set holds school materials, reference books, math aids, and books that are not scheduled for anyone at the moment. Each child gets his/her own shelf to put some of their personal things, their current study books, and their planners.

I'm so spoiled.

Well. Who knew the layer of wall paper in the closet that I removed (see picture in previous post) was covering over a gap in the wood just wide enough for a bat to wiggle through. A special thanks to M2 who figured that out for us. And thanks to this old house for teaching us we can survive a bat in the bedroom. We can laugh about it now that it's all over.

In Which I Make a Decision AND Follow Through

I am the queen at unfinished projects. I prefer to call it being visionary, but really I just allow myself to get dazzled with the promises of the next project and the old one gets stacked up on the shelf, waiting patiently for its due time in the spotlight. Some of the lucky ones get resurrected (and even finished), others are transformed into something else altogether different, the rejected get the lowest of insults and are filed away in the circular file, never to be heard from again.

My hubby put his foot down and insisted that my presence not grace the entrance to another home improvement or craft store until this one was completed. You see, over the summer I painted the upper cabinets in my lackluster kitchen. A couple of weeks ago I finished the lower cabinets too, and here you have it, a complete and finished project! (See the old kitchen here.)

Of Assorted Events

I can hardly believe we are knocking on the door of Autumn! My last post was about how I enjoyed our first spring in the country. How much more I am looking forward to the fall--my favorite time of year. I know spring is traditionally the time of new beginnings as God awakens His earth anew. But for me Fall has always seemed like the time for new things. One of those was marrying my husband 18 years ago on September 12. Everyone always says this so now it's a cliche, but I can hardly believe it's been 18 years. He is my best friend, my protector, my cheerleader, my teacher, my leader, my provider, and the one who holds my hand through it all. Sometimes I laugh and shake my head and ask God why He gave me to this man, we are so opposite. But I know it's because He has a plan and His plans are good. I didn't know it could be possible, but I love him more today than I did 18 years ago.

We've done so much this summer, here are some pics to fill you in on the highlights:
We took the carpet off the steps to uncover the original wood! Added numbers (you knew I would) and some pumpkins from the garden. Also took the carpet off the dining room (below) and painted the upper cabinets (hmmm, hope our landlord isn't reading this), but I won't tell you what color until I'm finished and can post some pics. This is authentic primitive country and I'm thrilled to be a part of it!
We added 110 more chicks. We will butcher the bulk of them this fall and keep some to brood next spring. The original hens will be butchered after these begin laying sometime in January/February. I had been praying since we moved that when God was ready for us to have a second car, He would give us a 4x4 truck that would be able to handle the snow. Well, He answered my prayer! It's a 1977 Chevy (with a 67 engine). Isn't it something? Thank you to those who provided and the gifted mechanic that helps us keep it running! And yes, that's a number six spray painted on the driver's door.FAQ. This September marks our first year in this house. Many of you have asked what our plans our now. We are not looking to buy anytime soon. Our current situation is an answer to prayer in so many ways, we feel we are exactly where God wants us. We don't know why, but it is not our desire to buy right now. We are now on a month to month lease and the owners have indicated that we can stay as long as we desire. So, until the Lord calls us elsewhere, we'll be here for the foreseeable future.

In Which We Add Another Layer to an Old Porch

Sitting Area Before

Sitting Area After
We have the materials to make a robe bed for the corner--just need the time to build it.

Eating Area Before
This is a good view of the peeling paint on the ceiling which the girls helped me scrape.
Eating Area After
Steve painted the ceiling a light robins egg blue. I may paint 2x2 black diamonds in a diagonal pattern on the old floor boards.
I bought this chandelier at a church rummage sale for $3, sprayed it black, pulled out the wires, and added candles, berries, and grapevine.

In Which I Welcome Spring

All right, it's time for me to update this baby. I know you all (all 2 of you) are waiting with belated breath. The question is, should I make one big long post or shall I divvy this up in smaller installments over the next week? Hmmm, what to do? What to do?
First I want to report that we made it through the very cold and snowy winter! The owners of the house have been very good to us and faithfully plowed our driveway all season! I am sorry to say that the house is still 65 (which any girl knows is cold) but the porch is sunny and warm and before I know it the house will be too warm and I'll lament not being able to open half the windows. Still, after a winter in a drafty old house, I'm looking forward to it and am so pleased to sit on the porch in the sun and get so overheated that I can't stand it anymore.

Makenna took this picture of a flowering bush near the house. We've never seen the property in spring so it's a lot like Christmas in April as we watch everything bud and guess what it will look like when it blooms. We are taking a water color class and I'd love to attempt this photo in watercolors. My skills will have to vastly improve so we'll see. Maybe I'll post the results if it's not too embarrassing.

In Which I Ask . . .

What color shall I paint the kitchen cabinets?!?

I now this is shallow of me, but the varied yellow wood of the kitchen cabinets really bothers me. The pictures below make them look darker than they are. The bottom picture shows the wood tone best.

In any case, they could be Big Bird yellow and other members of the family (who shall remain nameless) wouldn't care, or even notice. I, however, spend a lot of time in this room and it's just not at all appealing to me. So, what color shall I paint them?

Keep in mind that:

1) the back splash and counter tops are a mellow variegated yellow
2) the appliances are white
3) the floors are a vintage linoleum of muted yellow, tan, cream and flecks of gold (I'm not making this up)
4) I get tired of color quickly
5) I have accents of red (like the star and berries here) that I don't want to change.

Some options are posted in the side bar. You can vote for one of them or leave me a comment with a fabulous new option that I never imaged.

On Marking Your Home

Little by little, I'm still working on marking our home. I miss my chalkboard wall in my old kitchen so when we moved here I painted a chalkboard on an old piece of wood. After wandering the desert, it has finally found a home by the porch door in our dining room sitting on my Grandma's old sewing machine. It's the center room in the house so it gets high visibility which is good 'cause I use it in memorizing--which I'm really slow at so I need the constant reminder of what I'm working on.

To see other areas I've marked and why: Laundry room in last house, farm house family room.

In Which Analisa Claims Her Territory

Last week I got the idea that I wanted to stencil something somewhere. I haven't really marked this home yet and I've been itching to get some text up somewhere. I love words, fonts, text on old signs or painted on the wall, and chalk boards filled with scripture. I especially am anxious to mark this home as God's territory and I've had it in mind to put "faith, hope, love" somewhere and maybe some other scripture. Wall space is limited so I'm tying to be selective and purposeful in my choices.
These three old frames hung in my bedroom at the last house and I remember someone asking me "What's up with the empty frames?" Well, nothing. I just like them. I found them in my grandpa's old suitcase and I like the patina and the old strings used for hanging so I hung them on my wall. Makes since to me, but probably looks odd to others, I admit. Here at the farm house it's nearly impossible to drive a nail into the lath and plaster walls (that are covered in cheep paneling too), so I hung them on three nails that were left by the previous occupants, or maybe their previous occupants, who knows. They've been empty here too, and then I got this idea. I've used this method in the past. While I'm sure there are easier ways, this works and it's cheep. I choose a font I like and print it on regular copy paper. Then, using graphite paper I trace the words on the wall. I paint over the tracing. Sometimes I use Sharpies, sometimes paint and brushes--just depends on the look I'm after and how steady my hand feels with a paintbrush that day and the texture of the wall I'm working with. This time I used gold paint and an outline brush to do the script.
This might be my favorite! I did this one a little different. I printed out the letters, cut them with supper sharp, fine little scissors, then I "colored" them in with a big fat sharpie paint marker. I thin out regular craft glue with a bit of water, gently cover the back of the letter with glue using my index finger, and place it on the glass (well, this is cheap Plexiglas, but the technique still applies). This technique is not suitable for areas that get wet, but it can be removed with a warm damp wash cloth if you get tired of it. I've used this method to make large signs on old wood but I seal it with a clear varnish when I'm finished.

Read more about marking your home here.
Get lots of ideas here.

In Which I Make Something Out of Nothing (well, close to nothing)

This is our cute bathroom window that desperately needed some privacy. I made a simple panel out of some leftover eyelet that my dear mother in law gave me. I didn't have a curtain rod so I ran some string though the top and tied it to the old rod brackets that were still attached to the frame.
Then, not one that can just push the curtain to the side to open it, I attached some loops of string to the bottom corners and center of the curtain to flip open and loop over the brackets and an old nail. Very farmhouse frugal, don't you think?

Now that I've had some time to admire our old house, I have found that its style and design sits somewhere between miserly and excess. It long along lost all traces of level and plumb, but remains accessible and honest in every worn and layered detail. Its crackled and dappled finish, faded through service and utility, offers an open door and true friendship to all. It embodies hospitality laced with generosity. It has been befriended by generations. It is old, but strong. Worn, yet hard working. True and honest in every detail and by living in it I learn a new way of thinking. I no longer fixate on perfection and how I can secure this or that or the other thing. Worldly concerns dim and eternity comes into focus. Somehow the variegated hues of the warn wood, faded by each hand that embraced the hand rail or closed the front door, keeps me mindful that this house—nay, this universe—didn’t begin with me, and it won’t end with me either. I find myself wondering what I will have to say to the Creator of the Universe when I stand at His feet and give an account of how I spent the gift of time He gave me.

In Which the Krumms Remodel the Bathroom.

This is my under $200 bathroom remodel. Can you believe what a hammer, crowbar and few gallons of paint will do?

Our goal was to spend as little money as possible while creating a clean space and keeping it as authentically farm house as possible. We choose to keep the mirror over the sink. Who knew it would turn out so cute! Let me add, I just love having one bathroom! Yes, with six of us it can be inconvenient at times, but it's a joy to maintain rather than a chore to keep up with!

I am so thankful for this one bathroom. His blessings never cease!

Another Layer Applied

An old house is a series of layers. Layers of renovation. Layers of dirt. Layers of lifetimes. In an old house you remember that it's not all about you. Someone has come before you and someone will come after you. Each make their own mark and eternity stretches out ahead of us all.
Before: The old fireplace no longer works; but I admire such things of humble invention and think it gorgeous. This room is going to be our dining room which I like to call the keeping room.After: Painted paneling does wonders! You can see the steps to nowhere to the right of the fireplace. I was so disappointed to find they closed off the steps to put in the new duct work, but I think I prefer air conditioning over the novelty of some really cool old steps. This is the font door that leads to the porch.

The Icky Range Hood Gets Replaced

Thank you, baby!

The Krumm's get a school room

At the Chiprock house we played musical school rooms for the last three years. We'd get settled in one spot and I never felt quite like it was working right, so we'd move to another. It's not that we didn't have the space, but maybe not the right space, or maybe I had too many choices. In the farm house we'll have a designated school room. It's bright and sunny (especially now that the paneling is painted) with nice big widows and views of nature. Plus lots of space. What a blessing! So much more than I imagined!









Nice big closet for storage (and a window that will probably be pretty chilly this winter). I'll have everything stored in one place (instead of the art stuff here, the sewing stuff over there, and the books in that room). This is the only room with an actual closet. It was used as a master bedroom in its past life. The after picture is a slightly different view of the window with a bit of the closet on the far right.









The other window. I may put the tables on this wall with a view out the window. However, there is no electrical outlet on this wall so we may have to get creative. The old heating pipes are in the way but maybe my dear husband will help me with that.









I'm thinking I'll put the piano here under the quilt.

The "Renovations" Continue

All the painting is done. For now, that is. We've painted the kitchen, living room (which Steve calls the parlor), the dining room (which I call the keeping room), the school room, one bedroom and the front door with some leftover paint from Chiprock. Eventually I'll paint the back door and maybe the mailbox and we plan a small renovation on the bathroom and to paint the porch too. Oh, and don't forget the peach laundry room. But for now, we've painted enough for moving in.Here's another pic of the kitchen. You can see the dining room is now painted (to the left of the built in). And I hung my star and berries (such a cute idea I got from a Chiprock neighbor). I'm unsure about where most of my things will go, but this spot needed the star, no question. Should I hang sheers in the laundry room door way, or leave it as is? At some point the boxes and peach paint will be gone so the view should be better. I can't decide.

More before and after pictures coming soon.

"Master" Bedroom

I'm amazed at the purposefulness of God. He is the God of details. And He has blessed us beyond measure. While this is a hard transition for me for several reasons (neighbors, city water, and soaking tub-- need I say more), it is also filled with joy and awe over the provisions of God. I don't know why He is moving us. I don't know how long we'll be in this house or where we'll go from here. I have fun making my guesses, but mostly I just stand back and watch and pray, Holy Spirit of God, do whatever you want in my life. I can't wait to see what He has planned while we are here! It's something better than I can guess.









Before: This room is going to be our "master" bedroom. It is surprisingly large and I'll be able to keep my king size bed (small wonders!). All I can think of is green acres when I see these before pictures and think of my cherry sleigh bed in this room. Add a crystal chandelier and the image is complete! Now this is the only bedroom with the original wall paper and showing the water damage to the room before the new roof. Too bad, it's hard to see here, but the paper would have been really cool if undamaged.
Steve painted the room and I hung some sheers in the window today. We still need to paint the trim, but for now I vacuumed and measured and we're ready for furniture. I think my favorite old chippy-paint turquoise cabinet will fit too. We are going to take yet another step in removing the TV farther from our everyday lives and put the TV in our room. We'll have it available for when someone is sick but we would largely like to pretend it's not even in the house. I have to leave my curtains and window treatments at the old house which makes me so sad, my bedroom curtains would have been perfect here. For now I'll stick with the sheers until I find just the right thing. The upstairs rooms still have the old radiators. Thankfully there is new heating and central air and I don't have to find out how well these babies work, I can just admire them.

Kitchen: Before & After

I have so many pictures to show you, but for now we'll start with the kitchen.

We're in the process of cleaning, doing minor repairs and improvements, and painting in an effort to make this very old house like home before we move all the big stuff in. We're trying to be careful to balance what we do and how much money we spend because this really isn't our house. Although the owner is not picky about what we do to the house, it's hard to be a renter after all this time--we're used to just doing what we want knowing we would be the ones to benefit from any improvements we made in the long run. Even still, we are painting nearly everything that will stand still except the woodwork. I'm struggling with solutions to the windows. I'd really like to leave them untreated. There is really not much of a privacy issue because there is no one around. However, how will it feel at night to us city kids that are used to being locked up tight at night with all the drapes and shades pulled? Also, these are some BIG windows. Even the 96" curtains won't make it from floor to the top of the window for these babies, and most "cost effective" retail outlets (Walmart, etc.) don't even sell 96" lengths and blinds and rollers shades don't come ready made in such long lengths. So for now they stay as is until I figure something out. If I had an unlimited budget I would know exactly what I wanted to do. But we're thinking as inexpensive as possible. Any ideas?

Kitchen, before: Check out that big bird yellow! I'm dying to paint the cabinets, but that is a project for another time (maybe another house?). After: Ahhh, so much better. Can't wait to move in our stuff.










Before: There are two built in pantries in the kitchen. Very cool! Nearly everything is covered in paneling. Now I just can't stand looking at all of it so my dear husband is painting as much as possible before moving day, but there is much to do so it's possible not all of it will get done before then.

After: I think they just look gorgeous with the cream colored paint. Now that the paneling is neutralized you can actually see them! You can see in the picture on the right even more paneling on the other side of the kitchen doorway.