Home is Wherever I'm With You & BIG MOVE REVEAL

When David and I first found out about our big move I was excited, scared, worried, anxious, nervous and all other sorts of feelings- just depended on what day you asked! David, on the other hand, has been ready to go since day one! At one point, I was doing all I could to convince him to stay here- in our comfortable little bubble of life. I have traveled abroad before (and LOVED it) but the idea of making a big move there was a little frightful.

We have known about our big move since Summer of 2011. Since then, I have had time to work out all of my fears. This summer was a turning point for me and I became excited to start this new adventure (I was going whether I liked it or not so I figured I better get excited- jk).

For our anniversary this year, I made my own version of a "Home is Wherever I'm With You". I know these are all over in all sorts of forms but it really hit home for me.

I finally came to know at that time that everything was going to be ok. There was no need to worry about a thing when it came to our big move.  I know that wherever I am, as long as David is there, he will take care of me and it will feel like home! 

 

So where are we moving? Cape Town, South Africa!! 

Technically, we may be living in Stellenbosch which is a small, wine country town outside the big city of Cape Town. David will be starting a Ph.D. program at the university there and I will hopefully begin my interior design career with an internship with a local designer! 

We can't wait to get started on our new adventure! Our tickets are booked and we fly out in two short months! Got to get to packing!

What I Learned from 31 Days

Well.. as you can see, October has come and gone and my 31 days series kind of stopped somewhere in the middle. Whomp Whomp!


I learned a few things in the process-

1st:  Blogging on an every day basis (or just routinely) takes some prep work. I stayed on top of it for a while but once I started slacking it was hard to catch up.

2nd:  Was I crazy to think that I could plan/do/write about 31 different DIY projects in 31 days? I mean, none of them were just huge, time consuming projects, but that's a lot of work.

3rd (and most importantly):  Sometimes blogging and projects have to take a back seat to more important things in life. October was a hard month for David and I. I truly appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers for our family these last few weeks. David's grandmother put all of your prayers to work and fought hard. She went to be with the Lord this morning and is no longer in pain and for that we are grateful.



Thank you again for your continued thoughts and prayers. I still hope to complete some of the projects from this past month. Have a great Monday and I will check back in soon!!

{31 Days} Chalkboard Wine Glasses

Note:  Due to some unforeseen family illnesses, I am having to play catch-up on my 31 days challenge! Thank you for reading!

Day 13: Chalkboard Wine Glasses

Speaking of chalkboard, while I was working on my chalkboard coffee mugs, I decided to finally get around to another DIY pin of mine- chalkboard wine glasses!

When David and I registered for our wedding, we must have planned on having large dinner parties with lots of wine. We registered for two of the box sets of not expensive but still good wine glasses.  I decided to dress up our "extra" set with the chalkboard paint! I first tried the dip method but ran in to problems when I turned them upside down to dry. The paint was very thick and even after tapping and twisting, the excess paint ran down the stem of the glass. I was able to clean them up and decided that I would just sponge brush on a couple of thin layers of paint to eliminate this problem. I set the glasses upside down to dry.

I let the paint dry for a full 24 hours and then tested them out. The glasses are great but it seems my chalk might be a little tough to write with!!

I can't wait to have our next dinner party and use our new glasses! I just need to find a good piece of chalk!

13 down! 18 to go!!

{31 Days} Chalkboard Coffee Mugs

Note:  Due to some unforeseen family illnesses, I am having to play catch-up on my 31 days challenge! Thank you for reading!

Day 12: Chalkboard Coffee Mugs

These chalkboard mugs have been a favorite pin of mine for a while. Earlier this year one of the local thrift stores had a moving sale and I stocked up on a few white coffee mugs (some that I used for this project) for only 10 cents each- including these four Crate and Barrel coffee mugs that looked so similar to my inspiration mugs!

I cheated a little bit for my chalkboard mugs. I didn't want to take a trip to the store for the "porcelain" chalkboard paint. I had a can of chalkboard paint made for furniture and walls- so that is what I used. I taped off the top half of the mugs and brushed on three coats of the chalkboard paint on the bottom half.

After I removed the tape, I let the chalkboard paint dry a full 24 hours before writing on the mugs. Because I did not use the porcelain paint, I did not bake the mugs. I didn't know what might happen so I decided it was best to just not do it!

I plan to use these mugs occasionally and only hand wash them. I hope they hold up well. So far so good!!

12 down! 19 to go!!

Where in the World?

Earlier this year, I let you, my sweet followers, in on a little secret! It was back in January when I shared my Word of the Year- Trust and my little hint was this....

"David and I have a big year ahead of us! We will be making a BIG move (and by big, I mean like over an ocean big). Well... the big move won't be until this time next year but the preparations and all that leading up to it will take a lot of trusting and leaning on God."

Now that we have shared it with family, friends, and bosses and know that it is for sure going to happen- I thought I would let you in on where it is that we are moving! 

But you have to guess first!! : )

My husband will frequently visit this place..... 

And I hope to do a lot of this.... 

 

Any guesses? I will post links to the images here soon!!