My Husband, the Carpenter

Since before we moved into this new house, Josh has been talking about building a large wooden box to use as our cat litter box. The reason for this is that this house has no real good spot to put the litter boxes so they are in the master bathroom. Unfortunately my cats can be messy and like to shovel the litter out of the box onto the floor. After awhile of stepping on this (despite it being swept up often) one starts to think of some way to fix this problem. Josh came up with a great idea that was really well thought out. He built a very large wooden box that is lined with FRP (not really sure what that is but it is waterproof. He then created an opening on one end and a carpeted ramp on that same end so that hopefully as the cats are walking out, the litter hits the carpet and none comes out of the box. This box looks really good with the trim and stain. I'm so proud of my husband. It makes me wish I new how to make things out of wood. Josh and I talk about getting a lathe someday to have fun with and to make things out of wood. Here are a couple pictures of this cat box:

"Jesus Paid it All"

I hear the Savior say,
“Thy strength indeed is small;
Child of weakness, watch and pray,
Find in Me thine all in all.”

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow


Lord now indeed I find
Thy power and Thine alone
Can change the lepers spots
And melt the heart of stone


Jesus paid it all
All to Him I owe;
My sin had left this crimson stain
He washed it white as snow


It’s washed away
All my sin
And all my shame


And when before the throne
I stand in Him complete,
"Jesus died my soul to save,"
My lips shall still repeat


Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.


Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow


O praise the One who paid my debt
And raised this life up from the dead


We’ll praise the One who paid my debt
And raised this life up from the dead

I love this song. It is so true. May we all remember the real celebration of Easter this year. Jesus conquered death and because of that I have the hope of eternal life. What better thing is there to celebrate then that? Thank you Jesus for loving me enough (the good, the bad and the ugly) to take my place on that cross. I'm the one who deserved death but you went through that for me. Thank you Jesus for rising from the dead. You are my real source of joy, peace and hope.

Revelation 1:17b-18 Then he placed his right hand on me and said: "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.

Boxes Unpacked (mostly)

Well, it's been about 3 weeks since we moved into the new house and things have been pretty hectic here. We had to try to unpack this house and get our house in Huntsville ready to be rented out. If all works according to plan the house in Huntsville should be rented out by the end of this month (YEAH!!!). The move to Centerton has been a blessing in many ways. The mortgage is cheaper than in Huntsville and we are saving a ton on gas for our cars and time (which is something you can't ever get back). It's really been amazing to see the ways in which God has worked out the details of this house and the move. I'd be lying if I said that the few weeks prior to the move weren't extremely stressful with a lot of ups and downs but the interesting part is that God worked it all out (despite me worrying about it). This whole process has reinforced to me that I really struggle with worry and anxiety at times which is ridiculous because there has not been a single time in my entire life that God has not provided for me or taken care of me. Yes, life has not always gone the way I wanted it to but I can honestly say God's plan has always been better than mine.

Another reason I love living in Centerton is because we are so much closer to everything (restaurants, stores, church, etc.). When things slow down a little (which I think they will soon) I'm really looking forward to figuring out how Josh and I can get more connected to our community (whether that means meeting the neighbors or participating more in church activities) because we would love to have more friends.

Here are some pictures of the new house with most of the boxes unpacked:



Living room - I need help trying to figure out what to decorate the walls above the fireplace and t.v. with. I told Josh that we'll just have to have a few kids so that we can put their pictures up there. He laughed... :-)



Living room



The kitchen - I love the blue glass in here. I do think it looks better in person though. You can't see it very well but when we were moving in we had a little drama with the refrigerator. It didn't fit into the space by mere centimeters. Josh borrowed a hammer and screw driver from a friend and had to pry off the baseboard on the wall so the refrigerator would slide in. There is absolutely no extra room around the refrigerator but I'm glad it's in.



This is the formal dining room that we turned into the office. I'm so thankful to have a spot to put this stuff that isn't in a bedroom. Eventually we might get a different desk and filing cabinet but for now this works for us.



I just had to include this picture because I love the blue glass there.



Guest bedroom - still need to put the picture on the wall in there.



Guest bathroom - still more decorating to do in there.



Guest Bedroom



Dining room - It might be hard to see but I was trying to figure out where to put the words Live, Laugh, Love on the wall and Josh came up with putting them above the table. I think that's a great idea and that it looks great!



Master bedroom



Master bedroom



Master bath - the red doesn't really match in my opinion but that's what we had in the Huntsville house. I think eventually the colors will be a teal/aqua and brown in this bathroom. Hopefully that will make it feel and look more spa like.

I love my new house and I'm very thankful for it!