The McCurleys - Puttin’ Down Roots

Like many things in our house, we weren’t quite sure what to do with the outdated, stained brick fireplace:

Old Brick Fireplace

First, we ripped off the marble slab and the oak molding. Then we had drywall put up over the whole fireplace:

New Drywall and Paint

Next came tile for the surround and hearth. (It took forever to pick out just the right tile, but we love the end result!) My uncle Harold graciously offered to tile the hearth and surround for us for free. He did a great job and we are so thankful for his generosity (we wouldn’t have been able to do it without him).

Stone Hearth and Surround

Finally, we ordered a mantel kit online and Dan assembled it and mounted it on the wall. Hopefully we’ll be able to decorate it for Christmas!

New Fireplace

If anyone has tips on cleaning the inside of a fireplace, let us know… Now, who wants to come over and relax by the fire?

We thought we would show you a little sneak peak of the kitchen. It’s not entirely finished yet but you can get the idea! We are going for the country/cottage look but a tiny bit modernized… I think it came out really great! We have lots of other stuff but we just have not had time to post. Stay tuned for more updates!

Kitchen (Before)

Kitchen (After) - In Progress

Kitchen (Before) - Another View

Kitchen (After) - Another View

Isn’t it the best feeling when a friend or family member goes above and beyond to bless you? That’s what Dan’s dad, Roger did for us this weekend. We stopped by our house on Saturday afternoon to pick something up, and we were surprised to find Roger there working in the yard! We noticed immediately how much better the whole house looked from the street. Among other things, he spent the whole weekend mowing the front and back yards, pulling weeds (even in the alley), blowing sidewalks and garden boxes clean, picking up nails and debris, raking up all the dead foliage and sticks, and trimming bushes and plants. Keep in mind that the yard hasn’t been touched for months, so you can imagine what kind of condition it was in.

He even made a trip to Home Depot to buy us a brand new trimmer/weed eater! I’m not even sure what you use a weed eater for, but I’m excited to learn. Dan and I have been focused on the inside of the house (so we can move in soon!), so it was such a nice surprise to see the outside cleaned up.

Roger, thank you so much for all you have done for us since we bought our home, and especially for spending your entire weekend working on our yard! We appreciate your generous spirit and thoughtfulness so much. You blessed us tremendously this weekend and made us feel very loved, so thanks again from the bottom of our hearts.

Guinea Fowl and Young Keets

Fowl on the Run

This week we don’t have much to write about the house, but we thought it would be fun to show you the roosters and guinea fowl that roam the streets. There’s even a spot on the side of the house where hens like to lay eggs. Occasionally, you might see a few peacocks wondering about, too. They are quite entertaining!

Interior Color Scheme

This weekend there were lots of Memorial Day sales on paint, and we wanted to get in on the good deals, so we picked out colors! Sarah ran all over town collecting paint chips, comparing prices, estimating coverage, and buying samples to throw on the walls. Here’s a preview of our new paint colors. They aren’t very accurate on the computer, but hopefully you get the picture… The cool, muted colors will give the whole house a refreshing new look (especially once the red, brown, and pink walls are gone). I love what Sarah picked out and I wish we were closer to being ready to paint!

Dan has been a very busy bee lately—Actually superhero is more like it! He has been in the process of tearing up and removing the flooring in our entire house. At just under 1900 square feet, you can imagine how long this takes. There was carpet throughout most of the house (including the bathrooms), which came up without too much trouble. Unfortunately, he found vinyl tile squares and linoleum under some of the carpet. The tile throughout the kitchen, front entry, and living room was also laid on top of linoleum, making it difficult to remove.

Removing Bathroom Baseboards and Flooring

Dan’s dad Roger helped scrape vinyl floor tiles last weekend by hand, which was a huge help. Then Dan rented a demo hammer and tile scraper from Home Depot to chip up the ceramic tile, which took about 15 hours total over 2 grueling days. I felt so badly for him because the noise was so loud, I could hear it from my car when I turned the corner. He truly is amazing; he did all this by himself and would not let me help at all, and did it without complaining. Thanks babe for saving us lots of money and for doing a top notch job taking up the floors… You are my hero!

Kitchen Tile Demo - Messy business!

Kitchen Linoleum Demo

Sarah’s uncle, who owned a tile business before retiring, offered to install tile in the bathrooms (a natural stone color). We’ll have light brown or beige carpet installed in the master and guest bedrooms. Dan will install medium color hardwood floors everywhere else. Stay tuned for pictures!

We thought we should post some pictures of our house before we get too far into the remodel. Just a little background for you: Our 3 bedroom / 2 bathroom house was built in 1963 (additions built later) and the original owners lived there for over 40 years. They sold it to a single mom who, sadly, foreclosed on it after living there for only a few months. The house desperately needs updating and we are up for the challenge! We think this is something that will be fun to do together and we will get to make it the way that we want (as long as our budget allows!). Here are some of the bigger things we plan to do initially:

• Install all new flooring (wood, carpet and tile)
• Resurface walls and ceilings
• Paint entire inside of house
• Replace 3 exterior doors
• Install new baseboards
• Paint kitchen cabinets (I know, I know, this is not fun!)
• Install recessed lighting
• Install new countertops
• Install closet in master bedroom
• Buy and install appliances (needs everything!)

There are a lot of other fun things we plan to do but we have to get the house move-in ready first. It has been so much fun to see all the ways the Lord continues to provide for this house. So far we have found great deals and sales on everything we have needed. We believe wholeheartedly that this house belongs to God and it’s our desire to use it for ministry and we just can’t get it ready fast enough! Enjoy these pictures for now.

Front Door Entry - Notice the upgraded lighting

Kitchen - View from living room

Living Room - View of half the room from kitchen

Dining Room - Lovely brown walls and blue carpet

Family Room

Family Room

Hallway - View from Family Room

Hallway Bathroom

Office

Guest Bedroom - Pretty in pink

Master Bedroom - Closet

Master Bathroom - View from bedroom

Master Bathroom - Shower

Attached Laundry Room - It's huge!