Father's Day

Yesterday was Father's Day. We took a walk for coffee, watched multiple World Cup soccer games as Karl worked on sorting our digital photos, picked up stuffed crust pizza for an early lunch, had an early dinner with Karl's parents, and went to church. Overall, a very good day.

As we were in church, something triggered a realization for me. My heart had been totally focused on Karl. How to enjoy him, how to serve him, care for him, love him...all because it was "his" day. It made me realize that every day should be "Father's Day." There is no way I can cultivate that heart by myself.

I want my heart and mindset each day to be what Paul refers to as having the mindset of Jesus in Philippians 2:3-4, 7: "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of others...he [Jesus] made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant..."

I'm not perfect. Marriage has proven that! I won't remember this all the time. There will be days that are entirely mundane and others that are chaos. Only by God's grace and help from the Holy Spirit will I begin to change and be transformed to have more of this type of heart and mindset. One day at a time.

"Today is Father's Day."

It's the Home Stretch, Son!

16 Weeks 5/19/13
Dad's belly!

20.5 Weeks 6/18/13
Low back pain for dad

30 Weeks 8/24/13
Dad has hit 3rd trimester sleepies....

We're 30 weeks, you and I. We're on the home stretch! I can't wait to meet you! But stay in there a little longer...it's not quite time for our face to face greeting :)

There are so many things to wonder....will you have the abundance of hair like your cousins were born with, and if so, will it be blond or brown? Will you be more like your dad or me or a combo of us both? What sort of things will you gravitate towards and be interested in? How 'bout those eyes...blue or brown?

For the most part, your growth in my belly has been quite normal from what I gather and hear of pregnancy. We were "carsick" the first 15-16 weeks and it definitely was not a "light switch" moment of when I began feeling better! We would start the morning fairly well with only mild blahs and progress into the "Mmm, I can't do anything except lay here, feel queasy and do the basic necessities for the day." We enjoyed cheerios...a lot. Your Nani's recipe for homemade refried beans that I made bean and cheese burritos with were also my go-to comfort food. Only over the course of those 15th and 16th weeks did things calm down and I was able to eat more normal. 

We did have two "cravings" if you will. Your dad and I were walking home from church one Sunday and I smelled french fries. There was no turning my mind off from having some. We got home and drove to our favorite fry place in Pullman - South Fork...long, skinny fries with seasoning and when they come out pipping hot....oh man. I might have to go get a basket now. 

The other item I couldn't get out of my head on a Saturday was pizza. And not just any pizza. I needed...wanted....Pizza Hut's stuffed crust pizza. You dad had no problem taking me :) We both enjoyed every bite. I hope you did too! 

Wildly enough, sweets have not been very tempting. I'll be curious if you're like your Uncle Ry in that department and not care for them very much. Ah, and finally, cold water with ice has been my dear friend throughout. I've always liked and preferred water but we guzzle it and something about the cold and ice is delicious to me!

You've been very active. I've begun to think of my belly as "the wrestling mat" or "the boxing ring" - you're either wrestling or practicing your boxing jabs in preparation for playing and duking it out with your dad. I'm really not sure who's going to have the upper hand...you're quite strong! 

The best part of all this is realizing that I am doing nothing. I eat...you make sure of that. And I sleep...you also help with that. Unless, you're wrestling or boxing and then it takes some time to fall asleep. But really, you are a miracle that God is creating and knitting together inside me....in the shape of you - our son. We are fully aware that you are ultimately His son. I already know that I'll continually learn to hold you with an open hand trusting Him with you. I can rest in Jesus' unconditional love and care for you - whether that looks like joyous times or trials. 

It will be one big adventure that's for sure! We're looking forward to walking it with you. We love you, son. Looking forward to our first face to face with you...

Mom 

Moving Pieces

The New Olsen Home

It even has a small porch for the 

swing Karl made and proposed to me on!

One of the reasons we sporadically update our blog is to tell the story of what God is doing as an avenue of reminding ourselves of His faithfulness, His timing, etc. We want our family to be able to look back and see God's fingerprints. Speaking of His fingerprints, I'm not sure I can say I've had many moments of literally feeling like you are sitting on the sidelines watching Him move pieces into place but that's exactly what these particular circumstances have felt like.

If you know us well, we always have our eyes on the housing market. Is there another good investment that can be used for community, supporting people, and creating income for the later years?? Back in January, we learned some friends, Jeff and Bri, had posted their home on Craigslist since they weren't in any rush to sell and were curious if they could do it on their own. We really like their place so we prayed and thought about it and then let them know we were interested yet did not want this to come between a friendship. We let that thought simmer awhile....

In the meantime, I received a facebook note from a friend, Erin, at church getting married this summer asking if we had any two bedroom places. Unfortunately, I had to respond that we did not. It was a good situation - an "Ugggh! This is exactly why we'd love more places!" And thus....we kept waiting and praying for God's will in whether we were to proceed on Jeff & Bri's home. 

As we were waiting, our friends, Derek and Jessie, that live in the bottom unit of our duplex, found a home they decided they wanted to try to purchase. This meant there could be a possibility of a "two bedroom" home for Erin and her fiance, Eric! Derek and Jessie put an offer on the home and accepted a counter-offer, which made it very possible to offer the bottom unit to Erin and Eric.

As these events unfolded, it had been about three weeks so we decide to follow up with Jeff and Bri and what they thought of our offer. Karl caught Jeff as he was headed out over the lunch hour and Jeff said they'd been thinking about it and were going to go look at a place over lunch and that he'd be in touch. Later that afternoon, Karl received a phone call from Jeff letting us know they really liked the house they saw and wondered how interested we were about their current home. We. Were. Very Interested!

In a matter of 48 hours, we sat down, talked details, Jeff and Bri's offer on the house they liked was countered and they accepted, and we were all moving forward!

I then had to break the news to Erin that we would be moving. We had all been excited about living in the same place over the next year! Little did I know that the night before I told her the news, she received a text from another friend, Jessica, asking if they would be interested in renting a house together the next year - two married couples living in one home - talk about community, huh! (Note: In our university town, this idea would have been cost effective for both couples and they could have gotten a better place to live!) 

When I told her the news that we'd be moving, she had a slight smile on her face....and she proceeded to tell me about the text and how Jessica and her husband, Jacob, were looking for a place as well. "You're kidding me?!", I said. I had to shake my head in amazement because as God provided a home for Derek and Jessie to purchase, He provided Jeff and Bri a home they were interested in as well, which opened up an incredible next step home for us, which then opened up our duplex for Erin & Eric and Jessica & Jacob that both needed places for the following year.

Five couples. Four Homes. One Amazing Provider. I am awed every time I think about it.

We are all very excited for the homes we are moving into over the next several months and how we've seen God provide what was needed for each couple!

Date Night: From a Hat!

Fall is a busy time for us and we've realized we need to be more intentional with spending time together...not just doing projects! Last week, Karl told me Friday night was all mine. Whatever I wanted to do, we would do. "There are so many options!" I thought to myself. "How am I ever going to decide?!"

As I met with a gal for coffee during the week, she off-handily mentioned something happening Friday night. "Ah-ah! That sounds like fun!" The more I thought about that idea the more ideas I had! I was having a hard time deciding what one or two things we would do. Thus, "Date Night: From a Hat" was born! Why not put a bunch of ideas in a hat, pull one out, do as it says, and keep pulling slips out which will create our date night?! Brillant. I was quite excited with this idea! With how much Karl loves spontaneity and flexibility, I thought this would be a winner! And it was. He enjoyed the random-ness and we enjoyed having fun together. Here's how it all went down:

I created one rule for the game: he could have two passes. If he pulled a slip and didn't care for the idea, he could pass. I did this because I put two fix-it projects in the hat that I thought would be fun to work on together but that didn't need to happen asap. I wanted to give him an out if he wasn't up to a fix-it project. (Note: he does like working on projects with people. This was not a ploy for me to get something done! :)

Unbeknownst to Karl, he created another rule to the game later in the evening, which I'll share later. I also learned it's good to hold with an open hand the things you as the creator would love to do! Both of the things I thought would be really fun, never actually happend. BUT we had a great night. And things I thought he'd pass on, we actually did. Here's what ended up happening....

The first slip Karl pulled was the goofy, all-to-do-with-fun slip: "Go to Sunnyside Park, twirl on the merry-go-round, and toss the frisbee around for a bit." Instead of jumping on it, he asked if there were any projects I'd like to do around the house. HUH? I may have given him the "you're crazy" look.

After a few moments of "Huh?" and "Uh...why are you asking that," I finally realized I had made a party foul. I hadn't explained the game well enough! He didn't understand that the park idea was only ONE of the ideas for the night! We could keep pulling slips and do all sorts of things!! He thought that slip was the only one he got to pull for the night. It would be another fun way to decide date night, but not this night!

After I re-explained he was going to be able to keep pulling slips throughout the night, he got it! Super! Then he asked, again, if there was a project I wanted to do. The sweet thing is that he said he knows how patient I've been with his busyness and if there was a project I wanted to work on. I told him I had put a few options in the hat but that is why I also gave him the passes: I thought they'd be fun to work on together but if he wasn't up to it, I wanted it to be okay for him to say no as well! It ended up that we didn't go to the park (one of the ideas I was really excited about ;) and instead we ....

1) Put up bike hooks for our bikes:

 Yes, I am really using the drill. I'm trying to learn tool things from my master husband :)

TA-DA!!

2) Finished patching the hot tub cover at the girl's house (what we call the house we rent to girls...creative, I know).

Yay for my handy husband!! (I tried the first time & didn't do so well :/ )

We returned home and the next slip he pulled was "Kiss your hot wife." Needless to say, he did.

Next, he pulled the bike rack and hot tub cover slips out of the hat...check and check. He said he was hungry so we had dinner. I had planned ahead. Leftovers!! Sometimes a fun date night is making a fancy meal you know your hubby will enjoy and why not top it off with some candles, I say! WELL....that's not what this night was about. It was geared more towards easy and simple! And let's be even more real, something that I didn't have to work very hard to do! For this date night, I didn't want to do my normal cook and clean routine. I wanted easy-peasy. I'm thankful my hubbs enjoys leftovers! Mmmm...Peanut Noodles with Shredded Chicken and Vegetables and homemade spicy hummus with green bell peppers!

Leftovers: Easy-peasy!

After dinner, he took out the slip that read, "Go to the Dollar Store and buy fun party hats." The following evening we had a birthday party to attend that was going to be a dress-up-in-your-fancy-clothes dinner and dessert evening. Earlier that day, before I came up with the date night idea, we had talked about spicing things up and getting fun party hats to go with our fancy clothes. So...we did:

Bummer on the fuzziness - Awesome on the hats.

After our adventure in the Dollar Store, Karl said he'd like to get a movie. THAT is where the second rule of the game was created. Rule 2: The person pulling slips gets to create his or her own slip at any point during the date. We picked up Sherlock Holmes from a nearby Redbox and went home.

We enjoyed the first half...and then found ourselves getting very sleepy....we called it a night. It was a great date night. The other slip I was excited about never did get pulled out....so it will be saved for another "Date Night: From a Hat!"

It looks like the hat might become quite full as I keep thinking of ideas! I've also had a good idea given to me by my pops....ask him what he'd like to do as well (uh, duh...you'd think I would have thought of that :) Done & done! I think we've found a tradition for the Olsen Clan. It'll be fun to do with kids one day too!

Date Night: From a Hat

Think of a bunch of ideas and gather some from the receiver(s) as well!
Write each on a slip of paper and fold it up.
Put in a hat. Or a bucket. Or a shoe. You get the idea.

Two passes can be taken by the person(s) pulling the slips out if he or she isn't up for the idea.
One pass can be created-on-the-go by the person(s) pulling the slips

Game can be played two ways:
- Pull one idea out and that is the event for the day/evening
- Pull one idea out, do it, pull another slip, and keep going until tired or all businesses are shut down and you need to go home and start again tomorrow.

Game can be modified to fit all sorts of people, groups, families, and/or pets. The only requirement is to hang out and have fun.

Enjoy!

Jesus Knows.

Today is a rough day. Since I last wrote, it's been the unique emotional toll of being surrounded with the celebration of life, babies, progress reports on pregnancies, etc. Rejoice with those who rejoice! It is good. It is fun to see! There is an unspoken ache in me as well. I know deep down it's okay. It's okay to feel pain when others are rejoicing. It's apart of this life. Yet....how do I deal with and process this pain?

I awoke around midnight with an ache in my heart. It took me awhile to really feel it. I knew it was there yet wasn't quite articulating or even acknowledging why it was there. When I allowed myself to really feel it, the pain came and so did the tears. Today is the day we were supposed to hear a heartbeat.

Karl obviously woke up and asked if I was okay. After hearing why I was crying, he pulled me close and held me. No words were necessary. He prayed that we would know how to mourn well. I know he prayed a few other things but that's what I remember. And I believe God began to answer that prayer.

As I lay there trying to go back to sleep, my heart and mind turned instead to how Jesus felt. How does God know what I am going through? I realize more what it must have been like for God to send His Son, Jesus, to earth...to be separated from Him when they had a perfect relationship. Ug. That'd be hard. I'd imagine that was a unique separation.

Yet, as Jesus was on earth, He spent time in prayer with God the Father. There was still a relationship that existed between them. It wasn't until Jesus began claiming He was God and both the Jews and Romans wouldn't stand for that claim and in the end crucified Him on the cross that separation occurred. That....that is where I know God knows what I am going through. It seems so minor in comparison. Yet, I know it's okay for me to feel the pain. God knows what it feels like to be separated from someone you love.

We don't know if there was conception yet there was still a life in our hearts that was growing and developing. God knows what it feels like to be in pain from separation. I began to think about Jesus and how He also knows and experienced pain. I began thinking about the passage in the Bible about how He wept when His friend Lazarus died. I looked up the passage (John 11) and noticed something I'd never seen before in verses 33-35. It says, "When Jesus saw her (Mary) weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, Where have you laid him?' They said to him, 'Lord, come and see.' Jesus wept."

It stuck out to me that when he saw Mary and the Jews weeping, he was deeply moved. I know there are probably a lot of theological concepts that can be pulled out of this passage, and some are rumbling around in mind as I type, but what really impacts me is the simplicity that Jesus was deeply moved when he saw their weeping. He was deeply moved. HE was deeply moved. He was DEEPLY moved. He was deeply MOVED. That means a lot. He experienced the pain and hurt in their loss.

He feels my pain. He knows my hurt.

The other passages that came to mind weren't really specific....I mainly thought about the compassion Jesus felt. I did a search for compassion in biblegateway.com and here are a few that stood out to me....

Mark 6:30-34
The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.”For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things.

Matthew 9:35-38
And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.  Then he said to his disciples,“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

- The fact that Jesus can see a crowd and have compassion on them because they are like sheep without a shepherd is amazing to me. He sees within the crowd and knows that just like when sheep do not have a shepherd all sorts of wandering, confusion, pain, suffering, etc., occurs the same happens with people. With Jesus, I am gaining a perspective on my pain and suffering. I don't have to wander through it alone. He is my shepherd - guiding me through it. 

Luke 7:11-13a
Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her...

- Jesus had compassion on this woman who had lost her son. It goes on to say that Jesus heals her son and brings him back to life and gives him back to his mother...crazy and amazing all on its own. For now, I rest in the fact that Jesus had compassion on her in her sadness and loss. 

Even in just writing that, I am reminded that Jesus always brings life. He obviously won't be in bringing life out of the tissue that my body was storing and has since passed BUT He will bring life out of this pain in other ways. 

As I type up these thoughts and look at God being separated from Jesus - what that must have been like - and then at Jesus' life - how He experienced pain and suffering and had compassion on so many - my heart is comforted and reminded that although there is pain and suffering, God hurts with me and with many others. He knows it's not how it's meant to be. He knows one day He will restore all things. 

Until then, He knows my pain and He knows your pain. I'm so thankful that He's not a stone god or just a man claiming to have a vision or word from God that others should follow him but The One who has experienced separation, pain and suffering, and has compassion and is able to bring life out of death. That is the good news of Jesus. 

Even though we won't hear a heartbeat today, my heart is being comforted as I look to Jesus, experience my pain, and realize that He understands what I am going through.

A Part of Our Story: Miscarriage

I continue to realize this is true. It definitely seems surreal. As if it's not really a part of our story. Yet, it is. Did that really just all go down last week?! Let me back up. This is the first time most of you are finding out we were even pregnant.

On July 5, we had our first positive reading of a pregnancy test. In Walmart, no less :) Epic surroundings for sure. We were visiting my grandma at the ranch in Potter Valley, CA, as well as my parents and sister and brother-in-law along with their two cutie-patooties of little boys. Karl and I went into town to grab much needed wasp killer for those crazy creatures and their nests which were beginning to invade the eaves of my grandma's house. Karl thought my mom could go into town with me...until I gave him "the eyes" and then bent down to whisper, "I think I should take a test." He finally understood. Off we went.

Being the newbies to this pregnancy test thing, we definitely waited another week and took another one - this time from Target to mix things up a little. Positive again. Okay...okay, now we know that ya only need one of those positives to know its telling you the truth the first time.

We had fun telling my family and even more so since it coincided with our summer road trip visit to California and we were able to do it all in person. Except for my bro, of course, who was out training on a carrier in the South Pacific. We did catch him on the phone a few weeks later though and that was priceless :)

Coming back into Pullman, we were able to share the news with Karl's parents, who were apparently just waiting for this news. For Marsha, Karl's mom and a social butterfly, this "keeping quiet" business was going to be an Olympic sport. She was amazing. Lips were sealed even though we knew she was ready to explode as soon as we gave her the go ahead. "First week of September, mom, after we hear the heartbeat....that's when we'll let you loose!"

Last Saturday, August 18, was the first day of my twelfth week. It was also the day I started spotting. We weren't overly concerned since some spotting is common. By Monday morning, things had progressed enough that I called the doctor's office. An ultrasound was scheduled for the afternoon. During the ultrasound, a couple questions were asked that alerted us to the unmistakable news that something was definitely not right. We had to wait 24 hours until we saw the Doctor on Tuesday afternoon to understand fully what the news held.

Those first 24 hours before seeing the doctor held a lot of our grieving. We knew whatever the news was it included "no baby." I don't know how to describe it but for whatever reason I knew the one thing I could stand on was that God is good. Regardless of how this pregnancy was turing out, God is good.  That was my hope. That was where I knew I could go in my mind. It was Truth. It may seem weird that I can say "God is good" in the midst of knowing something is wrong with our pregnancy. Yet, I know God's character. I know He is grieving with me, with us. I know He is the God of all comfort. I've experienced His peace in the storms of life when I wasn't sure what was going on. I knew I could stand on Him again. I knew He'd hold me. I knew He would provide what I needed.

On Tuesday afternoon when we saw the doctor, we learned that there never had been a baby. Oh. Weird. I know. All the ultrasound showed was a lot of tissue but no fetal pole and no heartbeat. (For those like me that are just now hearing these terms and need a definition - this is from About.com = Fetal pole, a thick spot near the yolk sac, is the term used for the earliest signs of a baby in an early pregnancy ultrasound -- before the baby has formed a recognizable human shape. With a transvaginal ultrasound, the fetal pole becomes visible around 6 weeks of gestation.)

So.....there had actually never been a baby. That is so weird. I'd never heard of this possibility. Now I was. The egg and sperm that had implanted never developed yet gave all the hormones of pregnancy...and all the symptoms. Boy, had I been tired these past few months!! And Karl thought I had a small bladder before pregnancy?! (I'm not sure how that works since there wasn't a baby taking up room but I was definitely going the bathroom more!) It's been a little bit weird to think that what we thought was real...never actually was. I almost feel a little psycho. For two months, I had to remind myself I was pregnant, "you're pregnant...that's so crazy! I can't believe we're actually pregnant!" Now I'm having to tell myself, "No, you never actually were pregnant." See what I'm saying...a little psycho.

Regardless of that, there is still grieving. For two months we had been excited about parenthood, excited to give my parents another grandchild and Karl's their first, excited to make siblings aunts and uncles, excited for the things to come. All in time, God will provide what we need. All the time, God is good. Even though this has been a "rollar coaster" week as one friend put it, God has been near. In the friends He's brought alongside us, in the peace He's given both Karl and I, and in the family that has supported and cared for us.

To wrap things up, we weren't sure how my body was going to need to be dealt with - would it naturally shed all the tissue on its own in a miscarriage or would it need a D&C (dilated and curettage [meaning they would need to dilate me and scrap the tissue out if my body didn't naturally do it])? I did my first blood test after the doctor's appointment to check my hormone levels. The second was scheduled for Thursday. If my hormone levels were going down, that was good. My body should naturally shed the tissue. If they were still going up, that would mean my body was still trying to develop something and a D&C would need to be performed. All of Wednesday with my hand on my tummy, I prayed, "In Jesus' Name, release this tissue naturally!"It might sound cheesy, but hey, it's what I did! I did not want a D&C.

At 5:00 pm on Wednesday, I was realizing it was go time. My goodness! Earlier I had told a friend, I thought I was cramping a bit. Yea...no, that wasn't cramping. By 6:15 pm, I really knew what the doctor had meant by cramping! I had already passed some things between 5:00 and 6:15 pm and for some reason didn't think it'd be much more so Karl and I had decided at 5:30 that he would go kick off the small group we were leading for church. I had been excited about this night but clearly my body and I were going to be doing something different. I told him if I felt better by 7:00 pm, I'd come over. HAhahahhah....oh, that's funny now.

At 6:20 pm, I sent him a text, "Honey, I need u!" The cramps had come on sooo much stronger! He turned things over to a friend of ours and was home not even 10 minutes later (I love small towns!). By 8:00 pm, I was feeling pretty shaky and a bit lightheaded with everything my body had shed. We played it safe and went to the ER. After vitals, blood work, a pelvic exam, and another ultrasound to check for fluids in case it was a tubal pregnancy, I was discharged with the strong warning that if I had more severe cramping and bleeding or a fever, I was to return. That meant a D&C would need to occur right away. Thankfully, that has not been the case.

Proof, even to myself, that I was in the ER!

Since yesterday (Thursday), I've been resting and recovering. My body seems to be shedding the rest of what the doctor saw in the ultrasound in the ER and I'm slowly beginning to feel my energy return. In two weeks, I'll have another blood test to check that the hormone levels are continuing to go down. If they're not, a D&C will still need to be performed to remove any remaining tissue.

I am so thankful for God's protection and care. For answered prayer that my body would release everything naturally. For the fact that Anna, a friend of Karl's mom and an excellent ER nurse, was on shift Thursday night when I went in - I almost cried when I saw her, a friendly face!   For friends, when they hear the news, pray for you, come hang out, or bring you dinner.

God is good. Life has its ups and downs. With sorrows that sometimes don't make sense. As Karl and I processed things on Thursday as we headed to a checkup with my doctor, we came to the conclusion that we feel content yet with an ache. And that's okay.

We trust that in God's timing, in God's mysterious ways that are much higher than ours, He will develop a family that is more than Karl and I. Who knows how that may develop. We'll have to wait and see. We do know that walking with Jesus through life's roller coaster provides peace that we'll never quite understand this side of heaven. For that, we're thankful that we can be content yet have an ache.

We still appreciate prayer for the continued processing we'll do, that my body will continue to shed whatever's remaining, and for my hormones to go down to where they need to be :) To God be the glory....great things He has done.

Dinner friends brought over...detailed down to the 

memorial candle & lighter and strawberry shortcake (not pictured).

We also decided it was a night for some Kimmel Vineyards 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon.

Our First Home

Karl knew at first sight. It took me "just one more" rental company showing to know we better JUMP QUICK on this cute little thing, even if it didn't have washer/dryer hookups! And how we've LOVED IT.

The proximity to downtown is fabulous! In two minutes flat, we can be at a coffee shop or restaurant. It sits on a corner so the round-about view with all the shades open draws in a lot of natural light - love! A few other little things that made it our first home....

These bathroom cupboards ROCKED! Tall and narrow - who knew! They fit all things bathroom and I never had to squint into dark recesses of a cupboard to see what was in the back. Brillant.

Built-In Closet. I really like you. Again, very easy to see what was what. No dark recesses for lost items to hide. Incredible storage cupboards above and drawers below. I organized to my heart's content.

This is a poor shot of the natural light that spilled into the place throughout the day yet it captures it for what I want to remember as our first home.

The built-in and arched doorways! Need I say more? Now the fireplace draft protection didn't really make the list. Had a wood stove insert been there instead....it would have ranked for sure.

It's not the latest model yet it is still a simple light under the kitchen cupboards. What is it about a soft glow that just makes things softer and not as intrusive? This light and the one above the sink were favs in the kitchen. Well, 1950's house, you made a memory that we are quite fond to call our first home.

You've provided a lot of fun and quirks - bathroom light switch in the hallway, anyone? Or, the fact that we could run laps in the house since the kitchen opened into the guest room which opened into the miniature hallway which led you to the living room and around through the dining room to the kitchen and around you could go...and go...and go.

We're on to our next adventure of the first home we've bought together. Papers will be signed soon-ish - hurrah!