Where it all began

A view of the kitchen at Cottage8, about four weeks after we moved in, seven months ago. I bought Adam a sledge hammer and eye goggles, and we cranked the stereo at full blast. Within four hours, we successfully pulled out every single cabinet, appliance, and all the counter tile. This is what was left. Gaping holes in the walls, electrical wiring and plumbing mess, and mold.

In the six months that have followed the above "demolition day", there has been tremendous change, design challenges and amazing accomplishments, accompanied with a good portion of our blood, sweat, and my tears.

For the first two months we lived in this house, we had no appliances. Whatsoever. The second month we could finally plug in our refrigerator. Up until the third month I was washing all our dishes and pots in the guest bathroom sink, and we were eating all of our meals on a card table, and occasionally on the floor. And it wasn't until the fifth month we finally could use the washing machine and dryer.

Before we purchased Cottage8, I am pretty sure Adam never changed a light bulb before. And while I may be very creative with a few hidden talents of my own, I had absolutely no prior experience in...I dunno...plumbing, electrical wiring, installing a kitchen, lighting, installing flooring, replacing doors or installing ceramic tile. This was basically Crash Course Home Remodeling 101, without the manual.

So why am sharing just this one photo in this post? Because this is where I learned to crawl. This is the place where our journey at Cottage8 began, and this was my hands-on classroom.

I assure you, in time I will be sharing the incredible journey we've taken, guiding you through the entire remodel. You've been so patient, I know you can hold on just a bit longer. There is so much I want to share with you. But for right now, I thought you should know where it really all began.

As my mother always likes to remind me, "You can't know where you are going, until you know where you have been."

oxox
Jennifer

All systems go

There was good reason to wait a week before climbing up onto the rooftops to remind everybody to check out this month's Cottage of the Month. I've been working out some wrinkles with my new webhost, learning how to tip toe around it's fussy nature, and frankly, I think it would have been easier to navigate an 18-wheeler through quicksand.

If it wasn't for this girl, the real wizard behind the curtain, there probably wouldn't even be a Cottage of the Month, with all of its technical requirements. I know I sing praise about her often, and rightfully so. She's come to my rescue so many times, she is my lifesaver and a true friend.

Don't you just love this house? This is LeAnn's home, and she's March's Cottage of the Month. It was one year ago when I called LeAnn to deliver the news that she was going to be in an upcoming feature. She was driving while talking to me on her cell phone, and I remember instructing her to pull of the road, she was so excited. Making that phone call made my whole day.

These are just a mere few shots from LeAnn's feature. I'm so loving her use of color, it's the perfect intro to Spring, don't you think? Please hop on over and see her feature in its entirety.

oxox

Jennifer