Creating Home
REFLECTIONS ON A YEAR OF HOMEOWNERSHIP
One year ago this week my husband and I moved into the third place we’ve called home in South Carolina, but this time we’ve gained the title of home-owner. From months in an extended stay hotel, to a beautiful first apartment, we moved our small fur-family again into our first house! Now, if you had asked if we bought the house for our dogs, we’d probably say yes. With nearly an acre of land and a fenced in yard, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to give our pups their own “dog park” as we called it. Plus, we needed some peace from noisy neighbors, room to host, and I desperately wanted to get my hands on a small renovation project.
Before we moved anything into the house, I knew we needed to tackle repainting the living room. An exposed wood slat wall had previously been added and to me it felt very out of place with the original dark wood floors. I loved the texture though and chose a vibrant emerald green to match the marbled fireplace. One year later we still love the color and covered our bathroom in it as well!
Our living room is one of my favorite spaces. It’s where we have movie nights, play board games, cuddle with the pups, and catch up with friends and family. I filled this space with plants, music, and art and it continues to remind me that home is more than a safe place but a feeling that we create — an extension and curation of our story.
Through the chaos of moving at the beginning of last summer, we hadn’t done much landscaping besides mowing the lawn. As our first Spring as home owners approached, my love for plants expanded beyond the walls of our living room. We spent our Memorial Day weekend shopping for grass seed, hydrangeas, a wisteria tree, and sprinkler. Keep an eye out, we may soon be featured in the Progressive commercials about young homeowners becoming their parents…
One year of hosting friends and family, bonfires, movie nights, parties, and cookouts. This home has been a blessing and something my husband and I worked so hard for, and continue working to improve. South Carolina has allowed us to grow in community and put down roots like I never would have imagined, especially in such a short amount of time.
Thank you to our families for their support and encouragement during this entire process and for helping us get settled into our new home.