Rockport Family Vacation: Part 3

One thing you need to know when you have the ocean as your backyard is that sunrises and sunsets are absolutely breathtaking. You don't seem to mind only four hours of sleep when you get to see the most beautiful vision of colors and light. David sure enjoyed it. He also really enjoyed throwing practically every rock in Rockport into the water. Can't say I wasn't right there with him. It's easy fun!

I mentioned in Part 2 that one of my favorite shops was 8 bells. Well, another shop that I've always adored is Paper Mermaid. So many cute paper crafts, cards and gifts...my heart was exploding, folks. I didn't browse as long as I wanted for the simple reason of avoiding the temptation to buy out the entire store. What's so cool about it is one half is pure crafty awesomeness for mama and the other half is fun, unique toys for the kiddos!  

Our trip ended on a very sweet and sentimental note. The Monday we left was Memorial Day. There was a parade through the center of Rockport followed by a nice ceremony near the docks. It was amazing to me the unity in the air and as the Reverend prayed to the Lord through the microphone, I felt hope for this country. Soldiers fought for our freedom and God has a plan for us all. We prayed for the families of lost loved ones. And His peace filled me. It's easy to talk bad about this country but the truth is, we are so blessed. While we still are able to, we should worship and give God praise for the freedom we have.

I'm so happy to be doing life with this man and our son. 5 years married...wow. It hasn't always been easy but I'm so thankful I get to go through it all with him. This trip really was therapy for our family. We got to spend three amazing days in one another's presence, making memories, laughing, smiling, soaking up the surroundings and really enjoying what God has created. If we could afford to move there, we would ask no questions and just go. I can't wait to take David again when he's a bit older so he will have his own memories to carry in his heart.

Have you ever vacationed somewhere you'd love to live?

Rockport Family Vacation: Part 2

One of the greatest things about Rockport is walking down Bearskin Neck and looking at all of the cute little shops. My absolute favorite is called 8 Bells. Anchors, typography signs, teal frames, clocks, photography, handmade goodies, fine art...it's a dream in there, ladies. There's so much creative goodness to look at! And outside, which always draws me back.

We stayed at Captain's Bounty and was blessed with a kitchenette, which is pretty much necessary when traveling with a toddler. The awesome part about staying here is that not only is it affordable but the backyard is literally a beach! Every morning and night David would constantly chant "water, water, water" as he heard the waves crashing. It's been almost two weeks and he still talks about the "water" and "beech".

My husband (doesn't he look so handsome baby wearing? seriously), David and I strolled around for most of our trip. We ate at the most adorable ice cream parlor called The Ice Cream Store and had fantastic lobster lunch at Roy Moore's Fish Shack Restaurant.  Roy is the name of the owner and he also runs a smaller seafood shop down Bearskin Neck. He is always present at one of the locations, right in there with the staff working and interacting with customers. They catch all the seafood themselves and you can tell. So fresh and tasty. We go there religiously at least once a day, however many days we are staying in town.

It was also so adorable watching my boy stop at every (and I mean every) sewer grate to point out the letters. I'm proud to say that he knows the entire alphabet at age two (#parentingwin).

If you missed it, here is Part 1 of our Rockport trip. Don't worry, just one more post left about our vacation, then we can get back to the regular programming. Whatever that is.

Rockport Family Vacation: Part 1

Oh Rockport Massachusetts, how we love thee! The last time we visited was three years ago when we took our pup Jackie. We finally returned this past Memorial Day Weekend to celebrate our 5 year wedding anniversary and David's first Rockport experience. Man, we had a blast!

The town is so beautiful and covered in New England charm. This week I'll be sharing some amazing highlights from our trip. There's so much inspiration in Rockport between the shoreline, quaint shops, nautical themes and culture. We are always so at peace when we go. Truly it feels like we are home when we're there and David totally enjoyed every moment.

Have you had your family vacation this year yet? Are you planning one?
I'd love to chat about it in the comments!

Home Tour: Before

If any of you have been following me on Instagram, you're probably sick of all the painting photos. My husband and I have been hard at work lately prepping our condo to sell. We've been praying for a house the last few years and both feel the Lord is preparing us for that blessing. We love our condo. It has served us well for five years and was the perfect cozy home to start our life together. However, the needs of our family have changed. We have a very high energy Husky who desperately needs a yard, not to mention a running toddler who would totally enjoy it as well. I'd love to start growing our own vegetables and plant a flower garden. We all could use some personal space away from sharing walls with strangers. To top it all off, we are having baby fever and can't see ourselves bringing another addition into an already overwhelming place.

While we understand there is a lot of responsibility when owning an actual house verses a condo, it is what is best for our needs. We've been taking on some projects here and there to clean up, declutter, freshen up, decorate the condo. Now though, the ball has really been rolling and I just knew I had to include you on our crazy journey!

Dining Area

Living room 1

Living Room 2

Kitchen

Downstairs half bath

Guest full bath

Master full bathroom

David's bedroom / second bedroom

Our bedroom / master bedroom

Tada, here's the before! These photos were taken a few months ago so we've made some changes already. I decluttered SO much stuff, it should be a crime. But I'm glad it's not because there is more to get rid of and donate. We've already freshened up the paint in the downstairs half bath (what do you think of the scalloped effect?), the master bath and bedroom. David's room has been rearranged but it's the only room we won't be touching since we converted my old studio into a nursery.

Once we finish more projects and I really finalized the decorating/staging, I'll try and dedicate one post per room. That way I can break down the before and after differences, what we did and you can let me know what you think. I'm so excited!! Home projects are simply the best and I cannot wait to see it all come together! Eventually I'd love to share DIY tutorials as both of us love being creative and I know you do to ;)

So tell me: have you been through the buying and selling process? any tips for selling a home? any tips for buying a first house? what would you do to our condo to sell it?