Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Welcome to Blue House!

Our new Winter nest, a 1937 town charmer IN NORTH IDAHO
just 30 minutes from Marvel Hill!






































This house is perfect for us.
And perfect for keeping us cozy in convenience and creature comforts
during the short, dark, cold days of winter!

It fits our family.
It's light and bright.
It has electricity.
(And flush toilets!!)
It's darling.
It's old.
It has "scope for the imagination" and lots of potential for fun house projects.
It was move-in ready.

It is on a large lot with two pear trees and an apple tree too.  The kids were sold :-)

























































































































Blue House has all the original hardware and glass knobs on doors - so cool.

Above is the girls room in a new coat of paint - a pink they were able to agree on.

Zachary wanted plain white or blue for the boys room and Clayton had a handful
of colorful paint swatches...
I think we collaborated on a satisfactory compromise!

The bathtub will be making its home in the upstairs bathroom AJ is tearing into.
He's also carving out space for a washer and dryer in a built-in cabinet upstairs. Wahoo!

Winter arrived last week and booted us from Marvel Hill with a frozen pipe send-off.
First mattresses covered the living room floor of Blue House for a few days of camping,
and then Dad got bunks and beds assembled much to the delight of these hoodlums :-)

Snow is supposed to descend tomorrow and tonight Carolina asked for "Frosty the Snowman"
when I turned on background music. Miles danced with me in the kitchen and Bryce turned
some groovy somersaults on one lone mattress in the living room:-)
On principal I traditionally wait until after Thanksgiving to start Christmas music,
but for Carolina I couldn't say no :-)  I find a nice alternative that has a Christmasy
feel, is the Bojangles station on Pandora, so we've been listening to that a lot too.

We started up a constant simmer of hot apple cider on the stove here.  Our favorite recipe
is 4-5 cloves, 3 cinnamon sticks, and one sliced lemon to one jug apple cider.
However, if snow shows up tomorrow, I'm going to get out the marshmallows for
hot chocolate and we'll read all our the Wintry books we can dig up!
One if our more recent favorites is called Learning to Ski with Mr. Magee, by Chris Van Dusen.
He writes charming, witty, rhyme-ish stories and his illustrations are SO delightful!

Anyway, I see reading and candles and maybe more music in our day tomorrow along with
that hot chocolate and snow.

I hope your days are cozy and beginning to feel Holiday-ish too :-)








10 comments:

Cinnamon said...

Oh my goodness! I love the little blue house!! It's perfect and sounds like it was just waiting there for all the pitter patter of feet to come in and make it a home.

I laughed at your description "flush toilets and electricity" haha! I remember our days without those things. Makes you appreciate them for years and years.

Can you send me your new address?

Much love~ Cinnamon

Unknown said...

It's beautiful. We had 9 kids before finally finding our 'dream' home that would fit all of us. It did and then some. Have fun with it. I'm sure your family will make lots of awesome memories there.

outdoor.mom said...

nice!! I guess I missed you at the store the other day. Kevin said you were walking out and I was inside - bummer!! That place looks familiar - are you in Bonners?

RavenM said...

Oh those glass doorknobs! *drools*
What a precious little house :)

Momma Bug said...

We don't cross paths very well, do we Sherin?! I'm sad I missed you at the store - that would have been a welcome hug!!

I'll send you an email to catch up :-)

Love ya

Rebekah W. said...

IF YOU DONT MIND ME ASKING...DO YOU ALL MOVE EACH WINTER INSTEAD OF STAYING AT MARVEL HILL? I LOVE THIS HOUSE YOU ALL ARE AT ,IT IS SO CUTE AND COZY!

The Mayo Family said...

Hello I just visited from Cinnamon's....I leave blessed as the Momma of 8 in a bit older season than you, our gifts are 7-25 yrs old now (sniff how did that happen?)
I am blessed at the love you have for the 'season' you are in "today"! May you grasp & enjoy the lil-years as they pass oh so quickly. My hubby & I wonder, how did it go so fast!
God has blessed you with a beautiful family! I as well love the 'blue winter home'!
Blessings~Lori

Shauna said...

How exciting 'Lene! It's beautiful and looks so you. Who knows, maybe I'll have to come by and see it in person one day soon.

Momma Bug said...

Lori~ It is a privilege to have your visit and your encouraging comment. Thank you!

Rebecca, my pen pal! *sigh* I'm sorry I'm so negligent. Life is too full to hold a pen long enough to form a complete thought. Ha!
The answer to your question is yes. And no. Marvel Hill was never intended to be more than a summer cabin retreat. However, we fell in love with it after we'd sold our home in another State, and spent several years there until it became available to spend winters in Colorado where AJ works. That's complicated enough isn't it?
This house is adorable and wonderful and I'm falling for it, but I'm not sure it will be the final landing place. Time will tell. So until the next crazy leg in this adventure, I breathe in goodness with a grateful heart :-)

Shauna LaRae, I miss you.
Thank you for sharing my delight. It would be the crowning glory of Blue House to meet YOU, so come come!!
It has been too long since I've had the pleasure of solving the world's problems with you. The best. :-)
I love you!
~me

Anonymous said...

I thought I already commented on this post but somehow I didn't. I love the little cozy space you all have. It looks so open and spacious. Nice!!! I always smile at the lOVE you have for your children. It is so evident and I LOVE when you update with pictures of your little cuties.