This week has been one of marking things off the to-do list. So many things accomplished! And it feels so good.  As I type this, Ben is screwing the deck boards down on the front of the house, completing the project, above, he started yesterday—our 10×10 front deck.

We made a decision this week, too, to give up on waiting for floors to move in any furniture. The floors are a whole other story, and Ben is planning to tell it, but the short version is that we can move in a few things now and when we’re ready to put the floors in we can just move those things out of the way as needed. So we grabbed the bed frame and a couple of dressers to make life at little more comfortable (i.e. an actual bedside table for me, rather than my stack of two drywall buckets with a slab of wood on top).

Another upgrade: Ben finished trimming all the windows and doors in barnwood.

So I hung our bedroom draperies! Yes, I know they are short, but that is because this window will have a window seat. Don’t worry, all the other panels will touch the floor.

We moved the washer and dryer into the pantry. They aren’t functioning just yet, but hey! They now reside in the house! We also moved in these adorable cabinets we scored months ago at the Habitat ReStore. Right now, they have a plywood countertop, but I am super excited about the storage space. Not to mention the amazing shelves Ben built to wrap the room in storage space. You only see the lowest shelf below, but there are two more above it. I’m working on getting organized in this room, and even unpacked a few dishes (notice the white mixed in with the red melamine plates and bowls we’ve been using), pots and pans!

And today, as a very special birthday favor, our stove arrived via Ben’s family (Thanks a million, Beverly, Don, Jason and Mitchell!).

And it now lives in the….drum roll, please…KITCHEN!

Yes, friends, I will be cooking dinner inside tonight. I’m not sure if I remember how to cook indoors or without coating myself in deet first, but I’ll give it a go.

As a bonus, DirectTV installed this amazing magic box that brings the world to us! I feel in the loop and informed all of a sudden! Sorry, NPR, but we won’t be listening for 18+ hours a day any more. Good thing you are #1 on my car radio so we can at least enjoy each other’s company a few days a week.

It’s the little things, my friends, that make a house a home. And we’re getting closer every day!