Movin' On Up!

It's a REAL house!

BEFORE
NOW!

I have been so itchy to get the brick up on the house. The TYVEK paper just made it look like completion was so far away. Take a look, now! Beautiful!

The Jack of Everything is the Master of Nothing!!

What a wise quote and something very important for me to remember. I was just sure that I could look at a 1 inch square of paper and choose a color for an entire room. Well... let me tell you. That is harder than it looks. If not for my very patient brother, my entire house would be pink. Yes, pink! On the 1 inch square of paper, the color camel is beautiful. It matched my tile perfectly and even though my builder (brother.. but I hate to give him credit for this) said that "Santa Fe" is the perfect color, I stood firm. I am the Jack of All Trades and surely I can pick out my own colors! Well... no! There is a definite twinge of pink and the more I tried to talk myself out of it, the pinker it got. So I had to grovel and ask Andy to get the painters to start over with... you got it... Santa Fe!
I hate it when he's right!

I tried something new (I'll stick to skills that I CAN do) and made a movie to attach to show off all of our colors and beautiful built ins so far. It is all still very exciting... just a bit more stressful ... to the Master of Nothing!!

What a difference a little board makes!!

I apologize for not keeping up with the blog. We have been having so much fun watching Andy put our home together, but school seems to be eating up every spare minute I have. So... while Sarah Palin hopefully kicks some Biden Booty, I'll share our newest surprises from High Meadow.

First of all, all thanks to God for sparing our poor naked (brickless) house from mean old "Ike". We did lose some beautiful oak trees, but the good thing about living in the woods is we've got replacements! There was very minimal damage to the house that has already been fixed up. So after a couple of weekends of chainsaws and dragging trees to the front of the lot (with LOTS of help from Brian, Liz and Lauren!) we are right back on track.




As far as progress on the house itself, this is absolutely the most exciting part so far. Last week a pile of odd looking boards of all shapes and sizes was stacked in our garage. This week a crew of 4 or 5 of the most talented men have been taking those boards and pieces and creating some of the most beautiful trim I've ever seen. Our blank walls are coming alive - doors are trimmed out and windows are just gorgeous. How I wish I had just a thimbleful of the skills these men have shown us.

Thank God for friends and family!

Friday is Michael's 23rd birthday! How is this possible?! It seems like yesterday (sounds trite, I know... but it does!) that I was getting his little blue and white nursery ready. I read every baby book that I could get my hands on so that I could be the best mom possible. Knowing that Dr. Spock and Dr. Dobson probably didn't know it all, I drove my friends and family crazy with questions. I was constantly asking about how they handled this and did they have this ache and pain and truly, was he ever going to sleep through the night? I shared my plans and philosophies with any poor soul who would listen in hopes of getting their opinion and affirmations that I might be on the right track with this new adventure of ours. Keith of course, being the man he is, chose the "I refuse to stop for directions" approach and forged ahead with our family... knowing that we would figure it all out somehow. He would roll his eyes at the amount of time on the phone I spent with my mom and others asking advice and sharing ideas. When Kristen was born, I started all over again with the search for understanding and enlightenment. After all, raising a girl meant a whole new multitude of challenges and adventures (including I now got to shop EVERY aisle of Toys R Us!) I loved this time of my life, but it was only possible because of all the help and support that I received from everyone.

I have decided that this new dream home adventure has a lot in common with our lives 23 years ago!

Again, I want this house to be a perfect home for us in this special time of our lives. I am so obnoxiously excited about it and am once again, talking to anyone who will listen. I am so hungry for opinions and ideas and we have gotten (and used!) so many. Still, Keith shakes his head at my blabbering, but it seemed to work well 23 years ago, didn't it?

I just want to thank all of you who have allowed me to drag you out there to see the piles of sticks and concrete that we are so proud of. You are patient and tolerant and wise and I completely appreciate you all!

Thank God for friends and family!

Speechless... believe it or not!

For all of you who are tired of my ramblings... You're in luck! Keith and I just got back from spending several hours just in awe at the wonderful job that Andy has done so far. I really can't find adequate words to describe how we are feeling right now, so I will just hush and share the pics. Enjoy!

My Life is Good!!

Can my life get any better??? In the last 6 months...

• I have a beautiful new daughter in law, Terri.
• She and Michael are giving me my first precious grandbaby.
• Kristen is in New Jersey with a terrific beginning to a chance at an awesome career.
• I have completed the first year of my new job and love it.
• Keith is, of course, the most wonderful and patient husband and.....

Only 3 weeks after I took a picture of our lonely outhouse....






...We can actually see our beautiful house!!

God is SO good!

Merry Christmas!

I woke up this morning feeling like I was four years old and Santa had a "Susie Smart" waiting for me under the Christmas tree. We have waited and dreamed for this day and it is finally here. The complicated "dance" that Andy had choreographed was the most beautiful thing. The day was just so perfect! Thanks be to God!

I believe him!

Since the beginning of time (or since I remember anyway) I have never had a reason to doubt my brother, Andy. I remember vividly that he told me that the McKitterick family has super powers. I believed him and know to this day he is correct. He told me that we would not be caught throwing snowballs at the nuns strolling through the Ponca City Catholic school, Unity. I believed him and, sure enough, we did not get caught. He told me that I would be very sorry if I told Dad that he shot me in the lip with a BB gun from close range. I believed him until several years ago at a holiday dinner where I let the cat out of the bag. He was right. In retaliation, he started sharing stories of some of my unfortunate (and unknown) car accidents and sure enough... I was sorry. As you can see, Andy is very wise and I have always adored him.

A couple of years ago, Andy suggested that he could build Keith and I a house. Wow. Was this the first time ever that I might doubt him?

But you remember that I love my brother and know he can do no wrong (sorry, Beth) so we took him up on his generous offer. Over the last few months, we have watched in awe as he has put together a mammoth amount of bids, engineering reports and plans. Keith and I stay confused. How did the guy who tried to flush pot down the household toilet but forgot to actually FLUSH get so smart? It has been amazing to watch the intricate web that he has designed to make this whole plan come together. We actually have pipes, tons of re-bar, plastic sheeting, tension cables along with other stuff that I don't have a clue what it is.

I called him the other day to let him know that there is a pipe coming up through the middle of the dining room. Mom's friend Bobby Woodward said that it was sweet that Andy was putting a fountain in my dining room!! Good one, Bobby! Andy thinks that I should stay away.... like that will happen...

I trust my brother completely and love him dearly.

Andy tells me that he will build us a house. I believe him.

The Luckiest Girl...

What a wonderful weekend I had! I have really missed my mom lately (I get like that... doesn't seem as if I will ever grow out of that one!) and, of course, my kids (wonder if THAT feeling will ever go away!) And since I got to spend time with all of them, this weekend was the best ever!

Kristen came in on Friday and we ate with Mom, Andy and Beth for Saturday lunch. At dinner time it was on to Conroe to feast with Terri's parents on grilled 'everything you can think of'. Michael and Terri were there along with the rest of the Marshall clan and it was so nice and relaxing.

Sunday, I had the best day ever! Kristen, Michael, Terri and Mom came to eat with Keith and I. My mother's day card had THREE signatures on it for the first time ever. After yet another large meal, we headed out to see the port-a-potty. (It doesn't take much to excite us you see)
Here we had our first open house. Michael and Keith scooted the "facilities" out of the way of the construction trucks. I had my video camera on the ready to catch any spillage at all (a blog treasure, I am sure!) but sadly they handled it very well. The rest of the time was spent trying to figure out where in the world all the rooms go. I know it doesn't sound like fun to many, but having my family of whom I am so proud of with Keith and I out there was amazing! I truly feel like the luckiest person in the world!!

The perfect ending to a perfect weekend!

Footprints

One of our favorite things to do when we go out to the property is to search for footprints. We have seen all sorts of tracks; mostly deer, rabbits, dogs and coons. I am sure that when we are trying to get some landscaping under control and attempting my dream of a vegetable garden, we will not appreciate the wildlife that visits our future home. But for now, it's so fun!

Today, however, when I went out to check out the mud puddles from our 9 inches of rain this week, I found the most beautiful footprint ever! Andy's crews had come out to put up the form for the slab. There before me was our house. I know it is just the footprint, but more importantly, it is our future. I walked around to each "room" and visualized how the house was set up. As I wandered through the "front hall" and into the "den" and "back porch" I found all the critter prints mentioned before. Even more exciting, however, were the footprints of the workers who had outlined our house. Wow! Here we go!

Ready for Visitors!

Nobody believed I would actually do it... posting a picture of the outhouse. Beth understood, though! Every little bit of progress on this wonderful project holds such excitement and wonder for me! Coming out and seeing the outhouse delivered is just another little promise that we actually are going to get to live out here. As for now, come and visit! We've got FACILITIES!!

There you are, God!!

Since we started this project, Keith has worked so hard to clear the brush out of our front yard and to begin his vision of what this property is going to become. The lot is looking beautiful and even though he grumbles a bit, I know that he is loving getting to escape "apartment life" and soak up some fresh air. He finally talked me into coming out for the day on Saturday to help him burn the final (we hope) pile of trees and branches that have been cleared. Not surprisingly to anyone, I got overheated working with the fire and had to go lay down.
I found a shady spot, (which was at least 20 degrees cooler than out in the sun), threw some mats on the ground and plopped down. I lay there with my eyes closed thinking about how crazy I was to suggest that I go with Keith today, but a bonfire sounded like so much fun. hmmmm
After a while, though, I opened my eyes. Looking up , I was was greeting with the most beautiful sight. The light through the canopy of trees above made the most perfect picture. The camera, unfortunately couldn't capture the cool breeze, or the complete peacefulness of the scene. Absolutely breathtaking! I lay there for about half an hour just soaking it in. After a while, I realized that I was so blessed to have come out here today just to see this sight and to get a taste of the serenity that we have been dreaming about with this project.
So now, I have found the perfect home our hammock - that I will buy as soon as possible - so that Keith and I can enjoy the peace of our new home and be reminded constantly that God is certainly present in Magnolia, TX!!

Patience, Patience...

After spending the day at the Woodlands Art Festival and dreaming about what we will need to decorate our new home, Keith and I got the bug and drove out to see what progress had been made with the dirt. (Who knew we could get so excited about moving dirt around??!!)

Yes, there was a new pad started which was very exciting, but the best was yet to come. As we were standing on the "front porch" the sun had almost disappeared. There were several deer walking around and the sounds (or lack thereof) were amazing! Lo and behold, we looked up and saw the beginning of a sky full of stars! This is a real treat for both of us. Brief and rare vacations at Mom's house in Bandera have been the only chance that we have had to hunt for constellations in forever. We haven't had everyday star-watching capabilities since Keith built his first house in Midland while we were dating 26 years ago!

The dream of sitting on a front porch made of concrete (instead of dirt) and finding Taurus fighting O'Ryan over the 7 sisters makes us both very happy. This will be worth the wait!

Can it be actually happening??

Two years ago, Keith and I started looking for some land to "someday" build our dream retirement home. We both thought we'd look and dream for a couple of years, save some money and finally choose the perfect spot to settle down and relax. Well, the first day we went driving around, we pulled into High Meadow Ranch and fell in love at first sight! The neighborhood was so peaceful and beautiful and we knew we were home. Within two weeks we signed the deed, sold our house, moved into an apartment and all thoughts of dreaming for a couple of years flew out the window.
We were ready right now to start building and enjoy this beautiful neighborhood. But when you are starting from scratch, we found that things take longer than we could believe possible. Andy has worked so hard to get millions of bids (you think I'm exaggerating?) Getting plans made, permits in place and vendors picked out has taken forever and now God has shown us his sense of humor in giving us the highest amount of rain in the Magnolia area in years!
Our fingers are crossed, but I actually think we might be ready to move forward. The land has finally been cleared and the dump trucks are bringing in dirt this week to get us ready. Andy, Beth and Kylie are headed to Disney World, which is a good thing because when he gets back we are going to be BUSY!!