Please tell me I'm not the only one who feels pulled in 50 different directions at the moment?! Holy moly, this time of year is always a doozy for us. Looking at our December calendar already makes my head spin. Every year, it's the same old song-and-dance of juggling all of our obligations & to-dos. And it only gets harder as we add more kids to the mix.

 

Last year we had a lot of lows and "what ifs" lingering over us around the holidays. But after all we've been through this past year, I'm so much more aware of how life is SO precious and tomorrow is never promised. I find that every moment has something in which we can rejoice. This time around, I'm making a resolution to truly embrace the season.

 

In my resolution to be more intentional with our time spent as a family, I've created a holiday "bucket list" for us to check off this year. I thought this would be a fun way to help make the most of our holiday season together - our first as a family of four! =)

 

 

If you're interested in embarking on your own "bucket list" quest, click below for the free printable PDF version of our holiday bucket list! It's a perfect fit for just about anyone. (Don't forget to share photos of your ventures by using the hashtag #holidaybucketlist on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook!)

 

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To Download, Click Here:

 

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A farmhouse facade isn't complete without a dormer over the front porch, am I right? Ever since our dormer was added on last week, it's starting to take shape & look like a *real* house! Things are moving so quickly, we're going to be moving in before we know it (or at least I keep telling myself that...this apartment feels smaller and smaller every day. Ha!).

 

 

I think that's what I love architecturally about farmhouses - dormers, super thick trim, hardwood floors, five-panel doors - it all exudes an element of classic and timeless design. From the clothes in my closet to the decor in my home, I've always been drawn to things classic and simple, with a touch of vintage. So, I'm sure it's no surprise that that's what style we're going for in the new house. =)

 

Speaking of timeless and classic, check out this amazing sunset we captured after leaving our land.

I can't WAIT until this is our view every evening. God is GOOD.

 

 

This week should yield a lot more progress on the house, especially after seeing the forecast - sunny days through Thursday, with a slight chance of rain Friday. I'll take it! Our builders are doing SUCH a wonderful job...keep up the amazing work, guys!

 

    

One of the many fun projects on my plate right now is handling the design of our new home. We're currently building what we've dubbed "the Modern Farmhouse," slated to be finished in early February. I thought it would be SO fun to share the process & progress on the blog - both to share with friends & family, as well as document it for our own sake. =)

 

Four years ago, we found ourselves struggling with infertility & the "what ifs" of life. We had been trying to start a family for over 2 years & we weren't quite sure what God had in store for us. Yet, what we DID have was a little daydream about someday moving back to the country. And if starting our family wasn't going according to plan, we decided to try & make one of our other dreams a reality.

 

We tallied up our rainy day funds & started our search for the perfect spot, with our eye out for something in northern Hendricks County. Eventually, through a friend of a friend, we stumbled upon the perfect plot & decided to purchase five acres of farmland.

 

 

There we were, doing all we could to keep our mind off babies, and God had a plan all along (and I also can't forget to credit our amazing doctor, Dr. Jarrett!). Upon learning we were finally getting the chance to grow our family, we put together a nursery in our starter home and decided to stick it out in the city for a while longer. All the while, we still visited our little piece of heaven & slowly plotted out where and what we wanted to build, when the right time came.

 

 

Fast forward to Spring 2015 - we've added a baby girl to our family, our small business had outgrown the tiny 8x10 bedroom upstairs, and we had started using our parents' garages for storage. It became pretty clear that our sweet little starter home wasn't going to cut it for us much longer. 

 

We embarked on the search for a custom home builder, and finally settled on JR Lazaro Builders. They have been so incredible to work with - if you're in the market for a custom home, we highly recommend them! After the long, drawn out process of small home repairs, listing and selling our house, moving into a townhouse, and finalizing our new home's floor plan, we finally signed on the dotted line for our new home in early August.

 

The early weeks of the building process were filled with mundane things like tree clearing, surveying, pouring the basement, inspections, and digging the well. Our patience is paying off this month, as things are finally getting exciting! In a matter of 2 weeks, they've framed our entire basement, main level and garage. We can now walk through the entire house and see our floor plan & little dream home come to life. The earlier months of this year were nothing short of stressful....but it's all uphill from here, right?

 

We can't wait to share with you our experiences through the building process, as well as photos and details of our farmhouse design. For now, I'll leave you with these snapshots of it's current progress - we have WALLS! =)