Show Ready

Our house has been on the market a little over a month and we continue to wait with patience (sort of) on that perfect buyer who will appreciate it as much as we do.  That said, it is just flat hard to try to sell your home while your entire family still resides in it.  In lieu of making my children dwell outside in a tent until it is sold, I have adopted a few rules to keep things "show ready" while still letting kids be kids, as well as a couple of ways to make the house more pleasing to a potential buyer.

1.  Buy a Bucket.  Yep, a big old opaque Rubbermaid tub.  When the realtor asks to show the home, go on a mad raid throughout the house dumping every toy, lego piece, and leftover shoe imaginable inside.  Then use all of your arm power to lug that thing into the laundry room and throw it in with the Christmas decorations so people think it belongs there year round.  Just remember to empty it later so you can do it all over again the next time.

2.  Depersonalize.   As adorable as your family may be, you want others to see your place as their  home (bringing you closer to the contract phase), so lose the personal pictures.  I was able to take most of our frames off the walls without issue, but in the case of our stairwell pictures, there were too many nail holes to make the process of take-down worth it, so instead I went to my favorite paper store and bought coordinating wrapping paper and notecards, then framed them on the walls.  I miss the pictures of my kids, but appreciate the pleasing effect this provides.

3.  Create some color.  Head over to your local nursery and invest in some hanging baskets and potted flowers.  A little color can mean all the difference when making a first impression.  Also, bring some of the foliage inside.  For the last two months, the galvanized vase on my dining table has held fresh cuts from the yard, helping potential buyers to see the benefits of the bushes and trees on the property.  Don't have a lot of outdoor plants?  Try to grab a few fresh flowers every week to have somewhere in your house.

4.  Buy a tart warmer and go to town trying out new fragrances.  With three kids and a canine, things aren't always coming up roses around here, but I invested in an attractive warmer for my kitchen and am having the most fun trying out the Yankee Candle scents.  Favorite one so far is Vanilla Lime followed closely by Fluffy Towels.

5.  Continue to live.  Just because my house is for sale doesn't mean we're going to stop making Saturday morning blanket forts or baking up messes on a weekday afternoon.  Life goes on.  We don't know what the future holds, but we've planted a summer vegetable garden, hosted parties, and painted artwork on the screen porch.  Because it's still our home until it's not.  And we love it.

Reflections on a Small Town

This month has been a whirlwind of activity.  Maddox is in her last weeks of first grade, Graham has been in Norway for the second half of the month, and craziest of all, we are trying to sell our house!  (If I can stop vacuuming and dusting long enough to sit down, I'll share more about that whole experience in another blog this weekend.)  But it's inside this tornado of chaos that I have found myself very reflective about the little town of Orange, Virginia that we have called "home" over the last five years.  We really love this place and I'd like to share a few reasons why we hold it so dear.

I can remember shortly after moving to Orange and meeting a few people, that I was supposed to go to Charleston, SC with some college girlfriends for a 30th birthday celebration.  Graham was deployed at the time and I was pregnant with the twins and the day before the trip, my sister-in-law (and babysitter for the weekend) called to say that my nephew had strep throat and was throwing up on top of that.  The whole trip was in jeopardy but for two new friends from church, Kim and Tracey, who stepped in to take turns keeping Maddox over the weekend.  I was so grateful and she had a blast and became forever buddies with a little firecracker named Elly.  In a small town, people respond graciously to your request for help.

Another more serious example of friends stepping in to help occurred a few years ago.  As I was driving home from Richmond one day, I felt like I had a catch in my chest and couldn't quite get my breath.  By the time I got home I was clammy and dizzy and felt like I was the classic case of a female with heart attack symptoms.  My friend Corie came right down the street, called EMS, and prayed with me until they arrived, then took Maddox to her house to play with her girls for the evening.  My wonderful babysitter Marlene kept the twins a little longer that day and then a  good neighbor and friend, Barbara, picked up Henry and Harper and put them to bed at home.  Graham and I came back from the hospital later that evening, tired but so grateful to our friends. In a small town, people take care of each other.

After Henry and Harper were born, I was totally overwhelmed by motherhood- often feeling trapped within the four walls of my house-and needed a break in scenery, especially when they became mobile.  In swooped a sweetheart of a college-aged girl named Jacquie who, a few days a week for a summer, woke up early and came over to take care of my little movers so Mom could get a break.  In a small town, the babysitters are the BEST!

Maddox began her kindergarten year at Grymes Memorial School and has begged and pleaded to ride the bus just as often as she can every day since then.  Her journey to and from school is only about ten minutes and she loves it.  In a small town, I don't worry about sending a child to school on the bus.

Although we are looking to move somewhere a bit larger, my family has so enjoyed the rural scenery of Orange.  You can't beat the views on Little Skyline Drive, the dairy farm in Somerset that belongs to my friend Heidi, the iconic village of Rapidan, or the silhouettes of horses in pasture as the sun goes down at Rounton Farm.  In a small town, kids can get back to nature.

My girlfriends and I often take advantage of our small town life by making everything an event.  From an Academy Awards birthday party for a friend to a fancy dinner out at The Inn at Willow Grove to a Christmas celebration at The Market at Grelen to an annual November afternoon at the Montpelier Hunt Races, we find reasons to dress up, get out, and take advantage of our life here.  In a small town, you create your own entertainment!

So here's to all the small towns out there!  The sense of community you provide cannot be matched and your benefits are too many to mention.  

Seeing with New Eyes

It is typically in the month of May that I become filled with raging jealousy.  See, I have this kid with some absolutely amazing eyelashes and every year around ballet recital time they get all dolled up with mascara and Mommy can't see straight I'm so envious and Daddy threatens home school and no dating until she's married.  And now those lashes are going to be times two because I've got this other daughter who is dancing at her first recital this weekend and though her lashes have never been touched by mascara, I just know she's got 'em.  The reach-up-to-your-eyebrows-gorgeous-lashes.  They can thank their GranJan and aunties for this inherited blessing because Mama's eyelashes are so stubby, it is just sad, and until last week I thought I didn't have any alternatives other than fakes (which I have certainly tried a time or two).  But when I saw that my sis-in-law was having a mascara party with long lashes guaranteed, I sat up and took note.  Because I don't want to torture myself with child jealousy this go 'round.  And thanks to Younique fiber lashes, I may have just solved the problem for good. . .

 Naked lashes.  No makeup.

 Makeup and regular mascara (L'oreal Telescopic which I've used forever)

 Younique fiber lashes.  Holy moly!

 

So, this Saturday I'll get my girls ready for their dance recital and throw on some eye candy of my very own.  And I'll have fun pretending that those girls got their gorgeous lashes from me! 

Coordinating with Candy Stripes

It is no secret that my love affair with Matilda Jane has been a long and fruitful one.  From the first piece I ever purchased when Maddox was just two years old (a tartan plaid knot dress and ruffle pants) I have loved collecting, coordinating and dressing my girls in MJC and even spent a year selling the wares in Virginia as a trunk keeper.  Recently, seven year-old Maddox would rather be in a tee shirt and shorts than just about anything else, but her three year-old sister Harper is still enjoying all the Matilda Jane hand-me-downs she has acquired.  Last week, my friend had a trunk show in Charlottesville and I ordered a single piece- the Red Rover Bennys.  These cherry red and bubblegum pink striped pants were so adorable that I had to have them for Miss Harper, but it wasn't until they arrived at my door that I began to realize just how many items in her closet already coordinated perfectly.  You see, that is and will always be the beauty of Matilda Jane.  Season after season, items can be pieced together creatively because each collection seems to coordinate with the next.  Lately, I have begun to pass down some of our outgrown items to my nearly-two-year-old niece, Grayson.  Just in time for the next generation to enjoy.

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Harper in her Red Rover Bennys with a MJ dress from Spring 2010.

An adorable strawberry knot dress from the Good Hart collection is a perfect match.  The tutu skirt from the Serendipity line can be layered over the Red Rovers when little one is feeling extra spunky.

My first Matilda Jane model (and her adorable friend Hannah) in a precious outfit from Spring 2012.  Now, that dress can be paired with the Red Rovers as well.

Three fun dresses from the past with just a touch of red that really pops with the Bennys.  

Does anyone else own and love these beauties?  Let me know how you are styling yours!

Digging Up Treasures

Sometimes you have to choose to be thankful for whatever you are given in a day.  Whether it's an obvious gift or a lotus blooming in the mud, there is always something worth your gratitude.  Last weekend was gorgeous here in Virginia.  The temps were perfect, the sun was shining, and our crew was outside the entire time.  We went to the Saunders-Monticello Trail in Charlottesville on Saturday (Graham and Maddox returned again Sunday to do some geocaching) and Sunday night we had a hot dog and s'mores roast by the fire pit on our patio.  It was pretty perfect.

Fast forward 48 hours, and it's 47 degrees and rainy.  But H&H were able to put their rainboots to use this morning- yes, he wears the cupcakes and she wears the trucks- and splash around in puddles for nearly twenty minutes.  They had a blast.

So, whatever your day brings be it sun or showers or storms, seize it!  Find the treasure.  Dig it up out of the mud.  And be grateful.

Let's Shine

I can't quite put my finger on it, but I realized sometime in my thirties that it's not all about me.  A novel concept, I know.  Children are very good at helping shift that focus away from self, but many parents- including me- upon becoming Mom and Dad, find it natural to move the spotlight off of themselves and onto their kids.  Their activities.  Their friendships.  School.  Daycare.  Birthday parties.  Soccer games.  It's easy to do.  And every parent has been there in one way or another.  But the truth is that our families can take over our lives and we're left with little of ourselves to share with anyone else.  Our spouse and our little people certainly deserve our best, but when special opportunities come around to share our gifts and talents and passions, it may be time to shine.

For several years, I've watched my friend Jenny as she's traveled back and forth to Honduras each summer.  She and her husband have worked with the homeless, loved on babies, fed some seriously undernourished kids, and started a sewing clinic in a girls home all while sharing the big love of God with those who need to know about it the most.  They've traveled with Sparrow Missions and I've been along for the ride virtually for a while now.  A few months ago, Jenny contacted me and asked if I wanted to join them this summer on a mission trip.  And so I looked again at the website.  Those ministries.  Those babies.  Those needs.  And my heart swelled.  And I said yes.

This June 30th-July 6th, my friend Meg Camp and I will be joining my friends Jenny and Jason and about a dozen other people in Honduras.  Meg is fluent in Spanish and has been on many mission trips to Latin America in the past so in brainstorming how to raise money for this trip (it's about $1500 for each of us) we decided to host a several authentic Central American dinners in my home to share our journeys and spread the word.  We hosted our first meal last week and had such fun with our friends as we watched videos about the work there, answered questions, and just plain had a blast pressing homemade corn tortillas and stuffing our faces with banana empanadas at the end of the meal.  

The fundraising continues this weekend with a barn party at Rounton Farm where guests can participate in a 50/50 raffle as well as a dance-off competition with proceeds going to Honduras.  How great is that?  I may also have a virtual "Shop My Closet" event this month for anyone interested in buying something on the cheap to add to their spring/summer wardrobe.  I'm told some people like my style:)  If other faraway friends want to help out, just click here and type "For Molly Crouch" in the message section of the online donation page.  Can't wait to take you on this journey with me!  Many blog posts to come. 

So whether big or small, take a step today and find a way to share a little piece of yourself with someone else.  Let's shine.

". . .among whom you shine as lights in the world. . ."  Philippians 2:15

Measuring Time in Ballet Shoes

There are days that lead into weeks that roll into months in motherhood where it feels like time. is. ticking. by. so. slowly, and then there are moments when a parent opens her eyes and realizes that the pace is too fast and it has to slow down.  In a blink, a year is gone.  Then two.  And finally, I'm left wondering what happened to those days of diapers and baby food and little giggles?  Because that once bald Harper Rose's head is now full of curls and her little feet are bigger now and dancing at her first ballet recital next month.  Wearing a pair of ballet shoes her sister put on her own feet all those many years ago.  Which wasn't really long ago at all.  Time is flying.  And I am counting ballet shoes and soaking up every second.