Furniture's Taken Care Of... Kinda.

That's kinda sorta what my new furniture looks like.  It's the same style, but I picked a gray color instead of the beige.  And I also picked out an over-sized love seat and over-sized chair to go with it.  I spent a whole lot more than I meant to on furniture, but it means a lot to me to finally have furniture that all matches.  It's simple, but comfortable.  

Unfortunately we don't actually have the furniture yet, though, and probably won't until next weekend.  Hubby, the kids, and I spent most of the day driving around in the most beautiful weather visiting different furniture stores.  Of course, the minute we buy our furniture and make arrangements for my sister to bring my dad's truck to us so that we can haul it home - dark black rain clouds start making their way over us.  I wasn't about to risk getting our brand new furniture wet, even with a tarp.  So, now it will have to sit and wait until we can get the truck over there to bring it home.  I'm not going to pay $125 for them to deliver it to me when I just forked out the kind of money I did to buy the furniture in the first place.  It can wait.

We also ordered our new entertainment center that should be here early next week.  It looks like this:

The book shelves are separate from the main TV stand, so we can either set it up like this or use the bookshelves in the room a different way.  It will depend on space, and what I decide when I actually have it in front of me.

Hubby and I have also decided to give up our crappy old bed and go with a bed frame for now until we find something we like - and can afford.  The bed we have now is HUGE.  It's an old waterbed, but we have a regular king sized mattress in it.  It has a head board that's about 6" deep, and it's full of shelves...which is really uncomfortable and awkward to lean back on.  There's some nice storage underneath, but the drawers sit back about a foot under where the bed hangs out, so they are awkward to get to.  I'll be so glad that we don't have to try and move that monster, and we'll just throw our king sized mattress on a bed frame and throw some storage drawers under the bed.  We managed to find a king sized bed frame at Sam's for less than $40 - so that's all taken care of.

I know that reading about buying furniture isn't the most exciting thing in the world to read about, but this is all such a new experience for me.  I have never had brand new furniture.  Funny, huh?  Every couch, chair, love seat, sectional, and bed I've ever owned has been handed down to me by a family member or purchased used.  Wait, that's not true.  I did buy a brand new futon when I lived in my old apartment once, but that's about it.

Every time my parents have bought new furniture, I've inherited their old furniture.  When a friend of mine moved, she let me have her sectional sofa that I've loved ever since she inherited it from her aunt.  The thing is over 30 years old, looks like it's been through a few tornadoes, but it's comfortable.  But, it's time to say goodbye to that old gem.  And as soon as we get situated enough to start buying a few more pieces, all of the old dressers the whole family have will be gone.  But, they have to go with us for now...all the furniture money has been used up...and then some.

I guess that's the best thing about buying a house, though.  We'll take little steps here and there to get it to way we like it.  I'm teaching summer school so that we can have a little extra to buy paint and some other small items, I don't have to pay for daycare anymore so we can put a little bit back each month for bigger items, and even if it takes a few years - we'll eventually get everything we want.

I've realized this new sense of pride I have about our new house.  It was OK to have old stuff in our old house, because it's just a place to eat, sleep, and get ready for work.  From the moment we moved in seven years ago, it's been a temporary dwelling.  I knew we wouldn't be here forever.  But now?  It's important for me to respect my new home by not taking the old and rundown with us.  It's a brand new start for my family, so a brand new start it will be.

Kids will no longer eat in the living room.  We will sit at the dining room table and eat our meals.  Clothes will no longer be strewn around the house wherever they fall.  They will be placed in hampers in each bedroom or bathroom.  Toys will no longer be stepped on or kicked while making the walk from the living room to the kitchen.  Each child will have their own room for their own stuff, and that's where it will stay.  Clutter will no longer start collecting in every corner.  Everything will have a place and a purpose - and if it doesn't?  We don't need it.  Cleaning will no longer be a dreaded chore that I put off because I know it's a waste of time.  It will now be a weekly ritual that's done with excitement in refreshing and maintaining beauty.

Can you sense my excitement?  I sure hope so...because it's coursing through my veins.  In just a few more short days we will finally be able to move in.  I will say goodbye and good riddance to the past, and my family will begin our future that we've waited so long for.

I know I'm not alone...cause I'm gonna make this place our home.