May 2026 Home Update with Pictures!

 May 2026 Update!

Since this post is way overdue, I am just posting some pictures with a little information sprinkled in!  Maybe this will get me back on task!  We just got to spend a little time with ALL of our boys and our extra blessings, and now I have a list of projects to start!

On this post, I am going to post mostly pictures I took a few months ago - but some are more recent.  Then I'll add more to my next post!  We have actually gotten more done in the kitchen - beautiful backsplash!  And I added some to the laundry room and my closet!

Jack has been a blessing.  He turned two on May 17 - Dwayne's birthday!  He is pictured here with a cow friend and then in his Hanna Andersson pj's (that were Lucy's - insert sad face) at Christmas.

If you know, you know.  One thing does not really belong in my "pretty" glass doors, but there is a special item here that was a Father's Day gift from Peter.  It has since moved to a better location, but this picture reminded me that all is not lost that seems lost sometimes.  The item was "lost" but found, and we were relieved to have it back.  The other dishes were placed in here by Pete - who did a good enough job that I didn't fix anything!

In my bedroom upstairs is the bed that Pop made.  He has extra hardware on it and a special stamp that I'll try to remember to capture later.  My soft Ralph Lauren flannel comforter felt so good this winter, but it's covered up - because of Jack and his chewing issues.  It's a TJ Maxx special, so I couldn't replace it easily!  The rug was a HomeGoods clearance find - Rifle Paper Company.  It feels so good under my feet - on top of the original oak floors.

Our master bathroom is pretty and functional.  So much storage in this powder blue vanity that sat in our garage for three years!  Pete came in and put up the beadboard and ledge after the contractor did the rest.  It really fits the character of the house, and all of the fixtures were found on sale.  It's bright and just the right size.  I saw the vanity in a different color on the blog of a mom I follow.  She just bought the white for a bathroom in a home she's renovating for her family.  The price has gone up quite a bit, so I am thankful we got ours earlier!

Sam's bathroom ended up being a little bigger than the original plans - once we figured out we didn't need a little hallway and could just put the door up and make it a little bigger!  We have already changed a couple of things, but his double vanity is from Lowe's - another sale find.  Same mirrors we have - all on an Amazon deal that beat all of the home improvement store prices.  The shower curtain is from Pottery Barn clearance.  The huge baskets are HomeGoods, and the white chest is TJ Maxx.  It's been moved, so I'll update those pictures later!  We especially appreciate the storage!

Sadie Girl on the rug in my room.  She's watching out for someone.

An idea I saw somewhere - to put extra decorations and special mementos in a clear jar to display.  I have so many that don't fit anywhere else!  But I know they are in that jar!

Joseph, Mary, Baby Jesus, and the little shepherd boy I got in Boone a couple of years ago.  I love different Nativity decorations.

My humble collection of Byers' Choice carolers.  They each have a special meaning!  They are sitting on a cupboard Pop made long ago and gave us.

My Christmas tree ornaments have turned into mostly picture ornaments and ones from Cornerstone Bookstore in Boone - collected over many years.  It's simple, and I love it this way.

One of my favorite ornaments on the tree.

Another favorite...

Our oldest stockings are over 20 years old!  We have quite the collection and added a couple more this year!  We are so thankful.  It's a great reminder to pray for those names on those stockings!

I spy a picture of our sweet little blessing!  She's the most beautiful girl, and we are so thankful for her!  Her parents aren't on social media, so I don't put many pictures out for everyone to see!  But we sure enjoy them ourselves!

Pete, despite some very tiring days, put up my blue and white wallpaper in the front hall!  It sets off all of that oak - that I promised I would not paint white!  We put special Smallwoods pictures and our special Lucy picture on it.  More to come.  The other pictures are in the dining room.  My special Debbie DeVita pictures are there - I saved so long for those, and she could not have done a better job taking the time and her talents to capture my precious boys.  And a favorite of Sam I took at a wedding in Virginia.

Again, with my dear husband's help, we added some color to all of the oak in the house.  Some things are already changed around a little bit, but I do love the blue and green and white.  All of our white walls are Sherwin Williams Extra White.  While painting, we could see a huge difference in whites; and Extra White seemed to brighten up the rooms with all of the beautiful oak trim (and stopped me from painting it all white!).

Some of my favorite pictures I took of Sam - Pete put them on the ledge in the bathroom.  They are such sweet memories!

A quick picture of our crew walking in Abingdon near our house!  So many antics in that short walk!  Will remember and appreciate that time always!

Mother's Day flowers!  They could not have been prettier!  Thanks for P and J for sending them from Colorado!

A sweet picture of BWV - She is beyond precious and indulges Grammie to take a few pictures!  We also play and read - which she loves to do!  I don't know many babies her age who sit still for a whole board book!

A birthday purchase to add to the guest room downstairs.  The packaging was so pretty, I almost didn't want to open it!  

That's all the pictures for now!  Thanks to those who have asked!

Projects in the near future:

Painting the kitchen and downstairs bath to freshen it up after some issues during the addition!

Adding cornices to the kitchen windows!  Checking Spoonflower today!

Working more on the laundry room.  I did find the perfect rug for me at TJ Maxx!

Painting the back porch and picket fence white.  Repainting the floor gray.

Painting the awning on the front of the house.  Replacing some porch fixtures and painting.

Adding some landscaping!  

And Sam is helping me start on the basement today or tomorrow for a huge yard sale in the next few weeks!  Less is more!

Thanks for reading and looking at the pictures!  I'll add more rooms soon!

Wendi

Happy New Year 2026!

 My blogs have been very much ignored this past year!  Sorry about that!  So much going on and so little time to sit down and write.  Writing more is one of my goals for the very near future!

I'll post pictures soon.  The upstairs is mostly finished.  We added 600-700 square feet in two closets, two bathrooms, and a laundry room.  We were to start in March but had delays due to zoning.  Thankfully, that was all resolved with lots of talking, pictures, and two big meetings!  We have more to do (always!) but are so thankful to have the upstairs done.  We will still add some to the laundry, but we are so happy with the results!

Our next projects are to finish the tile in the kitchen and finish the wallpaper in the hallway!  Then we may move outside weather permitting.  We added a fence for the dogs and need to paint it white.  It sure adds to the charm while keeping an older dog and a young dog contained - but only when we are out with them!

Exciting news for the past year ~ We added little Blakely Wren to the family on May 14th.  She is the most precious girl, and Will and Laiken are such wonderful parents.  We love her so much!  Andrew got engaged and will marry Kathleen this summer.  We flew to see Peter and Julianna in Colorado and miss them even more when we leave!  Sam is such a huge help and continues to work on the mountain packing rock pallets, down at the rock store some, and he helped put siding on the Isaiah 117 House.  Dwayne even gave him his first rock laying lesson on the foundation!  He's a natural!

We are in between churches as we left ours (long long story) unexpectedly in September.  We have been visiting a church in Boone where we've attended before.  It's an hour drive, but it's what we need right now.  It's so hard when people are mean and others let them be mean.  Even though his preaching on Sunday mornings and teaching on Wednesday evenings, his livelihood, his friendships and visits were all taken away abruptly, Pete still goes out every Saturday morning to downtown Abingdon and does evangelism - not in an easy way.  We bought a Go Pro for him when he goes alone, so he can record and  hopefully deter some of the hate filled people he encounters.  He gets a lot of ugliness in lots of forms, but it makes those encouraging words mean even more.  We had some former neighbors in Boone encourage him one day not even knowing who he was at first!  It was a day I was there too, and they promised to pray for him; and that meant so much!

I am working at the rock store doing book work and trying to be a good and helpful salesperson!  I have learned a lot about rock, but there is still so much to learn!  I am mostly working on my fieldstone and flagstone right now!  It's very interesting, and I have lots of help for questions I can't answer.  

That's all for now!  Thanks for reading!

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."  Romans 15:13