Our House

Our New House in the Mountains

Well, you can't really see our new house from the road, so this is the best I could do for a distance shot.  We closed today and I will post some "before" the remodeling pictures soon.  Just so you can see the inside now and later.  There is quite a lot of work to be done in there.

We bought this house for the view.

We figured that since we now live in the desert, we may as well have a desert and mountain view.  This is basically our front yard.  The house was built "backwards" because of the long range mountain views.  So, the back of the house faces the road and has the best long range view from the upstairs deck.  The front of the house faces the desert "green space" (as they call it here) and has the up close view of the mountain you see in the picture.

There is no visible trail on this mountain, but Graham thinks he can take it.  We'll see.

In its own, totally opposite from tropical Florida way, the arid desert is really wild and beautiful.  There is much more green than I imagined there would be and in the Spring all of the cacti flower, which adds a lot of color to the barrenness of it all.  The dark mountains against the stark blue of the cloudless sky is really breathtaking.

Our master bedroom is upstairs and I am SO excited about the view.  The whole room is basically a bank of windows and seriously, I may just stay up there all the time.  It is that gorgeous.

The style of the house is the desert adobe look.  It is growing on me.  Inside, there is more of a contemporary feel than I like, so we are working on that in our remodeling.  For the most part, we should be able to bring it back to our more traditional, conservative tastes, while also adding a touch of the southwest.  After all, "when in Rome...."

Overall, though, as thrilled and thankful as I am to be on the last stretch of a move that has spanned almost a year - I know that this is just a house.  Soon, my prayer is to make it a home.  I want to fill it with memories and laughter, like all the other houses we have lived in over the past 17 years.

In the end, though, it is still just a house - brick and mortar (or in this case adobe and plaster).  It is not what is important and God has taught me over the years to hold lightly to "stuff."  I don't want my life too cluttered to hear Him speak.  I don't want my life too filled with junk to make room for the things that matter.  In the words of Francis Chan, "Our greatest fear in life should not be of failure, but  of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter."

I want to succeed at the things in life that have eternal value.  I want my children to walk closely and unashamedly with Jesus.  I want my marriage to be a strong earthly representation of Christ and His Bride. I want our home and arms to be open to those who need shelter and unconditional love.  I want to be willing and able to walk away from the "stuff" to follow His call - to the ends of the earth.

 I am thankful beyond words for my Heavenly Father who provided this home and my husband who works so hard for us.  However, no matter where we live, the most important thing is that we are a family, striving to live lives that glorify our Creator.  Even when we fall and even when life gets tough.  When all is said and done, that will truly be all that ever mattered in the first place.