Saturdays on the Porch

Welcome to the porch! Let’s sit a spell and chat!

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Here’s something interesting that happened this week. The home’s previous owner left tons of boxes in the basement, so my daughter and I started going through them (I sat in the chair while she opened the boxes). There were a lot of boxes full of books, mostly political stuff, and uninteresting nonfiction. But, there were quite a few that I kept out for myself and a lot of classics that will be good for my daughter to read.

The photo on the right shows the shelves that were piled up with boxes. The boxes in the middle of the floor are the ones we went through.

Anyway, we came across 4 or 5 boxes full of dishes, glasses, and coffee mugs and there were some other kitchen items in there. Two boxes we had to throw away because they weren’t taped and there were mice droppings inside. But we did come across an adorable canister set!

Isn’t that so pretty?

Another interesting thing we found was a binder that had information about the home in it. The owner had also kept about a year’s worth of gas receipts so we could see how much he was paying for gas each month. They called the home “Boxwood Manor” back then and I’m assuming it’s because there were boxwoods lining the front walkway as well as the front of the house.

Also, there were papers with photos from the real estate agent they purchased the home from. Take a look at the dining room and formal living room. It looks so fancy! (I’m kind of loving that dining room wallpaper!)

While going through the boxes in the basement, we came across two boxes of drapes. They are the drapes that were in these rooms! And my husband was in the attic and came across the valances, too! How cool to have something original to the home!

Home Update

Not too much happened with updating the home this week. We did buy some curtains for our bedroom, but they just aren’t long enough and I hate the way they look. So we’ll return those or use them in a different room while I keep searching for the perfect curtains. Or learn how to sew my own.

Before we moved in, I painted our daughter’s bedroom. She picked out the color she wanted, which is similar to our bedroom color, but brighter. You can’t really tell from the photos, though. Also, I painted the inside of her closets (she has two closets in her room so she’s super excited about that!) Together we put down the rug that she picked out and her bed that she also picked out.

The funny thing about the bed is that the instructions said it should only take 30 minutes to put together. It took us almost 3 hours! I can only assume they had Nascar’s pit crew to put theirs together in 30 minutes.

What’s on the menu this week:

My favorite posts from around the web this week

Decor Inspiration:

DIY/Crafts:

Book of the week:

Description from Amazon:

I am doomed to remember a boy with a wrecked voice—not because of his voice, or because he was the smallest person I ever knew, or even because he was the instrument of my mother’s death, but because he is the reason I believe in God; I am a Christian because of Owen Meany.

In the summer of 1953, two eleven-year-old boys—best friends—are playing in a Little League baseball game in Gravesend, New Hampshire. One of the boys hits a foul ball that kills the other boy’s mother. The boy who hits the ball doesn’t believe in accidents; Owen Meany believes he is God’s instrument. What happens to Owen after that 1953 foul ball is extraordinary.

Fun photo of the week:

This week on the blog:

I didn’t have the time or energy to do any crafts or DIYs this week, other than starting the crocheted tote. However, if you missed it, Friday I shared a list of my favorite items to buy at Dollar Tree to save money.

Next week I’ll be sharing a list of the items to avoid buying from Dollar Tree, so stay tuned for that!

I’m so glad you joined me on the porch again this week! Now it’s your turn to share! What happened to you this week? Did you come across anything fun and interesting you’d like to share? I’d love to hear about it!