The Coffey Grounds

Okay…In my defense for not posting photos, my computer blew up. The photos are fine, but until Mike gets things back in order, I can’t post much of anything.

We had a GREAT time in France. It was an amazing trip and we made many wonderful new memories. Life since we returned has not slowed. I’ve been working full time and we went to Houston last weekend for Jessie’s high school graduation. It was fun to see everyone. And again…I’d post photos if I could .

Other than that…life is good. I (Michelle) turn the big 3-0 tomorrow and we are having a combo housewarming/birthday party in 2 weeks. So until then, we are working on house projects to try and get a few things done. Hope you are well!

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So I thought that once school was out (on May 7th) that life would suddenly get easier and I’d have so much more time. Well…not exactly. The staffing company I work for immediately had me scheduled full time. Yikes! Great for the pocketbook…not so great for relaxation. On the weekends we have been working on the yard (which is such a mess right now) and getting ready for VACATION! Woo hoo. France is coming up soon…as long as that pesky ash cloud doesn’t get in our way. I bought a new lens for my camera and some new noise cancelling headphones, so we are set! We will be taking lots of pics and will post them soon. I’ll also take some pics of the house. I’m hoping to work on some finish work when we get back (that is if I get a day off!)

Au revoir!

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I’m sorry I have been so lacking on posts lately. Between trying to get settled in the new place (the upstairs still looks like a tornado went through) and surviving school, life has been a wee bit hectic. And to top it off, we just got back from a whirlwind trip to Tennessee to Mike’s Grandmother’s funeral. It was a terribly sad occasion and we miss her dearly, but she lived a good 92 years.

In positive news…we’ve made a good bit of progress on the house. Operation “give this house character” is fully underway. Though, I haven’t had time to take photos. Also, I have 2 weeks left of school (the light is at the end of the tunnel), and to top it off, we have booked our trip to France. We are both definitely looking forward to getting away for a bit.

I’ll try and take some photos soon and post them. But until then, I had some questions about where photos were of our old place. All photos are in our web album, but here is a direct link to the old house pics.

Hope you are doing well and enjoying this beautiful spring!

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Okay…sorry for the delay in posting pics!  I just now got around to digging out the card reader to post pics.  I’ve updated our Web Album as well as included some below.  We still have SO MUCH to do, but we are getting there bit by bit.  Note that no pics of the upstairs rooms are posted…that’s a complete work in progress and filled with boxes.  But, I will have off about 2 months from school from mid May – mid July, so hopefully we’ll get more done then.    But until then, here is our progress..

Before paint and flooring photos:

View of entry from living room:

View of kitchen from living room:

Another view of kitchen:

View of living room from kitchen:

Mike’s TV room:

View of kitchen from  living room:

Master bedroom:

Master bathroom:

And now for some “After” pics.  But it’s definitely still a work in progress!

View of entry from upstairs:

View of living room from pool table area:

Dining area:

View of living room from kitchen:

View of kitchen from living room:

Another view of kitchen:

Mike’s TV Room:

Master Bedroom:

Master bedroom:

Master bath:

Master bathroom:

Master bathroom:

Upstairs hallway:

Backyard:

And while we have made great progress, there is still so much to do.  On the slate this summer: unpack the upstairs  (it’s a disaster), refinish the kitchen cabinets, redo the kitchen backsplash, new kitchen appliances, and build display cabinets in the TV room.  That, along with decorating (I’ve got a ton of sewing to do!) will keep us busy.  But, we love our new home and are excited to make memories for years to come!

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Let me just first apologize for the site being down for so long.  We decided to take it down when we put our house for sale because we didn’t want any snoopy potential buyers knowing we already had a new place.  Little did we know our house would sale in 4 days and we’d close three weeks later.  What ensued what a whirlwind to finish renovations at the new place and get moved in.  So, we didn’t have time to get the site back up for a while.

We are still in a state of renovations at the new place.  Nothing major – just ALOT of detail finish work like putting in shoe molding where the wood floors were installed, paint touch ups, installing lights, etc.  But, even with all the projects that surround us, we are LOVING the new house.  It really feels like home, even though it’s not done.  We thought we might have regrets giving up a house we loved so much, but this was definitely the right move.  We will create many happy memories here and hopefully raise our children in a great home and neighborhood with LOTS of room to play.

Between school (this semester is BRUTAL), work (squeezing in shifts when possible), and working on the house, we have been hermits lately just working to keep above water.  But, things are slowly getting better and I think this summer we will really make progress with unpacking (yep – its going to take us that long – I’ve just come to accept that.)  There are alot of projects on the books – mainly to increase storage.  While this house has fabulous closets, I lost alot of cabinet storage so Mike will be adding some in the kitchen and the theatre room so I can have room to unpack alot of items in boxes with no where to go.

But in the meantime, I am taking photos of the progress and will upload them as soon as I find the thing to upload them with.  But here’s a cool pic Mike took when we had a few inches of snow a few weeks go.

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Sorry for the short notice, but our site will be taken down for little bit while our house is on the market. Will be back shortly…hopefully!!!

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I know I promised photos, but since we are decluttering and staging our current house for sale…we are in a bit of upheaval around here. I took tons of photos of the new place so we can post before and after pics, but they are still on the camera…and I have no clue where the gadget is to upload them on my computer is. Not to mention my computer that stores the photos and uploads them on the website is not setup anymore. Argh!

The past 2 weeks have just flown by. With the holidays, me working as much as I can during the break, and spending every waking moment doing home renovations, things have been crazy! We have a TON of painting done at the new place and the psychedelic entry chandelier is a thing of the past. So far, it’s looking great and feeling more like home. We still haven’t chosen flooring and the new siding will go in soon (hopefully this week.)

Anyway…other than that, not much else is going on. Oh wait…in other exciting news, our dear friends Fabi and Jose welcomed Joseph into the world on December 23rd. He’s absolutely precious! So many wonderful blessing this year.

The start of 2010 is so exciting for us. We have so many things planned for this year that will be both positive and life changing. I can’t wait to experience the year…

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I’m SO SORRY for not posting updates lately.  Between finals, then buying the new house (on the same day I might add), then working on the new house (so much to do), starting a new job (yea!) and the holidays, it has been CRAZY around the Coffey Grounds!!!  I took alot of “before” photos of the new digs and will post them this week.  We’ve made a good bit of progress, but have so much more to do.  Plus, we need to get some stuff done around our current house to get it on the market in 3 weeks.  Yikes!

I’m working for a nurse staffing firm in Austin.  I just finished a week at Christopher House, a local hospice facility and LOVED IT!!!  It was just amazing and definitely planted a few seeds of options I’d like to pursue for my Master’s coursework.  I never thought I’d love hospice like that, but Palliative Care is just so rewarding.  I actually felt like I was making a difference….which is so fulfilling!

Mike was off this week and will be off again next week.  But, he has spent most of his spare time at the new home working.  I finally convinced him to take the day off tomorrow to rest a little. I’m exhausted too…if I’m not working 12 hour shifts, I’m at the new house painting.  Ugh…but it will be great to get most of it done BEFORE we move in!

Anyway…sorry for the delay.  Photos coming soon!!

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We are counting down the days until this Friday.  Why Friday?  That’s the day the semester is over for me (FINALLY) and we close on the new house!  Woohoo!  I think we are still in shock all this is happening, but also very excited.  In other news, it looks like I have a job!  It’s not 100% yet, but I think it will go through this week.  It’s with a local staffing company so I’ll work in a variety of settings including hopsice, psych, and long term care facilites.  It wasn’t exactly what I was looking for, but it’s great experience.

Mike is doing great.  He’s been busy packing and doing stuff around the house to prep for putting it on the market.  We had one last party in our last last night when we hosted a baby shower for our friends Fabi and Jose with our friends Terri and Richard.  It was a blast and we enjoyed some great time with friends (and watching the Horns win!!)

Well…I’m sorry to run, but I need to help Mike pack.  The next few days will be full of final exam studies, so I need to start packing now.  Enjoy this fabulous cold weather!

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Well the final negotions are done and we are set to go!  No closing date set yet, but it will be before Christmas (what a gift!).  We are hoping it will be the second week of December so Mike can spend his Christmas break on stuff there.  We locked in a great mortgage rate, so it looks like all the stars are aligning!  I’m stuck getting last stuff done for the semeseter  (2 weeks left!!!) so Mike is starting to get our house ready for the market.  We’re hoping to go on the market in mid-January.

Next week we are going on La Porte for Thanksgiving.  We are really looking forward to seeing everyone and eating a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner prepared by Mom and Ken.

Hope everyone is doing well!!!

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