We bought our home a five years ago when we lived here last. It was a fixer upper with character; in a beautiful town just outside of Anchorage. It had some issues, but growing up as farm kids we are not afraid of a little hard work. The yard was a coveted lot with trees, sledding hill in the back yard (important when a lot of the year is spent in snow cover), a great yard to play in, and on a quiet cul-de-sac.
We both decided it was perfect. When we were looking at it, I stated that one of the four bedrooms was painted like a nursery so we better change that before we moved in. Little did we know at the time I was pregnant with our third little blessing, Lilyan. A few weeks before we moved in I found out we were pregnant and the nursery was already painted. Therefore, painting that room was one less thing we had to do when we moved in. However, it did not all go that well. We ran into a lot of issues with the "little fixes." As anyone who has ever renovated knows all too well, how those "little fixes" can become huge projects.
We started in the kitchen, as it was a scary little hovel area that smelled weird to put it mildly. We decided to take down the cabinets, and install new. So, we tore them down in good spirits only to find black mold. Well, this was a huge problem so we called a contractor to discuss a price to put up new drywall. Gavin had just had shoulder surgery and could not lift very much, and I was pregnant as I stated before. So, the contractor seemed the way to go. The contractor came in and took a look at the mess that was our kitchen. The verdict was a little less than doable. It turned out he would take three weeks to do it, we would have to buy the materials, hang the cabinets, and do most of the finish work for just under $8,000. Just like most young couples, this was a shock to the system, and we could not get by with this figure if we wanted to eat for the next four months. Plus, the length of time we would be living without a functional kitchen was far too taxing.
So, we did what most sagacious children do, I called on one of my heroes; my dad. I told he and my mom I had a deal for them. I would pay their way up to Alaska, and we could be tourists by day and carpenters by night. Of course, that would mean five hours of daylight to see the vast beauty that is Alaska. They readily agreed and flew up to help out a few days later. Praise God for mothers and fathers.
We worked on the kitchen until the wee hours of the morning, and then slept in. When we got up we had a few hours of daylight and we charged into the tourist destinations with gusto. We were able to see some amazing things in the few hours of daylight, and I will never forget the awe on their faces as they viewed the great landscape of snow covered mountains. Although, one of my favorite memories was trying to get my mom to realize that when I said the snow was deep that it was REALLY DEEP. However, she soon figured out what I meant when she was trying to leave a trail to get a better view of the Little Susitna River by Hatcher's Pass. She ended up sinking up to her waist, and I was laughing so hard I could barely hold the camera to snap a picture. This river is one of our favorite destinations, and if you ever visit you will be carted there for some great views, and delicious water.
After a week of really long hours of work, we finished the kitchen. It was beautiful, and without the amazing skills my father possesses we would not have had such a great area to come together as a family. Plus, after we had ripped all the walls out the weird smell was gone! That was a huge plus, when you are pregnant and any smell makes you nauseated. So, after a week my parents had come to the rescue and flew back home. We were left with an awesome kitchen, and they had a stack of pictures that would never fit into one album alone.
Gavin and I continued to work on our home as the year went by. By the time we had decided it was time for Gavin to get out of the military and move back home, our house was transformed. Through lots of painting, two new bathrooms, new laundry room, and small fixes we had a great house. We could not bear to get rid of her though, and put it up for rent. It was rented within a few weeks, and we still had a place to call ours if we ever got back to Alaska. We left great neighbors, a cozy home and went home to Iowa where we spent the next three years getting by, working really hard and floundering with a direction.
However, God works in mysterious ways and the lab Gavin built, while in the military, turned into a contracted civilian position, and he was called to interview. It happened so fast, but the opportunity was too good to pass up. It was a bitter sweet move because we left behind our entire family and all our friends. However, one thing that gave us solace was knowing we had a place to call home waiting for us. God does things at just the right time too, because the renters were moving out in July to PCS. So, while we were waiting for them Gavin's colleague needed someone to house sit and take care of her dog while she was gone to a conference for the military. So, thanks, to the Lord's forward thinking, and the Major's kindness we have had a place to stay until our home was vacated.
As of Sunday, July 10 it became "ours" again. Although, we have some things to fix from the renters, and some cleaning to take on, we are so happy that we made the decision not to sell. After some new paint, new carpet, landscaping, and we replace some broken windows she will be even more inviting than before.
So, here is the open invitation...if any of you ever get to Alaska we will have a great guest bedroom available :) Plus, you will have some tour guides willing to drag you around wherever you would like to go. In fact, I will be posting some more information on not only the transformation of our home, but also the great sites worth seeing. So stay posted. Praise God daily, love him always, and share Him with everyone.
Peace and Prayers,
Allie Gardner
No comments:
Post a Comment