Back from Much Painting and Fund Raising

So I've been missing for the past few weeks. Well, not really missing, just painting and yard sale hosting.  We're working on a couple big dreams right now:  Getting our family into a different home (with more bedrooms,which my husband is certain I'll fill with children in need of a home in no time!) and raising the funds we need to get to Ukraine for our missions trip and to do some special things with the kids at Sunshine. 

(After!!!)

The real truth is, I fell in love with this crazy yellow sofa at an antique marketplace downtown.  It was love at first sight.  And it looked hideous in my red living room.  Hence the painting.  (Plus - bonus - we love the neutral color pallette for selling!!!!!)  I've added a couple silvery chairs from Home Goods and a wild pair of lamps to de-grannify my hundred year old sofa in my hundred year old sitting room.  Love it!

Our dining room had been navy, which I loved at one time, and of course, no one on HGTV recommends navy for a room when one is trying to sell her home, so we painted the woodwork (to flatter the new windows we put in this fall) and also lightened up the walls.  

 I LOVE my new tone-on-tone dining room!  We have tons of windows, so the softer colors really bounce the light around, and the Brazilian cherry floors really look great with the bright white woodwork (which, by the way, is so beautiful and one of my favorite features in an old home!) and cozy taupe walls.

We still have a couple more rooms to spruce up before the house goes on the market, and since our peonies are about to pop open, and the irises are about to bloom, it would be super if we can finish up this weekend and get listed!

I can't believe I didn't take any photos of the yard sale we had last weekend!  Literally, our family room, garage, entry foyer and part of our dining room were FILLED with boxes of wonderful items donated by friends and family for our fund raiser yard sale!  I can't believe I didn't get one photo....  You should have seen the driveway, COVERED with tables of fabulous clothes and other goodies.  We had friends bake amazing pastries, which sold in a snap for donations to our missions trip.  Friends showed up and stayed for hours, helping me set up and sell.  And the Lord was so good to us - we had thunderstorms forecasted, and He gave us such a bright sunny day that I'm now trying not to peel my sunburn (sorry if that's too much information....).  God gave us the money for our first plane ticket!!!! He's so faithful!  We're praying to have the money for the second ticket within the next few weeks, then we will continue to fund raise for the special things we're desiring to do with the children at Sunshine and with our Sasha.
(If you are a person with great fund raising ideas swirling through your head, PLEASE, by all means, leave a commment!)

I've missed you all, and I'm glad to be back.  Hope you enjoy peeking into our home and seeing and hearing about the good things the Lord's doing in our family.  I'm praying that your family is experiencing good days of crazy, busy, blessed moments and that God's grace is felt by you in every circumstance you are in.