Bargain Shopping

Ever since we decided to embark on this new adventure, we have planned to check out the discount, surplus building supply used junk type stores to find bargains. Since we are not too set on colors or styles, we figured we might snag some pretty good deals.
Saturday was a pretty open day, and I needed to visit my mom in Fort Worth, so we made a list of places to visit and headed out. After seeing my mother, we headed east to check out one of the Habitat for Humanity Restores. These stores usually have a variety of new and used supplies; laminate flooring, bath fixtures, lighting, cabinets. We took note of their prices, which were good, for future use.

We next headed to a store in North Fort Worth, Builders Surplus on Belknap, and were amazed at the huge inventory, and the excellent prices.

All kinds of tile spread out in front of and on the side of the building, plain and fancy, large and small, all at good prices.








Two aisles of laminate flooring, starting at .59 per foot.  Some of it was really heavy, good quality, for less than $2.00.



A long aisle of doors, another of windows. A huge section of cabinets, and every kind of bathroom fixture available.






Les has said that he wanted to use a vessel sink in one of the bathrooms, but they are expensive. We found a ton of them here, many for $49. There were some as low as $19.99, which had small damage.  We liked them so much, we bought two of them, one for each bathroom, expecting to find some cool furniture to set them on later.

 This sink has a beautiful shimmer to it. There are a few small scratches on the edge, which Les can easily sand off.

We loved the shape of this one, and the cool pale color. It has flecks of paint from overspray which will be easy to remove.

We were thrilled with our finds, and after checking out a few other bargains we might go back for another day, we paid for our sinks and went outside.






Once outside, we discovered the huge area of granite on the side of the building. Les checked out the remnant section and spotted a granite vanity, already finished on the edges, with a hole for a sink and faucets cut. When we asked about it, we found it had a tiny crack right down the middle. The granite guy said he could fix it for $100, so the salesman went to check the price......are you ready?...He said, the price for the piece of granite, with a sink included is $132.00. We snapped it up. Les can fix the crack with epoxy. (and now we have three sinks for two baths!) And here it is.

And, up close and personal.

One last bargain (free), we stopped by one of my sisters, and she begged me to take a little table that my three sisters have passed around. It may be perfect for one of the vessel sinks. 

On Sunday afternoon, Les wanted to go to the local flea market to look for old interesting pieces of furniture that might make good bathroom cabinets. This is what I found. 

Yep, boots. Brown Justin boots for $20. I have black cowboy boots I bought at the flea market a few years ago, which I really enjoy. Just that morning, I was thinking how nice it would be to have brown ones to wear with a brown skirt. When I saw these, I just thought God put them right there just for me!

The "New House"

After we made a deal with Emily and Doug to buy our house, we set out to find a place for us to buy.  Since we live in a small town, there were not a lot to choose from. Most of the houses in the area were surprisingly expensive, with few in the lower range under $100,000 that we were looking in. We actually looked at 4 houses, all needed a lot of work, and were priced low enough to allow for possibly making money after remodeling. We settled on a farmhouse near our city park.
The house is in very bad shape, but it seems to be structurally sound. There were a few things that made this one better than the others.
The house was built in 1909, and has 9 foot ceilings. The kitchen cabinets are solid wood, in good condition, which we can use after painting.
It was remodeled in the 1950's, with a second bathroom and laundry room added. The second bathroom was a big plus.
A 2 car detached garage was also added in the 1950's, a solid structure with a concrete floor.
The house is on a double lot, with nearly an acre of land, surrounded by other large lots. Sitting on the back porch, I have the feeling of being out in the country, although the house is right in the heart of town.
The house had been on the market 10 months, with no offers. It was an estate, and the heirs really wanted to sell, even though it is occupied by a family member.
We worked on some calculations to decide what we could pay for the house, what we would need to spend to remodel (which in this case means completely gut and replace, except for the kitchen cabinets), and what we could possibly sell it for, all to work out so that we could make a profit.
We made a low offer on the house and were surprised to have it accepted, not even a counter offer. Now, we are in the process of inspections, deciding what we have to do, and when we will need to do it, and waiting on all the paperwork to be done before we close.

The front of our new place. 

This is the view from the front door, looking through the living room, and the dining area.
The door at the back leads into the master bedroom. 

This is the front bedroom....

the kitchen.

I really like the cabinets that go all the way to the ceiling. 

Hall bathroom, above and below. 

The third bedroom, here, and below.

Master bedroom. I want to put a door in the place of the broken window, going out to a large deck (not yet built), which will overlook the large wooded lot. 

Master bath, with a shower on the opposite wall.  

So, there you have it. You can see there is a lot of work to be done. I think I am excited to get started, maybe?

Not to old...our philosophy; from Les

What you’ve been reading and/or hearing about us lately may have you wondering if we’ve lost our marbles, especially if you could see the condition of this first house we’re buying. Just be aware that this is not the latest in a series of whims that has overcome us like some kind of flavor of the month.  

We’ve both read many books and heard plenty of commentary from Christian and secular
perspectives that have helped shape our thoughts about what living abundantly as empty nesters looks like. I realize of course, this topic is a very subjective one. Everyone has or will have their own interpretation of how to direct their living and what to invest their time and abilities into, but quite frankly, we both have had lots of inner speaking from God that goes back a number of years. Plain and simply, our hearts and minds have been energized and persuaded to pursue a lifestyle that calls for our best and affords those opportunities for an occasional adventure, while at the same time defying what the calendar predicts.

About 10 years ago, at the age of 53, I did what nearly every person does in their 50’s. I spent lots time pondering the future while factoring in my own health in the light of my father and mother’s medical histories. I was startled, especially when my doctor told me that you can make a lot of adjustments to improve your health on a day to day basis, but you can’t change your DNA. For me, it was like knowing that a timer would go off eventually. My dad’s timer went off at 61 years, preceded by 20 years of heart trouble. Mother’s went off at 76, preceded by 8 years of Alzheimer’s.

I don’t believe I’m a fatalist because I’ve placed my life and trust in the sovereign hands of Christ my Savior. But, I don’t want to be dismissive about all this either and let the remaining good years of health and vitality allocated to me by God to just slither away unfulfilled and end up saying “I could have had a V-8.” Our conviction is to not wait around until we reach a certain age in a certain year having a certain amount of retirement and savings, and then begin to do fun and extreme things because life is UNCERTAIN.

When our youngest daughter Katy was about to get married and leave home, I began to put the puzzle pieces together from all the input sources and decided that the so-called retirement years are meant to be the available years. That is, available to answer the call of your heart and to re-invest what God has been investing in you up to now. Even your mistakes over the years have taught you valuable lessons that need not be kept in secret, but shared when opportunities knock.

In other words, God began to show me that in the “available years” you are at the top of your game and don’t even think about shutting down and coasting to a slow stop. Absolutely not! It’s time to re-tool, re-think, re-boot, re-invest, re-vive. 

What We Are Doing

My introductory explanation of our adventure was really just a part of the story, there was a lot of thought and consideration before we got to this point, and we have a bigger picture in mind than I have shared. This is something Les wrote a few weeks ago. 

People have been asking what we’re up to these days.

I suppose you could call it an Extreme Makeover – Maxwell Edition.
 Better yet, here are some hints:

*Our PLATEAU of COMFORT’s been years in the making, while ahead are old houses that need some re-shaping.

*We’re leaving a history of SO MUCH THAT’S BEEN DONE; extending the legacy where there’s SO MUCH TO DO.

*We’re trading out of our LARGE HOUSE, into a SMALL HOUSE, because our lives are drawn toward an even BIGGER STORY.

*We’re exchanging our EXCESSIVE SPACE for a far LESSER PLACE, determined to engage a MUCH GREATER GRACE.

*We’re leaving a beautiful place to STRETCH OUT, and headed for an ideal place to REACH OUT.

*We’re obeying the inner witness to SIMPLIFY, and answering our higher calling to GLORIFY.

*We’re lowering our STANDARD of LIVING, with hearts set on raising our STANDARD of GIVING.

Selling the "Old Home Place"??

 When we began to talk about a new adventure which involved selling our home, I had a few obstacles to overcome. We have lived in this house for 27 years. We raised our children in this house. This is the house that our kids come home to, and bring their children to visit grandparents. We have soooo many memories here. I isn't easy to sell and move away. Excuse while I reminisce....

Always best of friends, lounging in our backyard pool

We have celebrated many Thanksgivings with extended family. 

How many Christmas's have we celebrated in this house?? 28???Whoo! 

We have hundreds of pictures of our girls standing in front of this couch in our peach and blue living room. 

The girls made us dinner for our anniversary. 

First date with her future husband! 

We also have hundreds of pictures in front of the fireplace. 

Our family had many special times together in this living room. 

We knew Mike would be a great Dad, look at him with Katy.

Leaving all these memories behind wouldn't be easy. But, while we were working on our plans a friend said something that really helped. He said that he loves going to his parents home because it is a place of peace; even though it isn't where he grew up, it is home to him because that's where his folks are. That really helped me to know that our home would be a special place for our children, even if it wasn't this home, that the memories are important because of the people who share them, not the place they are shared. 

So, with that thought in mind, we prepared to sell this house and look for something small, something cheap, something that would need a lot of work to fix up. 

Oh, and then, one of our daughters said that she and her husband wanted to buy it, so it will still be in the family! YAY!!