First, a quick update about Delaney and Annie: They had their first day of in-person school yesterday. I dropped them off because they still haven't been assigned to the bus. They both had a little case of jitters when they got out, but when I came back to get them, they were both in a good mood and telling me about their day. Delaney accused Annie of power-walking past her without waving at one point. "Next time you owe me a wave!" Annie claimed not to have seen her. I smiled, thinking Annie sounds like me, with power-walking and tunnel vision in hallways. They'll be going Thursdays and Fridays from here on out.
Our last master bedroom had walls that were what I thought was a lovely shade of green that I told Tim I wouldn't mind having in our own house; but he said he was "sick of green." 🤢 He really wanted something new, and had some ideas brewing, so I was happy to let him take the reins, decision-fatigued as I was from painting the rest of the house. I told him I wouldn't even mind if he just picked the same color as the living spaces -- a safe choice.
Fortunately, Tim doesn't see these decisions the same way I do. It ended up being the best surprise. He took my wish for green and mixed it with his idea for something fresh and different, and here's what he got: Benjamin Moore November Rain. I can't believe how much I love it. It inspires me to make the bed every morning, to put all my clothes away, to open all the blinds and let the sun shine in, to twirl around the floor...haha, ok, you get the point. Nothing in this room is new, besides a framed full-length mirror and a few plants, but everything looks new to me with this color.
It's more green or less, depending on the time of day and how much sun is coming in. Late afternoon is when I like it best, and there are a lot of windows letting the setting sun in.
Sometimes I think I must be the only person who gets this excited over a paint color. Then I remember that I'm 41 and we just bought our first house.* Other people our age have had their "starter house," then their, what would you call it, intermediate house? and have probably been in their forever house, maybe even their dream house for a while now. Meanwhile we went from one military base house or rental to another, because we saw it as much more advantageous for our lifestyle than buying. We loved the ease and convenience of living on base, and the houses were more than adequate. The heating and air-conditioning worked, the water ran, the appliances were in good working order; and if any of the above were not true, there was a number to call and people who would fix it. It would have been unfair to expect it to be pretty on top of everything else. Many military wives have the enviable skill of being able to make their base house look like a Pottery Barn catalog (with hand-me-downs and thrift store finds, no less), but that was not me, try as I might. I always thought maybe some new curtains were what we needed, or new furniture, this or that, always something. Tim would tell me just wait, and one day we'll have a house of our own and we can make it everything we want. Did we really want to paint over the beige, only to have to paint back over it before we move? I could see the wisdom of not putting the money and energy into a place that wasn't ours, and I tried to decorate in small ways, but I would still get frustrated waiting for one day.
Well, the day is here! We have a house of our own that we love, and if there's something about it we don't love, we can change it. I still look around and think these floors are so nice, or I love that crown molding. And the perfect paint color for our bedroom can still make me giddy.
*I don't count the condo he bought and sold before we got married. It did pay for my engagement ring, though.😁
No comments:
Post a Comment