I think that over the last two days we have set an all time record - at least for us! On Saturday we decided to do a floor in one of the bedrooms that has actually never been finished. I must say that it really needed it but we had never determined just what we wanted on that particular floor. Well, on Saturday we found ourselves in possession of the required materials and they were PERFECT for that room! We let the girls know our plans and projected a couple of weeks to complete the project which would include a fresh coat of paint as well..... however...
Monday morning we woke up with the desire to do that room, it was 7:00 AM. I woke up the girls and communicated our desires to work in their room that day and that in addition to getting ready for school, we needed them to pack up their belongings as quickly as they could so that we could move out the furniture and begin the project. I was amazed! By 8:30 they had moved most everything out that needed to go so we could move furniture. And off they went to school - of course I did have two children stay home (Naomi and Charity) who continued to work on the clean-out process while I went visiting teaching. When I got home an hour later the room was empty except for one credenza. I took the two girls and headed for Lethbridge, for we had an exciting time planned....
Not only was Melodee and Charity's room getting a fresh look, but Naomi was to get her braces off that same day! It was very exciting, and jut let me add, Naomi has an absolutely beautiful and brilliant smile!!!
Before coming home we picked up a few supplies that would be needed to complete the room. Charity helped pick out paint for the walls and then I picked up a few other more hardware type supplies that would also be needed. Back at home, Chad had raised the portion of the floor that was low and was waiting for it to dry so that the flooring could begin to be placed. He also filled mail holes in the walls and worked to prepare the room for refinishing.
When we got home from the city, Chad and I decided that our weekly Family Home Evening would be a work project - we would all work together to bring that room as close to done as possible as fast as we could... for you see, everything had been moved into the TV room (which was already adequately furnished) and we had not much more than a tiny trail through it to get around. In fact, looking at the picture, it's pretty hard to imagine that a person can even get through all that stuff...
We announced our intentions for the evening to the kids and it was received with a chorus of cheers and smiles! What awesome kids. I made assignments to try to organize our forces and keep everyone involved as much as possible and then we went to work! We had the kids sanding walls, priming, sweeping, vacuuming, washing and more. Two hours later we had the walls painted, half the trim taped and the floor completely ready to begin laying flooring. We held our family scripture study time and sent the kids to bed and then Chad and I (with the eager help of Melodee and Charity for a few minutes) began laying the flooring down. We sent the girls to bed and then proceeded to do a little more than half of the floor before we too had to get some sleep.
One of the jobs we did, was to mount a mirror above the stairs where it can reflect the light. This mirror was an old dresser mirror that serves us better on the wall than on a dresser. Beth and Myles helped their dad with this portion of the project.
Chad and Myles worked on covering and finishing the trap door that is needed to access the sewer clean-outs should we ever need to get at them.
Melodee, Charity and Breanna all took a turn at painting the walls. They loved it and all wished the walls were larger so that they could have done more. Myles helped painting the edges of the wall with a brush.
The following morning we finished the floor, painted the trim and then added a bonus feature - a 3" shelf the length of the north wall for holding pictures. We painted a 2x4 teal and then screwed it to the wall just as Melodee and Myles returned home from working at the school.
By that time we were ready to put everything away back in the room. We brought in the furniture, stacked the bunk beds and mounted shelves and pictures on the walls. The girls worked until bedtime and had everything in order - the room is done!
I am delighted with the finished result, but even more so I am delighted with the excitement of the kids - not just the ones whose room it is. Everyone got into the project and we did it in VERY good time. As I have thought about the amount of joy it brought me as a parent to do this for my girls, bringing everyone together to get the project done, I can't help but think about the multitude of gifts that we receive from our Heavenly Father each and every day. Just like the refinishing of this bedroom was not conditional, the gifts He gives us are so often just like that. He doesn't just help us when He will get something back in return.... the Lord blesses us because he delights to bless us!!! (Doctrine and Covenants 41:1) Both Chad and I recognized the good feelings that this project brought to our hearts. We got caught up in the excitement and fun of it and you know, it's funny how the cost of he project is insignificant - for we got so much more out of it than just a pile of expensive materials. Even in the very act of blessing our girls, the Lord blessed us. I am so grateful for the great mercy and grace that the Lord extends to me each and every moment of my life. What a wonderful feeling it brings into my heart!
So, not only did we set a personal record for refinishing a room (1.5 days), Naomi also got her braces off AND we were blessed to feel, the delight of blessing others that the Lord refers to when he tells us, "Hearken and hear, O ye my people, saith the Lord and your God, ye whom I delight to bless with the greatest of all blessings, ye that hear me; ..." What a wonderful project this has been!!!
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