Where We Live

I was inspired to do this layout last week after hosting a play date at our house for some of Caleb's friends. Caleb's friends love all of his riding toys and it just kind of struck me that I love where we live and love that Caleb can have the kind of childhood that I had when I was growing up. The house I grew up in had a big yard and we had an empty lot next to us that we would ride our 4 wheeler on. Our neighbors had a dirt bike, so that lot got lots of use. Now I have a big yard and I am lucky to have a 75 acre "lot" next to our house. I'm glad my boy has lots of room to play. Here is the layout:



All papers and elements by Echo Park- Life is Good collection with the exception of the blue tag which is from Crystal Wilkerson's Sweet Vintage Charm Collection. I used Pioneer Woman's seventies action on all of the photos to give them that vintage feel.

The journaling reads:
Yesterday we had a play date at our house and it really made me think about how much I love where we live. We started searching for a new house when I was pregnant with Caleb. We wanted a big yard, a nice neighborhood, and a house that was kid friendly. When John and I first saw this house, I had a strong feeling that this was the one. That was despite the fact that in the kitchen the linoleum floors were an off white with a blue and green pattern, the counters had blue countertops, and the cabinets were a honeyed oak color and were too short for the high ceilings. We did get the house and immediately started remodeling it. I was eight months pregnant when we moved in and before we had Caleb we painted almost every room in the house, enclosed the formals, added on a porch, and gutted and remodeled the kitchen. My goal was to have everything finished by the time I had Caleb. We missed it by about two weeks. Our next door neighbor, Felix, laid the tile floor and backsplash while I was in the hospital and the countertops were finished a week or so later. But, what I love most about living here is the space that we have for Caleb to play. We have a little over half an acre, so there is plenty of room for him to play. We have a trampoline, a fort, two sandboxes, and more riding toys than one child should have. We live on a street that has a total of four houses and dead ends into a 75 acre field. We have virtually no traffic so Caleb can ride down the driveway and into the street without much concern. We ride our bikes through the neighborhood, and know a lot of our neighbors. Caleb rides his four wheeler, go cart, and now his motorcycle in our yard and in the field next to us. When I was talking to our friends yesterday I realized how grateful I am that we have a home that allows us to indulge in all of these outdoor activities whenever we want. I really love where we live.