Before and After

We've had several requests from family and friends to see what our house looks like on the inside. I had the foresight to take some photos when we first got here (before our stuff arrived), but I was waiting to take the "after" pictures once they could be a little more final. But then I realized that we have so many projects that we want to do that it could take forever to be "finished"! So here are the "for now / after" photos, which will still change more as we continue to settle in. :)

Oh, and here's a reminder of what the outside of the house looks like:

from the "front" driveway, looking northwest 

from the "back" driveway, looking southeast

Okay, now for the big reveal of the inside!

From the front door (on the deck), looking into the main living space (before)

And for now/after.  (We are removing the wall that goes down to the basement - on the left - to help circulate the heat/cold better throughout the year. Also, I had just taken a bunch of clothes off the line outside - otherwise we don't normally keep full baskets of laundry on our couch! And please ignore the pile of art behind the table. We have a lot fewer walls now, so we're still figuring out where to hang things.)

The reverse view of the main living space, looking back at the front door (before)

And for now / after. (In addition to the open wall to the basement - which will eventually just be a post and railing, I also LOVE our new dining room light fixture!!)

And a final view of the main living space. The front door is off to the right (before)

same view, for now / after:

Kitchen and hallway to the bathroom (kind of straight ahead), pantry (to the right behind the kitchen), and Rose's room (to the left) -  (before)

for now / after. (Please ignore the fridge being pulled out, since we're in the middle of fixing it - long story. Also, eventually I want to replace those track lights above the stove, and also make it into a live-edge bar between the kitchen and dining room. Eventually.)

Bathroom/laundry room (before)
And I didn't take "for now / after" shots because it's still basically the same, other than more stuff on the shelves. (To do: paint, put in shelves and a drying rack around the laundry side of the room, and fix the fact that NOTHING in this room is centered  - not the mirror above the sink, not the light fixture above the mirror, and certainly not the shelf between the washer and dryer!!)

Looking up to the loft from the living room (before)

for now / after (notice the awesome new ceiling fan? And eventually the railings on the stairs will be updated and will match the future railings up on the loft and also the future railings down to the basement.)

The loft (before). This is standing right at the top of the stairs and looking out toward the Juliet balcony, which faces south.

for now / after. (we'll eventually remove the studs on the right and make the whole right side open. I think the left side will stay closed because that will eventually be my closet in back, but I plan to paint it white since I don't like wood paneling at all.)

the "summer bedroom" - aka my room  (before)

and for now / after (Mike's first project, once he gets electricity out in the Quonset, is to build me a nice bed frame. I CAN'T WAIT.)

and my closet (before)

for now / after. (clearly it's on the docket to eventually build some more shelves and to put up a clothes rail. One of these days...)

Before:   this quarter of the loft will eventually be storage for wrapping paper, suitcases, office supplies, etc.

For now / after:  it's just a mess of boxes that need some shelving in order to be put away!

Before:  this quarter of the loft will eventually be my quilting area.

For now / after:  Mike is eventually going to build us a new dining room table, and then the current table can become my sewing table. And we'll eventually build some shoe storage in the basement, so those will get moved downstairs eventually.

Okay, back down to the main floor again...


The hallway pantry (before)

and for now / after. (I love the pot rack that we hung up instead of that huge  cupboard on the top right. The previous owners must have been much shorter than us, because that cupboard corner was right at the level of my forehead. OUCH.)

The back pantry (before)

and for now / after. (eventually the winter gear will all be in the entryway down in the basement and this will just be pantry/storage. And I will paint the ugly paneling white at some point.)

Rose's room (before)

she loves her TWO closets!

Rose's room (for now / after). This is also our guest bedroom, for anyone who comes to visit! :)   (we'll also get frames for those beds eventually too!)

And now down to the basement...


Basement entry (before)

for now / after (eventually this will have a bench, storage for winter gear, etc. But we are able to watch TV now! Priorities!)

Basement bathroom (before)
I also didn't take any "after" pictures of this room since basically nothing has changed. We took down the valence (just like in every. single. other. room.) but that's about it.

Basement TV area (before)

and for now / after. (Mike did offer to clean up for my pictures, but I told him that we could go for candid, "real-life living" in these shots.  But we will clean up if you come visit us, I promise! And we will also even out those pictures because they drive my OCPD crazy!!)

The summer bedroom - aka Mike's room (before)

and for now / after. (yes, Mike's bed is backwards. He wanted a nice breeze from the window, so the long-term plan is to cut down the headboard a bit. But the short-term solution was just to turn the bed around backwards. It would drive me crazy, but he says he doesn't mind!)

And that's the whole house!

Here's a bonus picture of the view while sitting at the kitchen table :)

We have a guest bedroom now, so let us know if you ever want to visit!!

we finally have internet!

We made it to Montana, successfully bought our new house, our stuff got delivered (a week late and almost not at all, but that's another post for another day), Rose started kindergarten, and Mike and I both started work (as a homesteader and a psychologist, respectively).  Whew! It's been a whirlwind. Obviously many more blog posts are in order, and eventually I'll get them posted here and/or at https://midlifemovetomontana.blogspot.com. But in the meantime, here are some pictures!

Good bye to our old house in Minnesota!

We stopped to visit Mike's grandparents in North Dakota. I'm so glad we did, because his grandfather passed away just a couple days after we left. We weren't able to make it to the funeral, but I'll always cherish those last memories of Rose with Grandpa Borho.

Rose on a combine (not a tractor)

Then we finally made it to Great Falls! We spent a couple nights at a hotel before we were able to close on our new house. Doug and I had some great morning walks by the Missouri River.

After we closed on our house, we made a massive trip to Costco to restock!

And here's our house! This is the view from the "back driveway" (which is technically not on our property, but historically the neighbors had let the previous owners use it since it's so much nicer than our real driveway).

Here's the start of the real ("front") driveway. Before we had internet service at home, we would walk down this driveway a couple times a day to get reception on "cell phone rock."

Cell phone rock

It has been INCREDIBLY smoky here from all the fires to the west and south of us. We are all praying for some rain (no lightning) soon.  Despite the smoke, we have still had some beautiful sunrises and sunsets!

We celebrated our 14th anniversary in our new house!

On our of our trips to Helena (about 45 min to the south - we are equidistant from Helena to the south and Great Falls to the north) we went out to dinner and happened to meet Miss Montana. A real princess! Rose was obviously thrilled.

As already mentioned, our stuff arrived a week later than expected. And they actually had to send it up on two trucks! (It's a little shocking and embarrassing how much stuff we own.)  Here are the trucks in the front driveway and the back driveway. 

As we unpacked, Rose enjoyed playing around. Here she is dressing up in some old curtains. (I'll do some more "before" and "after" pictures of the interior once we're a little more unpacked/organized.)

I bought myself a label maker, and it was the best gift I've ever given myself! I had so much fun once we finally got unpacked enough that we could start organizing things!!

And the most exciting news of all is that Rose started kindergarten!!!! In just three days of classes she already seems older and wiser. She is thriving so far!

We went in person to register her the week before classes started.

Waiting for the bus on Day One!

Mike and I were both so excited for her to start school, but we both started bawling after the bus pulled away. What a monumental milestone!!

Well, that's a quick overview of what we've been up to recently. Thanks to all who have sent emails, cards and/or texts - now that we finally have internet, hopefully we can stay more connected!

today it hit me

After I left work today, I felt near tears as I was driving home. I couldn't identify any sort of immediate cause - I'm excited about our move, I hadn't had any particularly difficult patient sessions today, Mike and Rose are happy and well, etc.  So I simply turned my radio off and allowed my thoughts to wander. As I felt the waves of sadness wash over me, I realize that I'm mourning. Deeply mourning.

I'm mourning the loss of civility in our country. Trump's election hit me particularly hard, and I've been struggling with how someone could possibly think, say and do such hateful things. From mocking the disabled, to bragging about assaulting women, to vilifying all followers of a particular religion, and on and on and on. Politics has never been pretty, and there has always been a vast divide between the beliefs of those on the right and on the left. I can disagree vehemently with someone like John McCain, but I can also have utmost respect for his convictions and his lifetime of public service in pursuit of what he believes will bring betterment to the lives of most Americans. You see, our country used to have a foundation of respect for each other and civility in public discourse. We used to be able to disagree on the particulars, but agree that we have a common goal of improving America. With Trump in office, however, we have become a nation of shameless bullies, where hateful intolerance is de rigueur. I find Trump to be completely vacuous, and I fear for our country as it is being guided by someone seemingly bereft of any sort of guiding principles. As a nation we seem to be losing our moral compass and have abandoned the bedrock of civility that has previously bound our disparate ideals.

I'm mourning the police violence in our country. How many unarmed Black men have been shot and killed for doing nothing more threatening than peacefully walking down the street?? Black Lives Matter!! And now there is even more brutality from the Minneapolis police department: an officer shot two dogs in a fenced backyard (which cameras show were clearly not acting in any sort of threatening manner), and a woman was shot and killed after calling 911 to report a possible assault in her alley. All of these are devastating. Any loss of innocent life is a tragedy. How much more will it take before there is meaningful change? I still believe that nearly all police officers are good, hard-working, and caring individuals. But the militarization of our police force is having devastating consequences when paired with our nation's implicit biases regarding race. I don't know how to talk to my 5-year-old daughter about these things - how do I tell her about these things, but also tell her to call police if she is ever in danger, to trust the police, that police will protect her?  We need to undo the culture of "shoot first, ask questions later." We need to increase empathy, not only in the police department but also across our culture. We need to promote de-escalation and communication, rather than brinkmanship followed by the inevitable use of such deadly force.

And I'm mourning the loss of my voice. I've always been someone with strong opinions, and someone who is willing to stand up for the little guy. My convictions run deep, and I pride myself on being able to speak up appropriately when I see injustice in the world. Or at least that's how I used to be. I had no idea that working at the VA would cause me to feel so silenced. Part of this is due to the Hatch Act, which is the law that prohibits certain federal employees from engaging in certain political activity. Part is this is also due to how that Hatch Act has been interpreted by leadership at my particular VA. And part of this is due to horrendous bullying I experienced from a former coworker. The result is that I feel unable to take a public stance in anything that might be remotely "political," and I feel silenced. Not that I would foist my politic beliefs on a patient in a therapy session, but I would love to be able to speak freely with friends (outside of work hours) about my convictions, without fear that I'm breaking the law or being interpersonally commandeering (as the aforementioned coworker bully accused me of).   If it weren't for this perfect storm, I could see myself creating something like Indivisible or Citizen Therapists.  But at this point I would settle for not being AFRAID to JUST SHOW UP for the Women's March or the March for Science! And thus I mourn the loss of my belief that it is OKAY for me to have an opinion, that it is OKAY for me to share that opinion in public, and that I can TRUST myself to share those opinions when, how, and with whom it is appropriate.

By the time I got home I was pretty much cried out. I hadn't realized that I had been feeling so raw, or that these things had been affecting me so deeply. I pray that I will get my voice back (tonight's blog post is a start), that I can help promote change by modeling civil discourse in my own writing, and that I can use my newly reclaimed voice to stand up for the things I can about (like ending racism and senseless violence).

Minnesota Bucket List

About a month or two ago, I started keeping a record of all the last-minute things I wanted to make sure to do before we move to Montana. Things that we never got around to (but always meant to do), or things that we wanted to do one last time:


To do:
MN Zoo
Children's museum
Stillwater
Parktacular parade
SLP pool
Splash pad
Canterbury park
Glensheen
Sculpture Garden
another Twins game


To eat:
Parkway Pizza
Giordanos
Pig ate my pizza
one last Jucy Lucy
Town Hall Station
Revival
Taste of India
Shake shack


(I'm sure we'll get the opportunity to eat out a lot after our house is packed up and the movers have picked up all our stuff!)




Anything else we're missing?

photo explosion

Now that our house is under contract (hallelujah!!!!), we have a little more time to relax. Here's my long overdo blog post on the highlights of the last month or so.




We now have a dog! Introducing Doug the dog, aka the Magnificent Douglass Fir.

He and cat Bart and getting along pretty well so far.

Father's Day was filled with relaxing, eating delicious food, and playing with our pets.

Rose and I made a trip down to Northfield, which was so much fun for both of us. Part of me hopes she goes to Carleton (the friends! the education! the memories), but another part of me hopes she doesn't (the money!).

We've lived in our town for 14 years, but only now got to the local summer parade. It was so much fun!

We also went to see The Dweebs in concert a couple weekends ago. Totally awesome!!!

The cat likes to taunt the dog, then attack:

When Mike was in Montana for the inspection of our new house, the pets and I lounged about a lot. So relaxing!

We had a fluke hail storm a couple weekends ago.

How long until Doug outgrows this bed??

Rose graduated from preschool!!!!

My favorite photo of Doug and Bart:

My other favorite photo of the two of them:

5yo "well child" appt

Better late than never! We have been so busy with prepping our house for the market that I haven't had much time to breathe, much less blog. But Rose's last medical appointment went well, and she also had a fabulous birthday party!

Two months
weight:  12# 6.4 oz (85th %ile)
height:   23.5"  (86th %ile)
head:    15.5" (66th %ile)

Four months
weight:  15# 10oz (86th %ile)
height:   26"  (95th %ile)
head:    16.75"  (85th %ile)

Six months
weight:  17# 7oz (78th %ile)
height:   27.25"  (93rd %ile)
head:    17"   (72nd %ile)

Nine months
weight:  19# 9.6oz (65th %ile)
height:   28.75"  (87th %ile)
head:    17.5"   (66th %ile)

Twelve months
weight:  20# 9.6oz (61th %ile)
height:   30.5"  (89th %ile)
head:    17.75"   (55th %ile)

Fifteen months
weight:  23# (70th %ile)
height:   32.25"  (91st %ile)
head:    18.25"   (67th %ile)

Eighteen months
weight:  24# 9.6oz (72nd %ile)
height:   2'10" (98th %ile!)
head:    18.5" (68th %ile)

Twenty four months 
weight:  27# 12.8oz (66th %ile)
height:   2'0.25"  (98th %ile)
head:    19"  (72nd %ile)

Thirty months
weight:  31# 6.4oz (80th %ile)
height:   3'3.25" (99th %ile!)
head:     19.5" (83rd %ile)

Three years
weight: 32# 12oz (71%ile)
height: 3'3.75" (96%ile)
BP: 86/50 

Four years
weight: 38# 3oz (74%ile)
height: 3'7.75" (99%ile)
BP: 88/52 

Five years
weight: 43# 12oz (74%ile)
height: 3'10.5" (98%ile)
BP: 94/50