Welcome to our home...

After living in Maine for close to a year, Chris and I have finally started to turn our house into a home. We are getting more and more settled as the weeks go by and thought it was time to share some photos with those of you who have not had the opportunity to visit ever, since the wedding or in the last week. That is how quickly things have been changing!

Welcome to our home! Please take off your coat and stay a while. Our entry way has recently been enhanced by some nicer shoe racks, a basket for our hats and gloves, and some coat hooks for when guests (read you!) visit.











Our entry way quickly turns into the living room. For those of you who have not been here in a while, please take note of the new storage boxes for vinyl. They have tidied things up a bit and can fit 100 records in each box. Not bad! We got new curtains from one of our favorite thrift stores - not only do they match, but they were inexpensive and insulated! We've also added a curtain to the entertainment area.

At the end of the couch, we also have a newly purchased end table. Found in the corner of a trailer in town we were able to spruce this guy up with some brown paint and a good cleaning. Now we have someplace to store the million magazines that we get each month! Now you'll know where to look when you want to read the most recent edition of National Geographic Adventure or Runner's World.



The next stop is the dining room. The shelving unit on the back wall is perhaps our newest addition. It is stocked with all of the fun things that we haven't been able to put out in our house such as some of our more unique wedding gifts like the service set from Sarah, the depression glass from Aunt Sharon and Uncle Bob and the Japanese tea set from Dave and Eri. We also added some of our own purchases such as the Dakin Dream Pets that we have been looking at for the past couple of months.


















Leaving the dining room, or rather, turning away from the dining room, you enter the kitchen. This summer we were able to purchase this beautiful wine fridge with gift cards that we were given to Target as wedding gifts. We recently added shelving to our "pantry" so that we can be a little more organized. We also made the beautiful curtains that you see. They are insulated and are sure to keep us warm this winter!

As you turn away from the kitchen, you have a lovely view of our new desk. It was salvaged from the Teen Center's basement and given a good sanding, a fresh coat of paint, and some new pulls. We love it and it fits just perfectly in the little niche that had been created for computer work. You can also see one of the first pieces of art that we picked out together, the sailboat print above the desk.

Around the corner from the desk is our non-working fireplace/ storage space for our bags. This is also where we store a plethora of books and display some more art work. Namely National Toboggan Championship posters (the races are held locally) and some sweet cards that Chris picked out at an art co-op in New Orleans.





















As long as I am talking about art at this time, I will take a brief pause from the tour to point out one of our newest pieces that Chris created. It is a collage that he pieced together of NYC and is hanging above the windows in our kitchen/dining room. It's really quite cool and took a lot of work on his part between sizing the photos and then piecing them back together again.

Keep an eye out as we enter the bedroom as there is another one of Chris' creations hanging on the wall there. This time a beautiful magnolia in black and white. This photo was taken while he was doing disaster relief in Florida. It's amazing the beauty that can exist in the midst of destruction.

So, here we are in the bedroom. And there's that collage that I was talking about. Also, take note of that purple dresser in the corner. This is another piece of furniture that we salvaged. This time from a place down the road that advertises "Six Buildings of Used Furniture!" (This is also where we found that end table...) It is definitely used furniture. Chris spent quite a bit of time last winter putting the drawers back together. After a lot of sanding and painting and adding new pulls, we finally created a working piece of storage.



I guess the only other place we are missing is the bathroom. I promise we have one. It's tiny with a shower, sink and toilet. There isn't anything really exciting in there, except perhaps more artwork. These prints were purchased right here in Maine, before we moved here. On one wall we have a sketch of an oceanside barn. On the other, an old man holding a crow. They are beautiful black and whites and match the gray wall perfectly...don't you think?



Last but not least, we have a wonderful place for you to stay when you come visit! Just down the hall from the main portion of our house is this delightful bedroom! It comes complete with a collection of games that we will gladly play with you and some world maps for you to plan your next adventure!

















Hope you enjoyed the tour. It's amazing how such a small place can take so long to explore! Remember, you're always welcome in Maine...we'd love to take you on our next adventure (if you wait until spring, the adventures will be much more exciting than they are now)!

The unending quest...

Chris and I have been married for nearly 4 months now, so I would love to share some of the photos from our special day. They are truly amazing, however, we still do not have them.

(Photography by Karen Lewis)

Our quest to capture all of the fun that was had on August 11 has turned into one large lion hunt that is unsuccessful. You can see the photos online, we just don't have them in our hands. Not that I would want a lion in my hands (although I have held a baby tiger before), but you get the idea. We've paid for the experience, we just need some follow through.

About a month ago we finally pushed enough and our photos appeared online. This was an exciting step, almost like getting our itinerary for what was to come. We could see that there was something to be had. We just needed the ticket to get there. We were told that we would have something in our hands in just three weeks! How exciting!

Fast forward one month. We're psyched about our proof book and CD magically showing up in the mail. As a part of our package deal we have secured digital rights to the photographs from that day in August. The lion is lurking in the woods behind our house. It is just within reach, you can almost see the glowing cat eyes as the sun sets at 3:30. We can almost reach out and grab hold of what we have been waiting for. However, we also have the knowledge in the back of our minds that we are a week past when our special delivery should have landed on our doorstep.

I call the photographer. She says, "I'm so glad you called. Well...a funny thing happened. OK, so maybe it's not funny. So, what happened is, we have your proof book. However, the names on it are Jessica and Steven."

Funny, real funny. I reply, "So when will we have our photos? We were told we'd have them 3 weeks after they went online. It's been a month now. Our wedding was in August."

Photographer: "We've ordered a new proof book. It should be there within a week. I'll call the owner of the company to double check."

Me: "We were really hoping to have these by the holidays. We wanted to be able to show them to people. We want the pictures in our hands. We want the CD. It's been nearly four months of waiting now."

Photographer: "I'll call you back later today."

An hour later I get a phone call back. I am told, "It's probably going to be a week. A week and a half at most. I'm really sorry about this. Thank you so much for being so patient."

Me: "So what does this do to our coffee table book? Online it says four to six weeks for proofs. No more than three months for your coffee table book."

Photographer: "I'll call the owner back and check up on that."

An hour later again I get a phone call. I am unable to answer though as I am getting my frustration out by kicking and punching and free grappling downstairs in the martial arts studio at where my office is located. I come back from class with the following message from the owner of the photography company.

"I'm so sorry that things are taking so long. We started out having problems because the photographer uses a Mac and I use a PC. We had trouble getting the photos switched over. Then I made a mistake and ordered your book with the wrong names on it. I am so sorry. I know that this has taken a really long time and I am going to take the time frame off of my website. In regards to your coffee table book, I am working in chronological order. I am currently on June's events. What I can do is throw in a parent album at no charge. This is a smaller version of your coffee table book. I know it's not perfect, but that's what I can offer. Again, thanks for your patience."

My question is, how does switching from a Mac to a PC make that much of a difference? I work on a Mac and my boss on a PC and one of our other coordinators at work uses another processing system altogether. We do not have have problems swapping .jpgs at work. Chris and I also operate on a Mac and PC at home, no problems there! I guess we just don't do it right!

This is becoming quite the hunt. We know that the photos exist. We have seen a mere glimpse of them. They just keep finding their way out of our reach. We'll keep hunting though. They aren't going to lead us astray for much longer. We'll have them, hopefully by Christmas. Maybe we'll even have our coffee table book before our anniversary (at which time another wedding season will be in place and so more delays will ensue...). I'll be sure to keep you updated.

In the meantime, you can see photos online. I will give credit where it is due, Karen Lewis of Kim Chapman Photography did an amazing job. She really captured the day, which is why we want the photos in our hands so badly!

For a quick preview, I do have this collage to post. After talking with Ashley yesterday about the whole situation, she did what any loving sister would do. She went online and stole a couple of photos and created this for Chris and I.

Please enjoy this glimpse into our day until I can post more!