Goals and Motivation

What motivates you? Family? Wealth? Prominence in your community?

How long do you give yourself time to meet your goals? How do you select them?

How do you prioritize them?

I reached a goal this weekend – I moved into my house I have been renovating. It’s been a long (like 13 years) process. The progress has come in waves – I work hard at it for a few months. Then I take a break. Some breaks were intentional – like a vacation. Some were unexpected – like coming down with a bout of pneumonia, or taking care of a loved one who is sick.

My house is far from finished. But it is habitable. That is what matters. I’m regarding this weekend like a camping trip. I sleep here, but my shower isn’t done in the house, so I shower in the carriage house apartment. I brush my teeth and make my coffee in the main house, but I have no food here, so I have breakfast in the carriage house.

Slowly, things are coming together.

How did I end up here?

I’ve always dreamed of buying an old fixer-upper and renovating it. My dad built and renovated homes after he retired from the Air Force, so I have always been around residential construction.

I met somebody who had a similar upbringing. We both loved old homes and renovation. We started dating. We remodeled several homes together. We got married. I bought this house for us as our project and our home.

We gutted the house while living in the carriage house. It was fun and exciting.

Then, as the project wore on, and finances got tight (home renovation is expensive), I noticed that my partner was not so interested in the project.

Long story shortened – we divorced after 6 years of marriage. He moved out, and I kept the house.

I loved this house still, but I now had the task of putting it back together on my own. It had no functioning bathrooms. It had no drywall. It had no ceilings. My dogs loved running from the front of the house to the back of the house through all the studs.

I worked on it slowly. I made a lot of mistakes. Finally, I hired a contractor who understood that I was finishing it on my own schedule – as I made extra money, I would finish a project in the house. Plumbing was completed one winter. Electric was completed the following spring. Insulation was installed over the summer and fall – I even did some of this work myself. Drywall followed. I primed and painted the entire downstairs – with the help of friends. You can find updates on different projects in earlier blog posts.

This summer I saved enough money to have a bathroom finished. Today, the sink, the light fixture and medicine cabinet will be installed.

I’ve spent the last two nights here, and I can say I’ve slept better those two nights than I have in a very long time. My dogs seem to like it.

So, what is my next goal?

My house will be visited by a local walking tour group on October 24 – and I want my kitchen to be completed. I will need to paint all of my cabinets as I purchased unfinished cabinets to save money. I also want to get the downstairs in order.

This winter I will start working on the owner’s suite – the shower needs tiled and the entire bathroom needs baseboards and window trim. Then I will prime and paint the owner’s bedroom, replace the skylight (it blew off during a storm this summer and now leaks), and install baseboard and window trim. Then install hardwood flooring.

In the spring I will assess the next phase of goals.

Tell me about your goals and describe what motivates you.

A Series of Firsts

Today was a day of firsts.

Let me back up a bit.

I am in the process of moving into my main house. Yes, THAT house.

The one I’ve been working on for the past 13 years.

I have a tenant who will move into the carriage house apartment I’ve been living in (all this time) NEXT week.

I was gradually moving my furnishings in the main house then a few unfortunate things happened.

My brother got seriously ill and was hospitalized for a week.

My contractor had a death in the family.

So, my moving stopped. Then it started again when I looked at my calendar and realized I had to be OUT of this apartment in a week.

Today, most of my belongings are in the main house. I have friends who will help me move the rest of my furniture in the next few days.

To celebrate, I ordered a pizza and opened a bottle of wine. This is the first pizza I’ve ever had delivered to my house. Thirteen years ago, this neighborhood was marginal, and all the pizza places refused to deliver to this area. Times have changed.

I purchased and installed a doorbell on the main house. The pizza delivery guy actually used the doorbell! I don’t think a doorbell had been installed on this house since the 1980. Another first!

As I sit here, working on my computer, I am astounded by all the natural light flooding into this office. My dogs are mesmerized by all the foot traffic on my street. Remember, I’ve spent 13 years in the second floor of my carriage house – small windows and looking over an alley and parking lot. Big change!

I can hear music from a party in a park just north of my house.

One upstairs bathroom will be done tomorrow. My kitchen cabinets will be installed on Monday.

I am excited but scared at the same time.

I am not sure my next-door neighbors appreciate my dogs’ barking. I can tell that the pedestrians walking up and down the street are NOT used to hearing barking from this house.

Like I said, big changes are in store for us all.

What big changes have you encountered lately?

Give Thanks and Praise

I’ve had a wonderful weekend so far – lunch and dinner Friday night with one of my closest friends. Made some plans for my house renovation Saturday. Afternoon spent with friends, a haircut and new hair style. Snow is about melted, the sun peeked through the clouds and the temps were in the 40s.

I spent a quiet Saturday with my pets, did some research and house organizing.

Sunday morning arrived and I turned on Pandora and went about my business of getting ready for my day.

While styling my hair, the song Thanks and Praise by G Love and Special Sauce came on. Do you know that song?

“This is just the beginning
So I keep my mind open
Eyes shining bright
I’m an old dog learning new tricks every night
And every time you get cut
You know you might get scared
But don’t sweat it kid
Just remember who you are
When I give thanks and praise…”

G Love is my favorite entertainer, and his songs speak to me.

Think about these lyrics. We can all give some Thanks and Praise.

Then on my way to church, Queen’s song You’re My Best Friend came on. I sang it out loud. At the top of my lungs, actually. Freddie Mercury sang his heartfelt thanks to his Best Friend. How many of us feel like doing that? Where would we be without those special people in our lives?

Let’s reach out to them and tell them: “Thanks for being you and all that you do.”

I went to church and the service was all about giving thanks. It also was about how everybody is carrying some sort of burden. We are urged to treat one another with kindness, because you just never know what the person next to you is going through.

Give thanks for what you you have been through, because your troubles, pain and experiences make you a stronger person. Your experiences mold you and can give you the opportunity to help others going through something similar.

I then went to a listing I have, and held an Open House there. I had several guests and they all loved the house. Last week I held the same house open and met a first time homebuyer. And this afternoon, I am showing her 4 houses.

Thanks and Praise.

So I thank you, for reading my blog. Some of you know me well, some readers I’ve never met.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart. It is by your encouragement, trust and friendship that I write this blog, sell homes, renovate my house and inspire others to follow their dreams.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your loved ones.

 

Christina Miller – Your Renovation Realtor
Coldwell Banker King Thompson