Hard to believe. So much has happened in the past five years. The difference in having children aged 4 and 9, who are now 9 and 14 – it boggles my mind. They were babies when we moved to this city, and now they are big boys, helping with projects and more present in many ways, yet more distant in others. I have not been here much this year, perhaps because of the subconscious awareness of how little time I feel I have left with them? Another five years and my nest will be half empty!
I always debate whether to keep the site going at this time of year….When I started Modfrugal 5 years ago, Instagram didn’t exist and Twitter was only 2 years old. So much about how we communicate and connect with each other has changed, and sometimes I feel like this site is a dinosaur. My main source of sharing is still through Instagram (@modfrugal), but I will keep it since some things just need a little more detail than 140 characters and a single photo can provide…despite the fact that few people seem to have the time to read blogs anymore.
While the renovations are so few and far between now, there’s still work to be done, but the timeline is just more ambiguous. We are still dying to redo our master bath, so much so that in our desperation for a good warm soak, we rigged up a makeshift bathtub on the back deck last Summer! I only now realized I never posted about it. A stock tank from Tractor Supply, and a little plumbing savvy brought us a hot water soaking tub on the edge of the forest.
Now if we can just get something like this going inside! Winter is when you crave a hot soak the most, but going out there in the freezing cold with an uninsulated tub has not drawn me out yet this season.
After 2 trips to the Atlanta Ikea, we finally got the pantry installed – it was the project that seemed to hang over us for the past 5 years, and once we got started, it dragged on for most of the last 9 months as well.
For the most part though, we spent as much of this past year outside that we possibly could, enjoying what we have managed to accomplish so far. Lots of al fresco dinners, family bike rides, movie nights, and lots of deck time. Several camping trips (and how we pack it all in) and local excursions Tims Ford, Cumberland Caverns/Bluegrass Underground, Land Between the Lakes, Fall Creek Falls, Cashiers/Highlands, that Fall Creek Falls Do-Over and Cataloochee, kept us on the road this year, with the exception of my quick jaunt to Palm Springs. We are still committed to checking out at least 1-2 Tennessee State Parks a year, so that trend will not wane.
The rest of our projects were mostly maintenance based like re-staining all the decking and revamping the butterfly chairs.
As for screen time – I finally gave this site a makeover, and started a new site, A-Frame Living. Plus, I am still very involved at Thing One’s school, which will be Thing Two’s school next year and there is a website redesign there in my near future as well. Phew!
We’ll see what 2014 brings! One thing I do know is that a sale will happen. I need to make room in the garage for us to set up a corner for a mini pottery studio, so some things need to go and I’m in a paring down and minimizing phase right now – which is good news for anyone wanting to shop. I just have to figure out where and when.
For those who still come visit over here now and then – thanks for saying hi! I know how busy we all are and I appreciate the effort it takes to engage in media these days. I have the best readers who send wonderful emails and share their projects with me. Let’s see what we can get done this year – I can’t wait, and hope to see you around the interwebs!
