REVEAL: What did that pile of boxes become?

Remember, two months ago, I showed you this pile of boxes and asked you what they would become??

To refresh your memory, Click Here!

Most of you answered “deck furniture”. Outstanding guess, but incorrect. It makes perfect sense. I live by a lake with three levels of deck space.

One or two of you got it right!

After months of waiting, this is what they became….

BOOKSHELVES!!

Yay! Woot Woot!! Happy Dance!!

Before we moved in, I envisioned this corner of our great room with shelves. When we moved in, we put our entertainment dresser from our former house with TV on top on this wall. I knew before the move, the dresser would be too big for the space and it is. It consumed too much real estate. I decided the TV would be wall-mounted when we found and installed shelves. Shelves were not high on the priority list, thus 1 1/2 years later. They are finally here!

I knew I wanted them as tall as possible with cabinets underneath. We toyed with the idea of having custom builds, but decided we wanted to use that money somewhere else. So, I set out to find cheaper ones.

I measured and measured and measured, to get the most shelves in that area. Then, I searched, searched and searched online to find them.

My search ended at IKEA. They had the best option for the space, if I got two and put them side by side.

You guessed it. When I found them in January, they were OUT OF STOCK.

I signed up to be notified when they came back in stock. Wondering if they ever would, given our current shipping situations and world wide slow down since Covid.

Every few weeks, I checked online, not trusting the notification system. I’m a skeptic at heart🥴

I continued to look, but nothing fit the space as well!

One day in March, they showed up IN STOCK! I couldn’t believe it! Less than an hour later, I received the “back in stock” email. (They work for future information.)

I hastily ordered two and felt like the luckiest girl alive! It was happening.

By the next day they were out of stock again.

My husband and I have a sorted putting-furniture-together-history, I asked him to solicit a carpenter friend to help. We all know IKEA furniture comes with lots of pieces and difficult instructions. (My opinion.) We had a friend offer to help, then his family life got complicated. So, we’ve waited since early April. Believe me, we were busy with other things.

My older grandsons helped mount the TV on the wall. The best part is …. My sweet electrician grandson, Josh, surprised me and put a receptacle behind the TV. Thus, no hanging cords!! Happy, happy me! No cords to contend with.

Isn’t he awesome?!?
So is his willing brother who has a notable caring helpful spirit!

While I was away, my husband asked a carpenter buddy to help him and got these shelves assembled!

I was so excited to move forward with finishing our tiny home list!

Because the shelves are up, that means a whole wall of boxes in storage could be emptied and sorted.

I CAN NOT WAIT to finish the whole basement of moving boxes!! We are getting there!!

I might throw a big party… it seems like completing all those storage boxes will be such a milestone!

I spent a week going through boxes and sending more out of my house than I’m keeping. That’s all good! Downsizing takes work and lots of decisions but feels marvelous when it’s done!

Everything I look at, in boxes, is a decision: Stay or Go?

It’s wearing after a while and some days down right exhausting!!

And, if the object stays, where does it live?

If there is not a space to put the object, then either it goes or something else does! It runs circles around me: keep, give, maybe, arrange, rearrange, swap, creative arranging skills … a vicious process.

Have you moved forward lately?

If so, in what way?

Any projects happening in your home? Share with us!

Next week, we’ll style these “dreamed edifices!” I’ll share my styling thoughts and tricks!!

RIGHT NOW, I’m loving that corner of the great room! Yay for progress!!

P.S. I forgot to tell you, last week … my luggage arrived at my door Friday, the next day, by 11:30AM! Took my luggage 20 hours to arrive home, wish I could say the same for me. Bravo American Airlines for luggage retrieval/delivery. You hired a reputable third party provider.

I see Empty Boxes,