When Dreams Come True

Hey y’all! Happy mid-week!

For as long as I can remember, I have loved looking at homes. Big homes. Little homes. Cottage homes. Condo homes. I thought as a child when I “grow up” I want a home with pretty, green trees, colorful flowers and a window off the kitchen to wave to the neighbors. At the age of 8 my dad taught me about savings, and at 19 I took that savings and began investing it. Each year, I anticipated getting closer to buying a home. But life happens and dreams wait. Graduate school, student loans, vacations, surgery, and other events took priority – each one putting the dream on pause. But we don’t give up on our dreams, we hope someday the stars will align.

And they did.

Yesterday my dream became reality – I closed on my first home!

Y’all, I’m so thankful – I own a house!! (It still sounds so wild to think and say that!) Ahhhhh…big smiles and a grateful heart. And a huge hug to my realtor (pictured above), Scott Griffis, for his many hours of hard work!

Throughout the house buying process, I kept thinking “Thy will be done. Thy will be done.” If it was in God’s plan for me to purchase this house, or any house at all, it would be done. If it wasn’t, then that’s ok. As with purchasing any home, there were some bumps along the way, one of which I thought may lose the contract on the house. With an apartment lease ending soon, I would have had to scramble to find somewhere to live. I repeated, “Thy will be done.” His plan isn’t always about our personal comfort but I believe it is always good. Fortunately, that plan included me winning the house!

Tuesday, on the day of closing, I was looking around while driving, admiring the beautiful day. The sun was shining, the trees were a luscious green after being freshly watered by rain earlier in the week. Then a song by Hillary Scott sweetly sang, “Thy will be done. I know you see me. I know you hear me, Lord. Your plans are for me. Goodness you have in store.”

Those words.

“Thy will be done”, trusting in His plan throughout the bumps of life. Four words carry so much meaning, trust and faith. I couldn’t help but wallow up with a few tears knowing that God has been with me throughout this entire process and brought me to this beautiful day, closing on my first home.

And so, my first home is here! A little about the house: it is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, and in need of a little TLC. I am very inspired by DIY projects and making a house into my home. There is a lot of work ahead – painting everything (literally), installing new windows, yard work, and more. Expect Joyfully So to be filled with more home DIY projects and decor. I will be including everyone on the home renovation and improvement process!

Here are a few “before” pictures inside the home.

Please allow a little grace in this time as I move and get a lot of the essential (not exciting) stuff done, like electrical and handyman work. I have been pretty consistent about posting three times per week, however temporarily this will decrease. My posts will be fewer, but my hope is the content will be better. I welcome your suggestions, advice and opinions along the way!