Home Repurposed

Our home has been REPURPOSED!

We thank the Lord first and foremost for the home that he has provided to us, then we thank our family for the history, heritage, graciousness, and love that has made these four walls the foundation of our hearts.  Our home that is called “440″ is a place to construct our family and  to share our of love, faith, and traditions with all that come through the front door!

“440″ was built in the 1940′s by my Grandparents, John G and Ruby Nell.  It was a stylish bungalow home that was considered large for it’s time. It had three bedrooms, a state of the art kitchen, living, dining, and 1 1/2 baths!  It came equipped with the best of everything and a splash of glam was thrown in for good measure!  Over the years “440″  was the childhood home to my father and his sister, this was the only home they ever lived in until they were married.  That is something that you don’t hardly ever hear of in society today.  The door to this home was never closed, with the passing in and out of loved ones, neighbors, church members, business associates, and a few gamblers too!  Good times rolled and the spirit of home was embedded in each child, grandchild, and friend that ever had the pleasure of being a part of “440″.

After the passing of my Grandparent’s the beautiful home that they had maintained to perfection was empty and a decision had to be made about what to do with it.  Because of the rural location and a community that none of the surviving family members resided in or near, it was either to sell it, leave it vacant, or for someone to change their life and take the leap to a new lifestyle!  Guess who????  That’s right – this is where “440″ became REPURPOSED!

Brent and I had been living in the Kansas City area and were living the “American” dream… high paying jobs, nanny for the kids, great friends, social gurus, could party all night,….  but then we got old!  Just kidding, we really just changed our priorities in life and came to a simple conclusion in about two hours that it was time for a lifestyle change!  We had known in our hearts that we weren’t on the right track, even though we were on the right “worldly” track!  We were beginning to grow apart, become physically ill from the stress that our jobs provided, weren’t active in our children’s lives, and most of all we were a LONG WAY from God!

Within a week we had put our faith in God, something that we weren’t really even sure how to do, but looking back, he provided for us what we didn’t even know we needed!  We put in our notices, let our nanny know she had a couple of weeks, listed our home for rent, and headed to Southern Missouri without a job or any friends to boot!

Well here we are in May of 2009, no jobs, no friends, and a house that is extremely nice, but in a ninety-year old’s type of style!

The first place I headed was to the FRONT PORCH SWING, the same place that I had sat with my Grandfather and counted cars that passed when I was five, the same swing that I had sat in to have my picture taken each Easter, and the same swing that I sat in the day my Dad locked the door after my Grandmother’s funeral…

Here is where my LIFE REPURPOSED and I planned on how I would REPURPOSE the home God had given us!

Keep swinging with me as I share how I have preserved the spirit of “440″ and how I have incorporated new traditions and styles to meet the needs of a 21st century family!

Laurie