Making It Mello

Spring has been slow to arrive this year.
But rest is good.
And blooming—real blooming—takes strength.

This July will mark five years.
And finally, the exhales in this space feel like home, not just another project.

There were moments we truly wondered if we were out of our minds to begin this journey.
But here we are—grateful beyond words to have made it this far.
This has been, by far, the biggest renovation we’ve ever taken on.
We’ve learned so much.

I hope our kids remember this.
I hope they carry with them the quiet lesson—that so much is possible with sweat, perseverance, and a few well-earned expletives.
And maybe even more than that, I hope they remember the process.

It feels good to settle.
This will be the longest stretch we’ve lived in one place since we got married.
A steady home for our babies to bloom.
A home built with strength, grit, and an ocean of patience.

A space that finally feels like ours.
A space that feels like Spring is near.

So much has changed in two years! We’re in the home stretch of wrapping up this room. From where it was our first Christmas here, to now - doesn’t seem like much at times, but looking back to what we started with, and where we are now - we have put in the work.

✔️ Recessed lights
✔️ Projector
✔️ Wood floors
✔️ Mantle
✔️ Fireplace resurfaced
✔️ New Chairs

Up next:
🔨 Sand and paint floors black
🔨 Built in cabinets and shelving
🔨 Build coffee table
🔨 Decorative wood trim on fireplace wall 🤌🏽

It’s been a real labor of love but we are so grateful for the space this place holds for our community, for us, and for those that we’ve yet to meet.

BEFORE 👉🏽 AFTER⁣
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Holy moly guys. We were loved so hard this weekend. Our Mello family showed up and spent all day Saturday helping us tackle the front yard and all it’s unkept glory. ⁣
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I had been itching to get the plot at the end of our driveway cleaned up and in the least, presentable. Thanks to Sam and his brother, not only is it presentable it’s 99% complete and looks amazing!⁣
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The rest of the fam cleaned up our hedges, pulled weeds, ripped out dead bushes, and basically knocked out an entire wishful thinking to-do list of cleaning up the front yard. ⁣
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😭😭😭. We are so grateful.

You will not find a ton of color overall in our home, but the kids’ rooms are a world all their own. ⁣
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T found this rug (swipe👉🏽) late last year before we moved and he begged to bring it home. It was incredibly soft and he really dug the design. ⁣
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So; even before we moved we started to build his room design around it. ⁣
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Sometimes you just need that one piece of inspiration. ⁣
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Will probably add a few dashes if yellow on this wall too; but for now, kid room 1 of 2 is complete!

Buying a paint sprayer was the best investment ever. Every single surface of this house will be repainted or replaced. ⁣
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Plus, since we’re redoing the floors, I don’t have to be super on top of spills or overspray.⁣
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Hoping to get the majority of the downstairs painted this week...probably about 1/3 of the way there. Then it’s go time on finishing the floors. ⁣
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Our goal is to get the major parts of the main floor complete by Thanksgiving at the latest, but we shall see.