What to Do After the Project is Complete

Remember the journey

After several months, our house project is almost complete. We should have taken before and after pictures, but we didn’t. We were focused on the finish the line all the time. Once we set a deadline, we picked up the pace.

Soon the house will be listed on the market, followed by a sold sign in the front yard. The tiny house, our first home together, will be a memory. Things we used to complain about won’t seem as bad. Funny how time minimizes the problems that once dictated your days?

It’s the process that we went through

At first, my husband worked on the house by himself while I was at work. We would talk about the progress. The result was slow and steady, and I didn’t feel a part of the project while he shouldered all the burdens.

Weeks turned into a month. We would go over all that was left to do, and the list grew instead of getting smaller. When you start a remodel, it’s normal to find more things that need to be done. There’s the time when you can’t do it alone, and nothing you do works.

The kitchen sink backed up, and no amount of drain cleaner, plunging, or shoving a pipe snake made a difference. My husband was frustrated with it, and I suggested just call a plumber. Forty-five minutes later, it was fixed.

This was a turning point for the house. Sure, it doesn’t seem like a big deal, but it was. This is when we really started working together. Your mind thinks the worst. And he was sure it would be. $150 later, and the problem was solved.

We’ve learned we’re stronger together than as individuals

We started working together on the weekends. This is really helpful when you end up painting the bedrooms three times. Each time we looked at the rooms, we found another spot we missed. It doesn’t help when the paint store gives you a satin instead of the matte you started with. Time to paint again.

There were moments that if I heard “you missed a spot,” he would be the next canvas. But you remain calm and shut the door. Then you go back and paint the spot you missed.

When we work together, we confirm good ideas and throw out the bad ones. Sometimes you just need to say it out loud, and you both realize what a good idea that is. Or not.

Working together helped our debt-free journey as well; you’re stronger together than separately.

What’s Next?

It’s strange, but you feel sad in a way that the project is almost over. You’re detached from your memories because the changes are enough that it’s not your home anymore. Somehow, you don’t want to go back to it, and you’re closing this chapter in your life.

You recall rocking your first grandson in the living room. Or watching your husband carrying the crying infant as he walks him around the house in circles to get him to sleep. A sweet memory you’ll always have of this house.

Final Thoughts

A co-worker once told me you never move a broom. It’s an old superstition that’s said to carry negative energy with you. Leave your old broom behind, or just throw the dirty thing out, and your mop too!

Maybe you can do that with your old dreams. Leave the ones that never worked and start with new ones. You know that the next owner will find love and happiness here as you did. Maybe it’s their first home together as it was for you. It’s okay to let go of some dreams you had here, but take the best with you.