When we moved to BC, we learned very quickly that we weren't in Kansas, er Winnipeg, anymore. We had sold our house, the one that we had spent four years upgrading, but realized when we got here that it was going to be a while before we could afford another home of our own. Curtis was now working at a non-profit and Surrey is just a really expensive place to live. God placed us in an amazing community, and the 8 years we rented were definitely a gift for many, many reasons (but that's a post for another day). Anyway, two years or so ago, we bought a beautiful home that couldn't be more perfect for us. I loved everything about it, everything, that is, except the paint colour. After we bought the house, and before we moved in, we went back to take some measurements. It was a particularly dreary day, the kind BC winters are known for, and I noticed for the first time that the all the walls on the main floor were painted grey. The grey skies outside and the grey walls inside left me feeling really down.

I have to explain that I am not a person who has ever liked grey. In fact, I really dislike it. I love warm, happy colours that make spaces feel inviting and cozy, and this just wasn't doing it for me. We moved in with our really warm coloured wood furniture and accessories and the rooms still didn't feel cozy or inviting to me. Curtis, on the other hand really likes grey, and he was quite pleased with the paint, particularly because it had just been freshly painted, and the walls didn't even have any nail holes in them. The previous owners had painted just before putting the house on the market in order to make it easier to sell, I guess. They chose a very popular, modern colour. I almost wanted to cry when our new neighbours told me that it had been a beautiful warm colour scheme before. You might ask, what the big deal is. Why not just paint it myself? My dilemma was that it was hard to justify the expense of painting, when it had just been professionally done. Also, the ceilings in our living room are about 16 feet high, and the walls even part way up to the moulding are about 10 feet. So, any painting would involve a pretty high ladder and maybe even a scaffold. Not to mention, that my husband made it clear that he would not be helping at all. He did humour me a little. He smiled when I started praying about painting. I brought home paint chips to show him, and he always checked them out. I couldn't, however, seem to find a colour that tempted him enough to seriously consider it. In my heart, I really wanted to warm up the walls as much as I possibly could - which, of course means yellow, right? Curtis is not a fan of yellow at all, so I showed him every shade of beige, tan and mocha that I could find. Still, he was unconvinced.

Anyway, fast forward almost two years. We traveled back to Winnipeg to visit Curtis' Baba who is quite ill. The boys and our puppy all stayed with her at Curtis' parents' home, and the rest of us stayed with friends who live nearby. Two different families who both have yellow walls!! I was feeling some definite wall envy, let me tell you. One morning, Curtis, Sharaya and I were sitting at one of the homes having quick breakfast before heading over to visit family. The beautiful sunshine that Winnipeg is known for was streaming through the windows and reflecting off the yellow walls. It was a heavenly moment. I said to Curtis, "I have to tell you, I am LOVING, all this yellow!" Sharaya agreed and my husband, being the sweet guy that he is opened his heart to yellow walls in that moment, I think.

When we got home, everything just sort of fell into place. One of my very kind and very skilled cousins painted for us, and we now have yellow walls up to the moulding. I was inspired by my other long-time friend that we stayed with in Winnipeg who had both grey and yellow walls in her home. She is an interior designer and I have always valued her input when choosing colours. Seeing her colour scheme gave me hope that perhaps we could paint the walls yellow under the moulding, and leave the grey up above, and therefore avoid the scaffold difficulties altogether. We did, and you know what? It works. We may eventually have the higher part of the walls painted a lighter shade of yellow sometime in the future, but for now, it works. In the grand scheme of things I know that the colour grey on my walls isn't a big deal - especially in light of eternity. I'm guessing that God has already been painting my walls yellow in heaven. Or, perhaps the golden streets reflecting God's glory and light give off more than enough brightness and He knows yellow really isn't necessary. Either way, this home school mama's heart practically sings every time I come out of my bedroom and look over the railing into the living room below. I love it. (And I don't think Curtis minds it too much, either.)  Another benefit is that our wood signs look so much better against the new brighter colour and it motivated me to arrange a feature wall. I'm sure that as time goes by it will change (knowing me, that's probably a given), but for now I'm so happy with it!