Blog - McLennan Contracting

What’s On Your Home’s Bucket List?

A few months ago my parents decided to move. In the weeks leading up to putting their house on the market, Tim and I helped with an assortment of small repairs and improvements. Many of these were items they’d had on the to-do list for years, but simply didn’t get to until it was time to attract a buyer.

One of my tasks was to paint their master bathroom, which was the same builder’s-grade white it had been since construction. It was a blank slate, and I couldn’t wait to transform it with color.

My mom picked out a warm, earthy green. It only took a base coat for us to fall in love. With the natural sunlight coming through their bathroom window, the room had been transformed into a beautiful, inviting space. My mom kept saying, tongue-in-cheek, “Why are we moving again?”

Why Wait Until It’s Too Late?

I had a similar experience before moving from our previous house. Preparing it for market, I touched up lots of paint, rearranged furniture, and hung decorations on the walls that had been sitting in my basement for years. I cleaned out closets and reorganized storage space until our tiny rancher felt twice as big as it had when we decided to move. “Why are we moving again?” I asked myself.

Of course, there were many reasons for our move, and those simple changes certainly didn’t negate our decision to find another house. Nor did the painted bathroom change my parents’ minds about moving on. However, most of the repairs and changes we made were relatively simple and inexpensive. All they required was intention and a little bit of time. The end results far outweighed the costs.

Emptying the Bucket List

All these little projects add up to a homeowner’s bucket list. They’re things we mean to do, but don’t get around to until the end is near (the end of homeownership, that is).

After painting my parents’ bathroom, I’ve been looking around my own house with a different mindset, asking what our home’s “bucket list” might be. What changes could we make, with a minimal investment of time and resources, that would enhance our home’s functionality and atmosphere now?

One, for me, would be upgrading our kitchen light. It’s old and dim, and from day one I’ve struggled with seeing well enough to avoid slicing off a fingertip. Considering how many hours I spend in my kitchen, good lighting is well worth the investment, and won’t do anything but increase the kitchen’s appeal if we ever do decide to sell.

What’s on your home’s bucket list? Freshening up a paint job? Replacing a faulty faucet? Adjusting a door so it doesn’t drag on the carpet? Why put those things off until you’re ready to sell?

In thinking about your home’s bucket list, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

1. What, exactly, do you want to accomplish, and why? How will this change enhance the functionality or enjoyability of your home?

2. What’s holding you back? Time? Finances? Product selections? Do you want to do research first? Do you and your spouse have differing opinions? Do you need professional help to get the work done?

3. What resources will be required to turn your goal into reality? Do you have what you need on hand, or will more planning be involved before you can take action?

I hope these questions help you empty your home’s bucket list so you can enjoy the benefits for years to come. Happy planning!

By Alison 1 Comment

Website Revamp and Techie Problems

Procrastination will only take you so far. We’ve been putting off a website redesign for years, and our antiquated system is finally biting the bullet.

If you happen to visit mclennancontracting.com over the next few days, it will either (a) look exactly the same, (b) look like a website under construction, or (c) no longer exist, due to some grave technical error on the part of yours truly.

We’re shooting for (b).

If you’re reading this, I’ve at least succeeded in salvaging the blog, I Married a Contractor. Unfortunately, if you were subscribed by email or RSS, and you’d like to remain that way, you’ll need to resubscribe, as the subscriptions will not transfer. I’m sorry for the inconvenience this causes. I do hope you move with us!

And if you want to be entertained by an amateur’s attempt to design a professional website, go to mclennancontracting.com and refresh your browser every ten minutes over the next few days. My vast learning curve is bound to keep you enthralled.

See you on the other side!

By Alison Leave a Comment

4 Tips for Low-Stress Hospitality

When we made the decision to buy a larger house, the first things I told Tim was, “Now we can entertain!”

I had grand visions of our home becoming the social center of our quiet street, where neighbors would pop in and out with unannounced regularity. I would be one of those effortless hostesses with an endless supply of scones and coffee, the kind of woman who could whip up a fresh batch of homegrown peppermint tea at a moment’s notice.

In the weeks before our move, I spent hours on Pinterest cataloguing decorating tips, recipes, and ideas for creating ambiance. The contrast between the adorable concepts I saw on Pinterest and my own meager hospitality attempts of the past was shameful. Soon the vast world of hospitality, which had once seemed so simple, became an uncharted ocean in which I was drowning.

More Work Than It’s Worth?

In the three years we’ve lived in our new house, we have entertained neighbors exactly zero times. A handful of friends have come for dinner here and there, but in general I’ve hosted less in my current home than I did in our old shoebox, where the living room, dining room, and kitchen were in arm’s reach of one another.

I would be unfair to blame my lack of hospitality solely on Pinterest overload. There’s also the general exhaustion of raising young children and running a business. But without question, the greatest reason I don’t entertain more is stress.

If having people over is so much work, is it even worth it?

1. Start with Baby Steps

Maybe your stress isn’t about cleaning the house and cooking a meal. Maybe, like me, you’re an introvert, and socializing tires you out. Maybe you want to get to know people, but having them into your home feels like a daunting prospect.

How about starting small? Begin your journey toward hospitality by chatting with a neighbor by the mailbox, or making small talk at a school function. Suggest a coffee date, or meet at a park for a walk.

Do you have a front porch? Use it! Make a point of waving hello as neighbors walk past, and have an extra chair handy for anyone who wants to stop and chat.

Exercise your social skills, and hospitality will grow.

2. Accept Imperfection

Maybe the images that pop into your head at the thought of hosting are straight from a Martha Stewart catalogue. Maybe you’re friends with the kind of people who set out place cards and hand-stamped menu tags at every get-together.

If perfectionism is holding you back, consider which environment will make your guests more at ease: a home in which they’re afraid to drop a single crumb on the polished hardwood, or a home where “life” is clearly happening? Hospitality, after all, is about making people feel welcome.

If you can accept imperfection in your home, you can accept imperfection in people. And nothing makes a person more welcome than an invitation to be who they are, for better or worse.

3. Take It Outside

Maybe your home is small, or there are too many kids running around to have a grown-up conversation. Maybe your dining room table doesn’t have enough chairs, or you just don’t feel like dealing with all the dishes.

Outdoor hosting is the perfect low-stress solution (providing the weather cooperates, of course). Lawn chairs, paper plates, canned drinks, the grill…what could be simpler?

If your outdoor space is lacking, why not host somewhere else? A couple years ago, while our yard was being graded and reseeded, we hosted our daughter’s birthday party under a pavilion at the local park. We brought sandwich fixings, but there was a grill there, and plenty of space for the kids to ride bikes and play. It was so relaxing and simple, we’re talking about doing it again this year.

4. Keep It Simple

Maybe you’d love to have people over. Maybe you’re not worried about space, or plagued by perfectionism. You’re just not sure feeding another family, even for a night, fits your budget.

Why not think outside the box? No one ever said hosting had to include a full mea. Consider sticking with coffee and dessert, or throwing a potluck. I’ve even heard of people inviting friends over for a pantry-clean-out dinner, where everyone brings an unwanted or close-to-expiration item from the pantry (granted, you need a sense of humor for this one, and fun-loving guests).

Again, remember that hosting is about making people feel welcome. It doesn’t have to cost you anything, other than time and a smile.

I hope some of these ideas get your creative hosting juices flowing, without the stress of a Pinterest-inspired shindig. If you have any other helpful tips for practicing hospitality without wearing yourself out, please share in the comments!

By Alison 1 Comment

Why a Bigger House Might Not Make a Better Home

It’s that time of year again. Cabin fever is creeping in. Our homes feel closer, our spaces more confining.

Maybe it’s the extra Christmas pounds straining my waistline, but life just feels tight in January, doesn’t it? It’s about now, every winter, that I get the bug to rearrange furniture, purge excess junk, and knock down a load-bearing wall or two.

This sense of claustrophobia used to plague me year-round, not just in the doldrums of winter. Before we moved to our current home, we lived in what some might call a shoebox. I thought adding square footage would solve all our problems. Well, guess what?

Before I share what we’ve learned about the joys and frustrations of upsizing, here’s a little homeowner history to give you context.

Starting Small

When Tim and I married, we spent our first year in an old, two-story duplex before purchasing a foreclosure that needed serious help. (It was so ugly my parents cried the first time we gave them a tour, and promptly granted us permission to move into their basement for a few months while we gutted the place.)

After ripping out all the drywall, flooring, cabinetry, plumbing, electric, siding, roofing, and windows (envision naked framing hugged by insulation), we began to rebuild. Eight months later we were finished…just in time to welcome our first child.

: Our starter home, before and after. Someone call HGTV!

When Annabell came along, the busy road a few feet outside our front door no longer seemed like an insignificant detail. Our driveway was steeper than Mt. Everest, and I had nightmares about our sweet cherub riding a tricycle straight down the death chute onto Route 322 during rush hour.

So we moved, sacrificing one bedroom and a sizeable chunk of square footage to gain a safe street in a quiet neighborhood. It was an ideal home for young children – a rancher with no stairs to worry about, a flat driveway and backyard, lots of sunlight.

Our first year there was like a fairytale. We were in love with our baby girl, enjoying a new home, and Tim was stepping out on his own as a general contractor.

: McLennan abode #2.

Full House

Fast-forward a few years. We welcomed our second child, then adopted number 3. Somewhere in there we realized two bedrooms weren’t enough, so we claimed most of the garage as a third, leaving just enough storage space to fit most of Tim’s tools.

Problem was, Tim’s tools were multiplying. Business boomed. Soon his inventory had overflowed the garage and was now taking up space alongside our house.

Inside was no better. The intricacies of business ownership could no longer be confined to the dining room table. We needed an office, so we built one in the windowless basement. Depressing, but functional.

The children began to grow, which meant they required education. We decided to homeschool, but where? The basement was already taken, so we moved the kids into one bedroom and claimed the other as a classroom.

It worked. For a while.

Moving “Up”

After years of remodeling, rearranging, repurposing, and rethinking our limited space, we decided to take a peek at the market.

I’d just spent a month purging our house of everything we didn’t use on a regular basis, plus some things we did. So when I decided to browse the real estate listings, I was just trying to convince myself we couldn’t afford to live anywhere else.

: McLennan abode #3.

Whether we could or couldn’t, we did. Our little house sold in nine days, we packed up our family, and here we are. Our new home has double the space of our last one, and while it could stand some repairs, it’s in better starting shape than either of our previous houses.

Still, it’s a mixed blessing.

Bigger = Better?

I’m not complaining, trust me. I remember the frustration of trying to manage a family of five in a space designed for two, and on top of that, I’ve been to a third-world country. I’m well aware that even our smallest home was a palace by non-Western standards.

But before we moved, when I was enmeshed in the frustrations of having outgrown our fairytale, it felt like square footage would solve everything.

Indeed, it has provided some delightful perks, like:

More privacy. As an introvert, I crave quiet spaces in which to recharge. While our house isn’t always quiet, the noise is at least muffled when I lock myself in the bedroom and hide my head under a pillow.

Designated space. Glory hallelujah, we have a playroom! A space for toys to go, live, and die. I’m not saying they don’t creep out now and then (I step on stray Legos hourly), but at least I can say, “Kids, I want all the toys back in the playroom,” instead of saying, “Kids, I want all the toys back in the baskets under the coffee table, on the bookshelf by the door, on the shelves in the living room, or under the stairs in the basement. And if you run out of space, stuff them in your closets.” (Yes, I know: TOO MUCH STUFF. Another topic for another post.)

Ability to host in comfort. When Tim’s family visited during Christmas, and we were able to offer everyone a bed. And on the rare occasion I work up the energy to invite people over, our guests can spread out and find places to sit in multiple rooms, instead of being perched on sofa arms or sitting cross-legged on the floor.

For each of these benefits, I am sincerely thankful. But that’s not the whole picture. Since moving, I’ve come to appreciate a few benefits of our previous, smaller house:

A close-knit family occupies the same space. The bigger the house, the easier it is to spread out and do your own thing. In our last home, I always knew where my kids were and what they were doing, because the place was just that small. Sure, it could be frustrating stepping on top of each other, but by default we spent more time together, often choosing to team up on activities rather than finding space to do our own.

Removing relationship obstacles. Because I lived in a small home, I know what is is to visit a “wealthy” friend and feel inferior or envious. Now that we’ve moved, the roles are reversed and I’m more sensitive than ever. I find myself embarrassed by the size of our home, feeling the need to explain that we got it for a steal because of unusual circumstances. Call it pride, but I worry about what people will think. It’s too easy to assume “successful” people have it all together, when success has nothing to do with the size of your house or your monthly budget. (As for having it all together, we most definitely do not.)

Ease of maintenance. In our previous home, I could plug in the vacuum cleaner and run it through the entire place without switching to a new outlet. In fact, I could vacuum, mop, dust, declutter, and clean the bathroom in about two hours, whereas it takes me half a day to clean just one story of our larger home. Same story for Tim – it takes a lot more time and money to look after a larger structure. It might have been harder to fit our guests when we entertained at the small house, but we spent less time maintaining and more time relaxing.

Houses, Homes, and Hearts

There are times I pine for my small home. I also pine for my childhood home, an old, sprawling farmhouse in Vermont. It’s not the structure I long to recapture, but the memories, the sensation, the phase of life. My childhood home was a place of love and laughter. Sure, there were bats in the attic and my bedroom windows were thin as cellophane, but I was loved there, and I was happy.

What will my children remember about their childhood home? What will yours? Wherever our family lives – whether we stay in this house, downsize, or join a commune – I hope my children one day long to return to the people, memories, and love they’ve known under our roof. Because a good home isn’t about the house, it’s about the heart.

By Alison 2 Comments

Blog Resurrection, and Our New Logo!

When I sat down to write this post and noticed that tomorrow marks a year since the last one, I was shocked! How did twelve whole month pass so quickly? I never intended to let I Married a Contractor slip to the back burner, but clearly that’s what happened.

In my defense, the McLennans have had a busy year! We’ve officially outgrown our current workforce, and the growing pains – while a welcome discomfort – have nudged us to reevaluate where we’re headed, as a family and a business.

A NEW LOOK, AND A BROADER VISION

As our vision has expanded and evolved the past few years, we felt it was time to update our logo to better reflect the things we value. Ready for a sneak peek?

WHAT’S IN A LOGO?

Our starting point for the redesign was a phrase we’ve been tossing around for a couple of years. Each time we discussed what we want our family and business to be about, we kept coming back to the words, “Creating Safe Havens.”

A safe haven is a place of refuge, recovery, rest, protection, and security. We love this vision because it’s so multi-faceted:

As a business, we want our work to create safe havens in our customers’ homes by strengthening the physical structures and providing enjoyable, functional spaces in which families can thrive.
As individuals, we want to be relational safe havens for the people in our lives by being trustworthy, discerning, compassionate, and honest.
As part of a community, we want our resources to help create safe havens wherever they are needed. We want to contribute to adoption grants (creating relational safe havens), fund microloans and scholarships for our impoverished neighbors (creating financial safe havens), sponsor clean water projects (creating hygienic safe havens), and invest in the rescue and protection of human trafficking victims (creating literal safe havens).

Our new logo represents this vision with a simple sheltering leaf and a hint of blue water, universal symbols of life, health, and safety.

CHANGE TAKES TIME! PATIENCE APPRECIATED.

Unfortunately, McLennan Contracting’s entire design and marketing team consists of yours truly, so it’ll take some time to update our look on all fronts. We’re working on a new website, but until it’s finished, we appreciate your patience with our fragmented appearance.

As for the blog, I’ll do my best not to let another year slip by without another post! (If things are quiet on here for a while, that probably means I’ve been busy writing on my other blog, alisonmclennan.com. Feel free to stop by there and say hello.)

If you have specific topics you’d like to see us cover on the blog here, please email me! It’s always helpful to know what questions we can attempt to answer for you.

And now, it’s your turn. What are some other ways we can work toward creating safe havens, both here in our community and around the globe? What causes are you involved with that we should know about?