Tiny House

Tiny House Part 11: The Bathroom Tour Continues

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

So last week I talked about the pictures over the toilet. The frames are cheap things I picked up and spray painted. The mats are from the craft store. And, believe it or not, the photos were printed on a copier because budget was a huge issue back when I first needed them to decorate my work office years ago.

You’ll see that they built in shelves for me on the adjoining wall. The teal things on the top shelf are toilet paper rolls wrapped in tissue paper. My decorator friend recommended it as an attractive way to store extra rolls, and I adapted her plan readily because the tissue paper also protects the paper from absorbing the yuk that’s thrown into the air when you flush the toilet. (Don’t know what I’m talking about? Google “toilet aerosol’ and prepare to cringe.) I also put the lid down on the toilet before flushing to minimize the impact. Studies show that the spray is twelve times worse with the lid up.

Knowing this has a lot to do with many of the details of this small room. Since taking this picture, I’ve pulled half of my towels. I only need a couple readily available, and that gave me an extra shelf for toilet paper storage.

This photo shows all of the built ins, and you can see I use baskets that hold and mostly protect a lot as well. The one on top contains my makeup and all that goes with it. The bottom one contains toilet paper in thoi photo, but when I moved those rolls to the other shelf I ended up using it for a variety of necessities that I wanted to keep handy. Because these things are stored in the bathroom, I need to remember to be extra scrupulous about things like cleaning my makeup brushes.

Random note: I took these pictures without thinking professionally. So yeah, the deodorant you see by the towels is Native and the little spray thing on the next shelf up is Poo-Pourri that a friend gave me. I never think to use it. I mean, you have to sort of plan ahead, you know? Still, if you do use it the stuff works great!

My friend made this peg rack to hang above the built ins. It was one of the many little things she did, or instructed me to do, to provide more storage and ready access to the things I need. Long pegs hold my towel, and the cotton T I use for my hair hangs fine on the decorative knobs she selected just for me. The two hats don’t get worn often, but store better here than anywhere else, and the jewelry you see is pretty much all I own after some serious jewelry downsizing. At one point, I had massive amounts of jewelry of all types, but now I mostly wear a sterling silver cross I was given a few years ago and just take down one of these pieces when an outfit demands it.

This medicine shelf is one of those ideas I would never have come up with on my own. I’d kept these things in a totally unattractive tote that literally fit nowhere. The day she showed up with this shelf the tote was sitting on top of my fridge, which greatly offended her artistic sensibilities. (I say that very tongue-in-cheek.) I would never have considered open shelving for these items even though I intentionally requested open shelving for the rest of the apartment. This thing is perfect. Once a week, I pull down my regular supplements and pills and go to my desk where I refill my weekly pills containers I told you about previously. If I need something, anything, I can get my hands on it easily, which was great when I cut myself a couple of weeks ago and needed a bandage.

One of the reasons this shelf works so well is the height at which she mounted it. Because it’s mostly above eye level, in this small room you tend not to notice it. Then she mounted my peacock picture beneath it, which also helps draw the eye away from the bottles and boxes.

I’ve had a thing for peacocks for years, but after seeing those peacocks during that cruise I’ve loved them even more, so this piece quickly found its home right here. It fits the theme, fits the wall size, and as a bonus it gives you something other than a white wall to look at while you’re seated. I laughed when she pointed out that detail, but quickly realized just what she was saying. It is an essential part of the decor.

We’ve made our way three quarters around the room. Next week we’ll finish off with the shower. Oh, how I love my shower!

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Tiny House Part 9: This is the Life

Tammy M Cardwell2 Comments

I decided to take a break from the tour to talk about the reality.

I love my home. I love life in my tiny home. Many have asked me how it’s working out, and I answer honestly; I’ve never been happier anywhere else!

I don’t at all feel like I lost all the “stuff” I let go of when I downsized. On the contrary, hardly a week has gone by without me leaving random things on my sister’s island because I’ve realized that I’m never going to want them after all.

Yes, when I downsized, rather than losing things, I lost pressure. I lost stress. I have what I need, all within pretty easy reach, and there’s nothing getting in my way.

My favorite art, decor, and personal pieces are here with me, and I can even see how I’ll be able to do a little Christmas decorating. The space says, “Tammy” (thanks to my decorator friend) while also being practical.

Cleaning? It’s a piece of cake to keep clean, especially the floors. First I dust mop, then I flip the combo mop over, spray the floor with a multipurpose cleaner, and wet mop. I’ve never timed myself, but I’d be surprised if the whole room took twenty minutes.

And laundry? It’s all right here, so when the washer or dryer finishes I know it instantly and can take care of it right away. I will not confess how many times I forgot about laundry before, how many wrinkled shirts I’ve had to deal with.

This place is also astoundingly well insulated. Just a few days ago, I was chilled while working in the house even while wearing a jacket. When I returned to my little apartment, though, I sat around comfortably in a TShirt.

The sound insulation is just as impressive. Unless I turn the window unit off completely, I hear absolutely nothing from outside. That is a huge difference from every home I’ve lived in for the past… actually, ever. I’ve never had a home that protected me from neighbors’ parties, the too-common sirens, and even trains like this. Never, except when we lived there, have I ever been so close to feeling like I’m out in the country again.

I was right. I’m made for this. I’m not sure you could ever talk me into moving into a regular house or apartment again. The space I have is the space I want.

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

Tiny House Part 8: The Library +

Tammy M Cardwell2 Comments

The “+” comes before the library.
It seemed to be a good time to give an
overall look at the main room, so here goes.

In this photo you can clearly see the stained concrete I like so much. To me, it looks like well-worn leather. It’s a breeze to keep clean, which is especially good since I have access to a pool; coming in wet is not a problem. Another thing this photo reveals is the curtains I’m using instead of doors on both the closet and bath. The closet curtains don’t reach all the way to the floor since I ordered them long before I knew what my actual measurements would be. Eventually I’ll order a longer set or add something at the bottom, but for now they’re fine. The bathroom curtain is also short, but that was intentional as I wanted to leave a large space at the top of the doorway for airflow on those rare occasions when I have the curtains closed.

One last bit of randomness about the “kitchen.” Those white boxes you see beside the mirror are the same box frames I use elsewhere. The friend who spent several hours not only redecorating my tiny home but also making things (like the lamp and book easel on my desk) to use as accents in it, hung those there and gave me orders to fill them with art I liked. They mark a goal. My primary care recently told me, “It’s time to do something just for Tammy.” I took his advice to heart and, since I’ve been wanting to learn watercolor, I ordered some supplies. I am determined to not only learn, but to create pieces I feel comfortable putting in those frames.

Now the Library and, yes, I use the word loosely. You get two photos because I thought it would give a better idea of how everything fits together. Bonus peek at the bath included free of charge.

The first thing you likely noticed about my library is the small number of books. I wasn’t kidding when I said I did a hardcore purge in all areas. These physical books that remain are my essentials. The bulk of them being Bibles should not surprise anyone given my book Experiencing the Bible (shameless plug). The others I refuse to get rid of for one reason and another.

I shared previously that I’m an aphant (one who has aphantasia); people as high on the scale as I am can remember what people and places look like to a certain extent, but that knowledge is conceptual, not visual. Consequently, I need photos and that’s why pictures of my kids and grandkids take the primary position in these shelves. Even the parrots on the wall were photographed by my sister on my surprise cruise getaway. (No kidding. She literally scheduled with my boss and booked a cruise for my birthday. She’s the best!) They serve both as art and vacation reminder.

The blue basket on top is convenient for extra storage; right this minute it just holds my lighters and matches; it’s nice knowing I have storage waiting for me to use it! The flowers and the gold-painted dictionary were gifts from my decorator friend. She knows my love of words, so the dictionary is not just an accent piece but a nod to my passion.

If you’re wondering about the framed quote on the top shelf, it’s from Mark Twain. It says, “The man who does not read has no advantage over the man who cannot read.”

Now, the reason I’m able to have so few physical books…

Bonus: You now know about one of my favorite authors.

I’ve lost pretty much everything twice in my life. The first time taught me a hard lesson and led to my getting my very first kindle as a gift from a friend who had upgraded. Honestly, I wasn’t sure about reading ebooks in the beginning, but learned quickly that I liked it. By the time that Kindle had died, I was carrying an iphone and started using the Kindle app. That was hard on my eyes, though, creating strain I didn’t need. (I tended to read for literal hours at a time. I still can.) So, after much research, I bought a Kindle Paperwhite that, a couple of years ago, I replaced with this Kindle Oasis.

I love this thing! You can tell by the wear on the cover that I use it a lot. As they say, it’s not the age; it’s the mileage. The Kindle Paperwhite (and Paperwhite Oasis) uses an e-ink that is very easy on the eyes. This Oasis also has adjustable lighting as well as the up/down buttons you see on the side. The regular Kindle Paperwhite did not have these buttons, and I would probably not want to go back to doing without them. And this e-reader is waterproof! So yes, reading in the tub is just fine.

So, to get back to my original point. I pretty much stick to paper books for non-fiction, which is what you mostly see on my shelves, because I mark those books up. I want to be able to come back and find things of note and relocate where I’ve recorded my thoughts on a topic. On the other hand, except for a few random non-fiction books, my Kindle is filled with fiction across a variety of genres. I don’t even know how many books I have on this thing and it’s nowhere near full. My TBR (To Be Read) list is massive, which would not be possible if I were limited to what I could fit in this room.

Since I’m on the topic of ebooks, here are some hints for those concerned about ebook prices. First, subscribe to BookBub. You’ll get alerts every day of books in your preferred genres that are on sale or free. A large number of my ebooks were picked up this way. Another thing I do is keep an ebook wishlist on Amazon. I update it any time I find a book I want to buy eventually, and every couple of days I’ll log onto Amazon and check out that list. If any have gone free or been marked down dramatically, I’ll hit the Buy Now button. So loading your kindle doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. You only need to pay full price when you want to read it today.

And that’s it for this week. Like last week, I’ve chosen to put all of the product links here, at the end of the post.

SMILE Weaver Peacock Blue Curtains (closet)

Deconovo Turquoise Curtains (bath)

Experiencing the Bible

Kindle Oasis

Huasiru Case for Kindle Oasis

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

Tiny House Part 6: The Office

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

It’s probably no surprise, given I’m a writer, that the office area is the heart of my tiny home. There is so much to discuss, so many details of storage and use, that it will get more than one post.

Your first question is probably going to be about the desk. It’s not new; my son gave it to me after he inherited it from someone else. It is my absolute favorite of all the desks I’ve had through the years, and as you can assume from the fact that I’m the third owner, it’s well built. I like not having drawers beside me the way you do in traditional desks; I like to move around too much. With this layout, I don’t need them. I have plenty of storage up high and a great set of shelves that you’ll see later. When I started writing this post I thought I would be apologizing for not being able to help you find one, but I just tracked it down on Amazon! Well, I can’t guarantee it’s exactly the same desk, but it’s super close.

Made by Sauder, this L-shaped desk from the Manhattan Gate Collection is officially 58.74″D x 55.47″W x 42.52″H. Yes, I can confirm that, at nearly 60″x60″ it’s pretty big. In fact, more than one person tried to talk me into selling it and using a smaller desk instead.

I stood strong, however, especially since I not only love its functionality but absolutely adore the color (mystic oak, to be specific) and wanted it in my home. My decision has proven to be a wise one. This desk allows for a lot of storage, which we will get to, gives me room to spread out when I’m working with an assortment of references and resources, and it serves as my dinner table. I love it!

In the “office” photo, you can barely see my bed in the lower right corner. I said in a previous post that we measured everything down to the inch, and you can tell here that I wasn’t kidding. In my plan I had allowed what I figured was 1″ of wiggle room, and what I ended up with is exactly 1 1/2″ of space between my bed and desk. The desk sits a little off the wall to allow for electrical cords to drop down behind it.

I should explain the outlets. As you can see, the desk has an upper shelf. Given the probability of needing to use part of the under-desk area for storage, we decided to set the two outlets higher than usual so they would land in the gap between desk and shelf. If you’re able to enlarge the photo, you’ll see we were a little off on the left outlet. Fortunately, it’s permanently occupied by two cords and nothing is glaringly visible anyway. The other is my active outlet where I plug and unplug as needed.

The photos you see lined up on the desk ledge beside my active outlet are 5×7 prints from a cruise my sister and I took years ago. The frames are simple plastic box frames that I picked up at Hobby Lobby for next to nothing. I use the same frames, in various sizes, elsewhere in the room and you can catch a glimpse of two more in the office photo. They’re around the corner from the black and white art that hangs over my desk. One huge advantage to these frames is their weight. They all hang on pushpins.

Having aphantasia, with no visual memory of people and places, photos are important to me. I eventually want to get a digital photo frame that my kids can fill with pictures remotely. In the meantime, you’ll see several more photos as we tour my apartment. With only a couple of exceptions, I’ve been able to fill the place with personal artwork, pieces created by myself, my friends, and my family.

The black and white pictures that conveniently cover the shower access panel are two of those. That friend, Anna Davidson, is a wonderful artist who started out as an AOL online acquaintance and became much more. These are actually photocopies of old pieces of hers, but they’ve traveled with me from home to home for decades. They always make me smile as they bring back awesome memories of years spent talking, visiting each other, and writing interactive fan fiction with other close friends who lived around the country. She doesn’t have a website anymore, sadly, or I would lead you to some of her newer work.

And….this one is already getting long, so that’s it for this week. Meet me here in seven days and we’ll cover some more office ground.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Tiny House Part 4: Under the Bed

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

One of my early tasks was to figure out how to deal with those things I could not let go of, but could store – things like Christmas decorations, out-of-season clothes, and photo albums.  As I said in a previous post, I refused to keep anything that has to be stored outside of my apartment. The obvious solution was to buy a new bed frame, one that would be high enough to hide several tubs.

After reading stats and reviews of an annoyingly long list of bed frames, I finally settled on my choice and added it to my Amazon “New Apartment” wishlist. Then I took careful note of the measurements, taped off a correctly-sized area of my floor (including marking where the center support leg would fall) and started playing a game of “fit the totes.” I marked the floor because I held off on purchasing the heavy frame until I was close to moving, and I had it delivered straight to the new place.

What you see in this photo is mostly empty totes, because I hadn’t decided what would need to go in them. There are also a couple of filled totes, some absolutely essential totes (think permanent records), and a footstool that I thought I might possibly need when getting into and out of bed. This collection of tubs became a vital work in progress and a site of multiple mini-purges so that what I thought I needed to hang onto could morph into what I really could keep.

For instance, I had too many framed photos and nowhere to put them. So I pulled all photos out of their frames and set the frames aside for donation. I also went through everything in my two-drawer filing cabinet and the permanent files tote and purged those areas yet again. Some records I passed along to whichever son they actually pertained to and others, after verifying that I didn’t really need them, I shredded.

Random note. The shredder is one of the absolute necessities that traveled with me. In my tiny abode, I can’t let papers pile up; I have to deal with them. So that shredder sits plugged in and ready to chomp as needed.

When the boys put my new bed frame together for me (easy peasy), and my daughter (I don’t do in-laws. I love the daughters my sons gave me!) crawled under to settle the tubs into place, everyone was joking about how I could lease a second space under there. And they’re right. I have a massive amount stored under my bed, including a few items (Like a massage mat) that sit on top of the boxes as well as a case of water that landed where the unneeded step stool had been.

Yes, even though I chose a bed with 16″ of clearance, I am still well able to get into it unassisted. Had I thought it through ahead of time, I’d have known that, but the extra space was a bonus!

So, under my bed, there is a full art/craft tub, a tub filled with blankets and other things, an ‘office/tool” tub, a tub of out of season clothes and another of jackets and wraps, one tub of scrapbooks and another crammed with photos (I hope to share with my sons and eventually eliminate one of those), a tub of permanently-filed records, a Christmas tub that may well lose some of its contents this holiday season… I’ve lost track. Is that It?

I’m not sure, but as I packed them I put large labels on the tops and on the sides so that I can find what I need relatively easily. I’ve already pulled out a few and done some rearranging as I recognized the need for more ready access to two or three in particular.

For the record, the bed frame I bought is the HAAGEEP 18 Inch Queen Bed Frame and it is every bit as good as I expected it to be. It’s sturdy and not noisy at all. Another huge plus is that the mattress fits inside it, which means I’m not dealing with a sliding mattress. That was a common complaint in the myriad of bed frame reviews I scoured. I had considered purchasing corner guards, because one reviewer said they kept hitting their legs on the corners, but I’ve not had that issue at all.

And thinking about this frame as I was first drafting this post made me realize something. I’m going to try to remember to share about all of the special things I have and love as I continue this series, so I decided to set up an Amazon Affiliate account in hopes of perhaps bringing in a little money on the side.

Does that sound grasping? I hope not. I’ve made no secret of the fact that, though I have a full-time job and am finally getting at least some widow’s benefits, I’m also saddled with a lot of debt that I want to pay off. My desire is to be financially free, and the regular money that’s coming in won’t make that happen fast enough. So, should you feel like offering your support by clicking a link and buying something I can personally attest to, I would be grateful. I have a lot of reviews on this site, recommendations for things I genuinely like; I plan to go back through them and add some links there as well.

Again, as I said above, it’s the HAAGEEP 18 Inch Queen Bed Frame and you can check it out by clicking HERE.

Holy cannoli!

On a whim, I checked to see if Amazon carries my mattress, which I love, and they do! Ok, so my Nectar mattress is several years old. That means they’re not going to have the exact same one. But let me tell you, if I were in the market for a new mattress I would get another Nectar! They’re awesome and come with the best warranty I’ve ever seen in a mattress. It came in a box, delivered right to my front door. I opened it, rolled it out, let it pop up, and put it on my bed. It’s not too heavy and, though I’m sensitive to odors, I was able to sleep on it the very first night with no issues at all. So no, no offensive off gassing in my experience. Literally the only thing we dealt with was my husband thinking it was too firm. I emailed the company asking for suggestions for ways I could make it softer, because no, I had no desire to return it, and they shipped me a mattress topper, a good one, at no extra charge. Again, that was years ago and I can’t guarantee they would do the same thing today, but that’s some serious customer service!

The mattress I’m linking to is probably the upgrade for mine. You can check it out RIGHT HERE.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Tiny House Part 3: The Purge

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I entitled this “The Purge,” but the purge actually happened in waves.

I’d already gotten rid of much of the junk my hoarder husband had insisted on keeping, and passed several of his things along to kids and grandkids, but in March I began the first true purge. There was a charity auction coming up and, even though I knew I would still be living in the apartment for another 5ish months, I pulled out everything that I 1) knew I could live without, 2) felt would bring at least something at an auction, 3) had confirmed that my kids wouldn’t want, and 4) couldn’t possibly take in the move, and I donated it all to the auction. I knew I still had a lot to let go of, including some things I really wanted to hang onto, but this move forward felt like an enormous success! It also helped raise hundreds of dollars.

The second wave of the purge happened as our floor plan was refined. There were some things that were non-negotiable. I had a queen mattress and, though I knew I’d be buying a new frame for it, I was not willing to drop down to a smaller bed. I also had a good-sized desk my son had just given me that I was determined to keep on the grounds that I needed it and it would serve as both work space and dining table. These two things were worked into the floor plan with about an inch to spare and determined the length of the bathroom (Which is the perfect size, by the way!) I was also set on keeping my lingerie chest, which provides an amazing amount of drawer space for its footprint.

With these things in mind, it was time to get real about what I needed, wanted, and couldn’t keep no matter what. The furniture that hadn’t gone in the auction was either given away or promised to others. The massive artwork that I felt would be completely out of scale for such a small space was also handed off to some who could appreciate it. I knew I would have limited closet space, so I hard purged my closet, getting rid of anything other than special occasion dresses that I hadn’t worn in the past year. I then pulled my out-of-season clothes and packed them away; I’ll explain that later. Then I measured what I had left. I was shooting for 3 linear feet of current hanging clothing. A lot hit the floor. I sent bags of clothes out the door.

I dealt with other things in similar manner, and worked towards actually living in that apartment the way I would end up living here. By that, I mean I figured out how I would store my shoes, I kept clothing in a small area, I rearranged my lingerie chest to accommodate my new lifestyle… In other words, I did my best to start tiny home living while still in the apartment.

The third wave of purging happened in those last few weeks. I’d hung onto some things just because, but in those final weeks I was giving away, throwing away, and donating things left and right. I knew I wouldn’t be doing much more than microwaving over here, so the only baking dishes I kept were two that will fit in my microwave. It and my electric kettle are my cooking team. Oh, and the toaster I just bought because I’ve been wanting peanut butter toast and hot Pop Tarts.

One of the most challenging parts of the purge was my book collection. If it weren’t for my kindle and my ability to store hundreds of books there, I would be in serious trouble. The book purge, itself, was actually a multi-step process as I slowly peeled my fingers off the spines of some of my long-time favorites.

I should mention that I’d been offered the option of storing some things elsewhere in the building, but I’d refused. I came into this journey determined to REALLY live in my tiny house. And truly, as I’ve lived here for the past several weeks, I’ve still found myself purging. Only when I got in here did I realize things like the fact that I had a ridiculous number of washcloths for one person – that’s actually what I passed along most recently. There have been several times when I’ve left things on my sister’s bar and texted to let her know they were there if she wanted them.

I’m still settling in, still finding the best way to have things stored, arranged, and used. I’ve gotten rid of things, purchased a few (very few) things, and tweaked left and right. Most excitingly, I had a friend who specializes in reimagining spaces come in and help me get out of the box. She made many suggestions that I was delighted to act on; created new storage solutions, decor, and art for me; and restaged the place. I love it even more today than I did before she came here last.

And so we’ve set the stage for the rest of my story. As we walk through this series, I’ll share things I’ve learned, specifics about choices that were made, and lots of photos showing how I live in my tiny dream home.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Tiny House Part 2: The Plan

Tammy M Cardwell4 Comments

If you haven’t read last week’s post, The Dream, you may want to start there. It’ll be a quick catch up.

So we had the basic area, and in coming weeks we discussed various fine points about the floor plan as they worked on it in the evenings and on weekends. This was a pretty constant back and forth as each of us realized or thought about certain things. For instance, they decided quickly that there was no way I’d be comfortable with the small shower stall we’d been considering, so they opted for a 36″ shower instead. (Bless them!) It wasn’t a huge difference, but it did affect the floor plan.

Too, I was determined to bring my washer and dryer, no matter what it meant giving up, so we measured and measured and measured again before settling on where these two appliances could go and exactly what base cabinets we could allow for the kitchen area.

One of the first things I did was get my hands on a pad of graph paper and start playing. I drew and redrew (to scale) as we adjusted and changed our minds about the big stuff (bath, washer, dryer, kitchen area, etc.), and then I cut out little pieces of sticky notes to represent the things I had to keep and the things I wanted to keep.

After a bajillion attempts, and a lot of help from them, we finally settled on this.

On the side of this image, you see a couple of pieces labeled pink chair and bookcase. Those were the last two “want to keep” items I had to get rid of. Everything else was “have to keep.” Well, I suppose that, technically, the bookcase could have gone, but it fits where it is and when I reach the point of posting pictures you’ll see how important it is to me.

Even after we settled on this, a few changes were made. I nixed the area of the closet labeled “shelves,” for instance, when I stumbled across a plan that would work and save them some time and money. Saving them time, effort, and money was a challenge. Several times I had to convince them that I didn’t need certain things – like flooring over this stained concrete that I love, and an actual door on the bathroom. I LIKE my bathroom curtain, and it’s only me here, so…

They wanted to give me perfection but with the limited time they had for the actual construction, perfection really wasn’t an option. Honestly, as I type this, there are still things needing to be finished as he finds the time to work on them because the calendar caught up with us. They literally only paused the work long enough for me to move in and then picked it back up for a few days to get things close enough to finished that they felt I could live here comfortably.

They have been absolutely amazing, and I bless God every day for this home that I’ve been in for a little over a month. In fact, as I was talking to God just yesterday I realized that I am as happy here as I ever have been in any other home I’ve ever lived in, happier than in most.

I’m literally living the dream.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Tiny House Part 1: The Dream

Tammy M Cardwell3 Comments

I’ve been fascinated by tiny houses since I first learned about them and I’ve always felt that, if I were alone, I could live in one and enjoy it. I loved the idea of getting rid of the unnecessary and paring my life down to what really matters.

Through the years, my conviction grew, especially as life with my husband became increasingly challenging. I pretty much ended up living in our bedroom until after his passing when I was able to “move back into” the rest of the apartment. Living in the whole house was amazing at first, but eventually it began to feel like too much. I didn’t need almost 1,000 square feet and, frankly, I grew uncomfortable with that much space.

When he passed on October 1 of last year, I lost his income, so I knew immediately that when my lease was up I would have to move out of our two-bedroom, one bath apartment. The challenge was that rents in our town have increased astronomically in recent years and my options were extremely limited. I knew that, if nothing else, my kids would welcome me into their home, but no one wants to do that to their children. Well, I didn’t.

I must pause to give glory to God here. Losing my husband’s income left me literally unable to pay the full rent. He’d been sick for nearly ten years, and life with him had been expensive. Our savings was gone, and the credit cards were maxed out. And no, as I imagine is true of many narcissists, he had no life insurance. No matter how tightly I ran the budget, how much I went without, I was consistently hundreds of dollars short of having enough to last a month. The money simply wasn’t there. BUT GOD WAS.

God provided faithfully. Every. Single. Month. For months on end, people gave me money without knowing why they were giving it. It was always exactly what I needed to make up for the shortfall. I did eventually start receiving my widow’s benefits, which made things worlds easier, but that was months later. God made sure my rent was paid one way or another in the meantime.

Eventually, after months of housing research and lots of prayer, not knowing what I was going to do, a beautiful offer was made to me. I was invited over and shown a small area inside a big building. “If we built this out, could you live here?”

“YES! I definitely could!”

And so, we jumped in. They started work on putting things together at their place, and I began taking things apart at mine. Some parameters were already set. The area they’d selected had originally been intended as a sort of pool house: It had three walls in place, one window, and an area that was already partially plumbed and would become my bathroom. The footprint was 22′ by 10′. Yes, I was moving into 220 square feet. My tiny home dream was going to become a reality at the same time my financial burden would be greatly reduced. Double win! (Well, triple win, because I was going to live only yards away from my very best friend.)

Within days of the decision being made, I’d gotten my hands on a pad of graph paper, mapped out what I thought would be the final footprint of my efficiency/studio/tiny home, and started reality checking. What were the necessities? What was possible? What was doable?

It was time to start working out a plan.

And this is the first in a series that will cover my tiny home life!

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C