Hi, my name is….not Laurel. It’s Beth (Kinda want to say Slim Shady right now!) I’m a wife and mom of two boys, ages 18 (W) and 11 (Beau). I’m a nursing instructor at my alma mater, and it’s the best job in the world. My husband, Michael, is the funniest person you will ever meet. We live in the Athens GA area, and are huge Georgia Bulldog fans (like seriously, I was telling Michael the One Room Challenge schedule in October, and he said, “but that’s football season”).
In Savannah- one of our favorite places.
Michael made these robes, and the boys wear them on Bulldog picture day. He is infinitely more creative and artistic than I am!
I love design- but I am definitely an amateur. Don’t worry though! I’m currently completing my education through a combination of design books, shelter magazines, and a whole lot of Bloglovin.
So why “Avenue Laurel”? A few years ago, we moved from what we thought would be our forever home- a large, beautiful home with a pool in an established neighborhood. It had literally been my dream home- I used to drive by it and dream about living there one day- but then it just wasn’t anymore. We were too spread apart. I could see the future of our family, with each of us on a different level (3) of the house, and Michael constantly working on the pool or yard. And we were paying a lot of money for rooms of the house we hardly ever used. We decided to downsize, sold the house, and bought a house we named Laurel. I named the blog after Laurel- she was the “avenue” to the life we wanted 🙂
For awhile, Laurel seemed perfect. Laurel was 120 years old, full of charm and character, but in very good shape. She needed a ton of updates though, and we had fun making those updates. We loved Laurel.
But…what got us what what always does with houses, in the end…location. We were craving more privacy. We talked about how nice it would be to live somewhere in the country, surrounded by woods instead of houses.
Against everything we ever thought or said we would do, we sold Laurel. We bought a house that is almost the anti-Laurel- a brick ranch! And-gulp- it’s as big as our “dream house”. But it has a charm of its own. It’s out in the country, we can’t see our neighbors, and the only sound we hear is the train and the sound of the chickens clucking.
Living in three houses that are totally, completely different has taught me a lot. Like how many mistakes I can make, but I’ve learned a lot too.
Other random stuff: 1- I hate having my picture taken. I had my 11 year old take my profile picture because it was less embarrassing than having another adult do it. Also much more fun (Smile Mama! I’ll give you some jelly beans!) 2- I am an RN, and I graduated nursing school with my mom in 1999! She was by far the better student 🙂 3- The only television show I watch regularly is The Walking Dead 4- I truly appreciate almost any design style. My Pinterest boards are a mishmash of modern/farmhouse/traditional all mixed together, and I love them all!
Awkward “hurry up and get me out of here” smile. Bird poop on the swing. Not a perfect after. Photography by Beau.
I hope that Avenue Laurel can help those of you who are like me- who love design, who maybe tinker with DIY a little bit, and want a little bit of inspiration or just some commiseration. Above all, I want AL to be real. I don’t want AL to be a blog that only shows the perfect after. Because, what’s the fun in that?
To contact me or for info on collaborations, email beth@avenuelaurel.com