Category Archives: Moving On

Our Piece Of The Dream

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So the scoop is this…we close on a house on August 5th! It has passed all the haggling and inspections have passed and we are in the home stretch. But let me back up for a second.

Back in June we were checking out our local reality company’s web listings. We were saving up for a bigger down payment and wanted to know what we could get for our money. Of course we had a list of things we wanted. Big on my list was a ranch style home with a finished basement, a great kitchen with original cabinets (didn’t want someone else’s renovation), 3 or 4 bedrooms, and 2 bathrooms. Ryan wanted a garage, a driveway and a good backyard. Well, we found it for a lot less money and a lot more square footage then we thought we could afford. It’s the answer to my mid-century modern dreams…*swoon*. Would you like to have a look?

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Courtesy of skogman.com here is a sneak peak of our 1957 dream home. It’s 2000 square feet and boasts 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a finished basement, garage (under the house) and a driveway. Would you like to see inside?

Notice the original cabinets? I’m in love! The built-in next to the fridge doesn’t match so it must have been put in later. I’ve been obsessively planning an update. But the layout is everything I always wanted. I even like the wall oven.

Close second to my love of the kitchen is the big livingroom window. It had me at hello. I also adored the little nook you see in the corner. It’s going to be a fabulous space for my desk and all the writing magic that goes on there. I’ve already been collecting paint swatches decided on curtains. Ryan requires curtains for privacy so I agreed to shears. I refuse to block any of that glorious natural light.

The first two pictures are the master bedroom with the his and hers closet. The next two are kids rooms. I’m actually pretty excited about the wood paneling in the smaller bedroom. I’m a big fan of painted wood paneling. Also don’t let the sliding doors fool you. Those closets are cavernous! There is even one in the hallway to store coats, shoes and the vacuum cleaner. The storage in the house is nothing short of awesome.

Check out the funkadelic plaid shag. Ryan actually likes it. The plan is for this to be the older girls bedroom and family room. They are only home every other week and 2 out of 3 girls are in high school this year. While a fourth bedroom would have been ideal we can’t have everything.

The backyard isn’t half bad either. We walked through the house on a Thursday night and put in our offer before we left. We know it was the right house for us. Sure we could have taken our time and looked at more, but we recognized that this was the only house on the market in our area that met the majority of our criteria. And it felt like home. In my book that was the most important part. I won’t tell you what we agreed to pay, but it was $20,000 less than we planned on spending when we thought we were waiting. We felt it was priced well so we went in strong. They didn’t accept our offer, but they countered well and we took it. Then the hunt was on for our financing. Turns out we qualify for a FHA loan. Why no one told us this back in March when I tried to get a pre-approval I’ll never know. But it’s ok because this house was waiting for us. Now fingers crossed nothing goes wrong before closing!

Gratitude…

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I know it’s been a while since I posted anything. There have been a lot of changes for our family. Many of them unexpected. Several months ago we found out we couldn’t qualify to buy a home. Now it turns out that we can! So today I just wanted to share how I feel.

With each step closer to our new home, I feel the weight of my gratitude. It comforts me like a warm blanket while I dream of projects and paint samples.

To be continued…

The Bright Side

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Moving sucks!!! Ok now that I have that my system I can focus on the bright side of moving. You didn’t know there was a bright side? One could argue there are several but I think they all just boil down to one. It’s a fresh start and who doesn’t love that. I have a golden opportunity and a really great excuse to clear out the junk and make big changes. And I love it!

My family has been cleaning, sorting, purging and packing. The rule of the house right now is “we are not moving junk!” Since this odyssey started we’ve been selling large items on Craigslist, taking smaller items to the consignment store and making daily trips to goodwill. Anything broken is trash but we are making every effort to keep stuff out of the land fill. Afterall, my junk could be someone’s treasure.

This makes way for a major upgrade! Whenever we move, my husband gives me license to redecorate (within reason). I can’t wait until it all comes together. Right now it’s just a vision in my head. Since I need a little break from the mountain of boxes, I thought I’d give you a little window into my head.

I’ve been spending a lot of time surfing other blogs for inspiration and I’ve been finding great stuff. One such inspiration came from Honey & Fitz. A recent post of that site featured the new Jonathan Adler line from JC Penny, Happy Chic. I love his bold and colorful take on mid-century modern. Here are some of the things that may find their way into our new home.

Happy Chic by Jonathan Adler Elizabeth Greek Key Pillow    Happy Chic by Jonathan Adler Elizabeth Greek Key Lamp Happy Chic by Jonathan Adler Elizabeth Shower Curtain

Can you tell I’m really digging navy blue and greek key? I’ve actually decided on a color scheme for the living room of navy blue, red and shades of grey. In fact I even bought a rug today. After stalking it on several web sites it finally went of sale and I got one sweet deal. How does 80% off and free shipping grab you? Yeah, it had me doing a happy dance too. Can you believe I paid a $163 for an 8 foot by 11 foot rug! Check out this beauty from Rugs USA

My new living room Rug!!! I got it in 8'3" x 11' at 80% off!!!!!!

It’s bold, I know. Trust me when I sat I am planning some solids to anchor all of this hotness. My living room isn’t the only room I’m fixated on. Target has some great stuff that I totally plan to make room for. The Nate Berkus line for Target has some good stuff.

Nate Berkus™  Nepal Chevron Comforter - Blue

Nate Berkus™ Aztec Diamond Bath Rug

That’s just the beginning of what’s going on in my head. Does anyone else suffer from this moving optimism? I promise as I unpack and bring rooms together I’ll be sure to share photos! The packing drill sargent is calling. Guess break time is over!

P.S. – None of the sites, stores or products that I referenced in this blog are paying me for this love fest. I just really love this stuff and it’s all my own opinions.

 

 

A Thrifty Situation

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It’s official. I’m on project overload. I counted it out today and we have 15 days until we move.  So I tried to make a list by day. I need to pack the house, clean the house, finish any little half-finished home projects (need to give the house back in tip-top shape) and finish any furniture projects that would be difficult to get done at the new place. To give you an idea of what my list looks like I’ll give you this weeks list.

  • Finish painting 2 coats of Silver Feather White on my kitchen cabinets, door frames and window frame. (I’m half way through this already)
  • Allow cabinets to cure for 2 days.
  • Clear coat cabinet doors and boxes. This will be a 3 day process for me.
  • Re-hang cabinets doors.

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This is the scene in my dining room tonight since it’s to cold to work out on the porch. But I’ll post about the kitchen when I get it finished. For now, lets continue with my list.

  • Call around to find a storage garage.
  • Start packing! The living room and dining room are first on my hit list.
  • List the entertainment center and TV on Craigslist (Don’t worry we have two).
  • Buy Sterilite storage tubs. I think I’ll start with five.
  • Start hauling boxes down from the attic and sort into three groups (donate/store/take)
  • Call and schedule movers.
  • Paint the upstairs hallway.
  • Start fixing up my recent furniture acquisition.

That brings me to the title of this post. I have a small situation. I have a tendency to complicate my own life. I’ve been doing a little shopping on Craigslist and local thrift stores. I don’t intend to find things. I’ve been selling items in an effort to down size and while I’m doing this selling I can’t help but notice some awesome stuff.

This weekend I happened to be in our local Stuff ETC. dropping off some things for consignment. While I waited for my items to be accepted or rejected I perused the furniture. I came across this diamond in the rough…

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This picture isn’t great but do you see the X-shaped legs on the far side? It caught my attention. I tried to walk away, I made it all the way to my second errand at Target (does anyone else find themselves in that store more than once a week). As I walked the isles I found myself justifying my purchase. Thirty minutes later I was back at Stuff ETC figuring out how to fit my new desk and two kids in the back of my Pacifica.

This desk is almost perfect. I have a strong dislike for honey oak wood tone. I prefer rich, dark wood tones. Right now I’m kind of loving the two-tone look that I’m seeing all over Pinterest. Since I’m moving into a smaller place, it occurs to me I should re-finish this piece before we move. But I have to many ideas! This is where you all come in.

I want your opinion. Here are my thoughts, I could paint the body white but stains the top and the drawers; paint the body a color (I dig coral or grey) and stain the top and drawers; or I recently found grey wood stain. I could stain the whole body of the desk and drawers grey and stain the top a deep brown. Leave your comments and tell me what you think! I only have 15 days to get it done so I’ll be making my decision soon. Be sure to weigh in! I’m counting on you.