Our old house...
In this economy and market everyone said the hard part was going to be selling..well for us the hard part was buying.....In early January we accepted an offer on our house which for this market we felt was a decent price. We got more than we paid for it in 2002 and only had it on the market for 42 days! We also figured we got out of it almost exactly what we had put into it..almost.. We were very excited! But that also meant I was mentally going crazy trying to find a house. We went out day after day starting in November looking at SO MANY HOUSES from Naperville to Bolingbrook to Plainfield and back again... On MLK day we went out without the girls thank you Jesse for watching them and literally looked at 18 more houses..and the one we kept comparing everything to was one house we saw back in early December..it was all trade offs but we took my Mom and Dad with us the next night and decided to put an offer on a house that had only been on the market for 4 days and had another offer already which is unheard of in this economy. We figured it was a long shot but we ended getting our offer accepted..crazy...beautiful house..huge garage..but further than I wanted to live..5 days later the sellers backed out...so on to house #2. Much Smaller garage but immaculate (cause they didn't have kids), closer to where I wanted to live..same schools as a friend of mine that could have taken Sam to school with her son..finished basement that had a unfinished 21'x13' workout room in the back that Andy agreed could be finished as my dance studio as soon as we moved in! I was pumped...we negotiated for over a week which again was a little strange but we got it..pool table and all...did the home inspection only found a few minor things... realized it had no linen closet..anyway... 4 days later they backed out on us..long crazy story but they sold it to a cash offer even though we told them we could have cleared our sale contingency or we only had a few weeks before we were closing...but the crazy people backed out.... so we were so upset...I kept having to tell myself everything happens for a reason..(and still on Redfin.com it still says this house hasn't actually closed...hmmm) We had to move onto house #3--we put an offer in..this was the first house we liked back in early December. It was priced a little high cause the guy had just gotten divorced and paid more for the house in 2006 than he even listed it for--we needed him to come down..but we also needed a house in only a few weeks so the games began...we negotiated and got the house. It is smaller than the others (and less$$) but had everything we wanted except brick on the front and the girls rooms weren't as big as I would have liked them to have..everything finally worked out... Andy and I love that it is in a pool community with a clubhouse etc. We back a pond which at first I was nervous about but it has been so fun to see the wildlife and Sammy actually picked the smallest bedroom just so she could face the pond. I find myself just standing at the patio door just zoned in on watching the egrets and the herons and the different varieties of ducks and the muskrats..its like living in front of an episode of national geographic!We laugh about how in 2002 when we decided to move out of our townhouse we HAD to have a yard with a fence for Slater and really wanted at least 3 bedrooms and a finished basement would be great. I wanted a space that if I was coaching I could have all the girls over to watch film...these things are important to a recently married 26 year old dancer... So the house we chose in 2002 had a fenced yard with a great patio a finished basement with an office and 3 bedrooms plus a loft upstairs...Well this time we needed better schools, first and foremost, but we really wanted at least 4 bedrooms, a bigger family room, and a 3 car garage. Oh how the priorities change. We feel we accomplished our most important need and even most of our wants! 4 bedrooms plus a den/office 3 car garage wonderful family room etc.. However, we bought a house with no fence, a tiny builder issued deck, and an unfinished basement...I am excited to have a clean slate to make the basement what WE want but like I said how the priorities change. I should maybe not say WE cause I already have claimed an area in the basement that will someday be a dance studio for my girls and I and another area that will be a craft room..and an area for the girls dress up closet etc...we will see when that actually gets done...
Our new house
We are very fortunate that we were able to do all this right now and we were also able to take advantage of the $6500 tax credit.We are getting things together day by day and last weekend met a ton of our neighbors when it was so nice out and I already got invited to play Bunco! yeah! I played (still do for now) in my old neighborhood and it is just a fun night out! I obviously should have been inside unpacking and organizing but it was nice to meet people!!! We got a new fence this week which is so nice to not have to worry about Slater on a tie out which he has never had to have and when we were in the yard I was always so paranoid my little fish (Alaina) would jump in the pond... : )
SO in the end we are so happy to be in a new place where we hope our kids will be very happy!
It was hard on me though for the last few weeks in our old house to think how we not only brought both our babies to that house after they were born but we are pretty sure we conceived both girls in that house too. I know TMI. And Alaina will not even remember that house. I would sit in the girls rooms and cry. I took so many pictures in the old house..
Ali and Sam in the old "Nursery"
It was Sam's then Ali's room
Sam in her old Mermaid Room
We had done so much to make it ours and upgrade things etc. It was hard to move. But I know we needed to make a change and now I have a new space to make ours.. now if I only could find some time to accomplish that it would be even better..and to all my decorating friends I need your help! : )
