 |
| Watching her Auntie Anna school. |
 |
| I'm back in the saddle again... |
 |
| Hard day's work! |
Barring the deranged kid with the gun hiding in the field, the wasp nests hidden in various places around the farm, a few bovine encounters, a rebellious cat, Shannon's allergic reaction to her sinus infection antibiotics, and Mike and I coming down with the plague (why can men never fall ill gracefully?!), everything went really well! A huge thanks to my right and left hand, Anna. Without her I'd be down a headful of hair. She's amazing!!
My Mom also deserves much more than I could ever give her. She stepped up and really helped make things as easy as she could for me when it came to making sure that Shannon was happy. It's hard to juggle a baby at the barn, but make it 100 degrees and its just miserable.
The other reason that we've been so busy, is that Mike and I have offically starting house hunting.
 |
| Really early in the morning.... |
We've seen about a dozen, and I'll tell you, it's both exciting and overwhelming at the same time. We've seen some really sketchy properties, some places that really make me question peoples taste is decor, and one place that had a huge chunk of the foundation missing. We've also found four properties that we like, and both have an equal amount of pros and cons. I keep having to remind myself that this isn't going to be our forever home and that it doesn't have to be perfect to be our first place, but it seems like A LOT of money to be plunking down. Our realtor is amazing, and we love him!
The first place (we'll call it the Short Sale) has a fantastic split level layout, awesome kitchen, ample back yard and a really handy full bath in the laundry room. It's maxing out our budget by 10K, though, and it's a short sale. The location is okay, but not fantastic. The street is a lovely, quiet cul-de-sac, but it's in a rougher part of town. When you live a nomadic life, like we do, we don't want to be waiting 6-8 months to close on a place! It's move in ready, and the layout upstairs is really nice. Everything is in on the same level (minus laundry), so the first floor is just bonus space. Big yard, but not fenced in. Lovely back deck off the dining room.
The second place (we'll call it... umm... the Blue House) is great! Awesome location, pool, hot tub, finished basement with a great playspace (with a full bathroom!) and a den. Fenced in yard on a nice quiet street. The taxes are pretty high, and a pool would be expensive to maintain. Laundry room is in the basement, so that's three sets of stairs to drag laundry up and down. Rental potential is great, but the amount of insurance that we'd have to have because of the pool would be insane.
The third place (the School House) has so. much. charm. It's from the 1800s, and was an old school house. 100% PERFECT location. It has a lot of great features, including a woodstove in the den, an amazing fenced in yard with a fire pit, a brook, and a hot tub. It has oodles of history, and many of the original features are still there (including the old school bell!!). Old houses have quirks though and once you get one thing started, everything usually snowballs. Stairs are extremly steep and narrow. Moving our furniture in would be something!
The final house (the Bungalow) has military history, is in an extremly small, quiet neighborhood. The whole house has been re-done, and it has brand new paint/carpet/kitchen. It has amazing views and is extremly below our budget. The low assocation fees cover landscaping and plowing in the winter, which is a big plus for me (mostly since Mike will be leaving for another school again) not to have to worry about it. Taxes are the lowest as well. It's way out there, though. It's probably the furthest that we've seen, and the road leading to it is pretty rough. Potholes big enough to ingest my giant SUV. It's also tiny. Like 1,000 sq ft tiny, with no closets. It also doesn't have central heat. There are two heaters in two of the bedrooms but the size of the house doesn't make that a huge issue. It would be easy to cool in the summer.
 |
| This pretty much sums everything up. |
What say you, those who read? Weigh in on your pick! We're going to keep looking, and keep our options open. We have two different tastes, which makes it hard. Mike also doesn't really get excited about... well... anything. Except when I re-stock the fridge with beer.
I'm off, my dear friends. Shannon got a new Johnny Jump-Up today and is having a great time spinning herself in circles!
No comments:
Post a Comment