I've missed y'all! (And some big news...with pics!)

ugaimes

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Hey everyone
,
It's been a while! I've been very busy with work and grad school, so I haven't had too much extra time to spend online these past few months. I'm between classes this week (the next one starts Monday) and I wanted to get back on here and reconnect with some old friends
.

I'd give an update on the kitties, only there isn't much to update y'all on. They're still sweet and funny as ever and Cosette is still absolutely daddy's little girl
.

Now, on to the big news: The thing that has REALLY eaten up my time has been house-hunting and then loan-preparing; as of last month, Bradley and I are first-time homeowners!!! We found this little 3BR/1BA (hey, we had to sacrifice something) house that needs a LOT of fixing up, but it is very inexpensive (only $50 more per month than we spend on rent! So we won't be "house poor"!) AND it sits on a very large lot. The plan is to live in this house for a couple of years, get some plans together, and then build our dream home on the lot behind us (his family's in the contracting business, so that won't be too expensive) and rent this house out for extra $$! It's really an investment property, so we're going to take full advantage of it.

Anyway, the house needs a LOT of work on it before we move in in early April. Last week we sanded and drywalled, this week we're priming and painting EVERYTHING, next week we install new windows throughout, and in the last week we sand & refinish the hardwood floors and tile the kitchen. THEN it'll be ready for us and the kits!

Here are some of the "before" pics of the house:

The archway as you're standing in the living room looking into the dining room (pre-paint job!)


The big picture window in the living room. All of the windows are in poor condition (they're 57 years old!), so they're being replaced. But the cats are going to LOVE having such a large window to look out during the day!


View of the kitchen. The backsplash/countertops are being replaced and the floor is being tiled, but we absolutely love the knotty pine cabinets- they're staying!


Bradley removed all of the old vents and they'll be replaced with new ones. This is the living room, which will soon be painted a really pretty sea blue color.


We took out the carpets in the bedrooms to find this gorgeous heart pine floor underneath!


The bathroom- we really love the pink tiled floor!


I'll share more "during" and "after" photos (as well as some outroors shots!) as I get them uploaded. It's good to be back!
 

epona

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Welcome back! Ah what a joy to find nice wooden flooring under the carpet! It doesn't look that bad at the moment, and I just know it's going to look fantastic when all the work has been done! Great as well that you are going to be able to build a place of your very own in due course - I'd love to be able to do that!
 

neetanddave

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Hey, I remember you!!!
Good to see you back, and great pics. We just bought an older home built in 1956, but ours had already been redone! We missed out on that part of the fun...


Welcome back, keep the pics coming!
 

mooficat

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wow great news and photos
and how exciting, the thought of having your own dream house built
thats just fantastic.

Well lots of luck with the re-work and keep us posted !

Glad to have you back - enjoy the catching up and give those kits some scritches from us
 

clixpix

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Welcome back!
The house looks great! Congratulations!
 
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ugaimes

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Thanks for the welcome y'all
. neetanddave, that is so cool you just bought a house with so much "charm" too! Ours was built in 1950- it's incredible how different (in a good way, in many aspects) homes from that time are from homes built more recently. Be GLAD you missed out on the home remodeling part- it's a beast!
 

kittylover4ever

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Amy, that house looks so cute!! Good for you!! Keep the pics coming! What style is the outside?
 

sillyjilly

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Wow, great news
and the house looks really nice even in the before shots. I can't wait to see how it turns out! I know how much time it takes for house hunting as me and DH have been sortof house hunting for a year now and even at the sortof pace it's a lot of work! Congrats to you both! (and the kitties of course!)
 

emily_325

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I envy you so much! I can't wait to buy my first house and get to do all of that work and remodeling. (I'm a freak, the ieda of all of that work sounds like fun to me...
)

It looks GREAT and it sounds like you have big plans. Welcome back!!!
 
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ugaimes

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Wow, thanks for all of the nice compliments on the house
. I feel better about it just hearing those! I'm just trying my best to visualize how it's going to look after everything is done, we are unpacked, and all of my decorating ideas come to fruition!

Susie, the house cinder block (as are the majority of the other houses on that street), which is a pretty good thing to have when you live in a hurricane zone!! Right now, it's painted this salmony-pink color with red shutters (???) and green trim. After we move in, we're going to re-paint the outside (probably white with grey trim and black shutters) and probably eventually stucco it. We mowed the lawn last week and found some nice St Augustine grass in the yard! There are some nice areas that are all ready to be landscaped with flowers and plants and we've set aside a little area to start a garden!
 

miss mew

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Welcome back Amy!! glad to hear that things are good with you. Jeff and I are also first time home owners but we don't take posession until May 30th. We'll have to share decorating ideas!
 

katiemae1277

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Welcome back! congrats on the house, can't wait to see it when its all finished!
 

fred&nermal

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Congratulations on finding such a great house! I love the big window in the front. That will look great when you replace it. What type of window are you going to put in? Finding hidden hardwood under carpets is such a great thing too! It looks like it's in good condition.
The pine cabinets have a lot of character. Very cozy. What type of counter top will you replace the existing ones with? Will you go light or dark, stone, wood or laminate?
I love this sort of stuff. Home renos etc.
I agree with you about the old versus new. My house is 130 years old, while my parent's house is less then 20yrs. There's is much draftier than mine, if you can believe it.
Good luck with it and have fun!
I'm fairly new to TCS (like 3 months about) so you may not know me. Hi!
 

eilcon

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Hey, Amy!
Glad to hear you, Bradley and the girls are doing well. Congrats on the new house. It looks like it has so much character. It's great to have you back!
 
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ugaimes

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Originally Posted by Fred&Nermal

Congratulations on finding such a great house! I love the big window in the front. That will look great when you replace it. What type of window are you going to put in? Finding hidden hardwood under carpets is such a great thing too! It looks like it's in good condition.
The pine cabinets have a lot of character. Very cozy. What type of counter top will you replace the existing ones with? Will you go light or dark, stone, wood or laminate?
I love this sort of stuff. Home renos etc.
I agree with you about the old versus new. My house is 130 years old, while my parent's house is less then 20yrs. There's is much draftier than mine, if you can believe it.
Good luck with it and have fun!
I'm fairly new to TCS (like 3 months about) so you may not know me. Hi!
Hi
. Nice to meet you!
We are putting in Energy Star, hurricane-grade vinyl windows (the type you tilt out to clean, thank God). We're going to stay with laminate countertops (we don't want to sink too much money into what will become a rental!), but we found some very nice countertops that will go great with the terra cotta paint and tile we've picked out for the kitchen!
That's incredible that your house is 130 years old. What is the upkeep like in that?? I'd love to see pics!


Originally Posted by MissMew

Welcome back Amy!! glad to hear that things are good with you. Jeff and I are also first time home owners but we don't take posession until May 30th. We'll have to share decorating ideas!
Congrats to you and Jeff!!
How exciting! Does it need a lot of work or will you be able to move right in? Enjoy the day you close on your house- it's very exciting!!
 

oscarsmommy

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Congrats on the home, Amy! It looks beautiful!

Trav and I are looking at houses as well and I am more than excited! But I think we are going to plan our wedding first. I can't wait to get out of this apartment though
 
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