You asked for it...

... and now you've got it!

Yesterday, the new house was inspected. I tagged along so I could see any potential problems - and brought my camera. So I bring you the virtual tour of the new house! If you're not interested in every little weird detail, skip this post. There's LOTS of pictures and a few comments to go along with them.


Walking in the front door... That's the diningroom over there. And a view opposite the front door looks out this really nice bank of windows. The window treatments stay. They're kind of non-descript, but the drapes ARE insulated, which will help with the drafty window situation for now. We'll have to replace all the windows. They're old, they leak, they're not insulated, and they're all screwed together because they don't lock or stay open. Yup - first expense, new windows!!!!


The kitchen is pretty big and open, but the cabinets are so dark that it kind of shuts down the room. I'm thinking of painting them a very light golden yellow and decorating them with some warm accent to open up the space. Also, that's a laminate between the countertops and the cabinets... thinking of covering that with a bright and cheery tile of some sort. The appliances are older (the dishwasher is positively ancient but is clean and it works). The oven and stove also work and are in like-new condition even for their age. The flooring is brand new... and white. I swore I would NEVER have a white kitchen floor again, but hey. I can live with this for a while if I have to.


The family room is part of the kitchen. That carpeting is going to come up and be replaced with a wood floor. There might even be one under there already - we just don't know. And of course the absolute jewel of the house - the back deck!!! Note that there are three fans. If you don't live in the South, or in Florida in particular, you may be wondering what the heck you would do with fans outside. One word. BUGS. They have a tough time hanging out if the air's moving. So if you have an outdoor space with a roof, you want fans to keep the air moving.


The bathroom off the family room. This is one example of how something really obvious can slip right past you. The space is nice, it has a new mirror and light fixture, but somehow I managed to miss the fact that the toilet was PINK!!!! Yeah. That's gotta go.


We are also blessed with interesting, unusual and very dated lighting. I'm sure someone would pay big bucks for some of these fixtures. I'm willing to sell. While I appreciate funky fixtures and believe they lend character to a home, these just don't fit within my plan. I'll live with them for a bit, but as soon as I can do it, they will come down. It's just not my highest priority at the moment.


Long hallway and the master bath. All the shower valves need to be replaced, and the toilet is just sitting there, the bolts having rusted off. Unsuspecting throne-sitters could be in for an unpleasant surprise. There are no pictures of the medicine cabinets but those will need to go too. They are those ancient, flourescent light-across-the-top with sliding panels kind. Ugly even if they are functional.


The master bedroom. It's a long rectangle, which is nice. Our bed just doesn't really fit in the room we're in now. It's a king, and it covers up one vent no matter how we place the thing. King beds and square rooms just aren't meant for each other. This room has plenty of room for the bed and dresser and the walk-in closet will hold ALL of our clothes!!!! I must say a word about the decor at this point. The paint and the carpets all need to go/be changed. The color really darkens the house, the carpet is not cleanable upstairs. Too much dog poo for too long. A shame as it's high quality carpet, but the color is odd too which makes pulling it out all the easier. I'm not sure what to say about the island theme that seems to run throughout this house except that it's definitely NOT me. I find the basket with a sheet and a baseball bat a rather amusing touch, however.

Tiny pictures of the main bath. The wallpaper is hideous, it's got another one of those terribly classy medicine cabinets, and those adorable non-skid stickers in a lovely shade of purple in the tub. If any of you know how to get rid of those without ruining the tub, I would appreciate your input... What I love about the bathrooms? The tile floor! The color is nondescript, but the shape is marvelous. You do not find tile like this just everywhere anymore.


Z-boy's room. The light is good, the size is perfect and the closet space is phenomenal!!!! A walk-in closet on one side and a whole WALL of closet on the other. No more tripping over toys because there's no place to put them!!! OMG I can't wait!


Oh, yeah. This would be our summer house if we could afford such a thing. Lucky for us, our summer house and our main residence are going to be one in the same!

I am so excited! We hope to close on April 9th (will confirm on Monday). Our lease is up on June 1st, so we have time to get some work done and move in a leisurely fashion without stressing out to the max over everything. I am rubbing my hands together and looking at paint chips and figuring out how to pay for windows and new flooring without killing us. This is the kind of challenge I absolutely adore. Make it great without breaking the bank and doing most of the work myself.

And Darling Man? He is quite content to sit back and let me have my way with this house. As long as the hot tub and the pool are in good working order (and they are), he is happy with whatever I decide. You just gotta love that!