The First Story

I am back and ready to be unpacked. We closed on our house last Tuesday afternoon (right before I went to work) and basically moved everything over Tuesday evening and Wednesday. Katie and I cleaned out the old house Wednesday morning and worked really hard so I wouldn't feel back about leaving for Orlando on Friday night for shopping and a girl's night out! We had lots of fun together and immediately began by eating at Mimi's Cafe and then heading to Kirkland's for things to decorate with! I have quite a few things for the family room, except I need help hanging them. So, for now, they sit on the floor. Saturday morning, we went to Disney's Wide World of Sports for the Half Marathon expo where we picked up our packets and info. We walked around for a while, but then it just got really crowded, so we left and went to the outlet malls. Carter's did not have good prices on things, so Rachel got a fleece snowman sleeper on clearance for next year. I found some cute stuff at Old Navy that I thought would be perfect for our cruise (in 3 weeks!!!) We so need a break. Matt was a real sport and took Katie's 3 girls and Rachel up to church for a dinner where they all got fed and the kids were being watched by someone else, but he did have to listen so some guy and his wife's rehearsed speech. We skipped church on Sunday morning because of the service that was going on and got some work done around the house. Katie and Joy ran great in the half marathon and I was slightly bummed that it wasn't me, but oh well.

Here is a tour of the first story of the house:

I was almost to the end of our driveway when I took this picture. We have a large front yard and still a good sized backyard. The house is on .82 acres. It is an odd blue color that really needs to be pressure washed, but someday we will paint the siding. The front porch is screened in.

I was standing in line with our front porch so all of this is our yard. We have a lot of mature trees that provide great shade and lots of leaves. Our house is right off a somewhat well traveled road. It is normally not too busy, but the RR tracks around our house are closed so there is a lot of traffic as this road is a detour. It is pretty quiet and I don't really hear any noise from the road unless it is a siren or loud music.

This is Matt's shed in the backyard. It appears much smaller than his old one and we were wondering how he was going to fit all of his stuff in it, but somehow he did, except our bikes. A few Christmas items went up in the attic and the lawn mower (we got a riding mower off Craig's List) sits under cover, but behind the shed.
This is the back of the house. The back porch isn't huge, but it is nice that it is screened in too. When all of the patio furniture goes on clearance in the fall/winter, I plan on getting some. There is a paved sidewalk from the back porch to the front porch that you can see. That is really nice and somewhere safe that Rachel can play. I just need some toys out there. For now though, she likes to pick up leaves and throw them in the air.

The inside of the porch. The siding is a different shade of blue. The raised floor that you see what going to be a shower and was framed in, but before we actually bought the house, we removed it and Matt had to buy siding. It was the closest color he could find. I like having an entry way into the laundry room for Matt to leave his dirty work boots. There is another door immediately to the left that goes into the kitchen.

The kitchen is an awful looking room because of the bright yellow walls, which carried over the faces of the cabinets. For now, I just don't care. I figure in a year or so, we will redo the kitchen. It is a good size and has a lot of potential. Fortunately, there is a good amount of cabinet space, but it is lacking a pantry.

The eating area, which is on the left side of the kitchen. I love all of the windows and we get a really nice breeze too.
Off of the kitchen is a dining room (someday). For now, it is Rachel's playroom and her newest toy is a roller coaster. Our new renter gave that to us because her boy was too big for it. Rachel loves it and can push the car back up herself.

Looking out of the playroom is the foyer, which is just holding stuff right now. To the left is the front door. When you go through the french doors, that is the office.

We couldn't get our old desk out, so it was broken in the process. We are on the lookout for a nice desk. I have nowhere to put my things, but I have a little setup going for my couponing.

If you go out of the kitchen (not through the playroom) and turn right down a hallway, it leads in to the laundry room. The flooring is awful, but a good cleaning helped a lot. The vinyl is tearing in some places, but it is just a laundry room. Thankfully, the extra freezer and fridge could fit inside and we now have a utility sink too! I just need a cabinet or shelving for my stockpile of laundry items/cleaners and I will be good to go. The red thing is a central vac, but I am not going to use it and I hear that it is really loud.

Down the same hallway as the laundry room is a half bath. It has this awful toilet (why does every guy think it is cool?) that I really want to replace, but now that Matt has fixed the leak, he wants to keep it. Ugh.

When you walk out of the kitchen and go straight, you go by the stairs and into the family room. It seemed small at first, but once we figured out something with the furniture, it is just the right size. It has one door on each side of the fireplace.

Don't worry, I have things to put on these bare walls.

Last but not least is the newest addition to our home:

CABLE TV It ended up being only a little extra and to get the faster internet package, it made sense. I didn't care, but I think Matt wanted it. When the guy came to install it, I asked Matt where the DVR was. He said we weren't getting one because it was $5 extra per month. I said if we were getting cable, I wanted to be able to record and watch things when I wanted to. And now we have a DVR. Someday when I have the house in order, I will sit down during Rachel's nap and watch something. Maybe in a month. I do like watching TV when I fold laundry.

The rest of the house will be in another post.