The first real candidate

And by candidate, I do not mean the impending presidential election...ick.

No, no, this is much more fun :)

My first house!!!!!

I've been threatening to do this for years, and I'm now at a point, financially at least, that I am able, in fact that it would be foolish not to. With the economy the way it is I can't afford to not take advantage of the interest rates right now. I've already been pre-approved for my loan. I've also qualified for a grant for my down payment because I'm a first time home buyer.

Of course the very first house I went to see, I fell in love with and wanted to make an offer than and there. Fortunately, my fantastic realtor just smiled and nodded, patted my head and urged me to see a few others first. Once we were done getting that pesky chore over with I made Dad immediately meet us at the first house to get his "dad" approval. Once inside he gave me a sideways glare, went downstairs, and quickly (and I must, grudgingly, admit wisely) squashed all my hopes and dreams. Turns out I fell in love and love is blind :) Aren't dad's the best thing ever!!!

So after a couple of days of licking my wounds I bucked up and went on the hunt again. This time nothing screamed my name. And I was a little more careful to look for small details such as level floors, windows less than 100 years old, storage for my millions and millions of things, usable space in the basement...ya know...the basics :)

Anyway, I think I've found one that I can really be happy in....now don't get my wrong, it's not a perfect mansion, it's not a vintage charmer either....it needs work....a lot of work. But it's work I can do. It's got great bones, tons of space for me and room to grow if I chose to go that route. It was a rental and it is a short sale. The hardwood floors are in great shape, but the tile floors are even glued down to the floor anymore. That's ok though, because I'm not a fan of tile so I would have ripped them up anyway.

The walls have holes (most have surprisingly been patched by the tenants) and every inch needs painted. Again, something I was intending to do no matter what.

The yard is huge so I can do a lot with it. It has a couple apple trees. It's got a great place for my chickens. There's no sprinkler system so that's a project Dad and I will try to take on next year with any luck.

I also want to knock out an archway in the wall between the family room and first bedroom (there are 5 bedrooms so don't worry haha) This will be turned into a living/dining/library/piano room....basically a formal spot for most of my books and heirloom piano and I could have a nice dinner in there if I ever get nice people to come over to eat :)

Anyway, I won't get too detailed oriented and bore you with all my plans....I still have 2 more houses to see tomorrow and even if (when) I do put an offer on this one it will still be pending bank approval...and rumor has it this whole process could take a very long time. But I am so ready to get things rolling. I'm ready to roll up my sleeves, get a little dirty, and get a little in control of my life and all that is attached to it :)

So without further ado, come take a tour of my hopeful house :)

Family Room - can't, for the life of me, decide on a color.

Kitchen - deciding between reddish and cream checkered vinyl tile floors or slate looking vinyl.

I love the backsplash tiles and corner sink! So much potential!

That door goes to the backyard - cat door will be replaced with dog door...we don't mess around here.

First of 3 bathrooms...that's right....3...anyway, tons of bathroom storage! There's even a mirrored medicine cabinet to the left so I can see the back of my head :)

This is the multi purpose room - the wall on the right is where there will be a big arch to get into the family room :) I'm thinking a dark bluish grey in here...will look awesome with all my Alaskan relics!

Hallway with more storage. That pink room Mom's going in to will be my sewing room...2 windows and great light.

Master bedroom with decent closet space...needs some updating but great for potential and starting off.

Master bath...without the bath hehe...it's really just a toilet and sink, but it's in the master bedroom....it's perfect! And really cute....I want slate floors and deep teal walls :)

Washer Dryer on the left. Then that dark space has a door so it's perfect for storing  my harvested garden whether I  bottle it or it's just lose potatoes, squash, onions, etc. Then in takes a right and keeps going under the stairs.

Access to the downstairs tub...ya know, just in case haha

Huge yard!!! Big maple on the left shading my huge patio, 2 apple trees on the right. That shed is giant and it has a dog run wrapped around which will be perfect for the chickens. Then a huge play jungle gym for my childlike fantasies....or company haha

This is the shed...see? Told you it was huge!

I'm standing at the shed so this gives you another idea of the size of the yard...yes, I know I'll have to water and mow it....:)

Here's the single garage...it's deep with plenty of space for more storage.

I can throw some shelves in right there...also, yes, that is a chimney. No, there is no fireplace, but there is a chimney hole downstairs so maybe someday :)

Sideyard....if I'm lucky I might be able to fit a little pop - up trailer there.....or maybe I'll splurge on a real trailer and just store it down the street and Aunt Patrice's :)

Other side yard...envision my raspberry patch here if it gets enough sun....I'll have to keep an eye on that...