Oh goodness – things are really changing around here: moving house, having a baby, Moira turning two (with a vengance some days). I haven’t wanted to talk about the house much since things are still sort-of up in the air. By that I mean we have to get a home inspection done (tomorrow afternoon!) to make sure everything is okay. But let’s be honest, except for those few moments I have chosen to lose myself in Harry Potter over the past week I haven’t been thinking of much else.
Totally not my kitchen... but maybe it could be?
In my mind I have been calling the house The Bungalow because it is, indeed, a bungalow. Built in 1955 it is just over 1000 sq feet sitting on a huge lot. There is an elementary school at the end of the street. In fact, Moira and Sprig (which is what we are currently calling #2) could conceivably walk to school until they graduate from high school if we stay in this house. We are buying it from a friend, it is his grandparent’s house and they have both recently moved into a care facility. I think they might have been the original owners. The last time they made any changes to the house was in the 1970s so there is a lot of work to be done. They raised five children in this 3-bedroom home. I don’t know how big our apartment is right now but to us this place seems Huge. It is pretty much my dream home – or it will be once I’m done with it.
Things I am excited about:
} Room for a garden, and a green house. The grandparents had a garden for years in the backyard so I know things can grow there. Not to mention a backyard to kick the kids into when they start driving me nuts.
} Cold storage. Yup – it has a cold storage room! The kitchen dosen’t have much storage space so I suspect we are really going to need it.
} A sewing room! There is a full basement that, no offense to grandpa, needs to be redone. We are going to take out the bar, add an office for the Mister, a guest room, a sewing room for me (which will remain open and accessible to the kids because I don’t believe creative spaces should be closed off from children) and – eventually - a second bathroom. But mostly I’m excited about the sewing space. I REALLY miss sewing.
} No more coin laundry! Plus in the backyard there is a clothesline that grandpa built many decades ago. The clothesline has a raised platform so nothing will drag on the ground and it stretches the length of the backyard. I think they must have had to take it down because there was a stupid bylaw for a while that said “no clotheslines” or maybe they just got old and couldn’t walk up the platform anymore. Either way – the clothesline is going back up (bylaw be damned but it has since been rescinded) which means I don’t have to use the dryer for months at a time! Now if only we could get that no chickens bylaw rescinded…
} The neighbourhood is perfect for us and fits almost all of our criteria: walking distance to the train and a grocery store plus some other shops. There is a huge city park that starts on the next block with a couple playgrounds, a stream and a wading pool. It isn’t walking distance to downtown but it isn’t far either and it is walking distance to the University which is always beneficial, plus on nice days we can still walk to the library, the mall we always run errands at and other places. Obviously being able to walk and/or use the train and having only one car is important to us. There is a one car garage too – which will be great since we can honestly go for days without driving and right now our car sits outside in the cold.
Also not my kitchen - and I would never have a TV in the kitchen even if they do look really happy.
There are a million other things I am excited about too but I think my sister is even more excited than I am because she keeps sending me links to places like Retro Renovation (where the above kitchen image is from) or sites for vintage 1950′s wallpaper. The kitchen is small and is going to be a challenge (tiny sink, no dishwasher – which, after about 10-years of living dishwasher free I was really looking forward to) but we are going to live in the house for a while before dealing with it. Did I mention that the previous owners raised FIVE children in this place? Yeah, I think we are going to be fine.
That is so very exciting! Fingers crossed. How old is the furnace, the roof?
I am so excited for you! And I am excited for me because you will probably post PICTURES! I love glimpses into houses that aren’t my own. My favourite design blog is http://makingitlovely.com/ by the way. Hope the inspection goes well.
How exciting! It sounds really well placed and ideal for a young family. Good luck!
It sounds really cute. The house we had in Austin was a ’56, ~1,000 sq. ft., and pink. We loved the house and the 50′s-era neighborhood. We really miss it sometimes. I hope you get it.
Kerry: Rest assured, there WILL be pictures. I think my sister and mother would lynch me if I forgot the camera tomorrow when we go back for the home inspection. I suspect there is going to be a whole new section on my Flickr account dedicated to the house.
Wil: We basically already have the house – the only thing that would change it at this point is if the home inspection revealed that the entire house was made out of asbestos or something really awful and needed to be ripped down – or there was just too much wrong with it to fixed. Most of the work we need to do is cosmetic/clean-up stuff.
I’m so excited for you! We are having no luck in the hunt / sell here, so this gives me great hope!
So so so excited for you! The best part to me (besides the fact that it will be yours!) is the yard. Oh, how I long for a yard that the kids could go out to. Can’t wait to see some pics!
Eeeee! This is so exciting! My fingers are crossed for the inspection to go smoothly – no secret asbestos! Too many exclamation points!
This is such marvelous news. A sewing room? An office for the Mister? Clothesline? Garden? Brilliant! If the inspection goes as planned, when will you take possession?
VERY exciting stuff. Best of luck with the inspection!!!
This is so exciting for you guys. I hope the inspection goes well tomorrow.
that is so awesome! i am jealous – i am DYING for a third bedroom. being so far away from friends and family means they all wanna stay with us when they come out for SIX WEEKS AT A TIME. it gets a bit squishy… a garden and a sewing room sound so good, even though i can’t sew.
Jenny: Yes, the yard is a BIG part of the draw for me. As the Mister keeps saying: we aren’t so much buying a house as we are buying location and property.
Andreae: The possession date is yet to be decided since it is a private sale and the house needs to be cleaned out of all the grandparents things which means the remaining kids need to come back to town to do it. I’m hoping for late April/beginning of May and then we can move in for June after the renos are done.
Desdemona: I can’t imagine anyone staying with us for SIX WEEKS AT A TIME. But then again, our family doesn’t live a whole continent away. It will be nice to have space for my parents to stay with us though – Moira will love having her grandparents around.
It sounds like you might be in Banff Trail/Capitol Hill – those are great neighhourhoods for access and car-less living.
I can’t wait to see the new place! Ryan managed it there for years. I’m sure I can hook you up with some 50′s era/inspired kitchen stuff!
yes, lynching will most definately be happening if your cheap with the photos.
Desdemona: I feel your pain, after 6 weeks with the in-laws (actually it was 9) after the supreme god was born…my hubby’s family is Asian, I was ready to give hell a whirl…after many, many years we have whittled it down to 3 weeks. Still not enough room by the end of it.
Yay! That’s so exciting!
And can I just say yay to the post war bungalow too? We just bought one too – although the 70s addition of a partial second story kind of negates the bungalow aspect. I’m so looking forward to a yard and trees and enough space for things to have a home, instead of the bedroom floor.
I know you’ve heard it from everyone, but I’m going to say it too. I am so excited for you! I haven’t been keeping up, but I was on flickr and saw some house pictures… and had to look further. Seriously, lady. Don’t let things overwhelm you… I found renovating so fun. You are going to have the time of your life in this new house. Good luck! Congratulations!
You’ll be having a housewarming party right? Would it be creepy if I showed up? Emphasis on the “I”.