This is the post I thought I’d NEVER get to write…
But it’s official.
We now have a home.SWEET. HOME!
2053 sq. feet of *almost* perfection.
and 1/4 acres of complete chaos.
Perhaps in the spring…
Let’s be clear: It was a LONG, tough road.
One I probably wouldn’t take again.
It was way too much to take on at once.
Was it worth it?
Definitely.
But before we get on with it…
I need to give a VERY sincere thank you THANK you THANK YOU to everyone who put their blood, sweat and tears into this place.
Although most of the tears were probably mine.
The sweat wasn’t.
I feel so lucky...this house fits us perfectly…and it’s still an amazing work in progress.
But I feel lucky because I get to think about all the love and sacrifice that went into it’s creation.
It really was just a shell…I got to pick out almost everything we see…
It was designed with our family and our tastes in mind.
It’s not like some house you buy where the previous owner loved gold everything…
No old, ugly kitchen to remodel.
Just the perfect one from the start.
And the hardwood floors that were laid one by one…
By yours truly, actually…
Ok…and about 4 other people…
But I like to look around and see everyone’s individual contribution to our house…
An extra special shout-out goes to the Gigi and grandmas out there…
Who willingly took our kids so I could feel human and productive…if only for a short while.
This post is going to be all over the map. After all, I really have a good 2 months worth of stuff to catch up on…
not to mention the whole building a house from drywall stuff.
Designing bathrooms and kitchens and picking paint colors, baseboards, tiles…flooring… omg. the list is so overwhelming…and just when you think you can’t take any more…
…you have another decision to make.
I’m currently struggling with the exterior paint colors. And the painters are coming today.
Let’s hope I can drum up a choice.
In any case,…
We are alive…and with each box that gets unpacked and moved into the garage, our house becomes more of a home.
The girls are sleeping great… Lauren has even taken a nap everyday… I had all but given up on those.
Saturday was Chloe’s birthday and it was so nice to just spend the day here…we did a couple things around town and took the girls to the local frozen yogurt place…
and then the weather changed.
like something out of a movie, it just started getting really windy, the sky became dark, almost black and there was a lightening storm…
And before we knew it, there was a fire we could see from our bedroom window…
Flames up on the closest mountain ridge…
and our little community was told to be prepared to evacuate at a moments notice.
Thankfully, after a couple hours of literally smelling rain but seeing none, just after the sun set, it started to rain…
Enough to extinguish the risk of having to evacuate and Chris and I spent the next couple hours relaxing in our closet by hanging a closet shelving system.
Which we promptly filled even after setting aside 3 gigantic boxes of clothes to donate.
I’m so grateful that we didn’t have to evacuate on our second day in the house.
That would have just been our luck.
Others weren’t so lucky yesterday when another nearby town evacuated all residents. I haven’t heard much about what has been happening but the air quality is horrible and all we see and hear are water helicopters flying overhead.
Since closing on the house, every weekend has been packed with to-do’s and every day has been an adventure.
The girls and I did what we could to stay out of trouble and keep ourselves busy…most days that meant a trip to the park…
They have really learned how to push my buttons and have become more than a handful in the last couple months.
I’ve had so many things I’ve had to address…I’m always on the phone or running somewhere to get something or get approval on something at the planning office and they really have learned that they can basically do whatever they want when I’m doing these things.
I’m hoping we can reign them in now that things are settling down.
But really…they are giving me a run for my money.
*There are PLENTY of photos of them and what we’ve been up to since July at the end of this post*
After navigating stupid red tape… I’m pleased to say that although we failed our final inspection for STUPID reasons (no house numbers, pipes on the roof weren’t painted, door to the garage didn’t close on its own)… we were allowed to move in.
Next came Electricity, Gas, Cable/Internet…
Except when we turned on the electricity…nothing came on…
I’ll spare you the long story…but it was a Pain. Not for me, of course…
But for the men-folk.
Chris and my dad spent hours and hours and hours debugging the mysteries of the electrical work in this house…
and one by one…the pieces fell into place.
But the most exciting thing has been just making this place our own… oddly enough that included Chris installing a new garage door system…changing out door locks…fixing garbage disposals…installing a closet shelving system…hanging garage lights…
The great thing that came out of all of this…was an intimate knowledge of our house…
not by me, of course…
But ya know…the man…
Chris. The electrician.
Seriously. He could have a new profession if this government contractor stuff doesn’t work out.
Which it might not.
Time well tell, but he’s smart and can do anything.
And finally…
last thursday…
a most glorious sight:
Our crap.
And BOY do we have a lot of it.
(BEFORE)
End Note: I obviously started this jumbled post a few days ago…since then, the painters have come and gone… care to have a look?
The stucco color was just something the painter suggested…we’re not sure it’ll stay, but it’s actually growing on us as time goes on…you can’t tell in the photos, but it’s a good match to the roof.
(After)
What you’re about to see are pictures with a LOT of unsettled things…
Items that haven’t found homes…rooms that are complete messes…
Pictures that haven’t been hung…
…but it’s reality.
Like I already said; a work in progress.
But at least we have a tv mounted above the fireplace now…
Who needs a mantel 
!!
(BEFORE)
(Before)
You’ll find that this is the only picture of the downstairs.
It serves as an explanation as to why there aren’t more…
Because although the girls have beds down there…
They also have a HUGE mess…
I can only capture the mess of one story of the house at a time 
3 comments:
A great posting. Thanks for the update and pictures. Now that the push is over and you are moved in, I want to tell you something about your dad/Papa Chuck. Not only did he work 7days a week for 8 weeks so that he could drive 2 1/2 hours to tehachapi on Fridays and 2 1/2 hours back on Sundays, he spent countless hours late at nite researching, drawing, planning,scheduling and making sure every detail was correct and the best choice. Sometimes I would find him at his desk , unable to sleep because of some aspect of your project. I asked him one weekend when he was getting ready to leave for your house why he didn't take the weekend off. He was obviously tired......worn out in fact. He kept going for all of you because he loves you ....all four of you....he gets such joy out of creating something that will bring you joy. He is the most unselfish person I have ever known. It was so fun for me to watch Jenny and her dad leaning over plans for the house and trading ideas. Both of you were in heaven.....probably for different reasons. Dad loved sharing the experience and watching your brilliance Jenny. He loved the whole process. We would do whatever we could for you and your family. Enjoy your new home and know how much love went into it. Xoxo mom/gigi
Amazing house Jenny!! Can't wait to see what other personal touches you make to it over the next few months/years!! Your girls are absolutely gorgeous too!! Enjoy your new home!!!
Wow...a wonderful house, beautiful children and mama, and pretty dresses!! I noticed and smiled :). Wishing you every happiness in your lovely home. xoxo GSue
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