We Bought A House!

Happy Monday Friends!

This week is particularly exciting because it's the week we will move into our first house!

We officially closed on our first home last Thursday September 12th! I can't even begin to describe how excited we are to finally be in a home of our own. After living in an apartment for 3.5 years, searching for a home for two years, and then impatiently waiting through the whole loan process we are more than ready to finally move in.

We received our keys at the closing on Thursday and immediately headed over to the house to walk through it. We basked in our home ownership and found all the cute presents the former owners had left behind for us.

This cute sign...

a plant...

and a door knocker!

How sweet are they?! 

We ended up both going back to work for a few hours in the afternoon and then met back up at the house later on. We had visits from both my parents, and our new neighbors who happen to be my best friend Rachel's parents. 

Mums from my parents.

A gift Rachel's parents brought by for us from her! Some Tupperware, bandaids, and a face mask!

The pumpkin and marigolds are from Rachel's parents.

We are definitely feeling the love from everyone around us!

Our plan for this week is to finish up a project we started in the kitchen, and then move in Friday/Saturday! Next week at this time I will be sitting on this couch in a whole new location!

Packing Up Our Apartment

Hey everyone! Today I wanted to share how the packing of our apartment is going....

Despite the look of our guest bedroom in this picture, it's going well! I'm trying to stay organized and get as much done as possible before we officially close. Our closing is set for this Thursday and we gave notice at our apartment for the 30th. So we have to be out by the end of the month and have a little bit of time but I really want to get in much sooner. Once we close I will start packing even more stuff but for now at least I have a ton of decor packed away and all the items we don't use daily.

I wanted to share how I'm staying organized during this move and how I can tell you exactly what is in each box!

As you can see, I've given each box a number and labeled it with the room it will be put in at the new house. The room labels so far are: Master Bedroom, Guest Room, Living Room, Kitchen, and Office.  On moving day it will be easy for anyone carrying a box to know exactly what room it should go in. I've written it on the top and side of the box.

I've put all the boxes in the guest room and along walls so they don't get too in the way since we are still trying to live here. 

Now, the biggest thing I'm doing is keeping track what's inside each box. In Google Sheets I mark the box, the location of where the items were in our current apartment, where it should be unpacked and then the general contents. 

Here is a screenshot of my spreadsheet:

In addition to my spreadsheet I also have a Google Doc with each box and exactly every item that is inside. This way if I'm looking for something in particular I can find it quickly. I'm hoping this will help make unpacking in the new house quick and easy!

I realize this is being insanely organized but I can't help it! I just want to make this process as easy as possible and organizing is the number one way I know how to help. I will keep you all updated on the progress but hopefully next weekend we will be in the house getting it ready for move in!!!

Have a great day!

New House Haul

Good morning everyone!

Today I wanted to share a few things I picked up for our new house! I've been slowly buying things but it's definitely a process. I know there are many things we won't pick up until we actually move into the house and have a space to put them but this is what I've gotten so far.

These two mats were ordered on Amazon and I am obsessed with them! I will be using them at our front door at the new house. I think we will be entering in and out the side door so I need to find another mat for that door but I knew I wanted a home sweet home mat at the front door.

Buffalo Check Mat               
Home Sweet Home Mat

New house means it's time for a new bathroom trash can right? This woven basket is from Target and I think it will look great in our bathroom. Right now we have a darker wastebasket and I am ready to lighten things up.

Wastebasket

This sign is on order from Etsy and I am obsessed with it!! It carries so much meaning to me because after all this time it will be so good to finally be home in a house we own!

It's so good to be home sign

Last weekend I was at Hobby Lobby and picked up this sign as soon as I saw it I knew it was coming home with me. I'm not sure where it will go yet but I love it!

Let's stay home sign

I purchased this lady bird runner from Amazon but it's all rolled up to make it easier to transport to the house so I don't have a good picture of it. This picture is the full sized rug picture off Amazon but you get the idea. I ordered the runner and my plan is to put it in my hallway. I'm so excited to see how it looks!

Runner

I am still in the process of picking things up for the house and will definitely share everything I get with you guys. Let me know if there's anything that you suggest picking up!

Our House Hunting Journey Part 2

Happy Monday everyone!

I'm loving Monday a little more than usual because I have today and tomorrow off! It's a nice little four day weekend to relax and spend time with my husband! The last two days have been so relaxing and nice! As I write this Tim is starting to cook breakfast and I am lounging on the couch.

Today I want to share some exciting news about our house hunting journey that I have debated sharing for awhile now.... we are under contract!!!

We are currently at the stage where the bank asks for a million documents and we are waiting for an appraisal to happen, but our closing date is less than a month off!

Right now, we are focusing on good thoughts as our loan processes. I'm trying to stay calm but I've already started packing :) I will be sharing my packing process and how I'm staying organized while I pack up our apartment. 

I think I am unmotivated to share any sort of content in the apartment because I have a TON of ideas for the new house! I will share our house to-do list at some point once we move in. The house is in great condition but there are things we want to do to personalize it and upgrade it and I can't wait to bring you all along on our newest adventure!

Our house is a three bedroom ranch and we are obsessed with it! It is all freshly painted with new doors and new floors in a few of the rooms. I can't wait to move in and hopefully within a month we will be closing and moving out of our apartment of 3+ years and into our very own home!!

I'll keep you updated throughout the process and especially on the DIY projects and decorating that will happen when we get in there.

Keep those fingers crossed for us!

Our House Hunting Experience So Far

It's Monday again, how does that seem to happen so quickly?

Today I want to share a little bit about our house hunting experience so far but first lets just talk about our current situation. My husband Tim and I live in a two bedroom apartment which we have been in for almost three years. It's been a pretty good place to live because we are very close to pretty much anything we could need. We have quite a bit of space for two people and honestly most of the time we are hanging out in the living room together so it works out fine. You can see a full view of where we live here.

We started off super excited to be in our own space and have our first apartment together but over the last three years we have created quite a list of reasons why we want to buy a house. Last year we started seriously looking for a house but quickly put it on the back burner when our wedding became our top priority. Our main priority is to find a house in Washington County, RI close to the area where we both grew up. We both work in that area and don't want to be too far from work but also want to make sure we are in a nice area where we can raise a family. 

That being said since we are first time home buyers our budget is quite small. We have a down payment saved up from our wedding gifts and have been pre-approved by the bank but we have a pretty small budget to work with. Unfortunately the area we want to be in is very pricey because the tax rate is very low. The housing market is currently a sellers market meaning that there are more buyers then sellers and not a ton of houses on the market to choose from. 

Now here is what we are looking for in our first home:

• Preferably 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms but we are considering houses that don't meet that.
• Washer and dryer or area in which we can put a washer and dryer (yes my standards are low after sharing with nine other apartments the last three years).
• Dishwasher or an area where we can install one.
• Kitchen that is somewhat open, not a galley kitchen.
• A yard! At least a small outdoor space that we can call our own.
• Clean. I have what I think are normal standards of cleanliness and would like the house to be somewhat kept up.

Honestly, I don't feel like we are asking for all that much but it's been quite a road so far. We have been to see dozens of houses, made an offer, almost made another, and been disappointed far too many times for my little heart to handle. I know that everything happens for a reason and eventually we will find the house we are meant to be in but it is definitely a tough journey!

We originally found a house we really liked a little out of the area we want to be in. We decided to put an offer on it which was a cape with a big backyard. Our poor realtor went through the trouble of putting an offer in for us just for the other realtor to announce the owners had already accepted another offer.

A second house we were about to offer on had a problem with the land surrounding it. Thank god our realtor is great at researching and figured out the problem before we were stuck with a house we could never resell.

We have been to see a ton of houses and wanted to see houses that were off the market before anyone even looked at the house. The area we are looking in is very popular with tourists and often people from NY and CT buy summer houses here without even seeing them in person. 

We even went as far as talking with someone who builds houses to see if that would be an option but unfortunately we think that will be out of our price range. 

So, that's where we are at. Still looking and hoping to be in a house sometime this year. I will definitely keep you updated as we continue to look and hopefully buy our own place!

As frustrating as this journey has been so far I am hopeful and excited for what's to come.

I would love to hear about your house buying journey and if it took a long time for you or if you found your house quickly. Please share!