The big day has finally arrived! This morning at 9:30 we have our final walk-through then we close on the house at 10:30 am. Mike and I are really excited. Both vehicles are loaded up with stuff that we had over at the Corporate Housing Apartment. The movers arrive tomorrow - yippee!!!
Now we begin the fun process of settling into our new home.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Just a few more days!
Just a few more days before we close on our new house! Mike and I look forward to settling into our new home. The fence installation has been scheduled with our down-payment being made. It looks like the fence should be completed on April 7th.
We are already getting mail at the new house. It was fun to open up the mailbox and see our mail. There is still so much to do and it looks like we will be without blinds for a couple of weeks.
Furniture shopping in High Point, NC is definitely an interesting and overwhelming experience. I've found a sofa style & brand that I really like. The company is Rowe Furniture. They offer slipcover sofa's.
Pam
We are already getting mail at the new house. It was fun to open up the mailbox and see our mail. There is still so much to do and it looks like we will be without blinds for a couple of weeks.
Furniture shopping in High Point, NC is definitely an interesting and overwhelming experience. I've found a sofa style & brand that I really like. The company is Rowe Furniture. They offer slipcover sofa's.
Pam
Monday, March 24, 2008
Snow Arrived! Leaving for North Carolina!
Wouldn't you know it! There was snow the whole weekend! We had about 8 inches of snow! Surprisingly, Mike arrived on time at 10:30 am on Friday.
I was able to leave Sunday morning for North Carolina without issue. There were a few snow flurries but overall the roads were in good condition.
On the first day of my drive, I made it through most of Kentucky and stopped just 30 miles from the border of West Virginia.
Today, I only had a "short" 6 hour drive. I arrived in Raleigh around 2:30pm. The kitty cats have definitely been missing me! MaCree is following me around everywhere throughout the apartment.
Pam
I was able to leave Sunday morning for North Carolina without issue. There were a few snow flurries but overall the roads were in good condition.
On the first day of my drive, I made it through most of Kentucky and stopped just 30 miles from the border of West Virginia.
Today, I only had a "short" 6 hour drive. I arrived in Raleigh around 2:30pm. The kitty cats have definitely been missing me! MaCree is following me around everywhere throughout the apartment.
Pam
Saturday, March 22, 2008
SNOW!
Wouldn't you know it! Snow is in the forecast for Easter weekend here in MN. The flight Mike is on is supposed to arrive at 10:30am and I hope the snow doesn't delay his arrival. Of course, it is going to be 75 in the Raleigh area and only about 35 in Minneapolis. Brrrrr.
The plan is that I will leave early Sunday for the final drive to Raleigh, NC. I'm praying for an uneventful and safe trip. Hopefully there will not be too much snow as I head southeast.
Pam
The plan is that I will leave early Sunday for the final drive to Raleigh, NC. I'm praying for an uneventful and safe trip. Hopefully there will not be too much snow as I head southeast.
Pam
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Townhouse is PACKED!
Yesterday was a very busy day! Our moving company arrived at 8am sharp to start packing and loading the semi for the move down to North Carolina. Our moving company is Allied (Siracusa) and our driver was Norm. When he said 8am, he defintely meant 8am. I was on my way to the townhome and decided to stop at Caribou to pick up breakfast and a Chai Tea Latte when I say the Allied Semi parked at the intersection next to the Holiday Gas Station. When I came out of Caribou they were already down the road towards the house. All of this actually happened at 7:50 am!!! It was a surprise to see how prompt Norm was and efficient.
I actually had a good time chatting with the crew as they were packing and loading. They are from Western Massachussetts. Norm and his other main guy have VERY large families. Norm is also in the process of adopting a little girl and his wife is pregnant. It was an exhausting day and very productive!
All I can say is WOW... What an experience. It was SOOOO nice to just stand around occasionaly answering questions and directing the crew as what to pack and what not to pack. With Norm, he does the packing and the loading all in one day. His goal was to do it in 8 hours but he went a little over that time frame - it took closer to 10 hours with a few breaks in between for lunch.
It was sad to see everything get packed up and put on the truck but exciting as well knowing that we were just that much closer to moving into our new house in North Carolina. I'm sad to be leaving MN but more because of all the friends and family that are in MN. Yet, I'm excited to start a new chapter in my life living in NC in a new house with a backyard. It will also be so much nicer being close to the rest of Mike's family.
I actually had a good time chatting with the crew as they were packing and loading. They are from Western Massachussetts. Norm and his other main guy have VERY large families. Norm is also in the process of adopting a little girl and his wife is pregnant. It was an exhausting day and very productive!
All I can say is WOW... What an experience. It was SOOOO nice to just stand around occasionaly answering questions and directing the crew as what to pack and what not to pack. With Norm, he does the packing and the loading all in one day. His goal was to do it in 8 hours but he went a little over that time frame - it took closer to 10 hours with a few breaks in between for lunch.
It was sad to see everything get packed up and put on the truck but exciting as well knowing that we were just that much closer to moving into our new house in North Carolina. I'm sad to be leaving MN but more because of all the friends and family that are in MN. Yet, I'm excited to start a new chapter in my life living in NC in a new house with a backyard. It will also be so much nicer being close to the rest of Mike's family.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Getting excited! House Photos!
Mike and I are really getting excited about the upcoming closing on our new house scheduled for March 31. The house inspection went extremely well along with the radon test coming back with excellent results! It will be wonderful to be able to move in and get out of the corporate housing.
This is a front view of our new home. It is a traditional colonial style home with 2315 sq. feet of space! The color is cream with black shutters. I love the fact that we have a nice cement driveway.
This is a photo of the office space (aka the Formal Living room but we will use it as an office/Den). The space at the stairs open up to either the family room at the back of the house or take you upstairs. The carpet will remain in this room.
We have photos!!!
This is a front view of our new home. It is a traditional colonial style home with 2315 sq. feet of space! The color is cream with black shutters. I love the fact that we have a nice cement driveway. We will need to see about doing some landscaping but that is to be expected regardless of what we would buy and especially when buying new construction.
I love the fact that there is a nice front entry with protection from rain before people enter the home. We also have a nice spacious front foyer with a hall closet near the front door. The 1/2 bath is also conveniently located in the hall foyer area.
The Formal Dinning room and Office are located at the front of the home off of the Foyer with the Dining room to the left of the foyer entrance and the office to the right.
This is a photo of the office space (aka the Formal Living room but we will use it as an office/Den). The space at the stairs open up to either the family room at the back of the house or take you upstairs. The carpet will remain in this room.The dining room is the same size but has hardwood floors with a doorway to the kitchen. There is also a chair railing in the dining room which I absolutely love. I'm thinking of painting the Formal Dining room a deep red either above or below the chair rail combined with a complimentary color such as a beige. I love the red that my SIL, Melissa, has in her formal dining room and I may just have to copy that color! The foyer from the front door also opens up to both the dining room and office.
... ... The KITCHEN ... ...
The kitchen (left) and kitchen nook (right) are also at the back of the house and open up to the family room. All the appliances will be black. I'm especially looking forward to having my new refrigerator installed on April 5th. I also love the light fixture in the nook! The floor is a nice linoleum that looks like a stone and the countertops look like granite. We do not have a food disposal as those are not allowed at this time due to the drought conditions. The kitchen photos below show the space for the Oven/Range which will be a self-cleaning oven (left) and the location of the Refrigerator (right). We've purchased our refrigerator with side by side doors. I just hope that it fits. The door in the kitchen nook goes to the large 23x23 garage.
The Family Room (2 photos below) is just off the kitchen allowing for an open and bright feeling. We have a beautiful view of our backyard and deck. There is also a fireplace with a T.V. Nook above. Eventually I would like to have doors that cover the TV so it can be hidden when we have company or when we are not using the TV in the family room. This photo shows carpet in the family room, however, we are having the builder remove the carpet and replace it with hardwood floors. It was a tough decision to make but I really loved the look of the hardwood floors so we opted to have them installed. I also love the fact that we have a ceiling fan in the family room to help circulate the air year round. The windows are wonderful and tilt in for easy cleaning. I've been thinking about what to paint the wall color in the family room and as I look at it I keep thinking that I need to keep the color light and fun such as a very pale yellow - a color that will keep the room bright and refreshing yet blends well with other colors.
The master bedroom is huge measuring 18x13 with a vaulted ceiling and a ceiling fan. I have plenty of decorating ideas. At the moment, I lean towards painting the walls a beige with a chocolate brown accent wall since this color goes well with so many other colors - just about any other accent color I would use for bedding or furniture either now or in the future.
We have a separate tub and shower(photos below)with dual vanity sinks in the master bath. I love the window above the master tub with the glass brick. No window treatment on that window! We will paint a medium blue with the color originally purchased and intended for the master bath in the townhome. The walk in closet is very large and accessed through the master bath.
There are 2 additional bedrooms for a total of 3 bedrooms in our new house, 2nd Bathroom upstairs and a "Bonus Room." The bonus room could also be a 4th bedroom since it does have a closet. The Laundry Room located on the 2nd floor next to the Bonus Room. With water conservation being a concern in NC, Mike and I decided to buy front-loading high efficiancy Washer & Dryer along with 15" pedestal for both to sit to make it easier for me to do the laundry without stooping too low.
I will paint the 2nd bathroom the same yellow used in the 2nd bathroom of the townhouse since I love how it brightens the bathroom. Of course, all the accessories such as the shower current way along with the towels go with the yellow. Another nice feature of the 2nd bathroom is that there is a door separating the vanity area from the tub/toilet section.
Our bonus room will serve a dual purpose as my scrapbooking room and as a 2nd TV room where Mike can play his Playstation 2. My thoughts on decorating the bonus room lean towards going with a MN Northwoods theme as a way to take a little bit of Minnesota with me.
Below are the photos in order from Bedroom #1 (left); Bedroom #2 (center); Bonus Room (right).
The backyard is a great size and will be a wonderful area for Gabriel to enjoy along with any future children and visiting family to enjoy. We will be putting up a fence as soon as possible. We have already spoken with a company about the fence and will be installing the same fence that our neighbor has along with attaching our fence to his fence. There is also an 8x10 deck with stairs attached to the back of the house. It isn't a huge deck but it is a nice size for a patio table set and we can have our grill in the backyard. Due to the drought, the backyard will definitely need some tender loving care. The builder is going to "reseed" just before we move in but I have a feeling we will need to baby our backyard and possibly consider laying some sod at some point.
Photos above: Backyard (upper top left); Deck w/ stairs (upper top right); Deck looking through back door (bottom left); Neighbor's fenced backyard (bottom right)
... ... The FAMILY ROOM ... ...
The Family Room (2 photos below) is just off the kitchen allowing for an open and bright feeling. We have a beautiful view of our backyard and deck. There is also a fireplace with a T.V. Nook above. Eventually I would like to have doors that cover the TV so it can be hidden when we have company or when we are not using the TV in the family room. This photo shows carpet in the family room, however, we are having the builder remove the carpet and replace it with hardwood floors. It was a tough decision to make but I really loved the look of the hardwood floors so we opted to have them installed. I also love the fact that we have a ceiling fan in the family room to help circulate the air year round. The windows are wonderful and tilt in for easy cleaning. I've been thinking about what to paint the wall color in the family room and as I look at it I keep thinking that I need to keep the color light and fun such as a very pale yellow - a color that will keep the room bright and refreshing yet blends well with other colors.
The master bedroom is huge measuring 18x13 with a vaulted ceiling and a ceiling fan. I have plenty of decorating ideas. At the moment, I lean towards painting the walls a beige with a chocolate brown accent wall since this color goes well with so many other colors - just about any other accent color I would use for bedding or furniture either now or in the future.
We have a separate tub and shower(photos below)with dual vanity sinks in the master bath. I love the window above the master tub with the glass brick. No window treatment on that window! We will paint a medium blue with the color originally purchased and intended for the master bath in the townhome. The walk in closet is very large and accessed through the master bath.
... ... The OTHER ROOMS ... ...
There are 2 additional bedrooms for a total of 3 bedrooms in our new house, 2nd Bathroom upstairs and a "Bonus Room." The bonus room could also be a 4th bedroom since it does have a closet. The Laundry Room located on the 2nd floor next to the Bonus Room. With water conservation being a concern in NC, Mike and I decided to buy front-loading high efficiancy Washer & Dryer along with 15" pedestal for both to sit to make it easier for me to do the laundry without stooping too low.
I will paint the 2nd bathroom the same yellow used in the 2nd bathroom of the townhouse since I love how it brightens the bathroom. Of course, all the accessories such as the shower current way along with the towels go with the yellow. Another nice feature of the 2nd bathroom is that there is a door separating the vanity area from the tub/toilet section. I have no set plans yet for decorating the other 2 bedrooms since I'll wait to see how things progress as we move forward with the adoption route. At least one of the rooms will be for a new baby/toddler. The other room will be made into a guest room unless we end up adopting a sibling group - who nows! God is in control!
Our bonus room will serve a dual purpose as my scrapbooking room and as a 2nd TV room where Mike can play his Playstation 2. My thoughts on decorating the bonus room lean towards going with a MN Northwoods theme as a way to take a little bit of Minnesota with me.
Below are the photos in order from Bedroom #1 (left); Bedroom #2 (center); Bonus Room (right).
... ... THE BACKYARD PHOTOS! ... ...
The backyard is a great size and will be a wonderful area for Gabriel to enjoy along with any future children and visiting family to enjoy. We will be putting up a fence as soon as possible. We have already spoken with a company about the fence and will be installing the same fence that our neighbor has along with attaching our fence to his fence. There is also an 8x10 deck with stairs attached to the back of the house. It isn't a huge deck but it is a nice size for a patio table set and we can have our grill in the backyard. Due to the drought, the backyard will definitely need some tender loving care. The builder is going to "reseed" just before we move in but I have a feeling we will need to baby our backyard and possibly consider laying some sod at some point.
Photos above: Backyard (upper top left); Deck w/ stairs (upper top right); Deck looking through back door (bottom left); Neighbor's fenced backyard (bottom right)
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Adoption!
We have also decided to move onto adoption and are considering domestic adoption or possibly embryo adoption. There is a lot to consider and we are in the very early stages still looking for the right adoption agency.
I think our first choice is probably Bethany Adoption Services.
Pam
I think our first choice is probably Bethany Adoption Services.
Pam
New House!
Well, Mike has been in North Carolina for over a month and is doing really well. He is enjoying his new job at Talecris.
I was able to make it down to Raleigh, NC in early February to start the house hunting process. Two weeks later, my parents also came down and helped me look at potential new homes as well. I'm so thankful my parents were able to help with the search! It was a very overwhelming search with TONS of homes to look at with some meeting our requirements while many did not. It was while my parents were visiting that we ultimately found the home we would make an offer on. For a brief period of time the home had been off the market pending however that deal had fallen through and it went back on the market while my parents were visiting. It has a beautiful flat lot that slopes away from the home and a decent sized backyard for Gabriel. The home sits on .25 acres in the subdivision of Tralee in Smithfield, NC.
We will be emailing or sending out a letter to all friends and family with our address along with a letter updating everyone on the latest family going ons.
I was able to make it down to Raleigh, NC in early February to start the house hunting process. Two weeks later, my parents also came down and helped me look at potential new homes as well. I'm so thankful my parents were able to help with the search! It was a very overwhelming search with TONS of homes to look at with some meeting our requirements while many did not. It was while my parents were visiting that we ultimately found the home we would make an offer on. For a brief period of time the home had been off the market pending however that deal had fallen through and it went back on the market while my parents were visiting. It has a beautiful flat lot that slopes away from the home and a decent sized backyard for Gabriel. The home sits on .25 acres in the subdivision of Tralee in Smithfield, NC.
We will be emailing or sending out a letter to all friends and family with our address along with a letter updating everyone on the latest family going ons.
Ooops! Me BAD GIRL!
Sorry to friends and family out there that may be checking the blog. I've been really bad about updating the blog with the latest stuff happening in our lives!
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