La Petite Chic

A Sneak Peak of our Floors

In case you may have forgotten about that little home renovation thing we have going on (since this blog has been very pregnancy-centric lately), yes, it is most definitely still in progress! The end is clearly in sight now though and in fact, we have booked our U-Haul and will be moving in on May 8th.

The last month has mainly been focused on the finishing touches and our focus this week was on refinishing the hardwood floors in the living room, dining room, stairs and upstairs hallway. We had considered the idea of doing them ourselves but when we peeled back the old carpet in the living room, the floors had about 50 years worth of gunk stuck to them. Gross. We decided a professional would be better qualified to handle the sanding, buffing and finishing and we were absolutely right.

We opted not to stain the floors because they were absolutely gorgeous after the sanding on Tuesday. The first coat of polyurethane went on last night and it's so amazing how perfect they turned out. They look brand new (but without the brand new price tag!). We had made up our minds to carpet the bedrooms because it would have been a little cheaper to go that route, but now we're thinking we might refinish those hardwoods too.

Living Room Before

Living Room After

Once you stop oohing and ahhing over the floors (or is that just me?), notice that the baseboard heaters are gone! I still need to sand the wall down where they were and finish painting, but you get the idea! You'll notice we had a ceiling fan installed and what's not so easy to notice is the hearth of the fireplace. Jon and his Dad worked on taking that out on Monday and almost gave me a heart attack when they called me at work to say they were going to rent a jackhammer. That's probably a story for another post!

Stairway Before

 

Stairway After

See all that dust on the wall? That's not from sanding the floors, that's from jackhammering the hearth! Have I ever told you guys how much I hate dust? It gives me the heebie jeebies. I'm not talking dust bunnies...I'm talking dirty construction dust. BLEH. Also, I am in love with the paint color I picked for the foyer. Love, love, love! Actually, I love just about every color I picked (shocking!) except for the kitchen. That one's just okay.

Also, I should mention that I've had a few readers request a renovation type post which explains how we decided to tackle a home renovation, how we knew what to do, how we picked a contractor, etc... If you have any questions you want answered, leave them in the comments or send me an e-mail. I'd be happy to answer them!

An Update on our Home

After a couple of late nights at the house last week (think 10PM, and that's after a full day of work), I think we can finally say that we're done with the demolition! Woo-hoo!!! The only thing left that Jon and I will be doing is removing the rest of the carpets, refinishing the hardwoods (which I think will be fine with just a buff and a shine), the laying of the tiles (in the kitchen, foyer and bathroom) and painting.

Our kitchen cabinets are due to come in the first weekend of March and we hope to be moving into our house by the following weekend. That's just a little over a month away! Out of all the rooms in our house, I am most excited for the kitchen. We really took our time in coming up with a beautiful, yet practical and affordable design for it and I can't wait to see our plans come to fruition. Here's a sneak peak of our cabinets:

 

They're maple with a cognac finish in a square panel. Thankfully, Jon and I both like the simple and clean-line look because, my goodness, do cabinets get expensive the more little nooks and crannies and glazes that you add to them! We did splurge on the cushion close for all of the drawers. That's the clever little catch that doesn't let your drawers slam. It's so cool! We still need to order hardware for the cabinets, but we're leaning towards doing something like this on the drawers:

 

with a matching simple round knob. Cabinet hardware can also be very expensive so we might wait a bit to add them on.

 

One place where we managed to save A LOT of money was on our appliances. There's a Sears outlet just north of Baltimore where we bought our refrigerator and (drumroll, please) my double wall ovens!! Jon has been teasing me throughout this whole renovation about how my insistence on double ovens was blowing our appliance budget, but we managed to buy it for over 50% less than the retail price! Oh, and did I mention that they're convection? SWOON.

 

Jon had strong opinions about our refrigerator so I let him lead the way in that selection. The one he picked is truly awesome...it has a shaved ice option! I'll bet we rarely use it, but the little boy in him got slightly giddy over that.

 

We also bought our gas cooktop from the Sears outlet, but we had to travel to the store in Virginia to purchase it, in a snowstorm I might add! We got the biggest size they make (36 inches) because I wanted plenty of room for pots and pans. I'm already thinking ahead for hosting dinner parties and Thanksgiving!

 

The only appliances left to buy are the microwave hood, dishwasher and wine fridge and then we'll have everything we need! The farther we get into this renovation, the happier I am that we bought an older home. It's been so much fun to play a major role in the demolition and the design and yes, the blood, sweat, bruises and meltdowns that have gone into it! It's so wonderful to finally be able to see a light at the end of the renovation tunnel.

Kitchen Demolition - Round Two

First things first, I'm Auntie Kate for the second time! Jake Andrew was born to my sister-in-law, Janelle, late last night, coming into the world at 7 pounds, 6 ounces and 21 inches! Mama and baby are doing well and we can't wait to meet him on Saturday. He was almost born on the birthday of two of my favorite girls, my big sis, Kacey, and good friend, Jess. Happy birthday, you two!!

Life has been quite exhausting this week, so I apologize for the lack of posting. I've been trying to set time aside to write but I'm just so darn tired all the time! I think I'm in winter hibernation mode. We spent all of last weekend in our kitchen, demolishing the soffits and existing coat closet structure, in addition to tearing out two layers of equally ugly linoleum and the sub-floor. I also tore out all of the ceramic tiles in the foyer all by myself, which, thankfully, was quite easy.

As you can imagine, we were quite sore by Sunday night. The kitchen floor demo took some major muscles so I let Jon take that on while I focused my attention on demolishing the coat closet. It didn't take quite as much strength but it was dusty and backbreaking work as I did a lot of sledgehammer and crowbar swinging above my head and on a ladder. In these few short weeks I think we've already learned quicker and smarter ways to get things done which will hopefully make this renovation a lot easier on our bodies and our time.

Jon has been in training all week in Virginia Beach so it was up to me to meet our HVAC guy to get a quote on upgrading our heating and cooling systems. The house currently has baseboard heating which we wanted to replace purely for aesthetics. Well, that and it's a bit noisy when it kicks on. We already had a quote from our general contractor (who will also be doing our plumbing and electrical) but we figured it would be prudent to get a second opinion. I'm so glad we did because this guy told me that baseboard heating is the "Cadillac" of heating systems and advised against replacing it with forced air.

I've only ever know forced air as that's typically what is used in newer homes, but apparently baseboard heating is a lot more efficient and actually much warmer. So I think we've changed our minds about tearing it out. We'll probably look into replacing the existing covers with the newer slim design ones. We do have to replace our 20+ year old AC unit, but at least overall we should save a bit of the budget we set aside for HVAC costs. (Are any of you still following me here? This was all Greek to me as of last week!)

For your viewing pleasure, here are some photos of the latest kitchen demo. Take note of all that drywall dust flying around...then think about breathing that stuff in...COUGH COUGH!

Jon cutting into the flooring (and the coat closet right before I took it out!)

Me getting my crowbar on

The closet and soffits almost completely demolished (notice all the dust particles?)

The foyer before (and apparently I forgot to take an after picture) Also, there are amazing hardwoods stairs under all that carpet!

Bonus: Look at the bunny tracks I found in our backyard!

 
 

Kitchen Demolition

As you may or may not already know from reading my blog, patience is a virtue of which I'm severely lacking. Jonathan is usually the responsible ying to my impulsive yang, but not when it comes to this house.

No, when it comes to this house, Jon is just as anxious as I am to get the renovations started and move in already. Living with your parents (or in-laws) for nine months will do that to you. That's not to say that living with them has been completely terrible, because it hasn't. On the contrary, my parents have been gracious hosts, respectful of our privacy, and we couldn't be more appreciative of them sacrificing their empty nest to help us out.

Still. It's not easy to come home again after living independently for the past ten years and Jon and I are more than ready to have our own home again. That's what found us at our house on Saturday, just three days after closing, demolishing our outdated kitchen. We just couldn't help ourselves!

As promised, here are the "before" pictures and a bonus (embarrassing) video of me with a sledgehammer. Watch out, HGTV, here I come!

View from the Living Room

View from the Kitchen Door

View from the Sink 

Eww! Also, check out the original flat cooktop!

Jon knocking out tiles

 
 
  Me wielding a sledgehammer
(Note to self: Stop being a woo-girl.)

The kitchen has a lot of great space and will have even more usable space once we knock out the coat closet that the refrigerator is currently backing up to. It was originally an eat-in kitchen (in front of the double window under the hideous light) but we're going to extend the cabinets and counters to make the kitchen a larger L-shape with a huge center island. I can't wait to get cooking in there!

Home Sweet Home

We did it! After what seemed like a million and one signatures, Jon and I are happily homeowners once again! We really couldn't have asked for a better settlement. At their request, we met with the sellers (one daughter and one son of the trust) before we settled and it really was so good to meet them and learn more about the history of the house.

They told us that their father graduated from the Naval Academy (which is just about 10 miles down the road) in 1942, married their mother right after graduation and then was shipped off to the war. Their parents bought the house brand new in 1961 and lived there ever since. Military habits must die hard; there are meticulous notes on every little thing on the house and at least three locks on every outside door! The pride of ownership really does shine through and gives Jon and I peace of mind to know that the house was so well taken care of all these years.

Though I was ecstatic about buying the house, I couldn't help but feel sad for the sellers. They grew up in this house and are now well into their sixties and it was obvious how hard it was for them to let go. I can completely empathize with them because it was so difficult for me to sell our condo after living there for just three years! We exchanged numbers with them and I plan on getting their addresses so that I can send them a little update on their beloved house once we get settled in. Our realtor overheard them saying how nice we are and how happy they are that the house is going to us so that makes me feel a little bit better.

After settlement, we drove back to the house to drop off a load of boxes and Jon surprised me by carrying me over the threshold! It was adorable. We're celebrating our new home by hosting a small New Year's Eve party tomorrow night with some of our local friends. We don't have our t.v. and any furniture moved in yet so we told everyone to think of it as camping and bring their folding chairs and air mattresses! That pretty much guarantees that it's going to be a good night!

A Little Bit of This and That

Our life has been so, so hectic! We drove straight from work last Wednesday to spend Thanksgiving with Jonathan's family in Pennsylvania. His parents always host their extended family so it was a busy day of catching up with aunts and uncles and cousins. I was sick with a cold so I didn't eat much, but hey, it was good for my waistline! I always like to bring a dish or two whether or not I'm hosting and this year I wanted to put a little Southern spin on things.

(As an aside, if you know a Marylander, ask them whether they live in a Southern state or a Northern state. Personally, I believe Maryland to be a Southern state based on the people and culture in the area where I grew up and live, but ask anyone north of Baltimore and they'll probably tell you it's a Northern state. It's always an interesting debate! Though we are south of the Mason-Dixon line so I think I win!)

Anyhow, I made a double batch of Paula Deen's Creamy Macaroni and Cheese and my goodness, was that a big hit! I substituted half of the cheddar cheese for Gruyere, one of my favorite "melty" cheeses, and it was absolutely divine. I also made Homemade Cranberry Sauce again this year and now I really don't think I can ever go back to canned. Don't get me wrong, the canned sauce tastes just fine, but the homemade sauce is just so pretty!

For an appetizer, I made Pumpkin Pie Dip, my go-to recipe for any occasion in the fall. It's always a crowd pleaser. I think I should just start carrying the recipe with me because someone always asks for it! And finally, Jonathan and I made a jumbo batch of Bourbon Slush. We brought it to Christmas last year and it was all gone by the time we got to dessert, so we knew we had to make it again. It is so delicious but you have to be careful because it goes down very easily!

I've already decided that I want to host Thanksgiving next year since we'll finally have enough room for both of our families to fit in our home at the same time. That never could have happened in our itty-bitty condo. Our new house has a formal dining room which I can't wait to break in. It wasn't a must-have on my house list, but it was definitely on my wish list. Now we just need some dining room furniture!

Speaking of the house, it was appraised on Saturday and we received some wonderful news: It appraised for $50,000 over what we paid for it, which means we have instant equity in the house! And that's before any of the renovations we have planned for it! This house is definitely all about location, location, location and it showed in the appraisal. That bit of good news helped to soften the blow of finding out that the first house we put in offer in on (the one we fell in love with on our very first day of house hunting) sold for just $3,000 over our offer. Three thousand paltry dollars! That is nothing in terms of affecting your monthly mortgage payment.

However, when we made that offer, Jon and I both promised that it was our bottom line and we couldn't have any regrets. That's easier said than done, but luckily we are just as in love (for completely different reasons!) with the house we're buying. We settle in just 28 days now and we've already come up with decorating plans. Since we are so close to the water, we want our home to be just like a casual and comfy beach house. We're planning on having a lot of grays and blues and greens and maybe some yellow here and there for pops of color. I can't wait to get started!

A Home of Our Own!

Look what happens when we go and buy a house...I don't blog in what seems like forever! And yes, you read that right; we bought a house! In case you don't follow my tweets, the sellers of the charming, old colonial that I adored ended up coming back to us the very next day after deciding to accept our counter offer after all!

We are absolutely thrilled! We ended up getting the house for $30,000 less than the asking price (not to mention $50,000 less than the original asking price!). Of course, there is a lot of updating to do, but Jon and I love putting our own stamp on things. We settle on December 30th, but likely won't move in until at least February as we plan on remodeling the kitchen and master bathroom first.

You can bet there are going to be plenty of Before and After photos. We've already started to draw up floor plans and I've started thinking about paint colors. It is such a diamond in the rough right now, but it's going to be stunning once we're done with it. The majority of the houses on our block are already updated so I can't wait to get ours up to par with the rest. I'm sure the neighbors won't mind either!

Offer Is In

After much deliberation, we've made an offer on the colonial! We love the space, the neighborhood, it does have somewhat of a backyard (not just as big as the rancher) and most importantly, it has a lot of potential for us to make it our own. Our initial offer was bounced back with a counter offer which we countered and now we're waiting to hear back. Keep your fingers and toes crossed!*

Also, my new cousin just sent a big conglomeration of the photos from wedding guests and I found this gem of me and Jon. I think it captures us perfectly...me laughing with my ridiculously oversized-for-my-face mouth and Jon laughing at me. That's usually the way it works! :) Happy Friday...hopefully I'll have good news to share soon.

UPDATED: BOOOO. They have countered again and it's not the price we want to be at. It took us a long time to come up with our bottom line and we're sticking to it! If there's one lesson we've learned, it's knowing when to walk away and thus, we're walking away and we know it's the right decision.

A Tale of Two Houses

All this tedious house hunting has paid off! After visiting another 14 houses this weekend, Jonathan and I have finally narrowed it down to two homes. Only problem is that he prefers one while I prefer the other. Of course it would happen that way, wouldn't it?! We really can't go wrong with either of the houses; it's just that they're so different. Oh, and ironically, they're the exact same price.

The first one is an updated rancher with a fabulous backyard built in 1956.  It has three bedrooms and two full bathrooms, but also has a finished basement with an additional room that could qualify as a bedroom if we install a window. The house is completely renovated on the inside and though there is some work we would want to do, it's not necessary at all. The only thing keeping us from being completely sold on this house is the street. Though it's in a wonderful neighborhood, it sits on a busy thru street. There is on street parking, but I really don't love the traffic driving by. Jon doesn't mind it and feels that since it has such a gorgeous fenced backyard (the lot is 1/3 acre), we wouldn't even notice it. This house is Jon's first pick. 

The second house is a classic colonial built in 1961.  It has five bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms and sits on 0.41 acres. It's on a cul-de-sac and get this: it's adjacent to the water! Adjacent as in the house next door (and a few of the other houses on the cul-de-sac) have direct water access. Completely awesome. However, imagine a house in the Hollywood Hills and how they have no backyard as they sit into the hills. That's how this house is. We could do some retention walls and build a little bit more yard, but there wouldn't be a lot of it. This house also needs a lot of updating. The kitchen would be a total gut job and we would completely renovate the master bathroom and cut a little into one of the spare bedrooms to get more space. As it stands, Jon's shoulders are too broad to even fit through the bathroom door straight on!  However, the entire house, minus the kitchen and basement, has gorgeous original hardwood floors that have been covered by delightfully ugly shag carpet straight out of the 70's. It's going to take some major work and elbow grease, but this house will be a total gem. Obviously, this is my first pick.

They're both in the same great neighborhood, a neighborhood that is arguably one of the best in our county. It has Blue Ribbon schools and the type of "feel" that we've been looking for. As an added bonus, it's only about five minutes from my parents and 20 minutes from work. Basically, we want to end up in this neighborhood whether it happens with either of these houses or not. Now we just need to pick one and quickly before someone else makes an offer!  We keep going back and forth but just can't seem to come to a consensus. We are so torn! Any advice for us?

Edited to Add:

Just a little clarification...we think we can get the cul-de-sac colonial for about $35k less than the asking price because a) it's been on the market for 130 days and b) it's a deeded property, which means the owners received it in a will and have zero money tied to it.

It's also helpful to mention that our realtor's husband is a general contractor who can give us good deals on labor and appliances. The colonial would still end up costing more, however, Jon is talking about either expanding up or out on the rancher eventually so there would be some constructions costs with that home too. As far as the busy street goes, it has two lanes and I would be very worried about Lola or a child getting hit. It's kind of a shortcut to stay off the real main road and a lot of people use it.

For me, it really boils down to whether I can live with the busy street or live without a backyard. We plan on being there for at least five years at the bare minimum so it's a lot to think about. I'm seriously losing sleep over this, but I'm still leaning towards the colonial and Jon is still leaning towards the rancher.

The Colonial

The Rancher

Back to the Drawing Board

As you probably guessed from the title, we didn't get the house.  Since we had such a strong offer, our realtor is pretty certain that another buyer ponied up cash which is a lot more desireable than the conventional buyer like us who would need a 30 year mortgage.  To say that we're disappointed would be a gross understatement.  However, we can't dwell on what isn't meant to be and so we're going back out tomorrow night to look at more houses.  We really want to find a home before the holidays and when you figure in the time it takes to make an offer, have your offer accepted and then finally settle on the house, that would put us into November.  Crazy, isn't it?  Just where did 2009 go? 

If you're sick of hearing me talk about house hunting (I'm sorry!), head on over to Style Lush, a new blogging venture that I'm so excited to be a part of.  I posted a fabulous recipe for Cinnamon Sugar Roasted Almonds today that I think you'll love.  They're delicious and make the perfect autumn snack!

(Also, this post was about three times longer and told a story about a house we saw this past weekend with serious mold issues (think three dimensional mold growing out from the wall), but our network decided to fail right as I hit the Publish button.  ARGH!  Trust me though, it was really gross and that house was quickly crossed off our list.)