Home for a year

How are we back so quickly from another trip around the sun?!  I feel the need to document these milestones before they fly by and I've moved on to ruminating over something else.  As of this month, we have lived in our house for an entire year. 

View of the dining / living room with our huge table
Honestly before buying the house, I had been quite apprehensive about home ownership for some time.  I wasn’t sure I was prepared for the responsibilities of owning (vs renting) and was slightly nervous about all of the extra room that we’d have.  I was also pre-dreading (is that something you can do?) doing yard work in the middle of the summer. 

But surprisingly to me, we’ve slipped into home ownership rather seamlessly.  We are all much happier with more room, with a yard, with a quiet neighborhood and kind neighbors on all sides.  We’ve been able to use the space for entertaining - a lot of entertaining.  Our kitchen is the heart of the home and because it is open to both living spaces and dining room, that’s where everyone naturally gravitates when they come over.  When we chose this house, we knew we were sacrificing a garage for a covered patio.  Even though I still really badly want a garage (and an in-ground swimming pool in the backyard), the patio is where we hang out when it isn’t summertime and 100 degrees in the shade.  We bought a new grill and patio furniture and so much of our time (and Bowie’s time) is spent hanging out underneath the fans out there.

Bowie's favourite napping spot
Obviously, there’s still a good amount of work associated with the house.  It means watering the flowers and ferns, so they don’t die from drying out a second time.  It means a lot of landscaping work.  It means changing out air filters when you remember to.  It means getting a pest inspector and cleaning carpets.  Because we live in a house built in the 1950s, it also means slowly adding to the list of home improvements.

Christmas in our kitchen
But we’ve also seen the magnolia tree bloom its large, fragrant ice cream scoop flowers.  We’ve put up and reluctantly taken down Fourth of July bunting, Halloween placards, and Christmas lights.  We’ve had both family and friends stay overnight, for a few days, for a few weeks.  Our house is good at hosting parties - pizza ones, dumpling-making ones, birthday ones, barbecue ones.  It’s also good at surprising people - like the TARDIS, bigger on the inside than it looks on the outside.  The house has taken good care of us.  We survived those furious summer storms!  It's dog and kid proof!  We know that we're quite lucky to be able to call it our home.

Comments

  1. This is such a great post, and I'm loving the photos of your house especially the one of the kitchen! It looks like such a cozy space! Also Bowie's napping spot looks absolutely perfect! :)

    http://roadesque.com

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    1. My sister and her fiance are the good photogs - I need to get some more of the house photos from them! Thank you Valerie!

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  2. Love the look of your home. I am there with you and I can imagine the dread that comes with owning a house vs renting. There is a certain kind of bliss though and a sense of stability with owning a home.

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    1. Thanks Arni. There is responsibility in ownership but then also full control - it's definitely a trade off

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  3. Congrats on the one-year, Ruth:) So great to hear how you guys have been enjoying it, and yeah...good call on that covered patio:)

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    1. Thanks Emmy! It's felt like we've been here a lot longer

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  4. happy houseaversary!! Love the patio area!! love all of it :)

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    1. Thank ya! I don't have feral pigs roaming the property but I do have a feral toad?

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  5. Your house is so pretty! You should do a whole house tour! I am pre-dreading so much about owning our house. The hot tub has already turned green so we're off to a great start.

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    1. That's so kind of you to say Sarah. I might take some more pictures but I'm no interior decorator. You need to do a home tour of your new house!

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  6. More room, a yard and a quiet neighborhood... Sounds like a dream come true. Keep your fingers crossed for me, will you? Good to hear the house has taken good care of you all. I'm happy for you.

    Blue

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  7. So good for you and your family darling. Everything sounds great
    xx

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  8. We bought our houses at around the same time, and they're approximately the same age! SO.MUCH.HOME.IMPROVEMENTS.

    You're house is looking great, and I'm jealous of the covered porch!!

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    1. We moved in without much to do (thankfully) although we do keep finding small projects around the house. I love how yours is coming along

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  9. I am jealous of your house! lol

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    1. Ha! Thanks - I'm usually pretty happy about it

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  10. I love this post!! Thank you for taking us inside of you home. The large table is fabulous and perfect for family functions. When I had a smaller home, we had a glass table top made for the size of the table without the leaf. Now that we have a larger home, I regret the investment since I would love to have the table open and large. Home ownership has its pros and cons, but I'm glad that you're leans more towards the pros. :)

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    1. Thanks Jax! It's so good hearing from you again!

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