Saturday, April 11, 2015

Having a baby wasn't enough of a life change this year


Since I've sadly never had a crazy wild tropical spring break (although most who have barely remember them anyway), I think it's safe to say this spring break was a lifetime best.

Moving on up....
We bought a house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


It came with a bunny!

In the yard, anyway.
We should have stopped renting about 4 years ago but we had been hemming and hawing and really didn't know if we wanted to stay in Baltimore once we were both done with grad school. I graduated when I was 8 months pregnant, so that made it a little easier to decide. We probably should have moved then, but that whole "giving birth" thing was taking up a lot of our attention. Once Dalton arrived, just a few days of us carrying his car seat up 3 flights of stairs to our apartment and not having a washer and dryer solidified things. We met with a realtor when he was three weeks old.

We're moving just in the nick of time, maybe, because this kid is dying to crawl (but who knows, it could be a few more months).

He can back it up, and roll across the room. He's like a chess piece that can only move in certain directions.

Long story (sort of) short: a house we loved dropped in price last month. Seriously, it was our dream, and had all sorts of stuff that we thought was out of our price range, AND my dream stove (gas, 5 burners!). We had plans to see it on a Sunday, but then Eric just got a feeling we should move fast and went to see it with Dalton on a Wednesday night while I was in penis class. They loved it, so the three of us went over on that Friday. That night, and the next night, Dalton slept through the night for the first (and second) time! Since then, he has not repeated this behavior.

By Sunday, when we were originally supposed to see it for the first time, there were four offers in, including ours. After tons of stress and counteroffers and craziness, eventually, our offer was accepted. The ride on the emotional roller coaster continued, but yesterday we finally settled!

It required a lot of hydration. And candy.
The house is now ours!

Moving break to pop some bubbly!
He was fascinated by his new carpet. 


I could go on and on and on about my love for it, but I'll just say it actually has a yard and it's on a quiet street (right now we live on a really busy one). I'm just so excited for Dalton to grow up there and have so much more room to play.

The day before we closed, we did the only logical thing - went out to buy tons of new toys. We didn't feel we had enough crap to move, apparently. What's the point of having more room if not to be able to better spoil your child?

He makes it look like we will be living in a mansion.

Best $6 we ever spent.
We pretty much don't buy any baby items new, so everything came from this HUGE consignment sale that they have four times a year at the state fairgrounds. This is the first time I went since being pregnant and it was better than Christmas. We got so many wonderful things so freaking cheap, including, but not limited to, baby gates and bright colorful foam mats so Dalton doesn't bump his head (as much) on that beautiful hardwood floor.

Yesterday I was just opening all the drawers in amazement and mentally repeating "mine mine mine all mine". It doesn't seem real yet. 

I posted on Wednesday about our first post - baby date night and the thought still makes me shudder. Thursday night, we stayed up late after Dalton went to sleep, packing up the kitchen and talking. It's crazy, and annoying because Wicked tickets aren't cheap, but I had so much more fun wrapping dishes and hanging out, knowing Dalton was close by and I was there for him if he needed me (or I needed him, which is more likely if I'm really being honest). That's my life now, and I love it. But I'll love it much more from my new beautiful porch, back patio, finished basement, gorgeous master bedroom, etc. 

What was your home buying experience like?

Where can we get cheap yet not complete crap furniture, and who's good at decorating that lives in the DMV and wants to come over? 

14 comments:

  1. IKEA is your best bet, we have the best couches from there and they really aren't pricy if you buy the white covers and dye them. I'll teach you :)

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  2. DO NOT go to Value City- that's all I'm going to say. I had a great experience at Haverty's although they aren't cheap, more like middle of the road. Ikea is always a good option and I will always do baby watching while you and Eric put furniture together! :)

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  3. Huzzah! I know they say that things like moving doesn't affect happiness, but my life has been so much better ever since we moved. Quiet street, trail access, a yard, a DECK. Aaah.

    IKEA really is the way to go, and we also got some more fancy-lookin' pieces (like a really nice couch) by buying floor models in design stores at a fraction of the price.

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  4. I can't imagine buying a home. There's no way I'll ever be able to afford one here on a single salary, and at this point in my life, I'm not sure I'll end up married. I guess I'll just have to win the lottery. Have fun settling in! Are there any secondhand shops near you? Unfinished furniture can be good too if you want to put in a little work and paint or varnish.

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  5. Huge Congrats! Welcome to the joys and headaches of being a homeowner!

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  6. OMG! I'm so excited for you. When are you moving? Call and tell me everything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    I also vote for Ikea. Their stuff is cool and will make your house look like you have great style! But most of it needs to be assembled, so don't buy it unless Eric is good with that kind of stuff, or you'll go crazy.

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  7. Ours was so painful. We bought in 2013 and we put in SO many offers that just got taken out from under us because other people were paying cash and waiving the home inspections. It was hard!

    When are you moving? Can you do a home tour post? I love those...mostly because I'm terrible at getting ideas for my own house so I need to check out others. Speaking of which, have you gotten on Houzz yet? Total time suck, but awesome.

    I am probably the outcast here, but I don't love IKEA. We have some stuff from there, and some is good...but some falls apart really easily. World Market is great for decorative stuff like throw pillows and Macy's always has tons of sales.

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  8. Yay! I was wondering if that house did work out-- so excited for y'all. Our house buying process was semi-stressful if only because Will lived in CA so I was trying to scope all the houses for him so we could make final decisions when he flew out for a weekend....and then the Denver market is a nightmare so if you don't place an offer immediately, you lose it. BUT, it worked out! Definitely check out World Market-- not necessarily cheap but unique stuff that stands out in any room!

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  9. Congrats on the house! As a DMV person, I can imagine ever being in a financial position to buy a home, so I am super impressed!

    I also vote for IKEA-- they have a range of quality and price points for different items-- just don't get the cheapest thing, and what you choose will usually be good quality and last a long time. I used to work at IKEA in College Park when I was in school, so I may also be a bit biased. I also recommend buying a set of hex bits (and a drill if you don't already have one) to make assembly much easier instead of using the Allen wrenches.

    I have also had some good luck at Macy's during big sales. We got our couch, bed, and coffee table there, and I have been very happy with them.

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  10. congratulations! We just bought our first house in November and it was a whirlwind! It wasn't our dream home, because hey we're not millionaires, but it was perfect for what we can currently afford. We hope to save the next several years to build a home addition that will definitely make it a dream home!
    Being a homeowner is awesome, I hope you love it as much as we do!

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Thanks for commenting! Comments make me probably more happy than they should.