Too much free time

I haven't made it to the library ... yet, but I have been trolling the web for useful moving/renovating information.  I just found my new Favorite Website: Do It Yourself or Not.  This website will provide the information I need to prioritize projects (increase energy efficiency and curb appeal pronto) and get a better understanding of the actual labor required to complete the project.

I will be able to disagree with my husband when he says he can do it himself with less expense. And when he decides to forge ahead anyway, I will know how long the project may actually take.  I can even start (and ideally finish) projects myself when DH (dear husband) deems them unimportant and removes them from his list of things to do.  The website provides step-by-step instructions with a complete materials and tools list.  I just need to get my own electric drill!

A First Time Homeowner's orientation and a monthly chores checklist will certainly keep the To-Do List endless.

The Waiting Game

still waiting to close .... SO frustrated
a lesson in patience i guess . . .

Perhaps its time for another trip to the library for some more preparatory reading.  I find even reading about what we're going to do frustrating.  I want to get in there and start doing already!

I have learned to savor the quiet weekends before the Renovation Storm hits and all my naps, long runs, and aimless puttering will be consumed by sanding, painting and cleaning.  I imagine autumn is the perfect time to begin these projects, so I might as well enjoy the long slow summer days while they are here!

Reading and Getting Ready

I am so thankful that I have a husband who is good with his hands.

I am not so talented in the manual labor department, not that I mind getting dirty or breaking a sweat, but I fear I am accident prone and probably slightly lazy. However, I have always been a very good reader and I have used the interim between making an offer on the house and actual home ownership to check some books out of the New York Public Library.

Marie's Guide to Home Improvement, by Marie Leonard, was a great place to build my confidence.  She outlined a list of necessary tools, a manageable list of 20, that included measuring tape, a utility, a level, putty knife, 6 in 1 painters tool, and a DeWalt 18v cordless drill.  I was familiar with most of the tools and even excited about the prospect of capably wielding a power tool. She briefly explains how to use the tools and when to use different materials (ie caulk vs. grout).  The rest of the book is a step-by-step guide for common home improvements: painting, fixing holes, hanging pictures, shelves doors, and window treatments, and minor plumbing and electrical work.

In her introduction she states,  "My passion is teaching women how to do home improvement projects so that they can experience the immense satisfaction and self-esteem boost that comes from taking on a project you don't think you can do and successfully completing it." 

So, do I get my own 18 volt drill or do I have to share with Russ?

(picture credit to Lindsay Roberts at apartment therapy)

The other book, I only allowed myself to skim, lest I get too excited and get ahead of myself: Starter Vegetable Gardens: 24 no-fail plans for small organic gardens, by Barbara Pleasant.  Summer is coming to a close and I will not be able to plant a garden until next spring.  And before the planting can begin there is  A LOT of clearing that has to take place. It is well organized book with lots of photos and clear concise step-by-step instruction for multiple years of planting. I look forward to checking it out again in the spring!

Commitment

Months ago we decided we were committed to this house ... yesterday, we got our letter of commitment from the bank.  It feels like everyone can see the potential that exists in our little home!

Rip tide

We were sucked deep into Real Estate land and after a few more weeks of comparison shopping, I discovered there was nothing else out there.  Nothing with 3 bedrooms and a good-sized garage, nothing commuting distance from the city, nothing NOT bank owned in our low-ceiling price range.  Not one single house on MLS (the multiple listing service) fit our criteria except the one on Hemlock Street.  If we wanted to move out of our increasingly cramped one-bedroom apartment in the Bronx and into something more spacious, then THIS was our opportunity.

One hot night, from a rooftop bar in the city, we called Diane and made an offer on the house on Hemlock Street.  It already had an accepted offer.  It felt like that moment in a relationship where one partner says, "I love you," and the other party isn't able to reciprocate the sentiment.  It sucks.

We figured, something better will come along; everything happens for a reason; its for the best; we're not really ready to buy a home anyway!  But we secretly hoped that the deal would fall apart.

10 days later, we got our wish and resubmitted our offer.  The sellers agreed to our terms, basically sell us your lovely home as soon as possible and we will fix it up and restore the beauty it once emanated. 

That was the pledge, now begins the work!

Manifesting

15 years ago I had been the weekend key girl at Houlihan/Lawrence Real Estate in Bronxville.  I opened the agent list online and I pondered who to get in touch with: Lynn Joyce!  Always calm, always cool, always collected, I knew that she would be able to refer me to a fellow agent who worked up-county, as most of the listings within our hypothetical price-range were in northern Westchester.  Lynn was pleased that I had reached out to her and we caught up on all the life changes that had taken place since she had been the recipient of emails I sent while traipsing around New Zealand 5 years earlier.  She referred me to Diane Ryan and it seems that within days, we were looking at 4 houses in Peekskill and Ossining. 

The house with the barn converted into a 3-car garage had of course made the cut as did one with a dirt floor basement, a third with a severe water damage, and finally one short sale home that would require total gutting.  The 3-car garage home didn't have to try very hard to charm us with its original 1890s wood staircase and door frames, expansive, but overgrown backyard, and dated, but functional appliances.

As with most wonderful things in life, the way we felt about the home was powerful and unexpected.  We were falling in love with the house.

Directed Day Dreaming

On a rainy Sunday, 3 months ago, I surfed onto a real estate website.  My sister was looking at condos with her boyfriend and it was fun directed day-dreaming to house-hunt for her, with her.  Houlihan/Lawrence Real Estate had been my first employer and I returned to their website and entered a few parameters into the search function.
I quickly navigated away from searching for condos for my sister to wistful thoughts of my dream home.  I looked at properties all over the world from New Zealand to the Adirondacks, rolling hill and jagged coast line. I found properties in my old home county of Westchester that were reasonably priced.  I excitedly flicked through a few houses and their accompanying pictures before I turned to my dear husband and asked if would join in my day-dreaming.  A few hours later, we had a list of 10 properties that might be fun to check out.

"Can we look at a few of these?" I asked.
"Sure, why not," my dear husband replied.

The Beginning

It is supercilious of me to claim that I am at the beginning of anything.  Billy Joel's song lyrics come to mind: "We didn't start the fire / It was always burning / Since the world's been turning."   But for my blogging and home renovation purposes THIS is the beginning.  The first words are being written and the floorboards, walls and roof on my new home are still in tact.  This Beginning is fleeting.