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Sunday, February 19, 2012

About this Blog

Hi! We’re so happy to have you join us as we write the next chapter in our sunny little home’s book. 


We purchased our first home in January 2012 after spending the first two years of our newlywed lives in a brand new maintenance-free apartment. Every little leak, chip, rattle, or gurgle was attended to by our landlord. (Oh, let’s not even talk about the time the toilet sprang a leak and it was a holiday weekend.) Needless to say, buying a house has been eye-opening and we have a lot to learn along the way. Luckily, we both love a good challenge!

Our home is 85-years-young with good bones – and lots of floral wallpaper – located on a tree-lined street in a quintessential historic small town in suburban New Jersey whose claim to fame is the discovery of the first dinosaur skeleton (rawr!). The previous owners lived there since 1955 and had quite a penchant for yellow & blue.

The house is a small but comfortable starter home, a 3 BR/1 B colonial built in 1927. It needs a pretty big facelift to join the 21st century, yet despite the knob and tube wiring, cracked plaster walls, oil heating tank, asbestos walls, tiny kitchen, and wallpapered ceiling, this house has managed to charm its way into our hearts for good. 

Standing underneath the sycamore on the front lawn, time nearly stops. You become transported to a bygone era – a quieter, simpler life – and you notice a smile playing at the corner of your lips as your heartbeat slows a beat and you breathe in the fresh air and sunshine. As you turn your gaze to the wide front porch, your mind wanders to all the memories created there over the past 85 years.  And at that moment, you realize that you are now meant to create those memories. So really, what’s a little crumbled plaster anyway?

None of this would be possible, of course, without the help of our family & friends. As clueless as we may be, we are so lucky to have an army of help backing us up every step of the way.  Of course, all this “free” help comes with a hefty pricetag some days (oh how the f-bomb flies!), but it sure makes for funny stories along the way.

This blog was created as a way to document this crazy project from the beginning and to remind ourselves where we came from and where we’re going. We will make mistakes. We will get discouraged.  We won’t always stay on track. We won’t always know the answers (far from it). We will spend every single Saturday waiting in impossibly long lines at Home Depot. We will eat out of our crockpot in the basement for 2 long kitchen-less months. 

But we will also fall in love a little more every day with this house.  We will learn patience.  We will spend more time with our families. We will transform these four walls with our own hands. We will create our own memories.  Most importantly, we’ll be doing it together. And, hopefully, we’ll also have a really gorgeous kitchen to show for it when all is said and done too!

3 comments:

  1. i am having trouble posting a comment.

    good luck to both of you on this amazing project. YOu will do great. We are always here for support and help. We are so proud of you both. Love the name of the blog.
    love mom and dad

    ReplyDelete
  2. lets see if my profile photo comes up!!

    ReplyDelete