Out With the Old, In With the New

On Sunday, four days after we discovered the flooding in the home we were about to purchase, Dan and I fasted for some guidance. We already knew we wanted to be in that neighborhood, in part because we wanted to stay in that ward. We'd only been to the ward twice, but both of us immediately felt like the location was the right place for us. We both felt so happy at church. Everyone was friendly and welcoming, and I was so excited to have found people who I might develop lasting relationships with. The taste of potential permanence filled me with peace. We knew that no matter what happened with this house, we needed to stay in this ward.

So after having fasted, (and receiving numerous warnings from friends, family, and people at church) we drove through our neighborhood, hoping to see that the Bank had followed through on their promise to have a demolition team tear open the flooring. But they had not done a thing, and that water continued to sit and soak into the floorboards and drywall. We both felt inclined to look at other houses as back-ups, though decided to give the Bank until Tuesday to get something done and salvage our closing.

Monday afternoon came and I met my realtor at the house. Mold was already growing in the pantry, and who knows where else. Right then, despite my anxious anticipation for a house, I knew we had to walk away and felt completely peaceful about it. My realtor took me to three homes I had selected out of our back-up options, all of which were in that neighborhood with similar lay-outs. Dan and I were not wanting a bigger model; we already felt like the original house was huge. But the smaller models were all short-sales that we refused to consider because of the hassle involved, and these three bigger ones were only a bit more expensive and well within our price range.

I fell in love with 4021 Hero, a beautifully remodeled home with new paint, carpet, and a granite-countered kitchen. It had the magical "awe" factor of the very original "dream home" we had seen back in March that had drawn us into these models. And yes, it's bigger. I'm a little embarrassed to admit it's 3723 sq. Certainly a home we can grow into!

Because of time constraint, Dan only saw video of the home before we signed paperwork that evening to put in an offer. We'd seen plenty of those homes together to know he would love it. Less than 48 hours later, our offer was countered and accepted. We have been in complete shock at the speed and ease of this turn-over. Working with investors versus a bank is like night and day! Everything about this house and the process feels right, though I don't know if I can ever feel comfortable saying we deserve a house this nice. It is such a huge blessing that humbles me, and makes us want to give back where ever we can.

For those asking for pictures, here's a tour of our home:

 When you enter the front door, this is the first room. (I love the two-tone paint throughout the house! We were going to do that exact thing. Now to sell the $1000 worth of paint we already bought and no longer need...)

 Stairwell to the left. As you pass the stairs...

 ...the kitchen will be on your right with a sliding glass door that leads to a small backyard with a few nice trees and a patch of grass.

 Adjacent to the kitchen is this little family room. Beyond the white doors, we want to turn that into a playroom. It's perfect because when Aiyana becomes moble, I can close the door while I'm cooking and she can play, and I can still see her through the glass! Super excited about this idea.

 Dan will probably close up this wall so we can put a flat-screen down the road, as well as a pantry for food storage on the other side.

 Looking back towards the entrance and the stairs. To the right of the stairs is a hallway...

 ...that leads to a closet, then the laundry room that opens into the 3-car garage. Next in line is the guest-bedroom. The bathroom straight ahead is the only bathroom on this floor. The rest are upstairs.

 At the top of the stairs, the loft is to your right.

 Looking from center of loft towards top of the stairs. That room is the master bedroom.

 That door on the left is the entrance to the master bedroom. I'm standing where our bed will probably be. So as you enter the master bedroom, that hallway leads to the bathroom area.

This balcony is across from where our bed will be. Dan's so exited that it faces west! He's not a fan of early morning sunlight.

 Our little hall to the bathroom area. His and her closets on either side, then a garden tub to the right, with the shower and separate toilet to the left. We'll eventually have to tile the bathrooms.

 Aiyana's nursery! I love the wainscoating and two-tone paint in here. The crib will be on that wall to the right. We'll definitely need to get black-out blinds for this east-facing room.

This bathroom is in between the three clustered bedrooms across from the loft, which are down the hall from the master bedroom. One of the bedrooms has a small bathroom inside of it. So there are four bedrooms and three bathrooms upstairs, and one bedroom and one bathroom downstairs.

This concludes our tour! We will probably close between November 4-7th!