Dream House: If Only...

So...

One thing that has been really important to me throughout this home-buying exploration process, is to stay within the lines, so to speak.

Maybe one day I will have a big house on the beach but my starter country cottage is likely to be much more modest.

Now that I am back at the starting point, in some ways, in that I have to save for my down payment, it is even more true.

But...

I couldn't resist sharing this dream house.

Forgive me! :)

And have a look at these textured floors, and this beautiful planking/woodwork.

I found this house in a blog post on the Inspired Room blog.



Here are some more dreamy pics from this beach house...




I would love this bathroom...




Do you dream, too, about houses that are a bit beyond your budget? :)

An Encouraging Angel Number

"Angel Number 707 is a message is that you deserve accolades for the mental, spiritual and physical work you have been doing in your life.

You are helping yourself and many others with your current life choices and actions, and you are being commended, encouraged and supported by the angelic and spiritual realms.

Continue your great work and shine your light brightly.

The repeating number 707 is a message to continue to focus upon your spirituality and Divine life purpose and soul mission" ~Joanne Walmsley

Slow Cooker Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Recipe

Gluten-Free Slow Cooker Recipe for Cornbread Dressing...

Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Recipe

Home Buying Postponed

Well, I haven't posted in a while because my plans to buy the home I wanted have hit a snag. A couple of them, actually.


I thought I was going to have help with the down payment and the person who was going to help me was going to buy the home with me. And that was going to help solve problem number two, my credit challenges.

Those plans have changed, so now I have to do more work with credit repair and I'm going to have save for a down payment. I'm not happy about it, to say the least, so I may not check in here as often as I did before.

More to come on this unhappy development and my plans to get myself out of this mess...

Avoid These Decorating Mistakes

Decorating Mistakes

I am possibly half a year away from actively decorating my new home, but I have begun the planning process already! And she even says some things in here about paint colors and accent walls that will help me in the beginning stages before my home is built.

                            

What did you think? Did you find it helpful, too?

See you next time!

Jeanine

Low VOC Area Rugs

Because I have chronic fatigue syndrome, I want my home to be low in toxicity in every way possible. So I did a search on low VOC area rugs and here are some of the resources and information I found...

Martha Stewart: Healthy Carpet & Rug Tips ...

"Synthetic carpets contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs) -- which account for that "new carpet" smell -- that may cause health problems ranging from allergies to nausea. And virtually all synthetic varieties are backed with a latex mix containing styrene, a possible human carcinogen." ~Martha Stewart

Natural Area Rugs: Maintaining a Healthy Home...

"If you really want to lower VOC emissions in your home and you are getting a new carpet, ask the installer to air the carpet out before bringing it in your home. Plan to leave the house for several hours after it's been installed and ventilate your home during and after installation, Instead of using VOC emitting glue, ask the carpet installers to tack down the carpet.

A true VOC vigilante will want to use carpet or rug made from sustainable and natural materials. Sisal rugs and bamboo rugs are all examples of healthy carpet choices. Other excellent alternatives to synthetic carpeting are jute rugs and seagrass area rugs. Look for area rugs that have natural jute or latex backing."

FLOR: Low VOCs... 

"Most FLOR styles meet or exceed the Carpet and Rug Institute's Green Label Plus standards for low VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds). Low VOCs are important because of their harmful impact on indoor air quality."

Natural, Non-Toxic Area Rugs

Could Your Rug Make You Sick? 

The Olive Green Cottage

These colors are what I'm thinking about for the exterior of my home. I'm thinking a lighter olive with a darker olive for the shutters. What do you think?

Mediterranean Exterior by Santa Cruz Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers Kathleen Shaeffer Design, Exterior Spaces

Craftsman Exterior by Huntersville Architects & Building Designers Kenny Craft, CNU LEED AP

Craftsman Exterior by Spanish Fork Architects & Building Designers Joe Carrick Design - Custom Home Design

Traditional Exterior by Huntersville Architects & Building Designers Kenny Craft, CNU LEED AP

Keep Manhattan, Just Give Me that Countryside

Anyone else know all the words to the Green Acres theme song?

As I embark on the home-buying process, I decided to take a closer look at what it's going to be like to live in the country. I'm looking forward to it, but a wee bit apprehensive about the longer drive to stores and restaurants!

I do want to say that I am not going to own a farm or livestock or be homesteading, so lots of people have a far more rural experience than I will. But for me, moving from a fairly large city to one with less than 2000 people, with lots more nature and daily "Sunday drives" on my way to almost anywhere, it's definitely a move toward country living.

Let's hope this will be my experience...

"Fresh air is definitely one of the primary positive aspects of country life when compared with city living. In the countryside, everybody knows everybody and folks actually say hi. Residential areas in the country are a lot smaller yet they are more related and open. Folks in the country are truly friendlier and are willing to help you without asking a single thing for their efforts." ~Advantages of Living in the Country, goincountry.com

Asking for My Home: The Answer is YES!

 

If you don’t ask, you don’t get.  Also, you get what you ask for.  Every time.

This week, my coach’s challenge to you is to ASK at least 10 times.  At least 10.  Because it’s only in the asking – and always in the asking – that we receive.
 
Here’s to your asking… :)






 ~from a newsletter written by Elisabeth Purvis,  Goddess Business School

Ideas for My Healing Room

I think I mentioned before that I want a window seat for moon gazing. Well, I found a perfect one at Pottery Barn!

A little pricey? Definitely. But perhaps I can save up for it.

What do you think?

And the Winner Is...

Or, Maybe a Two-Story Single Family Home...

Also offers low VOC carpet and low VOC paint and hopefully, I will get a chance to see one of these, too, the next time I go looking. Stay tuned!

I'm excited about each of these last three possibilities because I have chronic fatigue syndrome (did I mention that yet?) and for someone with CFS, the possibility of low toxicity could be a game changer.

Low VOC Carpet & Paint: Another New Home Possibility

Low VOC Carpet & Paint

One thing I like about this home is the builder and the community where it can be built. The builder offers low VOC carpet and paint, which means lower toxicity (maybe even no toxicity?)

That could lower the cost of the home because maybe I wouldn't have to replace all the flooring with laminate.

Vaulted Ceilings

It also offers vaulted ceilings, including the room we would be using for homeschooling. It is meant to be the dining room, but that has been my plan all along: a room with chair molding and picture frame squares and a pretty window.

Sitting Room

There also is the possibility of a sitting room within the master bedroom. I recently unearthed a dream home vision board my son and I once created together several years ago.

I hadn't remembered it, but this vision board has on it everything I have been looking for, including a sitting room area in my bedroom. I don't know how much this upgrade would cost in this model, but I mean to find out!

My realtor is going to show me a model for this home plan soon, I think, and I can't wait to see it. Stay tuned...

New Home Possibility

The Search for Home

I've narrowed it down to three places, all single family homes. Two are two-story single family homes and one is a ranch home. They all have three bedrooms and 2 1/2 baths and each one has a separate dining room.

My Priorities...

(1) A healing room

(2) A homeschooling room

(3) Hardwood floors (or, I should say laminate or vinyl flooring, instead of carpet)

The Homes...

(1) One has a bonus room, which would mean we could homeschool upstairs. But the stairs greet you when you first walk in the door and you can see almost the entire downstairs from the doorway. No foyer, whatsoever.

(2) The second home has a foyer, and it preserves a bit of mystery. You can't see the stairs, the living room or the kitchen from the front door. I also really like where they've placed the laundry room and the powder room.

(3) The third home is the ranch, and it has wood-look flooring already in it; only the bedrooms have carpet. It has an eat-in kitchen. But you can see everything but the bedrooms when you walk in and it feels like one big great room.

I love compartmentalization and separate rooms dividing up the space. None of the houses has a fireplace, which I want, but if I build a house, using the plan of one of the three, I can add one. I'd also need to add the flooring I want, except in the third home.

Where are the Trees?

I've visited a lot of new home communities, and I love them. But I do have one complaint.

The trees are often in a row behind the house, but there are no trees in the front or back yards, no trees that come with the house, itself. I love trees. And my realtor tells me that they can be added, planted in, but then you have to really baby and nurture them so that they live and flourish.

Seems to me they could leave at least one tree per lot? But since they didn't, maybe I will eventually add one or two.

Simple Comfort & Letting Go

Simple Comfort

I've had a great day today!

I slept in and actually managed to get a good night's sleep (insomnia is often a problem). And then, I spent the day reading, watching DVR'd shows like That Girl, and playing the board game version of Hollywood Game Night with my son.

Fun!! The best part of the game was the one called "How Do You Doo," where the goal is to get people to guess the song you are singing. But you have to sing it by using the word "doo" for each note of the song.

Letting Go

But I also decided to let go of the house I saw online that is under contract. I sought intuitive guidance and felt like what would be the highest good was to stop trying to influence this particular outcome.

Yes, sometimes people find something better and walk away from a contract or something goes wrong, but I am no longer going to wish something more wonderful into the life of whoever currently plans to buy that house.

I will buy another one in the same neighborhood. And I like that one, too! A lot. It actually was my first choice until I saw the other one. :)

Ah, well. I think I am meant for the one that's available.

Finding Fall Home Tour

Click here to start the tour

 

The Home I Want

Just tried this again (tried it last night, too) and was imagining the home I want. Try it, yourself, and think of the home you want...

The home I want? Well, actually, there are two. The likely home and the really, really wish I could home. Both in the same neighborhood. Picture below is the wish home!

Laminate Flooring

Laminate Flooring...

Not sure what I will do about flooring in my home, but am using this link as a resource. I know I am really sensitive to the formaldehyde in carpet, so as I look, I am exploring other flooring.

But also, this air purifier, which removes formaldehyde.

It's Official!

Before this process began, I had no idea what it would be like to try to get a home loan. I didn't realize that the way they do things now, it helps if you get pre-qualified and pre-approved before you go looking for a home so that builders know what you can buy.

As you know, there were a few bumps along that loan, but this weekend, it all finally came together! Yay!

So I am hoping that I can find my home and write a contract for it sometime this month. I'll keep you posted.

A Country Cottage of My Own

Well, I took a drive to see the new home neighborhoods and two great things happened! ...

(1) I found my way easily and quickly. The directions were simple and it didn't take nearly as long to get there as I had expected. And I found out that even though I felt like I was "out in the country," there was a main street close to another city and it has all the things I feel like I can't live without ~ like Kroger. :)

(2) I loved the look of the homes. So my realtor and I will go look at some in particular that are in my price range once the loan is approved and I have a definite price range. I do know that it is likely to be much lower than the approval amount.

So maybe I'm not too far away from finding my own cute little cottage in the country. 

The best thing about this quick trip was that it proved how easy it will be to do back and forth between there and the city I live in now, which is where my mother lives. So my son and I will be able to come and visit her easily. My son will be happy about that, as will she.

Moving Out of State ~ Not so Fast!

One thing I didn't really mention in that last post was how traumatic it was to try to find my way around in that new state when I got there. My intention was to go back again and stay overnight so that it would be much less stressful.

But as I have tried to choose a date, I've realized that I don't want to go. It just seems too complicated to get there!

So... my realtor has suggested a city in this same state that has even lower pricing, that will give me the feel of living in the country. I'm going to drive out there this week and check it out.

Moving from One State to Another

Though I thought my decision about buying a townhome was final, I spoke with a realtor and she suggested that owning a single family home at the price I have in mind might be possible, but it might mean moving out of the city or even the state I am in now. Works for me!

So I have done some exploring and I found a single family new home neighborhood in a nearby town with prices that fit my budget. The homes surround a lagoon (really pretty water) and there are wooded lots, too.

The models offer 3 bedroom and 4 bedroom homes, which means I should be able to create a homeschooling space and have the healing room I want. And I think there is a fireplace option.

I drove out to the neighborhood, and even stopped to have lunch at one of the quaint restaurants this small town offers, but haven't actually seen the inside of a house yet because I am waiting to go with my realtor. And she wants to wait until we hear back about the loan, so I will know exactly how much I have to spend.

Could I move to a neighboring state, to a small town and a lovely neighborhood? I think so!

The laws for homeschooling are more strict, which adds a bit of hassle, but nothing I can't handle. And I like what they have to offer in the local homeschooling co-op.

So we'll see! I might be on to something.

Have any of you moved away from your hometown? I have several times, but it never occurred to me that I might do so again so soon. I was thinking I'd wait until my son went to college.

Have a wonderful Labor Day weekend!

Jeanine

An INFP Bedroom

An INFP bedroom...

Here's the link for the article! I love it.

Thanks for Playing: The Loan Extravaganza

Uh oh! ...

Um, I had a wee bit of trouble with the loan process. In fact, the first two people I tried with basically said, "thanks for playing!" :)

But I didn't give up and am in the process of working with someone now. We are doing a bit of credit score optimization and I think things are going to work out.

Trust...

(photo credit: Odette NightSky)

One of the lessons I have had to work hard on, especially when it comes to spirituality, is trust. It just does not come easily for me.

So I am doing what I can to focus on positive thoughts, and to believe that I am loved and that all is well, or will be well.

Angelic Encouragement...

I see angel numbers every day and they are part of the way I (and my spirit guide family) nurture trust that all is well. Here is just one of the encouraging messages I have received during this journey.

"Angel Number 134 is a message from your angels that you are being supported, encouraged, loved and surrounded by your angels and the Ascended Masters. Give any negative fears, doubts and worries to your angels to transmute and heal, and trust that you are on the right path." ~Sacred Scribes

Which Home is MY Home? Townhouse vs. Single Family

This decision was a really tough one!

Single Family Home or Townhouse

(photo credit: Zoocasa at http://facebook.com/zoocasa)

I wanted a single family home because of all I could do with it. I wanted a separate healing room, a separate homeschooling room, a reading nook, and more.

And I had fallen in love with the style of this particular builder already, so I compared their single family home models to the townhouse models. Obviously, I found several single family homes that would do the trick and one in particular I loved.

The Townhouse Wins 

But I just couldn't make it work in terms of the upgrades I wanted (laminate flooring, etc.) and the budget I had in mind for monthly payments. Sigh. I have to admit it was hard to let that one go!

Eventually, though, I made peace with getting a townhome, and loading it up with upgrades. :)

A Tea Party, Hardwood Floors and a Postcard

The story continues...

I love tea and when I found a tea company that had more varieties of tea than I had ever heard of, I wanted to find out more about it. So, a local Steeped Tea distributor invited me to her party one Friday night, and I not only fell in love with the tea, I fell in love with her townhouse apartment, her shuttered blinds and her hardwood floors.

And that's when I began to consider moving to a new, and hopefully, healthier apartment.

Unfortunately, that apartment complex did not have any townhome apartment available, which was quite disappointing.

But I should mention that I am quite magical, and by then was completely convinced that I should move somewhere. And I have been working on trusting my guides and the universe to work things out when I need it.

So I said, "Okay. Show me what would be better."

Within a few days, there was a postcard in my mailbox for a new home community with prices that would make the monthly payment similar to what I was paying for rent, if not lower. The building company has homes in every city nearby including my own.

And I found one within five minutes of the place I am renting. How cool is that?!?

Next Step: securing a loan

After that: deciding between a hip townhouse 15 minutes away or a single, family home right around the corner.

It Started with those Evil Blinds

For seven years now, I have been living in a beautiful apartment with a screened-in balcony and a lovely courtyard view. When I sit out on the balcony, it feels like I am in a tree house and I love to soak up the sunshine, stare at the clouds, watch the trees blow in the gentle breeze and say goodbye to the day with a gorgeous sunset.

Even from inside the apartment, when all the blinds are up, I have a wonderful panoramic view. And I wasn't planning to leave this place for a good many years to come.

In spite of the fact that my allergies have gotten worse since I moved in, no doubt in part due to the formaldehyde in the new carpet and paint on the walls since we were this apartment's first residents. I knew that hardwood floors would be much better for me, but loved living here and planned to stay.

Until the no-good, awful and very unpleasant Drama with the Blinds.

One night, when I began to lower the blinds in the corner of my dining room, they suddenly fell. So I called maintenance the next day and within another day or so, they had replaced them with a brand new set of blinds.

And I really think that that was the beginning of the end. Within days, I began to get sick. I knew that offgassing was the problem, but thought it would be over in a week or so.

It wasn't. In fact, about three weeks later, I was so sick I had broken out in hives all over the bottom half of my face, had a constant upset stomach, and was finding it difficult to breathe normally.

I had asked maintenance to take them down, but they were too busy, so I got permission to take them down myself, but when I did, I walked them across the room and then stuck them in a trash bag and put them outside.

Apparently, doing so spread whatever was so toxic, and made me worse for a bit instead of better. I ended up going to one of those minor med places and they gave me the medicine that fixed me up in a few days, but I was miserable.

That window still has no blinds on it!

I think it bothered me that they didn't ask if I was okay, didn't offer to pay any part of my medical bill, and basically seemed unconcerned about the incident, in general.

But that all happened during the winter. It wasn't until spring that I considered leaving. Stay tuned for that story...

And if you have concerns about formaldehyde or offgassing in your home, here's an article with more information about how to solve the problem with air purifiers.

The Journey Home

I have wanted a home of my own for as long as I can remember.

I am the kind of person who gets attached to things. Teddy bears, furniture, clothes ~ they all become beloved friends. And the same has happened with apartments, but I knew someday, I would need to have a home I could call my own. That nurtured my soul. A haven for my soul.

This blog is the story of how I found it and then wished, dreamed and believed it into existence. That last part is not completed yet. In fact, it's just beginning.