There's no turning back now!
The evening started with us sitting down with our home builder to pick out our options. Being a numbers guy, I had an exact dollar figure in mind concerning how much we want to pay for our home. After picking out extras (i.e. higher quality flooring, a three season porch, nice tile in the master bath, etc.), the home builder guy added up all the options.
When it was all said and done, we had $983 to spare!!! Granted things may change after meeting with the interior decorator next week. But I thought we did quite well considering all of the options we desired.
With that, we signed the purchase agreement! Upon signing, we learned that the home design we've chosen is the first one of its kind that Woodside Homes will build.
Within the next week or two we will be posting pictures of the official ground breaking ceremony!
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Monday, May 26, 2008
Devil Room....Defeated!
My Mom and Dad’s home in River Falls, WI has a root cellar. When they bought the house in 1992 the basement was unfinished, driveway was gravel, and the house needed a new roof and siding. Since then Mom and Dad improved on all of those things and more, except the root cellar which I named “The Devil Room” because it gives me the creeps.
I have never liked spending time in basements. The darkness depresses me and I don’t like the cold. So you can imagine why I didn’t care for the root cellar. Needless to say, it was useless space unless used for storing canned food and such so it went unattended for years. We just closed the door and ignored it. Big mistake. Huge.
As the years went by my fear of the Devil Room increased. Dad asked me on many occasions to help him clean it out, but I was so freaked out by it I refused. It was damp, getting musty, and bugs were starting to reside. It was an irrational fear, I know. However, I just built up in my mind awful things growing and dripping in that stupid little room. Well, as Rev. Wright says “The chickens are coming home to roost”. With the death of my father in February, my family decided to move forward with plans to build a home so Mom can come live with us. Yep, you guessed it, we need to sell the River Falls house. The Devil Room and I have a date with destiny. I can hear my Dad laughing at me from heaven.
In this housing market, every little thing counts. The Devil Room has to be dealt with if we want to sell Mom’s house in a reasonable amount of time. Left alone it would be an issue for any buyer. So I decided to make it my project. I consulted several people on what to do and tackled the project with vigor and courage. Brad and I cleaned it out, my brother-in-law helped us scrape and smooth the cinder block, we washed it with bleach, soaked it, rinsed it, and used a shop vacuum to get the moisture out. When it was reasonably dry I used hydraulic cement to fill any cracks and holes, and we painted it with masonry paint. It’s getting a new door and frame this week along with some flooring material. The Devil Room has been defeated!
I know my Dad would be proud and pleased. He never liked that stupid, creepy crawly room either. I also know what a complete ninny I have been. Had I just tackled the project when Mom and Dad moved in, I would not have had to deal with it now and would have rid myself of any worry and fear. Lesson learned.
I have never liked spending time in basements. The darkness depresses me and I don’t like the cold. So you can imagine why I didn’t care for the root cellar. Needless to say, it was useless space unless used for storing canned food and such so it went unattended for years. We just closed the door and ignored it. Big mistake. Huge.
As the years went by my fear of the Devil Room increased. Dad asked me on many occasions to help him clean it out, but I was so freaked out by it I refused. It was damp, getting musty, and bugs were starting to reside. It was an irrational fear, I know. However, I just built up in my mind awful things growing and dripping in that stupid little room. Well, as Rev. Wright says “The chickens are coming home to roost”. With the death of my father in February, my family decided to move forward with plans to build a home so Mom can come live with us. Yep, you guessed it, we need to sell the River Falls house. The Devil Room and I have a date with destiny. I can hear my Dad laughing at me from heaven.
In this housing market, every little thing counts. The Devil Room has to be dealt with if we want to sell Mom’s house in a reasonable amount of time. Left alone it would be an issue for any buyer. So I decided to make it my project. I consulted several people on what to do and tackled the project with vigor and courage. Brad and I cleaned it out, my brother-in-law helped us scrape and smooth the cinder block, we washed it with bleach, soaked it, rinsed it, and used a shop vacuum to get the moisture out. When it was reasonably dry I used hydraulic cement to fill any cracks and holes, and we painted it with masonry paint. It’s getting a new door and frame this week along with some flooring material. The Devil Room has been defeated!
I know my Dad would be proud and pleased. He never liked that stupid, creepy crawly room either. I also know what a complete ninny I have been. Had I just tackled the project when Mom and Dad moved in, I would not have had to deal with it now and would have rid myself of any worry and fear. Lesson learned.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Land pictures.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Picked out a lot!
With Mom along with us, the gal and I picked out probably the nicest lot in the development! Since there aren't many lots reserved in what is still a sagging market, we pretty much could choose the best one available. After reserving the land, we had a nice celebratory dinner at Olive Garden!!
As we were getting ready to put Mom's house on the market, we thought we might throw in Dad's riding mower as an extra enticement to a potential buyer since Mom and Dad had a sizable chunk of land. However, we're definitely bringing the mower to the new place, given the size yard we're going to have.
As we were getting ready to put Mom's house on the market, we thought we might throw in Dad's riding mower as an extra enticement to a potential buyer since Mom and Dad had a sizable chunk of land. However, we're definitely bringing the mower to the new place, given the size yard we're going to have.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Scheduled meeting with the builder.
Now that we are officially approved for a mortgage, we have a meeting set up with our home builder tomorrow afternoon to officially select our lot!
I think it will really hit home when we start selecting interior options for the house as well. When speaking about some possible upgrades (i.e. Cambria counter tops, higher quality kitchen cabinets, etc.), the gal starts rubbing her hands together and giggling like a mad scientist.
I really don't know what I'm in for, do I?
I think it will really hit home when we start selecting interior options for the house as well. When speaking about some possible upgrades (i.e. Cambria counter tops, higher quality kitchen cabinets, etc.), the gal starts rubbing her hands together and giggling like a mad scientist.
I really don't know what I'm in for, do I?
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
The first step in our journey.
Welcome to The Carlson House blog!!
As some of you may know we had initially planned to build our house in Andover, which is about eight miles northeast of where we currently live. However, those plans fell through so we decided to wait it out to determine if there were any suitable alternatives.
Three days had passed after we balked at the Andover plan when our builder called to inform us of a very quiet and scenic area in Ramsey, which is about 10 miles northwest of us. The gal & I took one look at the area and were instantly sold! The best part is this particular area would allow us to have that same home design we initially chose, but for approximately $50,000 less!
Despite the fact that we thought the Andover plan was the proverbial cat’s meow, we didn’t try to force the issue and make it work. When it didn’t feel right, we let it go and then trusted that God would fulfill the desire on our hearts. And I’m not talking about the material possession that would be our new home. No, I’m specifically referring to fulfilling the promise Jennifer made to her Dad. She assured her Dad that we would take in Mom to live with us after he passed.
Feel free to check in to this site periodically as we will be providing many updates of this exciting journey in our lives!
As some of you may know we had initially planned to build our house in Andover, which is about eight miles northeast of where we currently live. However, those plans fell through so we decided to wait it out to determine if there were any suitable alternatives.
Three days had passed after we balked at the Andover plan when our builder called to inform us of a very quiet and scenic area in Ramsey, which is about 10 miles northwest of us. The gal & I took one look at the area and were instantly sold! The best part is this particular area would allow us to have that same home design we initially chose, but for approximately $50,000 less!
Despite the fact that we thought the Andover plan was the proverbial cat’s meow, we didn’t try to force the issue and make it work. When it didn’t feel right, we let it go and then trusted that God would fulfill the desire on our hearts. And I’m not talking about the material possession that would be our new home. No, I’m specifically referring to fulfilling the promise Jennifer made to her Dad. She assured her Dad that we would take in Mom to live with us after he passed.
Feel free to check in to this site periodically as we will be providing many updates of this exciting journey in our lives!
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