Before and afters

As most of you know, I debated sharing these before pictures for a while now. Firstly because I feel like when I look at them I wonder if Aaron & I were crazy when we first bought this house given the condition it was in! You might think so too. Secondly, I know that there was a lot of love in this home when the Young’s originally built it and raised their family here, and these before pictures don't reflect that. We have so many people talk to us about spending time here, who say that it was their second home, who recall taking prom pictures in the yard here, etc. Its always been more a home than just a house. My understanding is that there were a couple of different owners who lived here in between when the Young's owned it and when we took over. This led to some neglect and projects unfinished. It’s hard to believe it’s the same house now when I look back. 

When Aaron & I were looking to buy our first home after we were married and after looking at numerous homes, our realtor and dear friend, Janice Gammon told us there was a new listing on the Sunrise Trail she wanted to show us. I knew immediately and instinctively which house it was going to be. You see, this house has always been a favorite of mine. Even as far back when I was a teenager, I would drive by it on my way to Waterside Beach and this house would always catch my eye. I would admire the shutters and the neatly manicured hedge and wonder what it would be like to live here. You may not know this about me, but I am a firm believer in manifestation. I told Janice we wanted to see the house right away, and we made an offer before they could even post a for sale sign!

The hardwood floors throughout, the fireplace in the living room, the big beautiful yard and layout all spoke to me. I could see the potential, and that was before we met our wonderful neighbors Cathy and David (Bergy) Davis, Donna and Jim Young and others. Such a great community around us. Finer people one could never hope to meet. 

I hope by sharing these before and after pics I allow you to see that with the help of family who are willing to pitch in, lots of paint, and some time and patience a house can become a home again. 13 years later and our basement still isn’t refinished. And we still don’t have new cupboards. But we have done plenty else. A new bathroom (if 13 years is considered new!) installed by the best plumbers in town, new windows, a new roof, front door, new interior doors, light fixtures, a new wooden mantle built by our neighbor Walter, some new flooring in the porch, plus plenty of paint have all gone a long way. Although my list is still miles long, I’m content to whittle away at the smaller things and Aidan loves living here. The other day he was drafting a newspaper article about his future self for school. One of the things he wrote was that when he grows up he wants to live “in a house like this”. I hope he always feels that way.

I'm planning on sharing photos of our deck and pseudo updated stairway in another blog post.  The stairway before pics from when we moved in are something else! We added the deck onto the house about 7 years ago, and it is one of my favorite features of our home. Built by a good ol' River Johner (and friend of ours), he really made my vision of the pergola and wrap around deck come to life. It's just like having another room on our home in the summer time. I love it.

So there you go. My most vulnerable blog post. I’m no expert that’s for sure, but if you have questions about how to freshen up your home I’m always here to ask and offer advice - 9 times out of 10 I’m going to tell you to buy some white paint! Right, Rebecca? Except for when it comes to back door steps, avoid white paint at all cost, especially with a Golden Retriever.I’ll never make that mistake again! But that’s a story for another time. 😂 I hope you enjoy the photos. It's been a nice trip down memory lane for me.

TBC...🏡