It's good to see you here Jen (aka sunny?). Exciting news about the house!

I was there watching you do wonderful things to your current place, I know your new one will be fabulous!

ML

I will miss your beautiful old kitchen :)

There you are, Jen!! The place hasn't been the same without you and I'm glad you got the technical issues squared away. How exciting about your house! New or old doesn't matter - you'll still put your own stamp on it and make it charming, I have no doubt. Can't wait to see what you're doing. Never say never is so right. We are currently negotiating on land that is pretty much polar opposite of what we were looking for :-/

So glad you're back! Friends recently bought a home in Groveland, FL, just like the one you described. I love the zero lot line, back load garage, craftsman/bungalow styling and on and on! When will yours be ready?

Thank you so much for the warm welcome back and your kind words! I have really missed being here - a lot!

I'm sure when it comes right down to leaving it, I'm going to be very emotional about our old house. But the thought of those new things that most people live with that we've been without for years spurs me on! (A separate laundry room! A 2-car garage! A dishwasher! A disposal! Ahhhhh ... 'twill be heavenly!)

We'll be forced to downsize considerably and intend to live with a lot less clutter. I've already been selling items that we know we won't be able to use in the new place (was sad to see my Stickley mission oak breakfast table and chairs go, but pleased that it went to someone who has a passion for Stickley furniture). I've already gotten rid of what seems like "tons" of decorative items that I wasn't overly attached to. The hard part will be narrowing down my artwork for the walls. The new place is slightly smaller and although it's a two-story as is our current home, the layout is completely different. The main living area is open concept -- something I thought I'd never be drawn to, but once I saw it in the model home (pictured here), I fell in love. (Our kitchen will be very similar, but the fireplace - which won't be stacked stone, but cut stone with brick accents and a cedar mantle, more of a cottage feel - will be opposite the kitchen area.)

DLM - how exciting about your land negotiation! I wish you all the best and would love to hear more about what you're planning!

Hi Javachik, and thanks! Nice to hear that others are buying similar homes. (I know some people would not have a zero lot line, but the concept totally works for us!) Ours was initially projected for completion in early to mid-September, but these torrential rains we've had here for weeks have delayed things a bit. I'm trying not be impatient, realizing that the delay only means it's going to take a little longer to get us into the new place - but for the builders and vendors and crews affected, it means they aren't making money right now!

Auntjen, it's so good to see you back! I remember your last project being the kitchen cabinets. It's an adorable little house and will probably sell quickly!

After only 7 years here in Austin i'm selling to be closer to DD who is 45 minutes away on a good day! We spend a lot of time together, and with the 'new and improved'(yeah, righr!)traffic situation in Austin, sometimes feel i'm back in SD! The best of luck to you and the new house! Having everything to your liking and taste doesn't get any better. Enjoy!

Oh, and i'm looking for something with postage size property also. I just want a small space for a rose bush or two and a few flowers! I'm tired of trying to maintain beds, fighting weeds/drought conditions, and dealing with the horrible St. Ausustine grass! ;)

Hi Jen, good to see you back here! There is a special feeling about having something that was never used by anyone else!

We've never bought a brand new house, but most have been in the 12 year old range. In the current house we are gutting all the bathrooms and completed the master bath last year. It was great to have a brand new, never used bathroom, that I designed. Glad you are enjoying that feeling with the new house!

Welcome back AuntJen and congrats on your new home which will be perfection when you tweak it your own special way which we all enjoyed. Your excitement at moving in to your "dream" will over ride any nostalgia for the old. What fun!!!!

Welcome back! It's always fun to see what you do!

I have missed seeing photos of your cute house, and I'm glad to see you back. Exciting changes for you. I know just what you mean about the charms of an older home fading over time, and the appeal of the amenities in new homes. (CLOSETS! Big bedrooms! Big laundry room! Pantry!)

Can't wait to see this unfold particularly the fireplace wall with the stone and brick. I'm trying to find inspiration pictures of brick or part brick homes that still feel somewhat cottagey - not an easy search unfortunately.

Wow, Jen, that is big news! Can't wait to see what you do with your new place!

Welcome back, Jen! I too remember your cute house and kitchen transformation. So happy for you in finding a new dream house. Love seeing the layout and what you have planned so far, and will be excited to see photos of progress.

Happy to hear you had good help from Tamara & the tech folks here. Some gave up and never tried to get back in the swing of things. Glad you were persistent!

I'm so happy to see you posting as feel like a neighbor to me since you live in my home town even though I now live on the west coast. Whew...can you say, "run-on sentence"? What a surprise to find that you are moving into a new-build. I can't wait to see it.

Oh, it’s SO very lovely to reconnect here and hear from
you all! I’m thrilled to read about the
changes some of you have on your horizon as well! It’s also nice that you understand where I’m
coming from as far as just being READY for something nice, new, and all of our
own selection. I’m having so much fun
with this new site too, especially the ability to create Ideabooks. I’m sure I’ll make great use of that feature
in the months to come! Looking forward
to getting back in the groove here! :-)

Hey AuntJen - so good to see you! I hear ya about the 'old house'!!!!!!! I have to say that after living in this old house for many yrs. I'm actually kinda, sorta, secretly hoping that (GASP!) buying back DH's grandmother's home which is 150yrs older than our current 100+ yr old home, falls through for many of the reasons of keeping up w/ and working around an old house. Let alone bringing it up to date. I am secretly hoping to buy a larger pice of land w/ small home and build a barn style home new.

Hi AuntJen! So glad to see you! What an exciting time, congrats on your new home! I've never heard the term zero lot line before, but if a no maintenace yard is a preference it sure sounds like a great option. It will be fun to hear how the progress goes!

Welcome back, Jen. What exciting news! I will be looking forward to hearing all about your new adventure! Off to look up zero lot line...

Aha. Got it. Interesting concept. Not allowed here, but as developers try to fit more and more homes in an area, I bet it won't be long before many places become familiar with the term.

Welcome back Jen! Good to see you here.

Thank you all for the kind words! It's so much fun to be here! :-)

Hurray, you're back! What a surprising and thought provoking return post; never would have foreseen you and your beloved building new construction after sharing so many of your experiences in your little vintage love nest. A very good reminder that we never know what's ahead and what paths we will choose to take. Hope you jump back in with your bad (good) self often :).

Hey, I was wondering where you were. I gave a shout out on
the other side (in your other name) to see how your trip went. I’m not sure if
you remember you suggested Fowey to me and I’ll be leaving soon.

Very excited for you on the new home!

Jen, I'm trickled to see you join us over here. I thought you were one of the lost ones. I'm looking forward to all you share while building new. We've done so three times, with this last time being our own contractor. You learn something new every time you build.

So nice to see you here! Best wishes in your new home! I know it will be charming. :-)

Hi Auntjen, what extraordinary news !! I'm so happy for you !

Glad to see you back here, Jen! I did about the same thing a year ago -- like you I lived in old houses my entire adult life and now happily live in an open-plan newish townhouse/condo. Here's what's different: closets, electrical outlets where you need them, central AC, and the bathtub doesn't have feet and the shower has walls!

Good luck in your new home!

Aunthen, I had to go back and hunt down this thread since we haven't heard from you and how things are moving along with the new house. Have you made your selections yet? Do you have ideas for your decorating? Inquiring minds want to know. ;)

Thanks for checking in on our progress, patty_cakes! Unfortunately, with all of the rain we've received over the past month or so, progress came to a standstill and we are still waiting for our foundation to be poured! Construction crews all over this area are so far behind on jobs, and I'm trying to have patience. At least we presently have a house in which to live. I know that there are many who work construction here who depend on having those regular paychecks and when they stop rolling in, they really suffer. My heart goes out to them, and I'm trying to keep this all in perspective! As it now stands, our projected completion date is mid-October at the earliest.

We have made all of our selections for the house, and I think I've got photos of most everything we've selected here in my "idea book." (Can you view it?) My vision was to keep things as classic and timeless as possible. We've chosen hardwood flooring throughout, with the exception of the bathrooms and the laundry which will be tiled. My kitchen will have white cabinets (with a couple of lighted Flemish-glass fronted cabinets to display my blue and white Cornishware), black granite countertops, and a glossy white subway tile backsplash. We've added crown molding throughout the house. Will have a stacked-stone fireplace in the living room (which is open to the kitchen - a concept that will be quite different than we are used to!). The bathrooms will be simply styled with white subway tile in the showers, white integrated counters/sinks, and we'll have brushed nickel hardware throughout the house. The walls will be painted a very neutral off-white -- certainly different from the Crayola box that our current house used to be! I'm yearning for simple, classic, clean. And new. Never, EVER thought I'd be saying that, but well ... here I am. :-)

We'll be buying new furniture once we're in. I'm leaning towards a sectional in the main living space, and we'll need new bedroom furniture for the master and the upstairs bedroom. The little "game room" upstairs will be a space for TV watching and reading, and I'd like to furnish it sparsely but comfortably. I plan to use my paintings as pops of color, and it will be fun to figure out where to hang things once we move. I'll have to sell a few pieces, but I think I can use most of my favorites. We have already committed to plantation shutters in all of the rooms requiring window coverings, and I'm really happy with that decision. I've loved that look for ages, and am also just tired of dealing with curtains.

Right now it still feels a little like a dream that's a long way off ... But I know we'll get there eventually!

Oh yeah ... I find myself curiously drawn to sort of a traditional, Cape Cod style these days! Not sure how well that works with the pieces of Stickley mission oak and Native American art that I have, but I never claimed NOT to be "eclectic." ;-)

It's going to be fun to watch you bring your new, new home together.