Our heads are still spinning just a little. We started our move the first week of June, and it didn’t go as smoothly as we had hoped it would. I suppose it never does, but honestly, this has been the most disorganized and difficult move we have ever made. Fortunately, we had our rental until June 15th, and it took us every extra day we had to have everything moved into BHH.
Now, we seem to be hard at work breaking things as fast as we can fix them. The previous owner , Mrs. Hutchinson, was a single senior citizen who had lived alone for 10-20 years. Prior to that, it was just she and her husband since the 1960s. We knew that the moment the six of us burst into this big house and started touching, using and flushing everything, the chinks in the armor were bound to reveal themselves. Sure enough, within a couple of days, there was a sewer backup in the basement that resulted in about 1-2 inches of standing water and yuck. (More on that in a later post.)
We also blew a few fuses (literally, not metaphorically), and we discovered that our washing machine was broken. (Again, more on all of this later.)
Since we moved in, we have had two sets of guests who have been treated to rooms that look like this:
Andy’s parents came to visit, and they unloaded so many boxes. Thank goodness, because I am sure that all the full boxes would still be sitting around this house right now. We have all been too busy putting out the fires of disorganization, breakage and chaos to spend any time unloading boxes.
All-in-all, we are so happy to be here. I have abandoned the idea that this blog will be any sort of decorating style blog. At this point, it does not feel that we will ever get past the constant repair portion of this house. I know we will look back, one year from now, and we will be amazed at all that has been accomplished. Today, every day feels like groundhog day, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.
9 Comments
Robin
Although design & style is more fun to blog about, I’ve learned to really love repairing my house. That sounds weird (and it is), but I love trying new things that are way outside of my wheelhouse, and home repair, plumbing, masonry work, carpentry etc are great ways to figure out just how capable you are at learning new skills.
Also, power tools. Love the smell of sawdust.
stacyfg@gmail.com
I agree! Andy completely created new plumbing and drainage for our washing machine. He had never done that before. We are actually creating an area for our washer and dryer because this house never had one before. That feels pretty great. 🙂
Kelly
Wow – this house is beautiful! And, the previous owner has my maiden name! I can’t wait to follow along on your journey!
stacyfg@gmail.com
Thank you! I’m happy that you want to follow along too. What a neat coincidence that your maiden name is the same as Dorothy’s. Dorothy was a remarkable women according to her neighbors and friends. She did an amazing job preserving BHH considering that she was widowed for about 10-15 years before she also passed away. It’s a fine name. 😀
Jan Elizabeth
It’s absolutely gorgeous from far away! 🙂 What a chaotic move it sounds like. Our last move was like that too, only the reverse. We moved from a six bedroom house (with a suite and two sheds – all full of a lot of people’s stuff) to a two-bedroom basement suite. I was too stressed to begin sorting anything before we moved, so it ALL came with us… We had both places for a month, and like you, used every day to make the transition happen. I’ve spent the entire two years since then sorting, decluttering and downsizing, and am getting there at last. I never want a move like that again!
Vanessa
Oh wow! It’s beautiful!
Stacy
Thank you!
SH
Curious if you still get comments from this first blog post. After searching for that desk from the estate sale, (I am so excited that my memory is still holding!) I wanted to see how it all started.
Hoping you are feeling better at the end of today than this morning!
Sheila
Stacy
Hi SH, 🙂
Yours is the first comment in a very long time.