We got the house!

Well, it looks like we're going to be home owners again! The sellers countered our offer and we just signed the paperwork accepting the counter offer. We are really happy with the house and the sellers are quite generous. We requested some unusual items - their entertainment center, riding mower, bar stools, extra refrigerator in the basement - and they agreed. They're also selling us (at an insanely low price) their dining room set which includes 6 chairs, a table, and a matching buffet/hutch. I'm particularly happy about the dining room set because my budget for new living room (leather!) and family room (crate and barrel sectional!) has increased! The first thing I want to do is paint the exterior a nice neutral taupe or tan, and the shutters black. We used those colors for our house in Florida and it looked awesome. Also want to paint the interior a great neutral color - Benajamin Moore's Shaker Beige (thanks Amy!!)

The pictures posted here are from the MLS website. The decor is not my style for sure but the house has great bones and fantastic layout. This is the living room which has new carpet and the entertainment center we asked for in our offer. It is solid wood. I will paint it black to make it a bit more contemporary and modern. We are also going to put a leather sofa and 2 chairs in here using the current layout (minus the coffee table) and replace the light fixture. It is a pretty big room so we'll use this room mostly for entertaining - no kids or dogs allowed!

This is the family room/kitchen. I love how it the kitchen opens up into the family room. It will be so much easier to keep an eye on Kai when plays indoors. The new C&B sectional and chair will go in this room. Check out the built in desk! This is the perfect place for Kai to do his homework when he gets bigger! I also like the stone fire place but the screen has got to go. We have a dining set very similar to the one in the picture that we'll put in this room.

The kitchen is on the other side of the room. I am changing out the brass knobs as soon as we get the keys. I'd like to restain the cabinets (cherry) and get new countertops (corian or some stone material) in a year or so. We also need to update the refrigerator and stove to match the new dishwasher and over the range microwave. I can't begin to tell you how excited I am to have an over the range microwave! I also love the color of the appliances...they were white in our last house and it was a pain in the backside to keep them clean! Oh, I'd also like to re-do the floors..again we had white floors in our Florida home and keeping them clean was impossible!

This last picture gives you some idea of the backyard and side yard. We're going to replace the wooden fence with a slightly taller vinyl fence, and extend it to the back of the property and the other side of the house. The fenced in area will be Charlie's space to run, play, and do his business! That still leaves about .28 acres on the left side of the house for Kai to play and have a playground set. The 2 car garage has enough space for the cars and a workshop and it has windows, so it looks like an extension of the house. I also love how the garage doors are on the side of the house, not the front.

So, now the fun begins. Inspections are set for next week and if all goes well, we are scheduled to close on or before July 30th (somewhere around the 15th would be ideal!). The house appears to be well maintained (it was built in 1989) so we're keeping our fingers crossed!