A Guided Tour

We live in a quiet neighborhood, out in the country, off a state highway. On the other side of the highway is a produce stand and a field full of cows (which delights the toddler.) The subdivision is fairly new, with construction still going on up the street, just out of sight over a hill. Directly around us, however, we are the newest house around. Everytime I run into a new person around here, in fact, they all say, "Oh, we were wondering who was moving into that house!" I've never felt so notorious!

We're not far from the entrance to the subdivision, just a couple of blocks up and to the left. As you drive up, you will see a pretty white house, with lots of windows, a scraggly brand-new lawn, and a single car garage (a tad narrow - I have to be careful backing out to keep from scraping off one of my side mirrors.)

Walk up the steps to the porch and in the front door and you'll find yourself on a wood-look floor, with steps on your right leading up and another half-stairway to your left, leading down to the basement. The basement is unfinished, bare concrete floors, shiny silver insulation covering the walls, boxes everywhere, making it hard to find a free place to step. I've created a clear space near one of the windows down there and covered the floor with puzzle-piece matting to soften the impact when the inevitable falls come. Most of the toys are down there.

On the other side of the basement, separated from the girl's play area by the roughed-in stairwell, under the other two windows, the teen has set up an old television and his PS2. He has plans to create a real teen nest down there, with food and soda, cushions, etc. We'll see about that. Privacy is good at that age, but we don't want him completely disappearing.

Upstairs, you walk into the living room straight across from the stairs. The kitchen is to the left, the hall to the bedrooms is to the right. There are three bedrooms, two baths, and a walk-in master closet that is almost big enough to be a fourth bedroom. The master bath has a shower and a garden tub. The kitchen has a dishwasher, a microwave over the stove, and water/ice in the refrigerator door. Every room has at least one window, and the whole house is full of light.

I've never lived anywhere this nice. It's really exciting to be able to clean and not have junk piled in the corners because I have storage space. I've gotten addicted to the water in the fridge door, guzzling icewater all day long, which is probably why I've lost some weight. I love this place.