Blessings, part 3: The House

The night Darren told me he was filing for divorce, I told him that if that was the case, I wanted him to move back into our house and I'd find a place for me and the boys to live. He has a million and a half unfinished projects to finish before we can sell the house, and we'd already discussed that we'd have to sell the house. He agreed. I immediately set out to find a suitable place for us to live.

My only criteria were that is have two bedrooms, and that it be in our school district. I don't want to uproot the boys' lives any more than I have to, and keeping them in Lily B and near their friends (and MY friends) was of the utmost importance to me. But the pickin's are slim in our neighborhood when it comes to rentals. I called on several, and the prices were way more than I could pay. In some cases, they were more expensive than our mortgage payment. There's no way I could do that.

I looked at a couple of properties. One was almost affordable, but was a complete dump. I'd have been scared to live there. The other was nicer, but would've cost half my monthly take-home, and it didn't have a spec of yard. (And since we're getting a DAWG...) I was getting discouraged. I considered the possibility of renting a 1-bedroom apartment and me sleeping on the sofa.

And then one morning, I went a different route than I ever go. I took Park Place down to University, past the zoo. I never go that route. And on the way, I noticed a sign in a side yard that said, "Luxury Duplex for Lease. Dogs Welcome." SIGN NUMBER 1. (Yes, a literal sign. haha! But a figurative one, too.)

I turned on to the street to get a look at the house from the front. My heart sank. Yet another place I wouldn't be able to afford. But then I thought, "Maybe the duplex is in the back yard." So I parked and called.

The duplex is the entire 2nd floor. 1500 square feet. 2 bedrooms. 2 baths. Private entrance and yard. And IN MY COMFORTABLE PRICE RANGE. Unreal. I couldn't believe my ears. I almost cried. I made an appointment to see the place that evening. SIGN NUMBER 2.

The boys went with me. They were nervous but excited. I was worried about my bad credit, which is a horrendous marriage story I haven't (and probably won't) talk about here. I reminded the boys to be on their best behavior. Ian reminded me that they always are. (Uh-huh.)

The Landlord asked me where I work, what I do there, and how long I've been in that position. I answered, and she said, "Let me show you the place." That was the extent of my credit check. SIGN NUMBER 2.

The place is gorgeous - just my style. Hardwoods throughout. Fireplace with black tile and beautiful wood surround/mantel. Cool architectural details and moldings. MORE CLOSET SPACE than we have in our entire house! A garage space for my car. A DOGGIE DOOR.

"Oh! A doggie door!" I exclaimed. "I was worried about how we could have a dog on the second floor and not be home all day."

"You have a dog?" asked the landlord.

"No, not yet, but we're getting one," I said.

"What kind?" she inquired.

"I don't know yet. But I've promised the boys a dog to help us with this transition."

"Well, I'll tell you what," she said. "I love dogs and every boy deserves a dog. I won't4. charge you a pet deposit." SIGN NUMBER 3.

"This is where the washer/dryer hook-up is," she said as she pointed to a corner of the kitchen. "Do you have a washer/dryer?"

"I do," I began. "But I'm not sure I'll end up with it...."

"Tell you what. I have one that just needs to be repaired. I'll get it fixed and have it moved up here for you."
SIGN NUMBER 4.

I wrote a check that night.
We move in the weekend of May 4.

Well, "we" is misleading. I won't be there.
I had a girls' weekend planned already. I was about to cancel it when Dani talked me out of it. She insists on moving me FOR me while I go play with glue and paper with my friends. I protested, but eventually, she won by saying, "Mom. It's going to be so hard for you to leave your dream house. To see your life dismantled like that. You need to just go away and come back to your apartment all set up for you to live in."

The next day, LivingSocial ran a deal for 2 movers, a truck, and 2 hours. I bought it.
SIGN NUMBER 5.

The landlord is painting the accent walls in my color choice - "Harmonious" by Behr. It's a beautiful, soothing light blue with a hint of teal.

Isn't that fireplace gorgeous? It has an outlet on top. Can't wait to decorate for Christmas in here. :)

Master bedroom with bath. I'm giving this one to the boys. They can pee it up all they want and it won't have to be the bathroom guests use. Except for their friends. They're friends will be required to use this one, too. hahahaha

Both bedrooms are a good size - 13x13.



My bedroom. Two closets. Might make more sense for the boys to have this room because of that, but wait... one closet for clothes, and one for.... MY ART SUPPLIES. WOO HOO!!

I ordered loft beds from Walmart for the boys' room. We're condensing two boys' bedrooms, a playroom and a computer room into one. The loft beds will help. So will the fact that they purged a buttjillion toys last week. :) I'm happy to have a space for my art stuff, too. Didn't think I'd get to have that. :)

The kitchen is dinky. That'll take getting used to. But it's doable. The door opens to a staircase that leads to our own backyard, separate from the landlord's backyard. (She lives on the first floor.)

I'll hang my pot rack above the dishwasher in front of that window. It'll help some with storage. Also, the hot water heater closet is in the kitchen, with plenty of shelving inside for the giant junk like big serving pieces, crock pot, etc.

Looking from the kitchen door through the dining room. There's room here for a round table, my kitchen dresser and matching armoire (more storage. yay!). On the left side of the room is a nice-sized corner where I can put my desk/computer/office area. Maybe an easel. Perfect. :)

The house is closer to school than ours. It's closer to three of the boys' best friends than ours. It's within spitting distance from the zoo. In fact, word on the street is that we'll be able to hear the lion's roar. SIGN NUMBER 6. :)