t1day

The story of this day is probably one of my mother’s favorite to tell.  Sometimes I think it’s because she’s so proud of her determined ‘put your mind to it’ daughter, but others I think it’s because she’s trying to convey to people what she has to put up with every time she comes to visit, slave labor!


Anyhow, I dropped a slight hint in my last post about my interest level in the Berber carpet on the second floor, and let me remind you with another…. I HATED it, a lot!  From the moment I walked in the house for the very first time I knew it had to go.  Don’t get me wrong, carpet certainly has its place, but it’s more like in the basement (where we have the exact same Berber, and I LOVE it).

So the story goes a little something like this…. We closed on the house on a Friday morning.  That afternoon I picked up mom from the airport just as Gus was en route from Florida to Allentown for the last Ironpigs baseball series of the season.  Before heading to the stadium, we stopped by the house so we could walk through and make a list of what needed to get done before our new pad was move-in ready.  Guess what was numero uno on my list.  That right, we’ll see ya carpet.  It was the only thing I could think about, and while Mom tried very hard to distract me with other projects, I could not focus on anything until that carpet was gone.  I might add that at this point we weren’t 100% positive there was hardwoods underneath, so really quick we both grabbed a corner and tugged at the staples until we were able to catch a glimpse of my treasure.  Once I locked eyes with those beauts I was even more convinced.  And more importantly, Mom gave in.  So as we drove to the stadium we made our own game plan for mission “Hardwoods or Bust”.  Gus had to be at the field most of the following day so it was up to Mom and I to get some momentum going.  Surprisingly that part was a breeze.

For anyone who has ever pulled up carpet before, it’s a pretty common theme that getting the actual carpet out is the easiest task.  So we got busy first thing just pulling up all the carpet edges and doing our best to roll the pieces so we could get them out of the house at some point.  Only problem was, two of the bedrooms are quite large, and the carpet turned out to be one large piece in each, which meant it was heavy!  So, in order to get it out of the house, we both had to tug on the ends and drag it to the stairs.  Once there, we each got on one end and thought we would pull/push it down and straight out the front door…turns out we rode it/it drug us down the stairs!  I’m guessing it would have been pretty humorous to watch.  That’s how we role (almost literally), showing those new neighbors we were serious DIYers.  Here’s a pic to help you with the mental image…

We missed the front door on this one and had to redirect the freight train a bit.  Once we got it outside, we couldn’t drag it so we were forced to carry it, and I think our fingers were almost ripped off in the process, but we did it!  Gus got home to a big pile of carpet in the driveway, such a lucky man that one!  So once more, here is the before…

And then the after…

At this point I thought we were in the clear, but I’ve never been more wrong.  See those little bits of padding stuck to the floor? And also that light colored tack strip running around the perimeter? Together they represented an exhausting weekend for mom and I.  See by this time it was Saturday around lunch and it literally took us the rest of the day and into Sunday and Monday (holiday weekend = more torture for Mom) to get it all pulled up.  See complete pics below…

The bits of padding weren’t quite as bad because the staples weren’t flush with the floor, but rather held up a bit by the padding.  So for those, we just used a pair of needle nose pliers and pulled.  Granted there were several hundred of them, so our knuckles were definitely feeling it by the end.

But the tack strips, OH THE HORROR!  (I’m channeling SATCs Anthony Merintino preparing Charlotte for her wedding to Harry)  In fact, we actually wondered if we could invent some sort of special tool to get them up because we’d make millions if we could give people an easy way to get this chore done.  We ended up using a pry bar, a hammer and a flat screwdriver, but there has to be a better way!  The task involved prying up the strip bit by bit and wedging the pry bar where it could fit to allow for a bit of leverage.  Inevitably there were always strips that split, nails that wouldn’t come up, awkward angles, etc to push us over the edge, but the worst was how much our hands hurt by the second and third days.  I definitely feel responsible if my mom ever gets arthritis!

        
 All complaining aside, we had a pretty good time (as on most occasions) and certainly learned the meaning behind ‘A Labor of Love’.  As it turns out the floors had been stained (by hand with a brush it looks like) and not sealed, so they were/are quite dry.  We used the tried and true Meyer’s Soap to clean them up nice and planned to refinish them someday (flash forward two years later and that task is still on the list…).  In the end, I’m really glad we got it done before we moved in, because it would have been a much more time consuming task to remove furniture etc.  I should also note that mom agreed in the end that the carpet needed to go…one small victory for all the daughters out there whose moms are ALWAYS right (and who hate Berber carpet)!!!

t0

I chose to incorporate a little of my nerdy scientist self in the title of this post, so please don’t judge!  In the lab we refer to our stability studies by their time-points, you know t0 as the study start, t1mo for time 1 month and so on (nothing too novel here folks).  And since my blog is dedicated to documenting how our home is changing over time, well it just seemed a perfect fit!  If anyone from work ever reads this they will never let it go, but that’s a risk I’m willing to take (I know, I know, I lead a daring life). 

To get this show on the road I want to share pictures from the first time I saw the house.  After countless weekends spent with our patient realtor, it was the will of my mother who really set the tone for that particular day.  She happened to be visiting for the weekend while Gus was away on a road-trip, and as she has done so many times before, she made one of those bold statements that you don’t believe for an instant at the time.  It went something like this, “We’re gonna find THE house today, I just know it!”  Pretty sure I mumbled something negative under my breath because I wasn't too excited about any of those on the list for the day.  As we got in the car with the realtor, her first words were “I’d like to take you by a property that isn’t on our list for the day.  It may be a little over your price range…..”  Cue cringe. 

As you may guess it was THE house, just like mom said.  Seriously, why are moms always right? ALWAYS!?!  Before we even left the property our realtor called the listing realtor, and lucky she did because there were already two offers in, and they planned to stop taking them on Monday!  Eeeeks! Gus wouldn’t be home until Monday and nobody puts in an offer before their other half even sees the place….or do they?   Yes, they do...I mean, I did.   I knew he would love it, and it was unlike anything we had looked at (which was a good thing-I'll share some pics of those experiences sometime).  It was really intimidating to put in an offer knowing there were already several on the table, but I had a gut feeling we were meant to live there, or here rather!  The process was really smooth and because all the offers were for the asking price we were chosen only because we didn’t have anything of our own to sell (the one time when it pays to be a first timer!).  The inspection went well (it was the first time Gus got to see the whole place!), and the previous owner remediated a few important findings like the Radon levels in the basement and a railing on the stairs headed down to the basement.  The closing was set for September 11, 2009 (AKA t0) and thus began our adventures in creating a home!

So let's get to the goods! The house is a French Provincial built in 1937 and sits on a one acre lot which is shaped somewhat like an arrowhead.  There are beautiful trees lining the property with two large gigantic trees up near the house.  The house is 2,198 square feet with a two car garage (though Gus’s truck doesn’t fit in, which doesn’t make sense to me, weren’t cars bigger back then?).

We certainly weren’t looking for a pool, actually we were avoiding most houses with pools, but when you fall in love you sometimes forget about the perfect checklist you were hunting for ( I sound like an e-harmony commercial--eek).  We got lucky because the pool was in great condition, and in the summer I get to ‘lay by the pool’ in my free time...ha.  Here’s a view from the second floor landing window.

Alright, so here we go.  Brace yourself for what was affectionately (note sarcasm) referred to as ‘Rainbow Bright’s House.’  I should take a moment to fully disclose that I certainly recognize everyone has their own style, and although I didn't really care for some choices made by the previous owners, I completely realize that someone may say the same thing about me someday!! With that said, as you enter the front door the living room is immediately to the right, and yes this color did in fact cause your eyes to dilate when you walked in.  It’s a long skinny room with an entrance to the kitchen on the far end.

The color shown in this picture below rings a little truer, you can really see how it complimented the woodwork so well….ha.  Actually, the best part of this picture is that to the right of the fireplace you can see a painted portrait of the property.  It was done in 1963 and the previous owner left it to us which we really appreciated.  I can remember a similar photo my grandparent and parents had of their properties, so I really cherish having this one of our first home.  You can also see the kitchen door I mentioned above on the right. 

The kitchen is nice and big, and as you can guess it's not original to the house.  The previous owner added on the eating area as well as some nice features like granite counter tops, stainless appliances and a gas cook top.  I can’t wait to share the current pictures, because that yellow color is G-O-N-E, and the space has a clean farmhouse feel to it now.  In the photo the entrance from the living room is on the left hand side and the doorway on the right goes into the mudroom/office/garage.

  

Here’s a quick pic of the eating area.  It's not the best view because if you turn 90 degrees to the left you can see out on the patio to the pool, but it gives you the idea.  It’s a very sunny room and probably one of my favorite spaces in the whole house, though it can be a bit chilly in the winter with all those windows.

This isn’t the best picture of these spaces, but they’ll be some better ones shared soon.  Please note, for your viewing pleasure we are now half-way through the colors of the rainbow!  The door on the right is our half-bath, and boy was it a beaut!

I regret to inform you that this lovely wallpaper border is no longer with us.  I know, what a tragedy!  All joking aside I am very thankful to have this half-bath because most older homes in the area only have one full bath. 

The dining room brings you back to the front door, which is nice because each of the rooms connects making the first floor feel a bit more open.  Oh and of course the cats absolutely love using the whole first floor as a race track.  They literally do laps chasing one another.  Sounds more like a herd of cattle than two cats.

If you head up the stairs the master bedroom is on the left with the full bath and then two additional bedrooms on the right.  You can see that the previous owner had installed some Berber carpet throughout the second floor pretty recently, but yeah that didn’t last too long….he gone!  As I mentioned earlier, there are three bedrooms upstairs.  The two that flank the staircase are really good sized and then the third on the northeast corner of the house (opposite the bathroom) is a bit smaller.  The overall landing is huge which is a HUGE benefit because I can’t tell you how many houses we looked at where Gus had to duck his head throughout the entire second floor! 

Here is a shot of the master bedroom.  Aren’t those window treatments just precious?  On a side note, this is the only room in the house with popcorn ceilings….why?

One great feature of this old house are the two closets in each of the two main bedrooms.  Not many old houses have decent sized closets, let alone two of them, but this gal a’int complaining!  

Then there’s the full bathroom.  It’s small, but it works!  Plus, that Jacuzzi tub (also not a common feature in old homes, so yes the previous owner had kindly upgraded this space too) is quite a luxury in the winter!  The one thing we didn’t don’t understand is why he chose one of those freestanding shower units!  Oh well, you can’t have it all!

I don’t have any really good pictures of the basement, so you’ll just have to trust me that its half finished with a bar area and half unfinished with the oil tank, washer and dryer etc.  It’s not a true full basement, since we do have a small crawl space, but it's pretty good sized. 

Overall we are so thankful for how well the house was built.  I can’t even count how many people have told us we got lucky, ‘because houses aren’t built like this anymore’ and we couldn’t agree more! This is exactly what we wanted, bright colors aside!  For our first home, this house has truly been a blessing and when we leave PA someday (if you know us at all we talk about our home, Kansas, with every other breath) I will really miss it!  I’ve already suggested we pick it up and move it, but Gus gives me that you can’t be serious look because he knows if he even gave the slightest inclination it was possible I’d try and make it happen!

So that’s it! A long overdue first look at the house on Green Pond! I can’t wait to share all the changes we made thus far because stylistically (nothing structural) it has changed so much...no more Rainbow-Bright colors!  

BTW, I’m shooting for one post a week (this one took two because it was kinda long), but I’m not promising the schedule to be too regular because after all I do have this job thing I’m supposed to go to everyday, ick!  All joking aside I’m thankful for said job, but would just like to know one thing….who said the week should be 5 days and the weekend only 2?

Dear Diary,

I have a crush on Gus. Only kidding…I mean I do (as many of you know), but really I just didn’t know how to start my very first post!  Since this feels like a diary, well I just couldn’t help myself. Anyhow, welcome to a diary of sorts for 'The House on Green Pond'! I’m not sure I can explain what made me want to start this blog….the closest description would be a crash collision between my life-long love of style and organization with my recent discovery of blogs like Young House Love and Bower Power and perhaps most inspiring, the genius that is Pinterest! I mean I have been ripping ideas out of magazines for years, but to have them all online, and to include fashion, cooking, DIY, organization, gardening and all those boards yet unexplored? I couldn’t ask for more! Anyhow, I have been feeling the urge to claim a spot on the blogosphere for myself for a few months now, and as I mulled over the idea (and the reasons not to...work is crazy busy right now, I should really use the time to work out, finish a scrap book I've already started, etc.), I kept coming back to the idea that I wanted to document all the progress we have made on the house since moving in. So, today, on the TWO year anniversary of owning our home… I have taken the plunge!