Check out Our New Deck!

When we first bought this house when Sam was itty bitty, we wanted a flat lot, with no walk out basement.  This was a hard task because in the neighborhoods that attended the elementary, middle school, and high school that we wanted for Sam, there were lots of split entries and two story walk outs.   I wanted a big flat yard for kids to play in and that we could walk right out the back door two steps down and be in the yard.  I wanted to be able to watch the kids and see the whole back yard from the kitchen window--so no porch, please!  I wanted a veggie garden and a room for flowers.  And I wanted a traditional two story home with a traditional floor plan, four bedrooms for the four kids we were eventually going to have (my how that changed!).  I wanted to be on a short street (thanks Dad for this invaluable advice) and within walking distance of a park.

When we finally found what we wanted, in our price range, it was definitely a fixer upper, but none of that mattered to me.  Good bones were all I needed and location, location, location!  This school district is fabulous and filled with a diverse population.  That's why we live here and I am so glad we choose this home.  Every year, it looks more like us.  Now over a decade later, we've installed new siding and new windows.  We've replaced the carpet twice, new kitchen flooring, new counter tops, new kitchen back splash, and we've painted more rooms more times than I'd like to admit.  A new deck has been in the plans since we bought the place.  Every year something would come up and take the place of the deck fund.  So, we stained the deck and we ignored the deck.  But, it really was an eyesore.

So, this was the summer.  And we started planning.  And this is what happened.

Please note that the deck is still not replaced.  Stay tuned.  It should be finished in the Spring.

We are very blessed and so very thankful.