Update

Well we have even living in our new home for 3 weeks! Nothing is "done" yet so I have only taken a few pictures. I think I have everything in their respective rooms, just not placed yet. Someday when I have more time I will do a full post with good pictures, and things that we should have done differently during the move. Here are a few pictures, but remember, nothing is 100% yet! 

Family room, awaiting a new entertainment center to take up that whole wall. 

This is what moving does to an anxious dog. 

Enjoying the deck on one of our first nights. We were blessed with 70+ degree temps

The kitchen after the first load of boxes were unpacked. 

First floor guest bedroom. 

Simon loves to lay in the sun in the bonus room. 

Foyer

Foyer- mixture of pieces from Tiffany&co. to TJ Maxx!

Need some candles for this shelf!

My "wall of fame." Frames have been straightened. 

Morning room table my dad built!

Closed!!!!

We closed! All went smoothly! Quick and easy. Will post more later!!!

Certificate of Occupancy

Our PM called me at 5 Friday evening to let me know that the city inspector who was scheduled to come out for the final inspection never showed. If he does not come on Monday, we will not be closing at 3:30!

This was not a Ryan Homes issue, and the PM sounded genuinely upset during the phone call. So this weekend will be filled with packing, hoping and praying that the city gets their act together. Monday at work is going to be tough waiting on that phone call!!

Final Walkthrough...Done!

We had our final pre-settlement walkthrough on Wednesday! It lasted about 2 hours. 

Most of the "blue tape" areas were normal new construction issues.  A lot of nail pops and settling cracks.  No biggie.

There were areas of very, very, poor paint jobs. Particularly around the tile in the showers, it looks horrible. Also, the first floor bedroom looked like it had 2 different paint colors.  It looks like they fixed some drywall/nail pops and didn't use the beige that's throughout the house to repaint where they fixed- they used white. 

We also had a huge hole above the mirror in the first floor full bath- I mean...why?

I also pointed out all the crooked light switch plates and how our kitchen cabinets were hung crookedly.

We received our estimated settlement fee last week, but it was not correct.  It was just over $1000 too high. I've yet to receive the new estimate, so today I will work on getting that and then going to the bank to get the cashier's check for closing!

This weekend will be packing, packing, and more packing.  The rest of the schedule is:

Sunday

• Pack up my car with loose items/small boxes

Monday

• Go to work until 3
• Aaron packs up his car with more small boxes
• We meet at the NVR office at 3:30 for closing!
• After we're done, pick up some take-out and drive to our house!!
• Eat then unpack our cars
• Go back to our old house for the last night

Tuesday

• Pick up U-Haul at 7AM and load all morning
• Movers meet us at new house at 1PM
• Refrigerator delivery
• Once the movers are gone, go pick up Simon (our dog) from our old house. I hope he's not freaking out too much!
• Sleep in our house for the first time!

Wednesday

• Verizon Fios, security system, and outdoor speaker installation
• Focus on installing ceiling fans/light fixtures
• Start assembling furniture

We hope to have everything in the new house by Wednesday. The new family is moving in Thursday evening! I'm trying to remain totally chill about everything, we will see how long my OCD tendencies allow that. I'm going to yoga class at least 5 times this week to help me de-stress. I hope it works!!


               

Top 20 Things I Love About our New Home...#'s 5, 4 and 3!

#5...The dining room!

I have a lot of different tastes when it comes to decorating, so I like that the dining room is separated from the kitchen/family room so I can have a totally different color and design palette! Our home right now is like that. Our family room and kitchen are black/gray/purple/green and is inspired by black and white photos we've taken on trips to Europe (mainly Paris).  My dining room is brown/blue/earthy colors and is very woodsy and is inspired by antique furniture pieces- but still with some glam here and there. I just love that our new home will continue to allow us to show everything that makes us....us!

#4...Granite!

I LOVE my granite.  When we purchased, Ryan Homes was having their 65th Birthday, so each community was running a birthday special.  Ours was $65 for granite throughout the home.  So, we have granite in the kitchen and all 3 full bathrooms! We went with the Santa Cecilia throughout the home and we're very happy with it.  It looks great with the Espresso kitchen cabinets and the Cherry cabinets in the bathrooms. The different cabinet colors accentuate colors in the granite differently, so it doesn't even look the same!

#3...The Garage!

At our current home, we have a garage but it had been converted into a 4th Bedroom/Bonus Room.  I love having the extra space, but I can not wait to park in the garage.  I'm so tired of my nosy neighbors watching me get in and out of my car. It's really creepy (and one of the reasons I'm so ready to move!).

Top 20 Things I Love About Our New Home...Catch-up!

Sorry, it's been busy around here...it's not like we're moving in 6 days or anything.

#9...Landscaping!

Is it beautiful? No. But I'm just glad I don't have to do it. I can't wait to get some color in there!

There are 2 trees that didn't fit in this picture.

#8...Side door in the garage!

This will make is so easy to take out the trash, store lawn equipment, etc. I had to be talked into this, but we'll have a security system set up, so no biggie.

#7...Our Stone!

This was a pricy upgrade, but I just love it. I've always wanted stone.

#6...the commute!

Well, I think I'm going to like the commute.  The house is literally 10 minutes from where we live now, but it's a totally different way to get to work.  It's also much closer to other places we frequent.  I have to change grocery stores- no more Harris Teeter (too far) :( and the downside is that the closest grocery store is over a drawbridge that goes up frequently. BUT, I love that grocery store, so I just have to plan my trips around the bridge schedule.

The Homestretch

10 More Days!!!

I stopped by this morning to meet the landscapers and tell them where I wanted the trees to be planted. I did walk through the house, but I was on FaceTime and didn't take any pictures.  The only changes are that the floors are uncovered, as the cleaning crew is coming through this weekend. Our mailbox was installed!!

Yay!

Note the porch railings. I did not want those. They were an upgrade, and I really wanted white. Apparently, HOA decided everyone will have these railings, so I'm getting them for free. I can live with free- but I'm going to paint them.

I talked with the PM for a minute and found out that our appliances were being put in today! I will have to go look at those this weekend!

Our pre-settlement walk-through is Wednesday morning! The moving stress has begun, but I'm as ready as possible, I guess.

Top 20 Things I Love About Our New Home..#'s 11 and 10!

#11 on the list...our backyard!

Landscaping has begun today, and I can't wait. As I've mentioned, we have a mini-schnauzer, named Simon, and he just loves to be outside. I am so thankful that Ryan Homes sods the front/back/side yards, because Simon loves grass!! We found out we are getting 5 red oak trees, a crepe myrtle and and a whole lot of lilies, which of course won't bloom until spring. There's some other plants but I can't remember the names. While I recently posted I'm thankful for no trees, I can live with the 5 oak trees..they're small, for now.

#10 on the list...laundry upstairs!

Yes, there are cons to this. But I'm so lazy when it comes to laundry, that I'm beyond excited that it's on the same floor as the master bedroom.  We live in a 1-story now, so I'm used to just walking down the hall to do laundry, but it's so close to our TV room that you have to turn up the TV and can't have conversations while the laundry is going. In the new home, not only is the laundry upstairs, but it's also on the opposite side of the house from our TV room!

Top 20 Things I Love About Our New Home...#12!

Number 12 on the list is...our deck!

We upgraded to the medium size option and we opted for the gray trex decking. It's so pretty! Hopefully it will be cooler soon, because I'm excited to be out in the backyard with the fire pit going. We also added speakers outside on the deck, which are connected to our great room tv, so we can have music or football games out on the deck!

So behind on my Top 20 List!

Okay I need to catch up on my Top 20 list!

#15...our neighborhood is all Ryan Homes.

We know what will be built, so we know the comps in our neighborhood, if we choose to resell.  We never have to worry about what other builders are doing!

#14...we will be one of the first families to close.

As of a few days ago, only one family had closed in our neighborhood.  We should be the 3rd or 4th family to close! Which, yes, that means we will be living through a lottttt of construction- but our price was the lowest! We also didn't have to compete with other homes for exterior color choices!

#13...the open floor plan!

I love to cook. But I also love to watch TV. Currently, our kitchen is set-up so that I can hear the TV, but I cannot see it. But in our new home, I can cook and clean the kitchen while watching TV. This is also really great for entertaining, I can have people on the sofa, at the island, in the morning room, etc. but still be able to cook!