September 10th, 2007 by Mrs Eaves
It’s been feeling a little too cozy at the Cemestos Gardens lately. <1200 square feet + 6 people with varying degrees of mood swings = high probability of irking someone just by existing. It’s fun to whine about, but even more fun to figure out solutions:
- Get smaller furniture. In theory, if we have mini-furniture, we’ll have more room to move around, right? And it’s fun to buy furniture.
- Daydream about adding on, despite the fact that we don’t like the road we live on, we’d have to chop down several trees, any addition would make the house look lopsided, and home renovation is a pain in the arse.
- Convert the crawl space into a bedroom for Wingnut. He’s too young to be afraid of spiders, and he’s a great crawler.
- Okay, back to that daydream about adding on - did I mention that the plans I drew up included a super-secret parents’ room with a plasma TV and wet bar?
Search the classifieds for homes we can’t (yet) afford, like this one (which, admittedly, I like primarily because it actually has 1.3 acres - that doesn’t happen very often in the Oak Ridge). Wait, can this be considered a solution? I don’t think so, because it just makes me woeful. I’ll have to cross it off.- Try to make myself feel better with the whole “the longer we live here, the more equity we’ll build” line.
- It’s handy to remind October that she’s the only one in the family to have her own bedroom.
Hmmm…that’s about it on solutions. Back to browsing the classifieds. I also like this one. Dig the stone.
September 10th, 2007 at 11:10 am
Oh wow! I love the second one too. Good god, do you have any idea how much those houses would cost up here in Connectthebucks?
Maybe I should move…
September 10th, 2007 at 11:31 am
Hmmm… I’ll daydream with you, Eaves. I check our local listings a couple times a week and dream. The time will be here soon enough, but I just can’t seem to control the hunting in the meantime.
I think you’re 2nd home is much prettier, but I like that the 1st has more yard and trees. We’ll probably lean more towards having some room outside and sacrifice room inside with the thoughts that that part could potentially be fixed. You can’t generally add on to the yard.
You do have a lovely home, however packed into it you may be. So it could be worse.
September 10th, 2007 at 11:42 am
Sorry Eaves, don’t have any cool fantasys for ya, but I can empathize.
I grew up, as the oldest of five, in a “C” house right up the street from the Cemestos Gardens. Two parents, five kids, cats, gerbils, white mice (to feed the snakes), and Augie (the world’s greatest dog).
I know the cozy feeling of which you speak. I also can’t remember ever being unhappy there. Cozy is good.
September 10th, 2007 at 12:24 pm
Check this out. In my area $175,000 will get you about a quarter acre and 1,000 square feet. Oh, and it will need a new roof, electrical updates and lots and lots of improvements! Crazy how expensive houses around here are. Maybe we need to relocate?
September 10th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
My Dad and Stepmom had her 3 daughters full-time, and myself and 2 sisters on the weekends in a house very similar to the one JennC showed. 3 bed, 1 bath. Cozy is a kind word, but we all survived and the parents still live there. I empathize with you.
September 10th, 2007 at 12:50 pm
Oh and I forgot to add, want to talk about packed in like sardines? Christmas Day = 6 daughters, 6 spouses, 9 grandchildren in that tiny little house! It’s crazy fun, and a little maddening at the same time.
September 10th, 2007 at 1:06 pm
I think you should annex a neighbor.
September 10th, 2007 at 3:13 pm
Actually, you might be surprised how many homes in the ‘Ridge have an acre or so. Not new construction, but many of the homes built in the 60s or 70s have decent-sized lots. With actual trees.
Also skim through www.viewhomes.com.
September 10th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
I highly recommend that you contact Betsy Coleman Realty as soon as possible, for a free consultation. She will solve all of your problems, or you get your money back. You and your husband will feel more attracted to each other, the kids will seem smarter, fiends and neighbors will be envious!
September 10th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
You forgot ‘Set up tents in the back yard, then convince the kids that camping out is much more fun than being indoors.’
September 10th, 2007 at 7:28 pm
I like the free, Punk HP, I surely do.
The trouble lately has been old cozy is tending to cramped more often than not.
Oh, I know it’s all perspective. The grass is greener in the pictures of all those houses for sale. I know that. Knowing is one thing, though, and living is another.
September 10th, 2007 at 7:41 pm
Hey Punk, did you mean to say fiends? ’cause I’m not sure if I’d want them to be envious of me!
Hey Mrs Eaves, look all you want. Maybe, just maybe…..Besides, a life isn’t complete without a little “wanna have” in it.
I love looking at houses and dreaming!!!
September 12th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
Under 170K for a house???? Are you kidding???? I would post more, but apparently I need to start packing since houses up here in RI are 3 times that price for hovels!!!
September 13th, 2007 at 10:13 pm
I had a friend resently say that they needed to get a bigger house because they they don’t have the room to have a kid. Their house has four bedrooms 2 1/2 baths and is 3,500 sq/ft. ????
November 2nd, 2007 at 1:26 pm
[…] mind. Such as, how do we fit another person and two dogs into our little house that’s already bursting at the seams? It can be done, of course, but last night my mind started wandering and it struck me that maybe we […]