Home sweet home.

We did it. After nearly 9 years of marriage and 1 baby later, we "became adults" with a single family house including an attached garage and basement.

We successfully closed on our old townhouse at 10am on April 12th and then closed on our brand spakin' new casa at 3 that afternoon. If there is one thing I've learned with buying/selling a house house it's that "it isn't over until the fat lady sings." There are a lot of moving parts that have to come together to actually get a deal done....finances, contracts, negotiations, inspections, appraisals, loans, etc. Earlier this past summer we had a deal fall through when our townhouse was under contract. The whole thing blew up due to the buyers loan, or so she said; so both John and I were pretty gun-shy about the entire process. Neither one of us could really exhale until that last paper was signed.

We listed our townhouse on the market at the end of March (hoping that would give us enough time to sell before our new house was ready). Thankfully, prior to our house going "live" on the MLS we already had an offer and after 24-hours we had 4...all over asking price. You can't complain there (mind you we increased our asking price since we listed it in the summer). After some spreadsheets and debates we decided which offer we wanted to accept/negotiate further with. Then with a little back and forth we were "under-contract." Though having been in this spot before I was still waiting for the other shoe to drop. We had also gone through the inspection phase last summer so I wasn't worried about that part too much because I assumed anything found would be minor. Thankfully, the inspection was again a very minor laundry list. Whew. The next big hurdle was the appraisal....the risk you always run with increasing home prices and over-asking offers is that the appraisal will come back for less than you were offered. Yet again it was good news this time around - no issues. Whew. Once we got through that hurdle it was a lot of waiting and hoping that nothing unexpected came up prior to the closing.

We were pre-approved for the new loan months ago, but during all of this John was working on securing the mortgage for the new house at the best rate and scenario possible...w2's, financial statements, and a lock of Ian's hair later we were locked-in. Honestly, I am so thankful for John when it comes to these situations because he works it, and I literally don't have to touch this part.

Fast forward to April 12th.

That morning the new buyers had a walk-thru of the townhouse prior to us all being scheduled to be at the loan and title company to sign on the dotted line. I of course was freaking out because with boxes stacked to the ceiling I feared they would freak-out and be horrified with the state of the house. What can I say, I'm always trying to be a host. The walk through was easy, it was more of us all chatting than anything, and then it was off to sign.

There was a little stress mid-way through signing all the documents. The Title company was still waiting for some paper work to be sent over regarding the buyers loan....so there was of course a moment of panic...but moments later it was sent over. All the papers were signed and we were out the door. SOLD. SOLD. SOLD.

I was probably more sentimental and sad about leaving behind the old 1865 Gaylord. We had a lot of fun years there. I LOVED the location and being in the hub-bub of it all. Heck it was our first home in Denver. So while it was bittersweet I had mentally moved onto this next chapter (remember me waving my white flag back in September?).

So for a few hours (between closings) we were actually "homeless." We had sold the one and had a few hours till the new house was ours. We had no time to really think about that though, we had one last walk through at the new house before closing. I sorta felt like I was on the set of an HGTV show as cleaners and painters scrambled around us as we walked through. Once we finished the walk through it was time for a quick bite before the next closing....and believe me, I was getting hangry at this point.  John on the other hand was refreshing our Chase account like a crazy person waiting to see that the wire had made it from the morning's closing. And don't you worry just as we were heading into the second closing the money arrived.

Closing number 2 started at 3pm, which is always risky doing these things on a Friday afternoon. We signed and signed and then they faxed everything back over to the bank who had to sign something and send it back to the title company before they could hand over the keys. Honestly I don't even know what it was that they had to sign, but I do know it was a really BIG issue when at 4:45 they couldn't find anyone at the bank (they were probably all at happy hour) to sign off on this. It was for sure a HUGE moment of panic. To the point where the title company said they wouldn't be able to give us keys. We were about 2 minutes away from driving down to the bank and ripping someone a new ____ and then they finally found someone to sign off and send the papers back. Keys in hand....she was officially ours!!!

And that my friends, is how you CLOSE THE DEAL. No double move. No double mortgage. No temp housing. I honestly don't know that we could have scripted it any better. We totally lucked the freak out with how well these transactions went down. I never imagined that we would sell Gaylord to work out timing wise perfectly with the new house.... I fully imagined we would have to pack all our crap up move it into a storage unit and cram into an apt for a few months until the new place was ready.  Heck we even negotiated that we would close on Friday, but didn't have to be out of Gaylord until Sunday thereby giving us a full day to move out and right into the new place. My parents were in town for the weekend to help which was MAJOR because moving with a busy-body 1 year old isn't easy. I was shocked at how well the pieces fell into place and the boxes were unpacked. A HUGE thanks to them, my sister/Todd, and Uncle Bacon for all chipping in helping us tackle the move! We couldn't have done it without you!

So people have been asking for photos. My dear friend, Kathryn, who knows me well said "we just want to see something....it doesn't have to be your personal best yet." The "personal best" comment is a long standing joke because back in high school my mom always told me to never leave the house without looking my "personal best." She was that mom who made my friends take their clothes off so she could press them before we headed out. It's a line we all still use and laugh about, but I can't lie and say I don't often worry when I'm not at my personal best (though I still HATE ironing).

And when it comes to the new house, we don't have anything painted (it's all white for the moment).
A new rug is on order. I need some new furniture pieces. We don't have real blinds (yes, those are fancy paper ones). Nothing is hanging on the walls. We have no grass in the backyard.

So without further ado, here are a few pics of the first floor with things not yet at their personal best...

Family Room - New sofa (Thank God for a tight back sofa!!!!), but the rug is going and I need a lot of  stuff to finish the room.

Where I make the dips.

New barstools.
John's rules for me when selecting them: "They need to have a back and swivel. Otherwise they will suck."

Very important stop on our mini-tour....the adult bev refrigerator.
Can I get you a drink?

I have decided to interject some pops of turquoise (hence the kettle), but we still have some work to do.

More to come....next hurdle to tackle....paint.