House
Raking, Mowing & Mulching – Oh My!
Apr 28th
Townhouse living certainly had it’s perks. I watched out the window each week as the landscaping crew came by to rake, mow and mulch the property. When it snowed out, the plow was there bright and early to clear the lot. If we had a lot of trash for any reason (big purchase, party, holiday), we had the luxury of just tossing it all in the dumpster. Of course there were also plenty of cons about living in a townhouse with two small kids. The two biggest negatives – all the stairs and no yard.
Our townhouse had three huge flights of stairs. Each probably had at least 16 stairs (surprisingly, I never counted them). To get to the main level of the house, you had to go up a flight. So when it was grocery shopping day that meant multiple trips up the stairs with arms full of bags. Not to mention the every day haul up and down the stairs with 20 pound Nora + diaper bag in one arm and 35 pound Brinley in the other. (Yes, she could do the stairs herself, but she always complained about it. So in an effort to get out the door faster I’d often just carry her down.) The main level had the kitchen and living room. The bedrooms were up another flight and then Nora’s room (a loft converted into a nursery) was up yet another flight. Then if I had to do laundry I had to go back down to the ground level (where the garage and laundry room were). The one benefit to all of those stairs – nice calves! To put it bluntly, I do not miss the stairs one bit.
The townhouse also lacked a yard. There was common space outside but it wasn’t very close to our unit and there were always cars coming and going so it didn’t seem very safe to be out there with the kiddos. We went to the park A LOT! Not that I mind going to parks, I’m sure we’ll still go plenty but that meant an trip away from home and packing a bag with kid stuff and maybe not having a potty accessible for Brin. Now we have our very own playground right in our backyard! 
While having all of this right outside our back door is awesome, it also means more work! As if I (we) didn’t have enough of my plate already we have new chores now. There’s raking and mowing and edging and mulching and trimming and watering and…. I spent two whole afternoons last week raking up the lawn. I even have blisters to prove it! (I quickly went out and bought some yard gloves the next day.) Scott then spent two evenings mowing the lawn. We laid 10 bags of mulch (and that’s just the back of the house). We looked forward to the rain yesterday when we’d typically frown upon it. Why? Because we wouldn’t have to water the lawn or plants.
Don’t get me wrong, I love our yard! It’s amazing having all of this space. The girls absolutely love being outside. Brinley can play with all of the outside toys that have been stored in our garage for the past few years. If we’re out playing and someone needs a snack or a potty break we can just go right inside and not have to have preplanned for any of it. This might seem old hat to many of you, but it’s a huge change for us. I’m sure the novelty will wear off at some point, but I’m actually enjoying the yard work so far. It gives me a huge sense of pride. I’m just worried that it’s going to be hard for us to keep up with it.
So, do you have a yard? How do you keep up with the yard work? Any tips or tricks to make it stay fun?
In 65 days..
Feb 8th
We will be closing on our new house in 65 days. In some ways that feels like a long time. It’s over two months away. A lot happens and changes in two months. Nora will be almost a year old (yikes!) and Brinley will be just over three and a half (OMG!). In 65 days the weather will be nicer (we hope) and the days will be longer. April seems lifetimes away right now with snow still on the ground and bitter cold in the air. But then again, 65 days is not very long at all when I think about all of the packing I have to do and cleaning and organizing and purging and… Aaahh! When I look at it that way two months does not seem like enough time.
My feelings are very bittersweet. I am SOO excited to be moving into a HOUSE. A single family, stand alone house where we won’t be sharing walls with anyone else. A home with a yard, with grass and a swing set. A home where the girls will each have their own bedroom. A home in a neighborhood with kids and friendly (I hope) neighbors. At the same time, I can’t help but feel a little bit sad about leaving our townhouse. This place hold so many memories for us. We moved here six years ago, back when it was just Scott and I. It was our first home together. We went through so many life changes while living here. We got married in July 2005, Brinley was born in September 2006, Scott started his new job in February 2007, and then Nora was born in May 2009. But the time has come where we have simply outgrown this space and we need to move on.
So, in 65 days we’ll sign all the papers and get the keys to our new house. It will be a new beginning for us all and I am so excited. Who wants to help me pack?
Moving On Up!
Jan 29th
It’s finally happening! We’re moving, well in April. Our family of four has official outgrown our townhouse. Back in 2004, before we were married (tisk! tisk!), Scott and I moved into this townhouse. To us, it was HUGE and we never imagined we’d be able to fill up all the space. Then came the wedding shower, and the wedding and the cabinets and closets started to fill up. Next came baby and along with her tons of clothes, toys and paraphernalia. As she grew, so did the amount of stuff needed to keep her happy and thriving. Two and a half years later, enter 2nd child. Now things are really starting to get cramped!
We made the decision that it was just time to move on. This place has treated us well and we’ve been happy to call it home for the past six (wow!) years. We’ve had the luxury of living in a new construction place which has been virtually worry free… our driveway gets plowed when it snows, our trash goes in a dumpster and is out of sight immediately, our grass (the little that there is) is mowed weekly and everything is just “new”.
It’s going to be a bit of an eye opener to move into a “new to us, but not new” home but I’m really looking forward to making it our own. We’ll have a yard, a swing set, and we won’t have to share walls with anyone else! We’ll have lots of projects and lots of space and I just can’t wait. So let the packing and purging begin. Just before our baby turns one, we’ll be in our new place. Yippee!!
Our garage is now a playroom!
Aug 10th
About two weeks ago I got the bright idea to transform our garage into a playroom for the kids. Living in a two bedroom town house with two kids = toys and baby paraphernalia EVERYWHERE! This would allow us to move most of the toys, especially the big ones, out of our living room and would give Brinley, and eventually Nora, more room to play. This is probably one of the best ideas that I have ever had! Luckily Scott thought it was a great idea too.
The garage before.
On Wednesday afternoon, we drove up to Nashua to look at some carpet at Home Depot and a couch/chaise/futon type thing at BJs. We ended up purchasing both things right then and Scott rented a UHaul van to pick both things up saving us big on tax and delivery charges.
By Friday night Scott and I had “installed” the carpet and assembled the couch. We also started bringing some of the toys down. We decided that a trip to IKEA was in store. I wanted to get a table and chairs for Brinley as well as some sort of storage type thing. We ended up scoring big there with the table and chair set, a bin storage unit, a curtain to hide stuff behind, a clock, some trash cans, a tent for Brinley and some other odds and ends.
By Saturday night the room was nearly finished. We just had some remaining things to find homes for. This project was a huge success and it also made us organize and get rid of a lot of the stuff that we had just been throwing places. Now we have an organized laundry room, closet, “notch” cut out area and playroom. Brinley absolutely loves it as its probably the biggest open space in our house. She can take out whatever she wants and we don’t have to worry about tripping over her toys in the living room now. I’m planning to get some more things for the walls, like a calendar and weather chart (its the teacher in me), but I’m beyond thrilled with how it all turned out. Its certainly going to make this winter a lot easier on us since we won’t have to be crammed up in the living room day after day.
It’s Here!!
Sep 5th
The NEW couch!! I’m in love with it. Its big and cozy and comfy. I bet we could fit about 7 or 8 people on it! We never had enough seating in our living room and now that won’t be a problem. All that’s missing now is the coffee table (which was delayed in shipping). It should be here sometime in the next 2 weeks.
