Oh, by the way, we bought a house

Well, if you haven't seen my update on Twitter/Facebook or heard from someone else... we just bought a house. Got the keys yesterday, and are planning The Big Move this weekend. So... you guys want to see pictures of the house? Of course you do! There's a lot... just a warning.

OK, so... tada! The front. And my awesome little car.



And as you walk under the carport, you come to this little room... I don't know what to call it. It's not a garage. We've been calling it a porch, but that doesn't sound right. Anyway, whatever it is, it's extra storage, so woo hoo.



See? All kinds of room for stuff. I'm thinking we'll keep the grill in here, so we can grill no matter what the weather. And we might make a little spot for the dogs too, so they can come in out of the rain or whatever. (They're indoor dogs, but still... they have to be outside sometimes, and if they have a little covered spot, then I won't feel bad about leaving them out there.)



And then when you walk out that last door, you have our backyard. Ari is so, so excited about having her own pool. (And, bonus... our neighbors on both sides have pools, so I'm hoping they can help us figure out how to take care of ours.) Tony is excited about the huge shed. And see those trees? Just beyond them is the elementary school Ari will attend next year. And even better... a few houses down from us is a paved walkway to the school. And if we wanted to, we could make a little gate in our back fence, clear some trees, and make a little connecting walkway to the main walkway... that's how close it is. (Oh, and by the way, that's my dad, my brother Pete, and my mom, along with Ari, in this shot.)



And if you walk out in the yard and turn around, here's the back of the house. Not too impressive, I know. But there's a decent-sized concrete patio.



OK, inside the house. When you walk in the side door that's under the carport, the first room you enter is the kitchen. All new Pergo floor. And I love the tile backsplash. And all the cabinet space.



And when you turn around, there's this nice little window that opens into the living room.



And the living room, from one angle... that's the front door on the left.



And from the other end of the room. Lovely bay window, and a fireplace with wood stove (that currently is not working, but oh well).



And as you walk down the hall, this is the first room on your right... a third bedroom, technically (since it has a closet), but we'll be using it as the office/dining room.



There's a built-in hutch at the front of the room.



And the bathroom. It's got this Victorian feel to it... check out the old-fashioned toilet. I love the sink/vanity. And you can't see the ceiling, but it's an antique-ish tin ceiling.



There's even a stained-glass window. I'm thinking the owner of the house made this himself... he had a huge workshop in the basement, and there were a couple pieces of stained glass down there.



And an old clawfoot tub... and a built-in cabinet with a stained-glass door.



Guess whose room this is going to be?



And, our room. (Just wait... it gets better.)



Vaulted ceiling AND a skylight. I may never leave this room...



And one last shot of Ari... she was all proud of herself for figuring out how to climb up into this window in the living room.



And there you have it. As you saw in that backyard pic, my parents and brother came to see the house last night. My parents had seen it a couple months ago, just before we made an offer, but Pete hadn't seen it, and he's leaving for college in a few days. I took them all there myself with Ari, while Tony ran an errand. Once he got there, I took Ari home, since she hadn't had dinner yet. When Tony got home later, he said, "Oh, I met one of our new neighbors."

"Of course you did," I said, smiling. And he went on to tell me that she has two older kids, about 15 and 20, and on and on... so I guess they must have had a lengthy conversation. Which, again, is no surprise. I've no doubt he'll end up meeting several more neighbors before we even move in.