The building of a house....part 1

When we came out in December for Trent's interview I went and looked at houses with our realtor while Trent was in clinic. We looked at 5 houses. The first one I loved.  However, it was small. Bedrooms were tiny, and there were only 3 of them. It was a new build so everything was clean.  The other houses were also too small for our needs, and very expensive in comparison to the new build. When we came out in February we spent two days looking at houses and lots. It was exhausting! After looking at what was available we decided to build. We found a lot that we loved, it was flat (totally unheard of here!) and 1/3 acre. There wasn't super good views of the lake, but I really didn't care.  The lot was a good price and it was flat. Our kids would have a yard to play in that was flat.

We met with two builders while we were there. We decided to go with the builder who built the home that I really liked in December. We settled on a floor plan and signed a contract before we were even in WA. It took awhile for all the permits to come through so they didn't even break ground till the end of March/beginning of April.  Things seemed to go really fast from there.  We went to check on the progress almost everyday.  We had nothing else to do and it was really exciting.  We'd go after dinner most nights that way the workers would be gone and we could walk around the building site.  Our neighbor was great to take pictures for us whenever something big had changed and we were out of town.  I think they were just as excited as we were to finally be in our house.

The framing went up so quick.  When we went to UT in May it was all framed, roof was on, and it seemed like progress just stopped there.  All the wiring and plumbing take a long time. Then the dry wall went in, that went fast too.  But then all the detail work seemed to take forever. I was probably just anxious for it to be done!  We loved watching the progress.

We got to pick out the house color. The builder does things very simply inside and does all the walls and trim the same color. I wanted something a little different, so the downstairs is a different color from the upstairs.

The process wasn't without its snags.

When we got back from UT we came to check on the progress and noticed that a shower insert had been put in the master bathroom, we had a tiled shower in our contract. We let the foreman know and he tried to convince us to leave it in.  Yeah, no.

Then we noticed that in one of the bedrooms they put some of the HVAC baffles (not sure if that is the right word or not).  It took a pretty big chunk out of the corner of what would be come Carter and Hunter's room.  I was so not happy about for a couple of reasons....it was no where in the plans! The room was now smaller than planned, and it looks horrible. We asked about it and they said there was nothing that could be done.  I think next time I will insist that it be moved.  Which I still think it could have been but they didn't want to.  It is in the room next to the bonus room, right on the other side of that wall is empty space between the roof and the bonus room.

I would also ask about outlets and light switch locations.  There are no outlets in places that I would think there should be and some light switch locations make no sense.  Every time I walk into the master bath I reach for a switch that just isn't there.

We had no idea that the stair well was going to be a half wall.  I guess I just assumed it would be a railing.  We were shocked when we found out it was a half wall, and what it would cost to put a railing in.  Although I like it now, a nice railing would have been better to keep it an open look.

Then there was the kitchen island...the foreman called us one afternoon and wanted to know what piece of quartz we wanted for the island. Somewhere in the conversation he mentioned that it was only 2' wide by 5' long. Say what?  That island in the plans is only 2'x5'?! It appears much larger than that in the plans.  It seemed like such a waste of space to me.  So we met with the cabinet guy one afternoon and reconfigured the island, I love how it turned out. Instead of 2x5 hexagon shape it's a 3x5 rectangle.  It fits better than what they had planned and I love how it looks!

Oh, and how about things we didn't know were included....a garage door opener.  That's right, they put in a garage door, the the motor is an upgrade (what is this 1950?!), although we didn't know it was an upgrade till after we moved in. It was NOT on the upgrade list they gave us.

Also not included, rain gutters.  Seriously, rain gutters.  I thought that was a standard part of a house, guess not.

And the last big thing I can think of right now is the inside paint. It is a flat/matte paint. It doesn't clean up well, it leave streaks every time I wipe hand prints off the wall, which is everyday. I would rather have something a little more sturdy with so many little people around, like a semi-gloss or even gloss.  Also, if something slightly bangs into the wall it leaves a mark.  It's a little irritating.

We learned a lot during this process so if there is a next time we'll know to ask a few more questions.

It's so nice to finally be in a home that is ours!  I still have boxes to put away, I've not put pictures up yet, but our stuff is in it and I love it!  Ever time I look at my kitchen I fall in love all over.  I love the space!!  It is so pretty.

I didn't take near as many pictures of the progress that I wanted to.  I really wanted to document the whole journey as the house took shape, but I didn't quite make it.