Home is where you are

Monday, January 7, 2013
The last month has brought a lot of changes and developments in our lives, and one of these is the decision to try to sell our house. I have pretty mixed emotions about it. I am really excited, because we will be building a new house, the one that we really want, and that we can walk to the beach from! I cannot wait to have a shiny new house that we get to choose the colour schemes and all the fittings.

But, at the same time I'm a little sad. This old house has things that frustrate me, and that I wish I could change, but its grown on me, I love this cottage, it is full of character. It looks like a very different house to when we bought it 5 years ago. The paint was horrendous, the backyard was a pile of dirt, the kitchen was SOOOO irritating and had no storage, the room, we now call the study (and that I am sitting in an typing right now) was technically part of the sleep-out with only a screen door and screen window. We have put a lot of sweat, tears and tender loving care into this house, and I will miss it.


Still, it feels like the right thing to move on, I know we are making the right decision. It is right for our growing family. The last couple of weeks has been a flurry of activity. Preparing for home opens with a very, very active toddler is a mission. It is so hard to keep him from flinging everything around the house. I've spent most evenings cleaning and doing our best to make the house look as presentable as possible. The encouraging thing that keeps me motivated is that we have had a lot of interest.

So here is to hoping that soon somebody else who has fallen in love with this house, like we did 5 years ago will get to start a new journey with this cute little cottage!

Here are some of my favourite parts:


Love my little dining room. But especially love my Kitchenette! Lucky that is coming with us. Our table was Joel's Grandmas, and the vintage dining chairs are from Ebay.
I wish I did more with our room, but I do love my quilt on our bed! 
This room used to technically be a back porch. Now it is our office. 
Some of my favourite things, including my Nanna's old Singer Sewing Machine.
This is half of our kitchen, that we renovated just before Ezra was born. I'm going to miss the big oven that can fit two large Turkeys. The little table my Mum picked up for me from a garage sale. 
We just put the railing on the deck, because we have a little boy who has no fear, and would just walk straight off the edge of the deck.



Karen xx 

11 comments on "Home is where you are"
  1. Good Luck, We live in a cute little cottage too with only two bedrooms. I know the time is coming that we will need to upgrade but I love my cottage!

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  2. Aww, so many memories, it will always be hard to leave. But your memories will always be with you. And now you get to make new ones in your new place. How exciting. I love your home, it looks so inviting and friendly.

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  3. I can see why you'd have mixed feelings about leaving...your place is so lovely and homey! But as a wise friend told me once, wherever your family is, you can also make that your home. All the best with the transition x

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  4. Your home is lovely! But onward and upwards - your new home will be just as lovely, and larger, and closer to the beach...
    x

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  6. You know, I've been having this debate with myself since leaving Australia and travelling for 6 months before settling down in Bogota to work....and I can't decide if travelling and living abroad makes you redefine what "home" means, if it forces a temporary shift in the concept of "home" or if it actually forces you to be more flexible, almost minimalist in what what a home can be.

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  7. I lived out of a room in a hostel that I shared with friend for 3 years while I was working as a volunteer over East. All I owned was the clothes in my suitcase and a few other things, its hard to believe that now I own a whole house, and it is FULL of stuff. I think it is all about your attitude, if you work at it, you can make anything feel like home, even if it completely foreign to you at first!!

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  8. Closer to the beach!! that is exactly right! Woop Woop!

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  9. Your friend is quite wise!! Thanks Grace!

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  10. We have moved a lot and made bigger decisions in our lives before, this is relatively small in comparison, but it does hold a lot of sweet memories!!

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  11. They just have so much character, these old places! I find so many new homes really drab, I'm going to work hard to give the new place the same Character!!

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