Hole-y Moly

Today our first house guests departed after a two week stay!
The team of electricians who have been working away since we took possession said good bye today and left us the parting gift of a home that is totally up to code and has about 100 holes in it!

When we first walked in and saw all the holes, it was pretty devastating. Our brand new piece of perfect looked like it had a disease as every room had between 5-10 holes in the walls and ceiling. To help us get over the shock and get started on the work, Papa J came home for a few days from vacation to teach us how to tackle the amazingly messy job of plastering, sanding, plastering, sanding and then painting. We are making really excellent progress and have become pretty decent plasterers in the process.
Tomorrow a team of friends has so kindly offered to come on over to put the first coat of paint on the walls and I can't wait.

Once everything is finished we are so excited to have many more house guests, and hopefully ones that do not leave any holes in our walls!

Read more...

Our Welcome Home!

When Mr. S and I unlocked the door for the first time last Friday and stepped through the doors of the home that was now official ours, the first thing we did was walk straight ahead and into the kitchen. The moment of officially walking into our home was so exciting and overwhelming that we both needed to sit, grab a bite to eat and toast each other with champagne before exploring this place we now call home. We laid out a small picnic of treats (lottery cards included; we have a mortgage after all) and sat in silence as we took it all in.

We have been so lucky with almost every twist and turn of this process, and one of our most fortunate moments has been the people we bought the home from. They were so welcoming and warm from the moment we met them just minutes after they accepted our offer, and have emailed us over the past few weeks sharing tips and insights into the home and neighborhood we are moving into. And when we walked through the door of our kitchen on that first day, we were greeted by a bottle of lovely champagne, two glasses and a two page note taking us from room to room with everything the previous owners could remember to share about the house; our little how to guide for our new home. It really doesn't get any better, more memorable or touching then that.

Our first week of ownership has been mainly enjoyed by a team of electricians who have really left their stamp on our home (photos to follow)...
Our goal is to move in there in the next two weeks and we could not be more excited.

Muah!

Read more...

Jumping for Joy!

At around 2:30pm today a single key was placed in our hands and we officially became homeowners. More photos of our first visit and celebration to come, but for now here we are jumping for joy in our new bedroom.

Man oh man, we are two happy, happy people!

Read more...

Thank you!

Sweet thank you tag from Rosalyn given after I bought these beauties

You are all so sweet and I can't thank you enough for the nice comments and congratulations about our new home. We are a day away from officially being home owners and it is the best feeling in the world. Thank you for sharing in our excitement!

Read more...

Turn and Seal

Today while washing my lunch dishes I noticed for the first time in three years these sweet engravings on our old sink plug; Turn and Seal.
Why is it that sometimes one misses the little details right until the moment it is time to say good bye?

Read more...

Let's Get Packing!

Last night our landlord sold her house. Phew! This means we can start living in it again, and by living in it I mean start packing it all up into carefully labeled boxes.
I think packing is a great way to see how different people truly are from one another. For me, the thought of packing and moving anything that we don't absolutely love and need is painful. Packing to me is the ultimate form of purging as I want to know that everything in the boxes are things I will be excited to see and use when the unpacking begins.

How to pack the boxes is also something I toy with as a lover of all things organization - by room? by type? by color? For now, I have been going with "by type" as it is hard to know exactly what room they will find their home in our new house. And I must admit that I have already packed and then unpacked and re-organized a box that I felt wasn't going to be fun to open on the other end ( insert groans and judgment here..!) What can I say?, organization brings me calm and in a time of see much exciting chaos, sometimes a well packed box brings me back to a good centered point.

Have you recently moved? How do you pack? Any tips or advice are much appreciated!
As you can see from the photos, not all of the members of our household are particularly helpful!

Read more...

Welcome to...

....the home of my dreams.

Some childhood daydreams may be of wedding day, babies or successful careers, but not mine. My dreams from a very young age were to find a man I adore and a home to call my own. And count me the happiest daydreamer in the world because both have come true and will be all the more real this Friday when Mr. S and I take possession of our very first home. Our excitement is so massive the whole thing almost doesn't seem real.

The keys will be ours; not borrowed or copied. The bills in our name and the porch all our own. No one else to share the backyard with or their ideas on how it should be sowed, and the address all ours (now if only I figure out how to remember the postal code!) A home that will be our future and our day to day.

The next week is going to be a busy one with final closing details to manage and the fact that we are currently living out of my parent's house as our landlord decided to sell her home and is hosting open houses this week! It feels little like we are playing a game of Musical Houses, but this time we already know who wins and it is the best feeling in the world.

Read more...

O' Canada - I heart you!

My heritage as Canadian is one I live proudly. I am a Canadian many generations back and this beautiful Country is one I truly adore. And to properly celebrate the big, diverse and accepting Canada that we love, Mr. S and I did some of our favorite things today, with only a titch of work mixed in.
Within just a few blocks of our home we enjoyed a stunning breakfast inspired by France, had a scoop of ice cream in little Italy, a Jamaican Roti at the farmers market and a dinner from China Town. How lucky are we to be exposed to so many cultures and diversity all tucked together under the blanket of being Canadian?! Happy Canada Day! I could not imagine a more perfect place to call home.

Ps. Speaking of homes. Tomorrow marks the one week count down to a very exciting time in our lives...

Read more...