New life , new (old) house
2011 and 2012 were my "age of awakening" years. Shouldn't that have happened in my 30s? Regardless, I am so blessed to be living where I want. That is in Old Town Alexandria VA. Life brimming with shops, local restaurants, cupcake stores, consignment stores, running and bike paths, parks filled with adorable dogs.
I was fortunate to purchase a 112 year old home less than a month after the Falls Church VA house finally sold. Wood floors throughout, a narrow staircase leading upstairs, a very strange half bath (photo to follow later) and 3 bedrooms. Bonus: two reserved parking spaces behind the house! For those of you who revel in your two and three car garages, it is difficult to comprehend that two open air gravel pits could evoke so much emotion. Trust me, it's a big deal, especially in Old Town.
I immediately set my sights on finding a qualified architect who could do an addition and a renovation. City Hall steered me to the most amazing man: Kim Beasley of Beasley Architectural Group LLC. He has personally designed over 200 homes in the Washington DC area. He began his residential design practice in 1975. On a really cool note, in 1989, Kim invented an adaptable stadium seat for persons with disabilities. From 1986-2000, he served as National Architecture Director for the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) in Washington DC.
The plans have been designed and the checks have been written, money well spent. My new addition/renovation will include a Great Room at the rear ground floor, a reconfigured and enlarged kitchen, a powder room and a second floor Master Bedroom Suite. A second staircase will be built in the back of the house to access the upstairs master suite. A gas fireplace was also added into the plans as well. Pinch me.
Next step: March 14, Kim presents the plans to City Hall for approval. The contractors will all present to me and just like The Dating Game, I will choose one for a short term relationship.
My mom, lovingly here-to-fore named Opie, (she is overprotective and I'm 53 years old!!) will fly up from Bluffton SC to oversee the project since I travel quite a bit for business. She will receive a special hard hat to wear, since I have a feeling she will be working quite closely with the guys!
Anticipated start date is May and the project is expected to take five months.
Oh...that little sliver of green grass alongside my casa...that doesn't belong to me. It belongs to a church. It could be mine if I wanted to make an offer. I made the mistake of looking at the land value: $335K. I am glad I didn't make my $30K offer. When I get my little shelter dog, I have a built in dog park though; can't beat that!
Emotions at this time: excited, joyous.
We'll do a check when the actual construction begins. My dad kindly sent me the real estate guide from Tulsa, where he and his wife, Ruth live. I learned that I could have bought a 4,000 square foot home there with a three car garage, media room, swimming pool for less than that sliver of church land price.
Stay tuned. Next Friday, the neighbors are coming over. Kim will review the plans with them and answer any questions. I'm a bit nervous because two attorneys live next door to me and I've had some issues with attorneys. Breathe...breathe...I plan on having alcohol at this little gathering, don't ya know?
