HGTV Now Staring Me...

Well ok not quite. But I have to say I wouldn't mind if they came to my house and helped me spruce it up a bit!

Shopping for a house was the most stressful and exciting thing I have ever done. S had told me before we started looking "you'll just know". I thought I would never "know". We went in at least forty houses. Some were really nice. They had all the requirements that went in my head - at least three bedrooms and two baths, a laundry room, a good size kitchen... check check check... but I never felt like it was the right house. I would nitpick over their carpet (in my defense one house had all pink carpet). I dreamed about this house I had called Kiwi for the name of the street. K and I had visited Kiwi at an open house and I loved it. It didn't matter Kiwi was probably at least $50,000 over budget. I dreamed they would drop the price or tried to think of ways to get rich quick. Alas, Kiwi sold to someone else.

Then there was the house, let's call it Almost Perfect, that had everything we wanted. I walked through getting more excited with each room. A huge front porch, a dining room, a good size kitchen, a laundry room, four bedrooms (what I would do with all the space who knows), upgrades... then we went on the deck and the backyard was the size of a post-it note. Literally I could walk off the back deck and into the neighbor's yard. I wanted to cry. I couldn't give up the yard. I didn't want a crazy big farm property but I was moving to the suburbs so I wasn't settling for a lot I could get in the city. Plus, I was thinking resale in a mostly family oriented neighborhood - the lot would never fly.

Then we saw our house. The one we bought. I remember it was at night. It was winter so things got dark quick. Inside the house was almost a mirror image of Almost Perfect - minus a bay window and big porch. And Our House had the yard - a pretty good size one in fact. Except, Our House wasn't upgraded - and by not upgraded I mean not polished at all. Builder's grade everything, mismatched appliances, hideous paint choices, tacky wallpaper, stained carpet. I had walked away from houses for less than this.

"I want it," I proclaimed. I think K almost died of shock. "This is it." I knew it was the one. I could see past the gold and purple dining room, the dated wallpapered kitchen. I could see us here.

Our House has taught me a lot over the last few years. One, once you have a house all your money suddenly gets spent at Home Depot and Lowe's. There is always something to be done. Check one project off (replace the rotting front porch) and add another - get new lighting. HGTV becomes one of your favorite channels. Decorating tips - check, home improvement ideas - check, property virgins stumbling over houses - check, lawn and garden - check.

But most of all I've learned about myself. I've always had a "it can't be that hard" attitude. But I never really helped out that much at my parent's house. I would drag my feet and complain about raking leaves, argue over picking up my dirty clothes, etc. But suddenly I was spending 9 hours a day at work and driving to the new house to rip down wallpaper (vinegar and hot water works way better than any chemicals you can buy), painting, learning how to take down and replace lights, oh and did I mention there was a good foot of leaves and debris in the backyard that had to be cleared out.

This weekend I replaced four more lights - two by myself to surprise K. My hands and back ache but I feel accomplished. Two years ago, I would have complained loudly that I didn't want to or know how to do it, this morning I woke up ready to make the changes and just get it done.

Am I master carpenter? Hardly. But I've learned there's nothing like asking someone how to do it and Google to quickly become an amateur. And the feeling that I'm the one who gets to polish this house up a bit is priceless. I can see it going from neglected to a sparkling diamond and I'm happy to fork over all my extra cash for improvements. I feel satisfied when they are done and I'm loving all the results. Sometimes I walk by Almost Perfect. It would have been easier to move into that house with it's nice paint job, upgraded appliances and lighting, and newer bathrooms, but I don't think I would have had quite the experience I've had with Our House. If everything happens for a reason then Our House was here to show me I can do it and with a little elbow grease I can turn this house into perfection.