Owning your own home opens up a whole new realm of window shopping envy. Things I never even thought about wanting are suddenly overwhelmingly appealing--to the point where I'll google it to see if the price is more than slightly prohibitive. What kinds of things?
Oh, you know, a high efficiency washer and dryer. A side-by-side fridge with an ice maker and filtered water dispenses (or just one with better space management than the one we currently have). Comfy leather couches that resist crayons and juice. A fence and remote controlled gate across the driveway. A food processor without a crack in it. A new, efficient and not peach toilet that does not "whine" whenever it is flushed. A light kit for the living room fan. Three-pronged outlets and a gfi breaker in the kitchen. I guess I've moved from window shopping to house wishes. Let's just be glad that I haven't put "three-pronged outlets" into Google, at least yet.
Settling into a new house brings along some buyer's remorse. I've been told that this is inevitable. No matter how prepared you are, the unexpected things pop up. Things you overlooked before may come to bother you. The first months are a money drain and you wonder, "did we do the right thing?" The rose-colored glasses come off and you see up close the eyesore that a sagging chain link fence can be, the tar spots the your maple trees have contracted, the pipes that mysteriously leak, and the holes and live wires that previous owners just wallpapered right over.
At the moment, the remorse has waned, probably the result of our living room painting and rearranging. It helps to make the space our own so that it's no longer "that house we bought" but is now our house, where we (and hopefully others) love to be.
Oh, you know, a high efficiency washer and dryer. A side-by-side fridge with an ice maker and filtered water dispenses (or just one with better space management than the one we currently have). Comfy leather couches that resist crayons and juice. A fence and remote controlled gate across the driveway. A food processor without a crack in it. A new, efficient and not peach toilet that does not "whine" whenever it is flushed. A light kit for the living room fan. Three-pronged outlets and a gfi breaker in the kitchen. I guess I've moved from window shopping to house wishes. Let's just be glad that I haven't put "three-pronged outlets" into Google, at least yet.
Settling into a new house brings along some buyer's remorse. I've been told that this is inevitable. No matter how prepared you are, the unexpected things pop up. Things you overlooked before may come to bother you. The first months are a money drain and you wonder, "did we do the right thing?" The rose-colored glasses come off and you see up close the eyesore that a sagging chain link fence can be, the tar spots the your maple trees have contracted, the pipes that mysteriously leak, and the holes and live wires that previous owners just wallpapered right over.
At the moment, the remorse has waned, probably the result of our living room painting and rearranging. It helps to make the space our own so that it's no longer "that house we bought" but is now our house, where we (and hopefully others) love to be.
