Our House?

It's kind of funny that I've entitled my blog "Our House," since we don't actually own a home. If I was being technical, I probably would have called it "Our Apartment" or "Our Living Space," but those just don't have the same ring to them. Possibly "Our Home" would have worked, but it's too late now.

Most of you know that my major in college was Interior Design, so I often feel stress about not having creative control over my living space to, say, paint the walls or knock them down if I really wanted to (not load-bearing walls of course). It's a frustrating predicament, but I find my creative outlets in other ways. Once upon a time it was working in a career (which I loved) and these days it is pouring over home building and plan books from the library and constantly pestering my husband about "What do you think of this plan?" and "Do you prefer a one-story or two-story house?" HGTV is more like pouring salt in the wound. It's easy to get over-done on HGTV. I love, love, LOVE "This Old House" magazine. One of my few magazine subscriptions. I often laugh about our "preferences" because by the time we are able to afford our "dream home" we will probably be too old to enjoy it or ready to down-size. Hopefully not. My friend H who is in the process of buying a fixer-upper is going to have to put up with me for a while. Hopefully I won't be too much "help" for her.

It is amusing to look through home plan books with a critical eye. (Not amusing to everyone I'm sure.) Yes, what a beautiful, sprawling 4,000 square foot house with every room with it's own bathroom, but obviously whoever lives here isn't planning on doing their own laundry because the laundry room/cubby hole is less than adequate. I guess the maid will have to deal with it. Or I loved the 3,335 square foot house with it's own lighthouse-style widow's walk. You could also live in an octagon-shaped house to take advantage of those panoramic views. And always my favorite are how they need all the different names for these rooms to distinguish them from the others in large houses, "Family Room, Living Room, Great Room, Library, Bonus Room, Study, Home Office, Library, Hearth Room" the list continues. Hypothetically, all of these similarly-purposed rooms could exist in the same house. I love to see the extravagant (and usually poorly planned) mega-mansions designed for the rich and famous. (Although, they will probably hire an architect instead.) "Who builds these houses anyway? I think this one is 70's-era. Do you think this is a popular plan? Amazingly popular enough to publish it... (shakes head)" Hours of entertainment and open-ended questions await. Check out a home plan book from the library, it won't disappoint.

So, here are some of the things I would like in my dream home, in no particular order. (And I reserve the right to add to/change my list at any time, since I will probably have many years to perfect it.) Please keep in mind that we would like to have a larger family some day, and this list takes that in to account. Suggestions for the list are welcome.

• 4 bedroom/2.5 baths
• Under 2,500 square feet (I will have to clean my dream home.)
• Some kind of front and back porch
• Large, fenced in yard (Something we appreciate from an apartment point-of-view.)
• 2-car Attached Garage
• Caleb would also like a shed of some kind for lawn-equipment (He was quite inspired by Uncle P's garage.)
• Formal Entry (Nothing huge, just enough to transition. I'd rather not walk straight into the Family Room. Too apartment-like.)
• Extra Garage Space (For Caleb to have a workbench or tool storage. Maybe the shed would suffice. "Man Space")
• A laundry room with a laundry sink (Also something we appreciate now that we don't have it. One day I will be able to wash my laundry without wondering if I have enough quarters. And some place to wash out... kid messes.)
• Room inside the house for an extra freezer (Since we plan to live in a warm climate, this helps on the electric bills. Also important because we probably won't have a basement like some of you.)
• Powder Bath (Off-limits to our kids so I don't have to be embarrassed to let people use our bathrooms. "What is this puddle from? Who didn't flush? What is this on the floor?" Dream house, remember?)
• Large Kitchen Pantry (For Food Storage. In my dreams I would also have a separate storage area/closet for additional food storage. Where do you put all that wheat anyway?)
• Kitchen open to the Family Room (Don't want to be closed off from the fun)
• Separate Vanity Area from Toilet/Tub Area in Kid's Bath (I don't know how many times there was a major bathroom hold-up from a long shower-taker, or your brother comes out with a smile on his face and says "It's all yours!" if you know what I mean. Sometimes kids only need a sink.)
• 2 Sinks in the Master Bath (I want my own.)
• Separate closets in Master Bedroom
• Separate Tub and Shower in Master Bath (Resale purposes. I'm not really a bath-taker.)
• Lots of closet space (Did I mention closets yet?)
• A mail center space in kitchen/garage entry area (To catch clutter before it hits the kitchen counter or table.)
• A Public Area Desk for the computer (Just to keep an eye on things when my kids hit that age.)
• One-story (Caleb's requirement, not mine)
• In my dream of dreams I also have a craft room, but I'm not holding my breath just yet.
• At least a two-cook kitchen (We have barely a one-cook kitchen now and it makes for stressful mealtimes as Caleb and I dodge and climb over each other to get things the job done.)
• Modern insulation and energy-efficiency bells and whistles (Lots of options on the market to keep you from hemmoraging money in a well-built and well-planned house.)

I'm not sure my dream house exists, but it will someday.

I hope I get to live in it!