Saying Goodbye to My Property Virginity

It is with great trepidation and overwhelming excitement that I announce to you that today I will officially become a home owner. I have been bursting at the seams to share this news with you for over a month now, but an extreme fear of jinxing the deal kept me quiet.  Even as I write this, I am nervous that somehow the whole thing will fall apart (we don't sign the paperwork until 4 pm) and the house will never become mine.  After all, it has seemed too good to be true from the get-go. But, in all likelihood those keys, with their infinite amounts of symbolic value, will be in my hands sometime this evening.  The hours between now and then are destined to feel like an eternity.

Downstairs. The bad: wall to wall carpeting and wood paneling.  The good: built in shelves, fire place, French doors.

Enough about my irrational fears! Let's talk about the house! It's a definite fixer-upper and Dan and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.  I don't think a house can be called a home until you've added your personal touch and this house will certainly give us plenty of opportunities to do just that.  Yes, the decor is outdated, but the home has been lovingly maintained by the same couple for 56 years.  I know I must sound crazy to some of you, but I swear you can feel that love when you walk through the door.  

Awesome wallpaper in each bathroom.  I especially love the shells - so relevant in Kansas City!

Many "property virgins" search for months and months without finding the perfect place to call home, we looked for one day.  Granted we probably looked at 12-15 houses in that day, but there was just something about this one that spoke to us, that we couldn't bear to pass by.  Truth be told, this house was my least favorite when viewed solely online, but once I got inside it won me over almost instantaneously. I immediately pictured all of the fun (yes, fun!) renovations, the colors that could go on the walls, the way the floors will look (fingers crossed) when we rip up that awful wall-to-wall carpeting...especially the wall-to-wall carpeting in the bathroom.  (Sigh.)

Upstairs - the sleeping porch and unfinished area just begging to be turned into an amazing master suite. (Check out all of those carpet scraps, too.)  Basement - no 70s basement would be complete without knotty pine wall paneling.  Ours comes complete with a bar!

We have hit a few minor bumps along the way with all of the bureaucratic mess that is implicit in purchasing a home, but I am told by experienced homeowners that, all things considered, the process has gone extremely smoothly. There's just that one final hurdle called closing that we face today, and then it's ours! I still can't believe it! It feels so surreal, like some wonderful dream.  I keep thinking I'll wake up to the disappointing realization that it's just that, a dream.  Assuming this doesn't happen, I hope you don't mind if I turn this space into a bit of a forum.  I'd love to get your advice on renovation and decor decisions (while I daydream about this stuff all the time, it somehow becomes a much more intimidating process when it's actually happening) and general home ownership decisions.  Like right now I'm wondering what to do when I move in. When do I introduce myself to my neighbors? Am I really supposed to bake cookies?