When we began removing the vines from the house last week, I knew it was official: after 20 years in our home, we’ve decided to move.
It won’t be right away, of course, because there’s a lot of freshening up that needs to be done first. It’s amazing what you learn to live with (and no longer see!) after 20 years. The front garden needs to be redone, the vines and climbing rose need to come down off the house so we can repaint the siding, the front walkway needs to be rebuilt, the pool patio needs to be pressure-washed and resealed, the vegetable garden beds need to be rebuilt, stuff needs to be carted away from the back yard and shrubs planted…and that’s just the exterior work. 😛
By making the decision now, though, we’ve given ourselves almost a year to get the work done. Our plan is to do the outside stuff over the course of the summer and fall–along with kitchen cabinet repainting, which will take place in the garage…once we clean that out to make room. sigh Then, once winter rolls around, we’ll start on the interior work: a new floor and countertop in the kitchen, new paint throughout the main floor, new flooring in one bedroom and a portion of the basement, putting finishing touches to trim in the basement, and a whole lot of decluttering and rearranging of furniture throughout.
Why all the work on a place we’re not keeping? We want to make the house as appealing as we can to as broad a base as possible. No matter how much I might like things like my vines and the colour of my kitchen (it’s done in warm yellow and terra cotta tones), if something might be a stumbling block for someone else, it’s history, because I am more than ready to move on. (And fortunately, so is hubby. 😉 )
So…with luck and a whole lot of hard work, we’ll put the house on the market next March and–fingers, toes, and eyes crossed–be gearing up for a move by this time next year. I’ll tell you more about those plans in a future post and, of course, give you updates on our progress.
In the meantime, tearing down my beloved vines felt rather like forging an unwritten agreement, because there’s no turning back now. Let the chaos ensue! 😉
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