After 16 years of married life, residing in 6 different cities (4 different states), 2 dogs, and 2 boys, we have finally found our Forever Home! Somewhat by chance, we discovered this home in the country, on 5 acres, just inside the school district boundary where we want the boys to go to school! The family we are buying the home from has taken us in as a part of their family, and have helped us out in every way possible so that our boys will be raised in their cherished family home - where they raised 5 children! They hold many memories of this home and have a sentimental attachment to it. Listening to them tell stories about raising their family here makes me feel so excited and blessed to be able to do the same for our sons.
The house was most recently a rental, and the tenants did not touch any of the many flower gardens located around the property. So we will have a lot of weeding and trimming in our future. I love that there are random old, rusted feed bins around the property filled with plantings. With a little love, and the help of an aunt with a green thumb, I think we'll get it looking good again!
Side view. I'm not sure if the black geese above the garage door will remain on the front of the home. I'm almost afraid of removing them. I'm guessing they have left their silhouette on the siding over the years. Just inside the garage screen door, there is a breezeway between the house & garage. It has wood plank flooring that is so neat. You'll have to imagine it - I forgot to take a pic.
Reece found a broom in the garage and started to sweep! It does need some cleaning up - and he is very eager to help!
This view is from close to the fence line on the east side of the property.
A view of the pond. We are still in a drought, here in Kansas, so it's a little low & dry. Hopefully over time it will fill up again.
The pics are a bit out of order here...this is a view from close to the fence line on the west side of the property. Large garage on the left; small barn on the right.
Beautiful cottonwood tree in the back yard. There are SO many trees on this property!! Love it! All of them are calling out for a tire swing!!
A view of the small barn. All of the outbuildings on the property have power and water to them. Perfect for a bucket calf and/or a horse for the boys!
View of the screened-in porch on back side of house. You can also see
the greenhouse window, which is located above the kitchen sink.
Garage/shed to the west of the house. There are 4 kennels on the back side of this building, with dog boxes built into the inside of the building. Plenty of running space for Belle & Kersee! I didn't get a good pic of it, but there is also a chicken house on the left side of this picture, next to the building. All of the runs & the chicken house are overgrown. I can see us borrowing a goat or 2 from bro-in-law Darren to help clear it all out!
Another view of the outside of the screened porch...
...and a view from the inside looking out toward the pond. Such a beautiful part of the home. It's breezy and will be the perfect extra living space for us! It also has a built-in bench along the 3 exterior sides.
Inside the house!
The sunflower kitchen! I'm not a fan of sunflowers. At all. But I can live with this for a while until I figure out what I want to do with it. The kitchen is bright and open. Just off the kitchen is the laundry area and a HUGE pantry! There is also an area I'll use for a desk/computer area to the front-right.
View from the screened porch to front. It's a huge, open room.
Looking toward the front door. In the pics above & below you can see the custom built-in shutters. They are beautiful. Each panel is louvered, and will also swing open to let in all natural light.
A view of the kitchen pantry/laundry room.
This is the only room we probably won't do anything to. It's the most updated room in the house!
The boys' room. They love the huge walk-in closet!
Our bedroom. Love the cedar-lined closet w/built-ins at each end! Just needs doors - which we have. One of my first projects will be these walls. Away with the wallpaper!!! There is also another small bedroom across the hall. We will use it as a toy room as long as the boys still want to room together.
Here's a view of the desk/computer area. It has a huge cabinet/cubby area. It will be perfect to store my Thirty-One business essentials!
View from the front of the house to the back. Hallway to bedrooms & stairwell to basement on left; kitchen on right.
Above is another view from the west side of the property. The kennels are
somewhere behind the overgrown jungle on the back side of the garage.
I didn't take any pictures of the basement. It needs some work. It's mostly concrete floors and is drab. There are 2 rooms that cannot technically be called bedrooms - but will be perfect storage & hobby rooms. There is also a large great room and bathroom with shower. There is a stairwell on each end of the basement - one from the living room, and the other just inside the breezeway, that leads to the kitchen. The bathroom is located just at the bottom of the stairs on the kitchen side - which will be a perfect mud area for the men of the family after hunting. There is also a corn/pellet furnace in the basement that will be awesome in the winter!
So many wonderful things to mention...and much cleaning, moving, arranging, and re-arranging in our future. We look forward to sharing our "Forever Home"with all of our friends and family over the years to come!
