We went last nite - the WHOLE family was able to make it - and everyone fell in love!
I had been talking to TKU on facebook earlier and mentioned that I was excited to go see this place and that I was really hoping everything was good because I just wanted to know that we had a home, get packed and moved without any issues.. and that's when she said
"I'm not living there. Just saying. We are just looking." ...
I just about lost my mind. Ya know, kid, I love ya, and I understand that moving away from your friends and school and all that is hard sometimes, but I'm really hoping that you don't have nearly as much pull on your parents as that. All that flashed through my mind was the potential nightmare for her parents and their sanity for the same thing - we just want to know that we have a place, it fits all of our needs, and we can afford it. We all needed the peace of mind of knowing.
We already know that TKU's older sister is moving back home again. (she went back east to live with her dad a couple months ago if not less than that - and it didn't work out the way she'd hoped - so she called and said she wanted to come home.) .. and we already know that she's not going to be thrilled with the new location because she wanted to go to a specific high school.. that is now too far. I'm not saying its not possible, because my best friend did it for Gr. 12. We were already in that school and her family had to move back east for her step dad's job. She moved in with her aunt out in Ridge and commuted every day to school for the last year instead of changing schools. That just made sense. But she was in grade 12 and had her license and a car to get herself there and back every day. TKU2 will have to be driven every day.
I of course, got the address and google mapped it, checked it out on street view, and was delighted to see that it wasn't scary at all! I got an email from the landlady along with pictures. She said the house was staged in January, and those were all she had. What I noticed was missing was the living room / kitchen downstairs photo. Since that will be my family's space, I was curious to know if the set up there was going to be any better than what I am currently fighting with. She very nicely replied that they live in the house at present, and it's their son's play room. Its an open concept space sharing both living room and kitchen areas together. And that it would be easier to visualize when we came to see it.
When we got there, it was of course, the first thing I needed to see. The home is well kept with laminate and ceramic tile throughout. The only installed carpet is on the stairs and the two downstairs bedrooms (but not the 'den'). I stood in the middle of the open space kitchen/ lrm area and tried to picture our table and chairs there. It would work for the time being, but it would have to change. I immediately started 'building' an island with a breakfast bar instead. Indeed, the kitchen is small, there is about the same amount of counter space as there is here (with all the appliances that sit on the counter).. so an island would be smart. increases counter workspace, and if the right kind of set up is done, it would definitely work for more cupboard/storage. The living room being right there would be fine. The furniture we already have in our current living room would all fit just fine.
Down the hall to the two bedrooms for our suite - they are side by side. I wasn't sure I wanted TK's room right beside ours, and I can't really see the new armoire fitting into our room at all. The 2 bedrooms are small. Smaller than what we have now. The closet in the 'master' is even smaller than we have right now. This means we'll be doing some more reconfiguration on where our stuff will go. This is about the time we figured that the den will probably end up being TK's room. It's up at the front of the house (the other bedrooms are in the back), but in either room, she would be away from the noise of the tv - which she isn't right now.
Honestly, if I were looking at this suite and it was JUST the downstairs - as in, we weren't renting the whole house - and we didnt know the people upstairs - I wouldn't take it. But because we're looking at the whole house, and all of the amenities, it will work, and we'll make it work as best we can. I joked and said it was great and we'd be happy living upstairs, and M laughed and said NO WAY! lol...
The yard is huge. There's a workshop in the back - and its one of those long buildings where there's storage space in the back half that's separated from the front. The guys are already planning setting that front space up as their Man Cave. lol
Upstairs is lovely. The layout is good, there's plenty of space and it's well used. The dining room furniture they have will fit nicely without being crowded, the living room space will do well with their current furniture too. The master bedroom, walk in closet, additional closet with shelving and en suite are all well planned out too. It is cozier - meaning the space they have upstairs now is HUGE and spacious - but for no real reason. All that extra space just screams for laundry and miscellaneous storage things to pile up. I can already see M planning out decorating it properly as soon as they're in there.
Both kids rooms upstairs are like ours downstairs - right beside each other. One is slightly bigger and TKU has already laid claim to it. And honestly, for TKU2 the extra space would just give her more room to pile things up too.
The landlords are all ok with our pets and our kids, they're nice people that have already said they feel comfortable leaving the province with us in their home. (who wouldn't? we're pretty great tenants!) So.. now we wait until March 23rd to hear about posession date etc. Promise I'll share pics when we're in.
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