I did a thing

I drove D and Eli home last Friday and stayed through until Wednesday to help them settle in to a slightly different routine.  Eli must now take a dose of his anti seizure medication twice a day, 12 hours apart. He's very good about taking the meds, the issue is the timing, the first is due before breakfast and his ADHD meds. Depending on when he wakes in the morning this proved to be a challenge. Then his evening dose conflicted with his usual bedtime.  D did a bit of adjustment until things lined up better for both.

I spent some time hanging with my favorite (and only) grandson. He was happy to be home with access to his devices. LEGO, and nerf guns. I did a bit of housework, some reading, some knitting, much watching of the women's curling, and .... I bought a house!

D has been getting anxious about the limited number of properties available for sale in her community.  Anything that appeared well priced was moving quickly.  I wanted to wait until I returned from my cruise but she convinced me to just "go look" on Monday. Her friend Rob, a realtor from Regina, drove out from the city to do walk throughs with us and, as it turned out, to sell us a property.

The photo on Wednesday is the house we bought. The old saying, don't judge a book by its cover is apt in this case. The exterior of the house looks rough which belies what is held within. With just over 1280 square feet over a story and a half with a full basement, it is far and away a more spacious house than her current home. Since the idea is I will live part-time with them - about 6-8 months throughout the year, the space will be much appreciated.

We entered through the side door into a small porch with room for coats and boot storage.  This allows entry into the kitchen which I believe was updated about 20-25 years ago based on the maple cabinets, laminate countertops and a tile back splash. There are a good number of cabinets plus a dedicated pantry. Best of all, the window over the sink overlooks the back yard where a mom or grandma can watch a little boy play.

Exiting the kitchen to the front of the house are a decent sized dining room and a similarly sized living room with hardwood floors. The house was built in 1920, so I doubt these are original to the house - they are in too good of shape so I suspect they were added mid century. 

This photo is looking from the front living room through to the kitchen in the back. The two bedrooms are to the left - the door to what will be my/spare bedroom is visible.

The smaller one at the front we plan to use as a craft room.  Both it and the living room look out onto the front porch. The second larger bedroom has a small addition that includes two windows. This will be my room when I am there and a spare bedroom for company if I'm not. There is an older dresser in this room that I asked to be included in the sale. Based on appearance I think it's from the 50's or 60's and is very solid. There will be room for a double bed and side table as well as the dresser and an easy chair. The closet is a decent size too especially for an older house. 

Back in the kitchen there is a small hallway to the right providing access to the only bathroom (which was recently fully renovated), the stairs leading to the basement,  and the stairs to the second story. It's a half story because of the roof line but has decent headroom. Upstairs, there is an space at the top of the stairs which will be Eli's bedroom at least for now. It is open to the stairs and leads into the main bedroom.  Off the main bedroom is a large walk in closet with a built in vanity, shelving units and hanging storage. While there is no closet in the space for Eli, there is plenty for the two of them to share in this area.

The majority of the basement has been insulated and drywalled, but left unfinished. Marked in the concrete floor at the bottom of the stairs, it indicates the owners had a new basement floor poured in 2004 over the original. I suspect they intended to create a rental unit, but the new basement floor left a height of approximately 7 feet - too low for a suite. We're going to install carpet and it will make a perfect play space for a small boy, as well as providing much needed storage for his mom and grandma.

The laundry room is in an older area of the basement and houses a recently upgraded furnace and water heater. I plan to add some foam tiles in this area as the original floor is a bit pitted - it was not re-poured. There is lots of storage in this room too, with shelves and a cold storage area.

AND that's not all. The backyard is fenced, although one side is leaning and will need to be repaired. There is a single car garage that has been insulated - there is even a heater, but using an electric heater can be stupidly expensive so it will remain unused. In addition, beside the garage is a gravel area with room to park up to 3 more vehicles. The fence at the back separates these spaces from the back yard meaning less yard maintenance.  Inside the fence is a lovely shed, with room for all the tools and lawn mower.  Part of the shed has been converted to be used as a greenhouse.  You just know I'm itching to see how well that would work though I suspect it will be too late for this year. 

Though the yard is covered in snow, I'm told it has been nicely landscaped. There is a fire pit in the back yard too, and next to the side door stairs is a cement patio. It will be lovely space for a couple of chairs and a small table; on the east side it will be perfect for morning coffee/tea in the sun and will provide shade in the afternoon.  

But before you think this house is perfect, and it is pretty close, we do have a list of improvements and changes. There is no air conditioning so that is a priority for the summer. It needs a door on the interior of the front porch and the garage door needs replacing with an addition of a garage door opener. The front door for the porch is a must too - with only a screen door, the unheated porch isn't as secure as we'd like nor as functional in cool/cold weather. As mentioned,  the side fence need reair or replacement too. Then there is some painting and cosmetic changes that can wait for a bit.

The price was pretty terrific too - Rob the realtor did a double take when he looked at the listing. He even suggested he might retire to the community at some point. There is certainly value to be had in smaller, more rural communities, bu there are trade-offs, especially as it relates to health care. 

Possession date is early April, less than 3 weeks after I return from my holiday. I've spent the rest of this week confirming financing, getting quotes for home insurance, catching up on housework, and most importantly...prepping for my trip! I did get to Mahjong on Thursday as well.  

The Canadian Women's curling will continue into Sunday (two games today and two tomorrow). In between draws, I plan to sort out my clothing and other items for the cruise. It's getting ever closer - just 12 sleeps until I fly away. Hopefully the next 10 days or so will be much quieter than than the last.

Have a great week ahead everyone!