We're Back!! With pictures!!

Hi Everyone!  I hope you are all having a great summer!  Our life has been a whirlwind since we closed on our home (June 1st).  Closing was quick and easy.  We had our final number one week prior to closing, so there were no surprises or last minute trips to get a cashiers check.  The only issue we came across with NVR was our appraisal.  The loan processor sent me the appraisal via email in April and there were several errors.  The street address and zipcode were incorrect.  The square footage was inaccurate.  And the appraiser used a one level patio home (slab) as one of our comparables.  After several emails back and forth, we had it all worked out to our satifaction.  Apparently, the loan processor is not suppose to send the appraisal directly to the customer (according to our SR).  But, I'm glad I had the opportunity to review it with a fine tooth comb and request changes.  My biggest piece of advice regarding NVR is to Stay. On. Them.  Check in with your loan processor weekly to see if they need any additional documentation and offer updated account statements if you have them.  That's what we did, and everything seemed to go smoothly.

On June 1st, our closing was at 9am.  By 10:30am we had our television inside the house.  Our digital cable, phone and internet connected by 11:30.  By 3:00pm all of our appliances had been delivered and we (i.e. my husband) hung a celing fan in the master bedroom and pendants over our island.  We didn't waste any time!  The following day, the movers we hired had everything out of our old place and into our new house by 11am.  Things could not have gone more smoothly!!!

Since then, we've pretty much been unpacking and tackling various projects inside and outside on a daily basis.  We took a week off in June for a beach vacation and then jumped right back into home improvement projects upon our return!  Here is what we've been working on: 



The yard.  We underestimated how much work it would be to get those little seeds to grow!
Luckily, it came in pretty well, thanks to around the clock watering by DH.
We have some bare spots that we'll take care of in the fall.

Temporary steps to access the backyard.
So much easier than pulling the grill out of the garage every night!

Can't wait to have a deck next summer!
Pressure treated wood or composite? 

Foyer

Family Room:  DH put the recessed lights (not eyeballs) on a dimmer.

We have temporary shades on all of the window right now.
I'm getting ready to order celluar shades for all of the upstairs windows.

Can't wait to paint an accent wall and make the fireplace pop!

Morning Room:  DH hung the chandy and put it on a dimmer

Our wedding guests used their fingerprint to sign our wedding tree!
I can't wait to have this matted, framed and up on the wall.
We celebrate our one year anniversary on August 20th!

Kitchen & Morning Room:  Pendants hung by DH

I love cooking in here!
It has actually inspired me to cook more often!

We LOVE the appliances!
So glad we switched out the included items and purchased our own!

The brushed nickel hardware nicely compliments the stainless steel.
Any ideas on something decorative I can put in those empty canisters?



Inching toward the top of the "to-do" list is switching out the kitchen faucet!



Powder room:  Hung towel ring

New faucet

DH did this himself while I was out shopping one day!
I was impressed!

More garage organization.

We are very pleased with the progress so far.  We still have the study and dining room to organize on the lower level.  I would show you pictures, but they're acting as a catch-all at this point and are total disasters!  Besides some new furniture, there isn't much happening upstairs yet.  But now that we have a good dent in the lower level, we'll be making our way up the steps for some decorating.  We'll keep you posted!  Until next time, Happy Building!!