We’re running about a day behind since we didn’t have internet at home until late yesterday, but here’s how things looked on Tuesday (our first full day in the house) with all of our boxes littering every room. Goodbye clean blank slate. Hello chaos. Oh and it bears mentioning that nothing is necessarily staying where we put it (we just dropped furniture and boxes around the house, and will definitely be living with things a bit before committing to final placement for anything).
But let’s rewind a bit for a moment. The last time we moved, we were going from NYC to Richmond in a minivan (well, I guess technically we moved one more time three months later from our apartment to our first house, but we borrowed a small trailer from a friend and were able to transfer everything that way). The point? We had no idea what it was like to move with more than five boxes a piece. And I’m not gonna be all rainbows and unicorns about it. It totally bites. But we’re slowly but surely making a dent in things and starting to gain some order. As in, we now know where our socks and underwear are again. And we’ve showered!
We estimate that by tomorrow we should hopefully be mostly unpacked (since we’ve been taking post-writing, picture-taking, Clara-tending, address-changing, and comment-answering breaks between box unloading spurts). Then we’ll be diving into projects like painting, hanging, removing, replacing, floor planning, window treating, etc. We don’t know what we’ll tackle first (it’ll honestly just depend on our mood and what supplies we have on hand). When it comes to big projects we like to save our pennies and plan things to death, but for small things (which we always recommend doing first so you can live with the house a moment before making any dramatic changes that you might regret) we always just dive in and learn as we go. It’s the only way we’ve been able to accomplish things instead of being paralyzed by indecision. So we’ll hang frames somewhere and if we don’t like them we’ll move them. Same deal for picking paint colors and arranging furniture. And we’ll post pics and details as they occur, not to worry! Anyway, on with the messy just-moved-in pics…
Future dining room:
Future office:
Kitchen:
Future living room (furniture won’t necessarily stay in this configuration, it’s just where we dropped it for the moment):
Hall bath (amidst a diaper sprayer installation – more on that here):
Clara’s room (of course rebuilding the crib and getting the basics in there got priority because we wanted her to adjust as well as possible- which seemed to work so far):
Future playroom/kids room (we had to disassemble the daybed to get it down the hall):
The master bedroom (since our old bed frame conveyed with the old house, we’re sleeping on the floor until we build/buy a new one- who knows where we’ll end up on that):
The master sink/bath (we need to raise that tension rod to accommodate our extra long curtain… soon):
No idea what Burger was doing in that picture. Maybe he’s developing an interest in home related details like hardwood floors and molding. Anyway, here’s the sunroom:
And the laundry/mudroom:
Oh yeah and we have another separate entry basement (this time it’s under our bedroom instead of our sunroom) which will be awesome for storing tools, bikes, the lawnmower, seasonal decor, baby stuff, maternity clothes, etc.
So that’s our house. Can’t wait to get things unpacked and share pics as each room starts to take shape and projects start to unfold. Off to unpack more boxes…
Psst- Here’s a floor plan to help you make sense of what room’s what (although we switched Clara’s bedroom and the playroom since the smallest room makes a great nursery).
Psssst #2- We announced the winners of this week’s giveaway. Click here to see if it’s you.
Hayley says
Love the new header! I was wonderding how you got such a good picture with all the grenery? Do the seasons change late there in RVA, or was it a stock photo you took when you were looking, or did the old owners pass it on?
I also spy a lot of mismatched trim, bet you can’t wait to get started on that!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Hayley,
That was actually a picture that was snapped waaay back when we were house hunting in September/October when everything was still lush and green.
xo,
s
Abby says
You guys are awesome! I can’t wait to see how jealous you make me with your amazing renovation abilities. I already want to steal your sun room. I’m looking forward to to seeing your touches all over that beautiful, sprawling ranch! Love the new header too!
PAige says
Are you keeping all the ceiling fans? As much as they’re nice air flow wise, I’ve only seen one that I one think was ugly.
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Paige,
Some will stay and some will go (but we’ll add table fans like we did in our last bedroom and the nursery). In smaller rooms they just take up so much space that table fans are a better choice for us.
xo,
s
Tracy says
I had to do a double take when I saw the header, it looks so similar to the other house!
Yeah, I was also wondering if were going to upgrade your laundry appliances because the little combo unit would be hard to adjust to after having the duets. I saw some amazing black Friday deals on frontloaders, like <$1000 for the pair when each unit is regularly around $700. Might be something to keep an eye out for next season, or even after Christmas. Do you plan to expand the laundry area to accommodate them? Or just stack them?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Tracy,
We’ll be stacking them. Changing that room’s floor plan isn’t an option because it backs to the kitchen and would mean moving cabinets, electricity, appliances, etc. We’re happy to work with what we have! We’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for holiday sales, and someone actually told us that February is the best time to get appliances (maybe because the new ones are out so the models from the prior year go on sale?). They said they got a new front loading washer & dryer for $500 (for the pair!). Amazing.
xo,
s
heyruthie says
I saw a question about yout Clara photo from this week: MOVING BLANKET!! (if you still have any lying around!)
YoungHouseLove says
Oooh good idea but we rented those with the truck so they’ve been returned. We might just use some fun colorful fabric since we did the whole moving theme last week…
xo,
s
heyruthie says
also, SO glad to see a houe with (almost?) as many ceiing fans as mine! we inherited 7 in our Northern Virginia 1950’s split level (each one of them different!) My hubby loves them for their energy savings in the summer. i hate them for their lack of style, and how they “dominate” the small rooms–where adding a drum shade would make the ceiling feel even lower. this is especially true in the Master Bedroom.
Do you think you will be keeping all your ceiling fans, or “upgrading” to prettier options?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Heyruthie,
Nope, we definitely won’t be keeping all of them since we think they close in rooms as you mentioned. We’re fans of table fans (say that three times fast) – we have a great bedroom and nursery table fan already, so we can swap those two rooms out tomorrow if we find a great ceiling fixture that we love.
xo,
s
Kelley says
Still loving it! I can’t believe how much MORE space you guys have. It’s interesting to see your bed in the master and how BIG that room is. Same with the living room. And I love the fireplace in the kitchen. Can’t wait to see what y’all do with that, but what a great feature.
Sarah says
I love that Burger is in almost every picture..it looks like he’s following you around! My puppy (5 yrs, but still a puppy to me!) always likes to be in the same room as me too.
maggie says
Love the new house! What happened to the arch that you got married under? did you move it to the new house?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Maggie,
We took lots of pictures of it (and even posed under it) but alas, it stayed behind. It was already there when we moved into our old house, and it was very rickety, so we knew it wouldn’t survive the move. We did bring our “wedding tree” with us though. Stay tuned for a post on that soon…
xo,
s
Laura *You Stir Me* says
Aaaaa you changed your banner! Love it! Part of me wants to say “What are you doing taking time out to blog? You go worry about your house and come back to us later.” But the other part of me says “Oooo I can’t wait to see your next update with all your lovely projects and handy advice! Don’t forget us!” I’m so torn:) The place is darling, you two!
Fernanda says
This is a very good house. I loved the sunroom!!!
Sarah says
Good luck moving in!!! I’m SURE you know about this here in Richmond, but we got an AMAZING bed at the clearance room at the Dump – just needed a few touch ups of black paint and you couldn’t see where the damage was! It was a solid wood, King bed for $499… can’t beat it! I love the Dump.
Happy unpacking! Good weather here to stay inside…
Meredith says
Yay! The top photo changed! Can’t wait to see all of the fun things you will do. I just painted our bedroom and blue-grey (SW Tradewind) and have dark brown furniture, and hope to go with silver/crystal accents….maybe I’ll be able to get some ideas from you, as always! Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to keep us updated!
Cait @ Hernando House says
Popping back in to say I love the new header!
Jennifer says
LOVE the floors in your master bedroom!!! All the best in the new home sweeeeet home…it’s lovely….and so much potential!!
Alicia says
The house is amazing! Love all the rooms! Can´t wait to see how you make it “your house”!
susan says
Burger is getting the lay of the land by sniffing out his new territory! Have fun unpacking. susan
Julianne Hendrickson says
I love it!! Isn’t it crazy how it becomes so much cozier immediately when you put your things inside!? The sunroom is definitely my favorite spot…Burger’s too!
Joanne says
So glad I can move vicariously and not in reality. The light in the sun room is awesome!
Janelle says
Congrats! We just completed our 9th move in 13 years of marriage (Thanks Marine Corps!). Yep, it totally bites but I always enjoy the big purge and the opportunity to think about what I would really miss if the truck never showed up on the other end. Don’t worry too much about Clara – kids take their clues from their parents. You two are totally into the adventure part of it and she will feel that around her! Good luck in the new house and I can’t wait to see what you do. I am about to tackle the kitchen in our Cali house and need inspiration!
annabelvita says
How are you finding sleeping so much further away from the bean?
YoungHouseLove says
We’re really grateful that she has been sleeping really well, and thanks to our monitor we have peace of mind (we hear every sleep-gurgle just like she’s in the room with us). Hew nursery is actually not very far away (just 15 steps) but considering we were right across the hall from her before (four steps) it’s a bit more of a walk. Nothing too crazy though!
xo,
s
megan e says
I take a small level of joy in seeing your house in all of it’s messy moving chaos. Shows you’re human and it’s a refreshing change from the super organized home photos we usually see!
Amanda says
If you plan to build your bedframe, I highly recommend the Farmhouse from Ana White’s site! I love it!
Nichole@40daysof says
Love your new house! The bathrooms really look like they are in pretty good shape, and I am really digging the window over the sink in the master.
Stacey says
I am so glad I found your blog. What you did with your old house was great, and am excited to see what you’ll do with this one. Congrats on the new place!
Darby says
OMG this house is gorgeous I cant wait to see what you do with it!
Ashley says
Can I just say the more I see the wide plank hardwoods in your bedroom the more I love them! Burger obviously does too!
nue says
I’ve been pondering this for some time and looks like I may have the answer from one of your pics. I’m currently using plastic shower liners behind my shower curtains but those things get scummy quick and wear over time specially if you’re often scrubbing them clean. I hate to think of years worth of these liners filling up landfills. What are you currently using and do you know of other eco-friendly options? Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
We use a fabric shower curtain liner! They sell them in a few places, but we found ours at Bed Bath & Beyond. They’re so eco friendly because it can be machine washed and used for years- decades even.
xo,
s
Sarah @ Young, Hip and Handy says
Wow, it looks like this house gets amazing natural light! It looks so refreshing on those beautiful wood floors. Can’t wait to see what you do to the place!
Christine says
John and Sherry,
I just wanted to send you a quick note to say thanks for taking pictures of the old house after everything was moved out of it. I really enjoyed watching your progress on updating the house and was so sad when I learned that you were moving. Having said that, I absolutely LOVE your new home! It is spacious and perfect. Congratulations and thanks again for the great photos and updates. I love your blog and look forward to watching you make your new home your own. :)
Amanda says
Love, love, love the new digs!! I am so excited to see what you end up doing with everything…..seeing all these empty rooms with boxes and torn down furniture makes me want to move too!!! Congrats!!!
Emily says
Love the place! So much potential!
So, I had a random dream about your house last night. (I know kindy of creepy – that is how much I read your blog!) Can you or have you considered raising the ceiling in the kitchen? Have no idea if that is possible or how one would do it but I think it would look awesome. Especially with those beams exposed. Anyways, just a thought!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Emily,
That’s so funny! And we agree- it would look awesome! We’ll have to see if it’s possible down the road when we tackle the more major renovations…
xo,
s
Donna says
I absolutely love your sunroom. That would be my “hang out” spot with a good book! Looking forward to all your new projects!
Emmary Roemer says
We have the exact same parkay flooring in our entry way. We have been stumped as to what to do with it: keep it, polish it up, rip it out, put in hard wood, etc, etc. What are your plans?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Emmary,
We’re planning to keep it and possibly refinish it in a very deep brown or even ebony color down the road. We’ll definitely post details when we do!
xo,
s
Marci says
I was confused when I found out you guys were selling, but I love the new house! Move-in mess and all :-)
hjc says
I read this post this morning and didn’t have time to comment before I left for work, but I had to let you know that your “30 dead bodies” comment made me laugh out loud! I was so glad I was done with breakfast, or there might have been hot chocolate spewed all over the keyboard.
Like John, I wondered how you knew the weight of all those bodies.
Thanks for keeping us updated – it’s a great house with great possibilities. I’m thinking the kitchen paneling will be painted by Monday…
Autumn Tao says
Congrats you guys. You have such lovely blog! I’m super excited to see you guys tackle the kitchen. Looking forward to watching the progress. Happy Holidays!
Eva says
I decided that Burger must have tried to be in every picture of that post. I actually went back through them and played “Where’s Burger (Waldo)” :o) I can’t wait to see what you guys do with the new house!
Crissy says
I love how huge your master BR is!
Erin R. says
I appreciate how humble you are! Thank you for keeping it real. We just purchased our first home and it is VERY similar to your new house. Most of our friends and colleagues are buying cookie-cutter McMansions (yea! for them, not for us). We love our 1970ish home it feels established and has a charming ambiance. I like to call this a “family pile up on the couch and help yourself to the fridge” feeling. Purchasing below budget gives us peace about our purchase and allows us the means to do DIY and upgrades which are my FAVORITE thing in the world to do. Our kitchen is so much like yours with dark wood cabinets and huge fluorescent light boxes. We are working on it slowly. Can’t wait to see what you do!! Good luck!! Best wishes ;)
Tess says
I LOVE it! Love the natural light. Good luck unpacking!
Monique says
Beautiful home. I love the sunroom; lots of natural light. All the best!
Giselle says
I just love the new house, cant wait to follow u in this new adventure!!!
Donita says
I so knew that you would paint the kitchen, and fireplace, just had to ask though. ;-) When we moved in to this rental house *ugh 17 years ago :-/* the entire house was DARK brown paneling, not the nice wood kind either. I painted it all, no primer, just painted it. The paint has lasted through raising two teens, and with have grandbabie’s here. Your’s will look amazing when you get it done. Love your home!!!
kellie says
I am in love with this home – so much potential! How exciting and lucky for all of us we get to see you transform this home- so happy for you guys!!!
Amber says
Where have I been!? I just noticed that you have three bathrooms! For some reason I was thinking the bathroom in your bedroom room was the same one with the black/white tile. That is great!
Marisol Perry says
Beautiful home. I love the sunroom; lots of natural light. All the best!
joy says
So excited to see what you do with the new house. I live in a 1964 brick ranch that has a lot in common with yours so I’m eager to see all the changes. We are in the process of remodeling our kitchen and walkout basement by ourselves which I hope to blog about too. Good luck!