But, hopefully, delivery will happen in the next week or so.
Here's a picture of the site, with the piers the contractors just poured to set our home on.
Love,
Debbie
Life as the mother of four children and four grandchildren. Homeschooling the two still at home. Things that interest me - reading, herbs and essential oils, gardening, natural chemical-free living, and continually learning how to be a better wife.
Thursday, October 20, 2016
Update: Progress
We have been preparing for delivery of our new home. We had a tree near the driveway to cut, and some bobcat work to do to make sure the home could fit up our (very steep) driveway. Come to find out, it's so steep, they need a dozier to get our home up it, which, of course, costs extra.
But, hopefully, delivery will happen in the next week or so.
Here's a picture of the site, with the piers the contractors just poured to set our home on.
Will keep you updated!
Love,
Debbie
But, hopefully, delivery will happen in the next week or so.
Here's a picture of the site, with the piers the contractors just poured to set our home on.
Love,
Debbie
Saturday, October 1, 2016
For those who keep up with us - an update on our plans
I wanted to update our plans for those who keep up with what is going on in our lives. I appreciate those who do and thank you for caring about our family. I don't care what anyone says; I love my online friends, some whom I have never met. It might be a different kind of relationship, but it is real nonetheless.
So, as a quick overview - about 5 years ago, we moved from the house we had owned for over 20 years in town to my mother-in-law's house in the country which no one was living in. We did a LOT of work and spent quite a bit of our funds making it livable.
In the past year, we learned that we aren't going to be able to stay here long term, which was our original plan. We had to start looking into alternatives, and ended up buying 18.5 mostly wooded acres not far from where we are, which we closed on last December 30. We spent that winter and spring clearing and cutting about an acre, and also tearing down an old single wide trailer that was there.
After we got close to finishing that up, we started trying to figure out what we wanted to live in and how we wanted to go about it. Neither one of us wanted to go back into debt with a mortgage. We figured we were too old to start all over with that again. So we drew up some plans to build a small 650+ square foot tiny home using the trailer frame on the property and pay for it as we built it.
It was going to be small, but I was excited to downsize and make it work. However, this spring, my mother-in-law moved in with us and it has become a permanent living arrangement. Therefore, our tiny home plans will no longer work.
Back to the drawing board. There was no way I ever wanted to build an actual mortar and brick home again. On our first house that we lived in for over 20 years, we had built a 700 square foot addition, mostly by ourselves. I hauled supplies and block at 8 and 9 months pregnant. I hammered floor boards and screwed walls with a newborn (Jessie) hanging from the rafters. So I was completely unenthusiastic about including that in our list of choices. Too much work. And contractors are too expensive and too unreliable.
We started looking at manufactured homes. It is easy to get sucked into the upgraded, fancier models, but we don't need all that. We settled on a moderately sized base model and set about finalizing things. Our retirement fund took a big hit to come up with the down payment, but one must do what they must. We are currently awaiting a delivery date, which should be in the next few weeks. It will be interesting watching them maneuver it up our STEEP driveway.
It will be awhile after they deliver it before we can actually move in because we ordered it without carpet. After years of no carpet, there was NO way I was going back to that willingly. However, they don't allow substitutions, so the areas that would have been carpeted (living room, hall, and all the bedrooms) are going to come with only the sub-floor. We will be installing our own flooring, probably hardwood. After that, we have to have the fence around the yard completed to keep our dogs safe. We don't do projects quickly, so it will undoubtedly be awhile before we are done with everything.
So, sometimes the best laid plans have to be let go. We will have a mortgage again, but not a very big one. We also will have it paid within 15 years or less. I am certain that the Lord will provide and that all will be fine. I don't begrudge having my mother-in-law here, although anyone who has experienced a parent of any kind living with them will attest to the challenges. That's a whole other subject in itself. Learning to live well with others is good for our walk with God and personal growth. I miss my own mother, who has been dead for awhile now.
At some point, I will compose my post with the before and after pictures of our property. I am excited to share our new journey with you.
As always,
Debbie
So, as a quick overview - about 5 years ago, we moved from the house we had owned for over 20 years in town to my mother-in-law's house in the country which no one was living in. We did a LOT of work and spent quite a bit of our funds making it livable.
In the past year, we learned that we aren't going to be able to stay here long term, which was our original plan. We had to start looking into alternatives, and ended up buying 18.5 mostly wooded acres not far from where we are, which we closed on last December 30. We spent that winter and spring clearing and cutting about an acre, and also tearing down an old single wide trailer that was there.
After we got close to finishing that up, we started trying to figure out what we wanted to live in and how we wanted to go about it. Neither one of us wanted to go back into debt with a mortgage. We figured we were too old to start all over with that again. So we drew up some plans to build a small 650+ square foot tiny home using the trailer frame on the property and pay for it as we built it.
It was going to be small, but I was excited to downsize and make it work. However, this spring, my mother-in-law moved in with us and it has become a permanent living arrangement. Therefore, our tiny home plans will no longer work.
Back to the drawing board. There was no way I ever wanted to build an actual mortar and brick home again. On our first house that we lived in for over 20 years, we had built a 700 square foot addition, mostly by ourselves. I hauled supplies and block at 8 and 9 months pregnant. I hammered floor boards and screwed walls with a newborn (Jessie) hanging from the rafters. So I was completely unenthusiastic about including that in our list of choices. Too much work. And contractors are too expensive and too unreliable.
We started looking at manufactured homes. It is easy to get sucked into the upgraded, fancier models, but we don't need all that. We settled on a moderately sized base model and set about finalizing things. Our retirement fund took a big hit to come up with the down payment, but one must do what they must. We are currently awaiting a delivery date, which should be in the next few weeks. It will be interesting watching them maneuver it up our STEEP driveway.
It will be awhile after they deliver it before we can actually move in because we ordered it without carpet. After years of no carpet, there was NO way I was going back to that willingly. However, they don't allow substitutions, so the areas that would have been carpeted (living room, hall, and all the bedrooms) are going to come with only the sub-floor. We will be installing our own flooring, probably hardwood. After that, we have to have the fence around the yard completed to keep our dogs safe. We don't do projects quickly, so it will undoubtedly be awhile before we are done with everything.
So, sometimes the best laid plans have to be let go. We will have a mortgage again, but not a very big one. We also will have it paid within 15 years or less. I am certain that the Lord will provide and that all will be fine. I don't begrudge having my mother-in-law here, although anyone who has experienced a parent of any kind living with them will attest to the challenges. That's a whole other subject in itself. Learning to live well with others is good for our walk with God and personal growth. I miss my own mother, who has been dead for awhile now.
At some point, I will compose my post with the before and after pictures of our property. I am excited to share our new journey with you.
As always,
Debbie
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