Making Our 6th House a "Home"

We've officially been in our 6th house for a little over a year now and I guess you can say we've moved in if that means unpacking boxes, painting walls, putting furniture in place and having toys everywhere!  I had every intention of getting things put in place quicker than any other house but then I realized having a newborn and two other active boys does not make it an easy task.  Of course, throw in multiple illnesses and sports and school and before you know it, it's been a year and I don't feel settled.  So, one of my goals for starting the upcoming school year is to get our house fully settled which means lots of fun little projects along the way. Of course, this means lots of fun blogging ideas too!

A little secret history about our 6th home: we bought it without ever stepping foot in it! Yes, it's true, we bought a home via pictures on the internet and complete trust in our real estate agent. When I was 7 months pregnant with our 3rd child, my husband and I made an all day dash to check out houses in northern Virginia: we are talking 6am to 11pm (including flights). Although we left with a few potentials, we just didn't find the "right" fit for our family. I've always said, you can change the interior of a house but you can't change its location or lot size!  So, after moving as many times as we have you get a feeling for what you want and don't want I guess.  Needless to say, we left not ready to put down an offer and hoped that in the coming weeks more would come on the market and we could make one more trip in a month once we had moved back east and before baby #3 arrived.  Lucky for us, our current home came on the market the following week and I guess the rest is history.  Honestly, I was a little hesitant at first and my husband almost took a last minute flight from Texas to DC to check it out but I said "no" it can't be that bad, right?
The backyard view is the really what sold us on this house; if you know anything about northern Virginia, it is very difficult to find a "yard". Well, like I said, we got very lucky!

The good news:  other than some massive landscaping upkeep by the less than green thumb mom, our outdoor space is golden.  I love it so much I chose to have our first family of five photos taken here last fall so we would always remember when we moved into this house.

So the fun begins with the inside.  Although we've already completed a few small projects, I just haven't had the time to really capture the right photo or if I did a child probably erased the image before I had time to download it.  I can't wait to share all the transformations to come soon.

~Ila~

 All the family photos were taken by Kerri at With Love Studio Photography. I can't wait to have another wonderful session this fall with Kerri!