Total Whirlwind

We had a CRAZY week last week getting ready to put our house in the market.  I don't even remember how many 2-4 hours nights of sleep we got last week.  We did pretty much every project we'd ever planned to do "eventually" in the span of 9 days.  Our house was full of contractors helping us and I attempted to pack up and keep things running in the office, which became pretty much impossible.


Saturday morning (the day of the first open house) we woke up early to get started on our unfinished projects.  At 6, Dave ran to Home Depot to buy a new drill because we'd packed ours up and sent it to live in the Pod for a month... he added the missing hardware on the extra kitchen cabinets we'd done a year or so ago. (Yes, until this point they'd been just sitting there, naked and topped with plywood... On Friday the carpenters came and installed the butcher block and did the trimwork.)  I ran around with only one contact in (I tore my left one in the rush) pretty much legally blind in my left eye, squinting to do the paint touch-ups.  (It was at this point that I almost lost it...  I'd been pretty chill the whole 9 days along but when I realized I couldn't see it was - Dave- "It's almost over."  And me- "But I can't see!!! How am I supposed to look at anythig with a critical eye if I can't see?!!!"  --- Yes, I really said that.  Not my best moment.  He knows me pretty well and just didn't say anything.  God I love that man. )  I frantically cut hyrangea & spread them around the house in jars, all the while worrying about the funny smell of the paint in our basement because the contractors had just finished with the ceiling.  Every time I finished with a room, I'd close the door and the kids' security clearances were revoked.

{Yes, that's a muffin squished into his eye.}


 (By the end they were relegated to the foyer as our realtor helped them put on their shoes and fed them cookies & that's when I knew it was the home stretch.) I jumped in the back or our minivan to feed (wailing) baby Luke as Dave turned the car on and "blasted" the air at my behest while people arrived early for the open house.   Dave ran through the yard with the lawn mower (Him- "A mowed lawn is important to men.") as Christian & Justin got extra allowance for picking up sticks.  I watched and thought about how I'd wished I'd gotten more weeding done in the gardens as the van (which was blasting air) got hotter and hotter.  I opened the door because the hot air outside was better than the inside.  The baby's tiny little body stuck to my dress and we were a sweaty mess.  When Dave finally showed back up to load the kids in the car it was, "Oh sorry babe, I'd had the heat on." 

We drove a few houses down so I could feed the baby before driving to the eye doctor's.  We watched as the cars came pouring down our street for the open house.  (I know that sounds creepy and I hoped no one would notice us, but with the hungry baby, we really had no choice.)  As more time went by and none of the cars had left yet, we felt a little better.  Anytime there was a lag in the stream of cars, we worried.  We noticed cars leaving, driving around and going back.  That was a good sign. 



Once the baby had had his fill, it was off to the eye doctors' and then to my mom's house where we showerd and promptly DROPPED.  (We had already decided we were not going home Saturday night because there was no way we could keep our house clean for even a night for Sunday's open house.)  We waited for news from our realtors and I was in total shock as they called and told us the good news.  (I typically worst-case scenario everything at the last minute, and by the end of the day had convinced myself that no one could ever want our house.)  Saturday night was great as two of my best friends stopped by to celebrate (One who I haven't seen in over a year just home from Paris!) and we gorged (or maybe it was just me who gorged) on food from the Lebanese Taverna. 


{Habeeb.com}


We stayed at my mom's all day Sunday and reviewed offers that night.  This (below) was the awesome note we came home to:

{The "Buy me" note was a last-minute attempt as I dashed out of the house before the open house}

...We are now officially under contract and are set to move mid-September!!!  I'm definitely sad to leave this place (getting teary honestly) but I am so happy that the people buying our house seem to love it as much as we do.  I think they'll take great care of this place we've poured so much into & I'm sure they'll make it their own in no time.  I'll miss some of our neighbors terribly but know that they're friends for life & moving won't change that. 

I'll be back this week to share some long overdue before & afters of our house...  sort of a little goodbye string of posts I have planned.  I am DEFINITELY making a video tour of my house before I leave so I can "visit" whenever I want.  (I know I have issues ;)

Also, thank you so much to all of the readers who came out to see our house!!  Hope you enjoyed & thank you so much for the support!!

xoxo, Lauren

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

28 comments:

mom23 said...

YEA!! So happy for you guys! I guess they all LOVED the open shelving ;) Congrats!

A Perfect Gray said...

wonderful news! congratulations, lauren. (were the new buyers readers of your blog?) looking forward to all your new adventures...donna

Becky Cowen said...

how exciting! i know exactly how you are feeling. we recently sold the house that i brought my babies home to. i'm excited about the next chapter of our lives, but it was sad to say goodbye to our last home. :)

Peachie said...

Congratulations Lauren. I began reading your blog because you loved the same house I've had for 30 plus years. I finally fell in love with mine and really enjoy it. Much success to you.

bagfashionista said...

congratulations!! i feel like THIS is the true testament of your design abilities--the fact that you're able to sell a house in ONE showing during this crappy market!

kylie said...

I can't believe that you were able to sell it in just one day!!! Do you know how lucky that makes you?? Obviously your house and your design skills are what sold it, but still! Most people wait months for an offer!! Congratulations!

Erin Southwell said...

Absolutely amazing that you sold in one day, but not at ALL surprising!! How you went through that all with a newborn is beyond me, you rock girl!

Marissa@ohhhsolovely said...

i have to say that this post cracked me up! very humorous to me, but i'm sure it wasn't to you at the time! that is so awesome that you're already under contract! i totally understand getting teary eyed about leaving, as i feel the same way when we talk about leaving our first home (that we poured blood, sweat & tears into)! good luck with the rest of this journey.

Unknown said...

Congrats! How exciting!

Kare said...

Congratulations Lauren!! That's great news. I remember doing the exact same things {minus the hubs tuning the heat on - haha!} when we sold our first home. And, don't tell anyone, but I still sometimes reserve the right to revoke security clearance on my teens after deep cleaning a room! :o)

Very excited for you!!

Kare
{Trublue_K}

Michele @ Moonfield Lane said...

The heat on! How awful :) But that craziness is all behind you now. Congratulations on the quick sale. Such exciting news! Personally, I would adore living in your house and it sounds like others felt the same way. Best of luck on your new adventure.

Unknown said...

You sold it the first weekend????That is kharma for sure. Great job with staging, decluttering and making it look like a photo shoot. The new owners are so lucky to have your good taste in that house. Good luck with the next phase. Stay cool!
Nancy
Powellbrowerhome.com

Marcela said...

Can't wait to see pictures of your new place! After less than a week on the market, we pulled our listing and decided to stay in our home and renovate. We will hopefully start construction in November!

kayce hughes said...

so glad for you!

Erin {House of Turquoise} said...

Oh my gosh, SO exciting!!! So reminded me of when we put our house on the market 6 months ago...all those last minute projects we'd been wanting to do forever, squished into a couple weeks! Things always seemed to wrap up right when the touring realtor parked in the driveway! I can't imagine all of that with 3 (adorable!) little ones in tow! Funny about the video tour–I thought to do that too, sadly only AFTER everything was out and the house was empty!

Stacey {steward of design} said...

Congrats on the quick sale!

foleydog said...

Can I just say I would have been the first person to tell you not to buy this house! My in-laws live in a house just like it - except after 25 years, it still looks like your before pictures. You've done a great job. Can't wait to see the next one!

Sixty-Fifth Avenue said...

I loved the story of your crazy day! I knew you would sell quick, your home is gorgeous!! So happy for you guys!

Designs by M said...

Literally laughed out loud at the 'heat on'! That is soo something that would happen to us too! Congrats on the super quick sale of your beautiful home! Marita x

Melissa @ Lived In said...

OKAY, I'm in shock! I've been on vaca in Colorado and just caught up. So excited for you, but am feeling a little heartbroken. I feel like your home is our home. We, and I speak on behalf of your blog followers, have loved every moment of your before and after home projects and seeing all of the love, dedication, and care that you and Dave have put into your home.

That third kiddo really gets everyone motivated!
Congratulations Lauren and we look forward to what you will be up to in your new casa.

Linda@ Lime in the Coconut said...

Ok...I have a headache...and maybe a twitch in my eye too. OY. But WHOOP for selling in a day. Been there. We kinda went through the same thing...but took about 4 days. And by then I was SURE it would never sell.

Onward and upward! Oh....


and REST.

Filia Artis said...

Oh Lauren, I have to admit, I was laughing and you probably will be in a year from now too! You are a super-mom. Dave sounds like a super-dad. We went through this a year ago with a job offer that would take us across the country with a mere 8 weeks to list, sell, buy, pack and move. We also sold to the first couple to view at our first open-house - it was a blessing and it sounds like someone up above sent a gift your way too. Even Super-Mom couldn't keep up that level of stress for too long!
Good for you. Sending love and good vibes all the way from Saskatchewan!

Christina

PS. tried to internet-stalk your listing photos and came up empty-handed. So you'll have to post some of those before/after/sale shots soon!

Lavender said...

Hey Lauren, congratulations! Please post your video tour once you have some free time. It's such a great idea.

I did one of my last home when I sold. Wish I had thought of taking one of my very first home. Didn't bother because the realtor had taken one to post with the listing only to find out that once it sold, the video was deleted from the link I had saved. Now I have none of the images from the finished product except what's left of my memories.

B

Anonymous said...

Good for you! What a quick sell. And we've all been there...I mean, the hot car with the sticky yuckies while trying to feed a baby. Oh, the memories.

Barbara Matson said...

Congrats! Phew, at least you don't have to keep it clean anymore! YAY!

Stacie@hometownperch said...

Congratulations on getting offers so quickly. You're a super star for getting it all done with kids afoot--including an infant.

Anonymous said...

I just love you guys! You all are too cute. Thank you for sharing your whirlwind day with us. In the end it was all worth it! So very happy for you and US (!!!) to watch what you do with your new home. Its going to be so much fun!!!

CHEERS,
Jennifer

Unknown said...

Wow! That was so great and I enjoyed your post a lot. That little boy was so charming and I enjoyed a lot with your post. But wait is that a salad? Looks delicious :D Anyways, Congratulations! God bless and keep safe :)

Charles of Real Estate Philippines