And the Surprises Keep on Coming...............

I love our new house. You know I do! We spend as much time here as we can. The temperature is about 10 degrees cooler than at our place in Silicon Valley. Although it's not crazy hot in the Valley yet, it's really nice to drive south to cooler temperatures.

The more time we spend here, the more we do. Of course, our #1 priority is to get the mobile home ready to rent, but sometimes we get a little bored or curious and begin to explore a bit.

Here is what we found on a recent retaining wall excavation:

Before:

After:

Looks like a retaining wall project just got bumped up on the Project Priority List. Yay.

Bees!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday we were at the house. It's not ours yet, but we like to show it off. Both of us are SO excited to live there! So, here we were, walking around the house and all of a sudden, there was this noise. A buzz. And it got louder and louder. We looked up and we saw bees swarming. I can't tell you how many there were. They were probably 15 feet above our heads and they were LOUD!

And then, they were gone. Good luck bees! I hope you found a good place to live. I hope that you make really good honey. And when I plant my garden, I hope you are around to pollinate and help me grow lots of good food.

Inside Casa de los Siete Gatos

Today was our new home inspection. It's a 40+ year old home, so we weren't expecting the house to be without issue. There are a few places where there are termites. The kitchen sink faucet and dishwasher have leaks. But - we have a four year young roof, a two year young well and water storage system. What we found out today is that the house is REALLY well insulated and the pipes are all copper.

Cosmetically, we'll do some work on the inside. The beautiful thing is that there is very little that NEEDS to be done. We can do things as we need or as we have extra money set aside.

So with that, I give you the inside of the Casa. Be kind, knowing that we will be making changes. When we can. When we want. Yes - the red carpet will go, as well the wallpaper and the paneling. Ann Christine - feel free to go crazy with suggestions. And if you want more photos - I can get them to you!

The living room:

The Kitchen:

The breakfast nook and the dining area?:

One of the bedrooms and the Sunroom:

Casa de los Siete Gatos, part 2

Front of the barn:

House and view. The truck is not ours. However I have been whistling the theme song to 'Green Acres'.

And here's our porch. I see two rocking chairs and a nice little table here. What a perfect place to drink morning coffee. I also see LOTS of applesauce in our future. The bees were SO busy here. It sounded like the tree was trying to lift off!

And, may I present to you our new clothes dryer. I am thrilled! And I told you I've been hearing 'Green Acres'!

Sale Pending.... and it's waiting for us!

Although the Corralitos home had my heart, it was like a bad crush. You know the beautiful bad boys that girls are so attracted to (or maybe that was just me)? That is what the Corralitos home was. In the end, the decision was made for us. Our lender worked REALLY hard to find funding... and he did. A special 'rural funding' that funds places over 10 acres (who would have thunk that anything over 10 acres was difficult to find), but the way the water got to the house was a problem for the bank, and therefore the funding was a no-go. And we didn't have $550,000 cash in the bank . If you do, I know a great property you might be interested in!!!

So, may I introduce to you our new home, Casa de los Siete Gatos! We offered, and counter offered, and on Sunday our offer was accepted. 10 acres, 2 homes (so we will be a landlord soon. Anyone want to rent a cool place near Salinas? Give us until mid-June to paint it and make it pretty for you!). Out house has a 4-year old roof, new windows, and a 2 year old well with 5,000 gallons of water in storage. There are fruit trees here, and plenty of space to carve out room for row crops. YAY. Someone lived their life here. I like that. The Lovey will have space for his hobbies. We will have Thanksgiving here.

I have learned SO much in this process. If you do your best, do your research, and make good decisions, it works out. Here's to making the right decision and leaving the bad boy behind.

The results are in!

No folks.... we didn't get the house. An all-cash offer (Who has $300,000 just hanging around in a bank account?) was offered, accepted, and now the deal is done. I hope whoever got the house enjoys it like we woould have AND is nice to the mountain lions.

So, we are moving on. It's ok. No sympathy please! It wasn't meant to be. There is a better place out there for us. Of that I am sure. One thing I learned during the 'Bads'... you can't write the ending!

The Lovey says..... I need a new post

Why? Because good karma is coming our way. I can feel it! Can't you? House offer is being submitted at 5:45pm. Tonight. This night. This Happy St. Patrick's Day night. We are wearing green for good luck. Who else is wearing green?

Why, I think you are wearing green and wishing us luck as well! With all this good stuff coming our way, why - who would not consider us! Thanks for the fingers, eyes and legs crossed, green-wearin' good luck vibes. We'll let you know!

Sadly, I am not patient

Patience is a virtue I do not have. I am trying to cultivate it. Trying to be aware of my shortcoming and breathe through the panic. So far, I’m not doing too well.


There are two other offers on OUR HOUSE. We finally have our loan pre-approval letter and now can go forward with submitting our offer. This bank-owned property is screaming our name. Why?
1. It has over nine acres

2. It is completely off grid

3. There are major repairs needed to the solar system to get electricity to the house. The Lovey knows how to do that.

4. There is a great place for a garden and for fruit trees.

5. There is a place or two that would be perfect for an art studio for me.

6. The price is really, REALLY right.

7. It’s a place we both could make our own. A project, a home, a life

So, now we submit an offer and wait. I didn’t do so well with waiting to get the loan letter. I can’t imagine what it will be like to wait for our offer to be accepted or worse, to put us in a bidding war. This is where I lean tremendously on The Lovey. He has a better head for this. I just stomp my foot and pout.

Wish us luck. Actually wish The Lovey luck. He has to put up with me. Poor man!