the re-postest with the mostest - Take 2. Or 3.

Hey there!  I had the wonderful opportunity to do my very first ever guest post last week over at Inspiration Café!  I really wanted folks to know that I'll be sharing all the gory details of building a house from the ground up!

So I took an existing post and re-worked it, so some of this may seem a bit familiar to you.

For those of you who are new (or have a memory like mine), here's what we covered: 

Today I'll be walking you through the early stages of what I consider to be the ultimate DIY: building our forever home!

Forever home?  I sound like a rescue dog.

Speaking of rescues, allow me to introduce our rescue pooch, Eddie:

 

Sweetest. Doggie. Ever.  

Back to the project.  We've been planning and saving for what seems like forever, and 2013 is the year (unless God is UNwilling, and the creek DOES rise!). 

Lucky 13, says I!

If we had to hire a builder to produce our dream home "turnkey," it would actually be more of a nightmare than a dream.  We are on a budget, and that simply won't do. 

And where's the fun in that anyway?

Thankfully, my husband has home-building experience, and he's a genius, and quite the pack-mule...the perfect combination.  We will only be hiring out the things we can NOT do ourselves, or that are not cost-effective to do on our own.

First I'll give you a very brief rundown on our current home: a split-foyer in the midwest.

  
We knew this would only be a temporary home since we both wanted to grow old and crustified in a one-story.  Fewer stairs for my hubby to "fall" down, you know.  Oh wait...we are building a basement...

After 14 years in this home, the kids have all disappeared (really...I don't know where they went! {evil laughter}), and we're finally taking the plunge. 

We purchased this beautiful one-acre lot for a SONG.  We were able to snap up this lot because of the decline in the housing market.  We paid a fraction of the original cost (we're talking 25% of the original price).  We never in a gajillion years could have considered this lot otherwise.  Isn't it awesome?

Philly and I designed our new home all by ourselves!  We used this incredible design software called Home Designer Architectural 2014.  This program is SO cool...not only can you design your home, but you can also design all of your landscaping!  

Too bad it DOESN'T provide a highly-muscled-and-tanned yard-dude to do the planting for you too.  Believe me, I checked.  Boo.

Following are some basic preliminary shots of our new home.  We haven't chosen exact colors and finishings yet, but this is where we are right now.  Definitely subject to change!


The front:

The rear:

A dollhouse view (that's a really ginormous pergola I added in the back--one can dream, right?):

The floorplan:

Here's the room I'm soooooo excited about.  My kitchen!  I can't wait to cook and entertain here!  (Now if only we had some friends to entertain...)
  

Omigosh, I'm so excited...hold on while I get a paper bag...

Okay...I'm okay now... 

Following are some 3D shots of some of the other rooms.

Greatroom (we dedicated most of our space to the kitchen and greatroom area since this is where we will spend the majority of our time):

And no, we won't really have the Mona Lisa over our fireplace...that was my hubby's doing.  :)
 

See my little bistro area off to the right?  I can't wait to play with that little nook!

 
Master Bedroom:

 

Second Bedroom:

Piano Room (I am so blessed that my husband was able to buy me a beautiful Yamaha grand piano when we got married!):

Coming soon:  Andi gets her very own culvert AND a hole in the ground!

Thanks again to the wonderful gals at Inspiration Café!

Oh, and be sure to check out (and participate in!) Total Couture Tuesday!  Just link up at one of the sites listed below...It should be a blast!!