dreaming...

As I've spent way too long pondering paint colors to neutralize this house of ours, I've found myself dreaming of the things I'd hope for in our next house.... assuming this one will one day sell... and depending on us finishing the many, many loose ends of the billions of projects we've mostly completed. Really- it's all small things now, which is crazy. I can only imagine the emotions we will feel if/when it comes time to move. This place was a DUMP. We had burnt orange, gold, green, turquoise shag carpet rainbowed all throughout the house. Carpet in the kitchen, carpet in bathrooms. Rotting wood on the exterior. Green appliances inside. A room that reeked of cat urine. Nasty light fixtures. Dark paneling everywhere. So on and so forth. But slowly and surely, over the course of almost exactly four years, we've turned this place into a home.

I do love it here, love many things about this place. BUT- there are many things I'd desire of our next home. Not necessarily deal breakers, but a girl can dream, right?!

-A basement. Oh, the glory of a space like that! My plans for one are many, but ultimately, we'd love to have a space we could offer should someone need a place to live for a bit. And if I were dreaming big, I'd really love a walk-out basement. :)

-A laundry room. I nearly would say this is non-negotiable. Laundry is the most difficult thing for me to keep up with and if I had a space for it all... even just a space for baskets that wasn't in a hallway.. do you know how much simpler life could be?! My washer and dryer are currently in the garage. There are so many things flawed with my current system, but I know a designated space for it all would at least help.

-Lots of windows. I like sunlight. The more, the better.

-A bigger kitchen. Not an alley. Eat-in. An island with bar stools. A refrigerator with an ice maker. (I've been dreaming for that one my whole life...) Butcher block counters. Windows. Oh happy day... Really, I just would love a kitchen that I could fill with people, not one that my family alone overflows. :)

-An open floor plan. We entertain. A lot. 20+ teenagers every week... and we try to cram them all into our little living rooms. Open space would be really nice. What we have works, but I'm dreaming.. remember? :)

- Access to a pool. Okay, now I'm being frivolous, but it would be SO much fun. :)

Okay, enough dreaming for tonight. We had found our dream home months ago... and it sold right away. We were no where near having our house ready to list at that point in time, but it sure put a little fire under us to get going. Anyway, I'm sure there'll never be anything to compete with that house (haha), and I've stopped the hunt for now. It just makes me anxious-- I'll find something I like and it'll sell. Or there will be nothing I'd even want to look at. Ultimately- the Lord knows, and will provide a home when the time comes. And in the mean time, I'm going to be content with what we have and continue to work to improve it. 

But it's fun to dream, right?! What would you love to have in a home?