Sarah's Turn

June 28, 2018: Sarah and Chris's new living room, all done up!

With all the focus on the problems of the inherited house in Mesa, where my son Jacob now lives, it's nice to take a little time now to remember that my daughter, Sarah, and her husband, Chris, also moved into a new home in May. They closed on their new house, the first they've ever owned, almost six weeks ago, and they've spent that time getting all moved in while tackling some new-home issues of their own. (Nothing too serious, though.)

Notice their new kitten, Rosie Cotton, curled up beside the wood stove. 

From their first nights in the house, they soon discovered how hot it can get inside, even in a location with summer temperatures as mild as here in the White Mountains. Although the place came with an evaporative cooler, they've chosen not to use it because it has a leak they can't address yet. Instead, they're making do with fans.

When our chilly winter arrives, they have a furnace with floor vents, but they hope to remedy and heat the house more cheaply with the nice wood stove in the above photo. Unfortunately, when they had the house inspected, they learned that the wood stove is out of code, due to exposed wires and no insulation. Both issues will be relatively easy fixes. They just need to route the wires through an exterior conduit, and then buy/install the proper bricks beneath the stove and on the surrounding walls.

Entertainment center on the wall opposite the couch and love seat.

Sarah and Chris had a great time going though boxes and boxes of things for their home that they'd nearly forgotten about since they got married almost seven years ago, because most of their things have been in storage since then. Their tiny apartment simply wasn't big enough to use or display all they wonderful gifts they received over the years.

The wall clock housewarming gift I gave pet-lovers Sarah and Chris.

It was fun to give them a wall clock as a housewarming gift, knowing they'd be able to use it immediately. I had given Jacob a wolf clock for his birthday this week, something to put on his wall when he moved into his great-grandma Helen's former home, so it seemed appropriate to do something similar for Sarah and Chris. They both love animals, especially dogs and cats, so I thought they'd enjoy these adorable puppies on their wall.

Closeup of the built-in shelves Sarah filled with fun bric-a-brac.

There were, of course, some boxes they didn't unpack yet. Someday they plan to put a shed in the backyard where they can store the types of things still boxed away. For now, those items are being stored on the enclosed porch and in the second bedroom. Also, the master bedroom is still a work in progress, so there are some rooms I didn't film during my visit to their house yesterday. For instance, Sarah is looking for a nice headboard to use with their queen bed. I'll do a reveal when she's done getting the room exactly as they'd like it.

Their cozy dining area next to the kitchen.

Chris is very happy with his new, bigger kitchen. Since he does most of the cooking--partly because he enjoys it more than Sarah does and partly because she works longer hours than he does--he's the one who waxes poetic about having more room to work, a double-basin sink, and a dishwasher. He especially likes to serve their meals buffet-style on the little island in the center of the kitchen, leaving them more room on the table while they dine.

Much more space in the new kitchen than their former tiny apartment.

Sarah thought she might prefer to use the guest bathroom for showering, due to the extra-roominess of the combined tub/shower. However, it turns out that the shower in their master bath was just right and meets with her approval.

The guest bathroom

After checking out the interior of the house, we all marched outdoors to see the changes there. Sarah has a few ideas of her own regarding how she wants the exterior to look when they're done but, again, Chris is the one who is truly excited. He's already borrowed several of my yard tools to get started.

Welcoming chairs by the front door, just inside the enclosed porch.

Their biggest project was getting a good chain-link fence around the property. They had no fenced yard at their apartment, so whenever Sarah and Chris were working, poor Diego had to stay in his 10' x 10' kennel or stay with a pet-sitter (usually Chris's mom or me). In fact, until this week, since they all moved into the new house, Diego spent most of his days with me (I do have a fenced yard) while Sarah and Chris went to work. So the kids were anxious to fence-in the yard, to give Diego his own spacious area in which to safely play whenever they had to be away from home. 

A brand-new gate on the north side of the house.

The new five-feet tall, sturdy chain-link fence was finally completed this weekend, at a cost of about $1,900. Fortunately, they didn't need to fence the north and south property lines of the yard, since their neighbors on both sides had already put up wood fences. There was also a fence of sorts on the back property line, to the west, but Sarah didn't trust it to securely keep Diego from escaping. It appeared to be homemade, with metal stakes and rabbit-wire that was already leaning drunkenly, as if it might topple in a strong wind.

A brand-new 5-foot-tall fence on the south side of the house.

Thus, they had the fence company install a wide gate at the front of the north side of the house and a short section of fence at the front of the south side of the house, and then a long segment along the back. You can see the old fencing in the picture below, still standing. Since no one was able to locate the water line--not even the water company, who claimed they didn't provide water to their area (yet sends them a monthly bill)--the fence company moved the fence inward about five feet (in essence, cutting off five feet of Sarah and Chris's yard) to be certain they didn't cut into a water pipe. They even had to remove one of the small trees.

I told Sarah to tell the water company to stop sending them bills if they aren't the ones providing their water. I was only half-joking. Imagine a water company not knowing where all their lines are!

And a brand-new fence along the back (west side) of the property.

Chris's mom, Brenda, gave them this patio table and chairs for

their back patio. She recently sold her own home and is downsizing.

Sarah gave Chris orders to move this plant to the front of the house.

Everyone comes back inside to visit for a while. Notice 11-year-old

Diego the dog and Frodo the guinea pig (in cage) in the foreground.

We spent a little over an hour visiting before we headed home for our own dinner. It was great to see the changes the kids have made and how much they're enjoying having their own place. It was also fun to see Diego and Frodo and the newest member of the family, three-month-old calico kitten, Rosie Cotton.

Sarah with her new baby, Rosie.

For those who've wondered  about the name choice, Rosie Cotton was a minor character in The Lord of the Rings. Rosie was the love interest of Frodo's devoted friend, Sam Gamgee, but Sam was too shy to even speak to her. Until he returned home from their adventure, that is. Then he realized that it's a mistake to let the good things in life pass you by, and he not only spoke to Rosie Cotton, but he married her!

Chris and I are both big fans of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien.

They did consider other names--Jacki Lantern and Candy Corn--but Rosie Cotton won out. Rosie is slightly cross-eyed, which is simply adorable. She's quickly overcoming her shyness and letting out her inner huntress. We enjoyed watching her stalk her toys and Diego's tail. She still likes to hide sometimes, too, like when strange visitors intrude, such as Mark and me. But she was fun and helped make our visit even more interesting!

Rosie Cotton enjoys a relaxing massage from Chris.