Hello, dear friends. TGIF! I'm guessing that it's Friday. I really haven't known what day of the week it is since March.
Funny things happen when you live in an apartment complex. For instance, I met a very nice woman who was helping her daughter move into an apartment. We chatted a bit, and she shared that her daughter worked nights as an ICU nurse. I'm thinking that she is a good contact for us to have, especially these days. She asked about us, and I told her that my old man the Mister retired and we were in the process of looking for a house.
All of a sudden, she gave me the biggest smile and said she had a great idea. She then asked me if I wanted to earn some extra money under the table.
What kind of floozy does she take me for?
The lady then explained that her daughter is looking for someone to walk her dog while she is at work.
At 2am???
I politely told her that I couldn't, my beauty sleep is of the utmost importance.
But then I told her that my husband was due back any minute and she could ask him.
The Mister walked in ten minutes later loaded down with grocery bags, face flushed, and in a huff.
He said, you're not going to believe what some lady just asked me.
I received several notes from readers asking me to talk about our house hunting adventures. By the way, I love it when readers give me content ideas, so keep them coming.
Today, I thought that I would share my top 5 things with you that I am looking for in a house.
I will also tell you what is on the Mister's list.
My favorite room in our Massachusetts house was the sunroom. It would be cozy in the winter as well as cool in the Summer. I loved to open all the windows - it was like having a porch.
This was the room that we would enjoy our daily happy hours. It was also a great place to read because it had plenty of natural light.
Southern Living
The number one thing that I am looking for in a home is a screened-in porch. I told the Mister that I didn't move to Texas to stay indoors 12 months a year.
Southern Living
The Mister agreed and said that we can always add one if we found our perfect house.
Promises, promises.
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So in an effort to aid the Mister in visualizing the porch, I pinned these pics.
flowermag
I haven't spent this much time on Pinterest in years.
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A fireplace would be a bonus.
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I'm a sucker for a brick floor.
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And those doors and swing!
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Do you have a screened-in porch?
Do you get a lot of use out of it?
Any advice?
Until next time...
My friend, Pamela, from the delightful blog, The Lady of the House Speaking, sent me a note with this darling photo of Spectra, who has the most expressive, beautiful face.
Do grand-dogs count? This is my daughter's dog, Spectra, a rescue from Mexico who came up to be adopted in western Washington and is probably not that crazy about our cold, rainy weather because she takes every opportunity to burrow under a blanket, especially one that is on your lap!
Her foster family said she was a lab-chihuahua mix (can you imagine?), although I'm sure she has some Australian cattle dog (those ears!), and she will be five years old in July. She's the most lovable, wiggly pet who loves long walks, water, and playing with her faux cousin, Missy, my daughter's friend's dog, whenever they can get together. She came into our lives a few months after we lost our dog, MudLynn, of almost thirteen years and has done an amazing job of healing our hearts.
As you can see from the photo, she looks adorable in her Christmas pajamas!
If you have a cute dog, email me a picture with a short bio, and I would be honored to include your little furbaby on my blog.
Linking up with:
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Love all of these sun rooms and screened porches. When we downsized to a custom townhouse I simply had to have a porch. Only ended up with a tiny one that I call the morning room. It has French doors off the kitchen with a screen. There is just something special about the fresh air when they are open. After looking at these ...I need to spruce it up a bit!
ReplyDeleteKatie,
ReplyDeleteWe live in Ponte Vedra, Florida and enjoy our screened in porch most of the year. It is also our cat's favorite place. The perfect house would have a sunroom too. I love a brick floor in a sunroom. I see you and your husband living in Highland Park. You might also enjoy building a home. I can't wait to see what you do.
Hi Tricia! Thank you for commenting. We lived in Boca and The Woodlands and had a screened porch which we practically lived in. Have a wonderful weekend.
DeleteI love that you’re sharing peoples pups! Your sunroom was my favorite room in your house too, LOL! I love that you were waiting until just the right place. But oh my, laughing so hard about the neighbor lady and the dog walking!
ReplyDeleteWell, maybe. I think of Dallas being HOT, so I'm not so sure a priority would be a screened in porch as much as the window room in your previous home. Enjoy it all the time regardless of the weather. We had one at our coastal Georgia home and never used it because of the heat and also having to wipe down the table and chairs each time because the weather gets on the furniture. I ended up buying furniture covers to keep it clean! Ugh! So I laughed out loud when I saw the Southern Living porch above with the black and white flooring....I can't even fathom having that furniture on a screened porch. Quick, a thunderstorm is coming, we have to move the furniture! No thank you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for featuring Spectra! Our top five when we were house hunting were single story, attached double garage, water view, fireplace, and air conditioning. ✔️✔️✔️✔️✔️ Score! We found the perfect house.
ReplyDeleteWe are currently building a new retirement home in Cincinnati area. We are going in a different direction than you with a no maintenance courtyard home from Epcon. A screened in patio area was an option but I went with the sitting room off the bedroom that opens onto the patio. Good luck with your search!
ReplyDeleteThat sitting room sounds heavenly! Have a wonderful weekend, Sharon.
DeleteYour sunroom in MA was stunning! We loved our sunroom before moving south and building a house. Our new house has a screened porch including a fireplace. We spend lots of time on the screened porch. I highly recommend building a house, because you can get exactly what you want.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like we may be heading in that direction! Have a wonderful weekend.
DeleteI grew up in SE Texas, very humid every day. Nevertheless, I have great memories of taking every meal on our large screened porch. Many ceiling fans helped to make the weather tolerable. The screens were supposed to keep the mosquitoes out, but they also kept them in. These days, with a warmer climate, I would definitely opt for a sunroom over a porch. I think a porch is a romantic vision of the past that is truly not as pleasant as those staged photos make them look.
ReplyDeleteYou might want to take a peek in McKinney , a subdivision called Tucker Hill. Old downtown McKinney is wonderful for their shops and restaurants. Patina Green is my favorite for lunch!
ReplyDeleteWe LOVE Tucker Hill. As a matter of fact, the Mister and I spent an hour driving around there last month. We had the pleasure of living in McKinney for ten years and loved every minute of it!! Thanks for commenting and I hope you have a wonderful weekend.
DeleteUh...I guess walking the dog means picking up the poop as well????? No thank you.lol As for a sun room...I have always wanted one. Ardsley Park in Savannah is my dream neighborhood and many of those older homes have lovely sunrooms. It would be perfect for my stitching. We love our porch at Grimmwood and spend a lot of time porch sitting when we are there. Looking forward to seeing where you two end up. And get a house with a sunroom....you know those husbands make all sorts of promises.lol
ReplyDeleteMy lifelong dream was to have a home with a screened in porch. Growing up I have great memories of playing in the neighbor's porch on rainy days. When we moved to lower Alabama we had one added to our home and it is the most used room in the house. Love it when the days are in the 60s and 70s and have the door open from the house. It's been our own little paradise at home during the pandemic. There is no place I would rather be. Just ordered a wicker sofa, so I know I will be spending even more time out there.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds lovely, Maureen! I'm a huge fan of wicker. Have a great week.
DeleteWell I was going to tell you about screen porches in Texas, but I see my twin sister beat me to it! I spoke to her this morning, and we both said we had "work" to do, but obviously we read your blog instead! Distaff is correct about our screen porch in SE Texas, but I also lived in Dallas, in University Park, with a pool in my back yard and a covered patio. When we bought the house, we had teenagers, and I was convinced that they would be in the pool 24-7. HA! It was SO HOT that the water never cooled down to a pleasant temperature...so all we did was clean it endlessly. I did organize a "Ladies Floating League," however. All my neighbors slipped over after dark in their granny swimsuits and drank adult beverages while gossiping. Hate to tell you this, but you will live inside most of the year in Dallas.
ReplyDeleteMy sisters friends called it SWIM TEAM. Love your floating league story!
DeleteSwim Team or Ladies Floating League - they both sound like loads of fun to me!!
DeleteI’ve always a sunroom but have never had one. Don’t see them a lot in Texas.
ReplyDeleteMy maternal grandmother had one in SC and we spent a lot of time there when we visited.
Loved your house hunting update because as you know I’m following along and taking notes. Going to look up Tucker Hill in McKinney.
I live in South Carolina and we love our sunroom/Florida room. it has tall windows, one Palladium window up high and windowsills wide enough for flower pots. We enjoy it year round as it is both heated and cooled. We also have a screen porch but don't use it much because it stays dirty from the weather - the floor and the furniture - and is a pain to clean. Might want to consider that as you house search. Love your blog!
ReplyDeleteI never thought about the fact that the screened porch would have a continuous problem with dirt. Maybe I'll wait until they make a self-cleaning one?! Thanks for your note, Sharon.
DeleteCute dog!! Great porches. I love a BIG porch and haven't had one since I left home at 19. Nice to dream through Pinterest!! I hope you find your perfect home soon. Chuckled at the offer of a job!!
ReplyDeleteHAHA - always toss things to the hubby.
ReplyDeleteOur enclosed porch needs a make over BIG TIME. I'm going to pin some of these
Checked out Tucker Hill online and really liked what I
ReplyDeletesaw. Did some online research and found posts from 2016 that discussed the possibility of widening 380
and how it could affect the subdivision. Do you know if that ever happened?
Hi Melissa.. no I don't know what happened. I'll check it out.
DeleteFirst things first ... Spectra! What a beauty ... inside and out. As for screened porches, I just realized this is on my must have list too. This realization comes two years too late. Crap. I'm curious about screened porches in Texas ... I assume they aren't air conditioned due to the 'screen' part? xo
ReplyDeleteI can guarantee that if you find even most of those features, you will have a dream of a house! Good luck hunting!
ReplyDeleteWe loved our sunroom and screened porch in Louisiana and wanted that when we moved to Plano. We were successful in getting the sunroom. The windows open so I can pretend it’s screened when weather permits. Good luck with the search.
ReplyDeleteOur old house had a screened porch and I just loved using that-- but only for maybe 1/2 the year as it as much too cold in the late fall, winter, and early spring.
ReplyDeleteI live on the Little Red River in Arkansas. Love our screened in porch. Even when it's cold. I'll cover up with a quilt, sit in my swing and watch the boats go up and down the river. It does get hot in the summer as we face west but the mornings are wonderful. My only regret about this house is that I don't have a front porch big enough for a swing , rocking chairs and little tables for glasses of ice tea!
ReplyDeleteYour porch sounds lovely, Claire. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteI live in Southside Virginia in a home built in 1910. I have a nice size L shape front porch which I adore. The ceiling is painted blue, 2 ceiling fans, and we have awnings around the entire porch. It helps protect the porch from the weather as well as my wicker furniture and upholstery. My sister in South Carolina turned her deck into a sunroom. She installed a mini split system so she she can enjoy the room year round. Blogger Mix and Match Mama Lives in McKinney. I am sure Shay could answer any questions you have. Good luck finding or building the perfect home.
ReplyDeleteYour front porch sounds so lovely, Laura. And the blue ceiling - how pretty. That mini-split system sounds like a great idea. Have a wonderful week.
DeleteIn my last house I had a sunroom and used it as a play room when my kids were young. The best parts were having all the windows open on a nice day and all the nature and animals they could view because the house backed up to woods. Have an enjoyable weekend.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteGood luck on the house hunting, and I agree, you've got to find one with a wonderful screened porch!
Jenna
That is such a funny story about your neighbor's mom. I love how you put her onto your Mister. I'd hated to ask him to dog walk after he was bringing in the groceries! I was laughing out loud! I'm happy you are sharing house hunting tops, It's fun to share. Texas, yes you need an enclosed porch or you will be inside twelve months of the year! House hunting, one of my favorite pastimes. Keep the posts coming. Happy New Year dear Katie.......
ReplyDeleteStick to your must haves and don't settle for less! Yes, we had a sunroom which was my favorite room too, windows on 3 walls and ceiling. Our condo has such huge windows now that my LR is pretty much my sunroom, lol. I am happy I stuck to my list of must-haves (balcony, garage and river view, which the LR also provides so that's a two-fer!) when we downsized. If you end up pricing yourselves out of your market, you can always get a pt/time job walking dogs. :) That's hilarious. I would've love to have seen your face, not only the first time she asked you, but when Mr came in and told you she asked him!
ReplyDeleteYou have such incredible taste, I know you are going to find the perfect house...or a close to perfect house that you will make perfect.:)
ReplyDeleteWe are in Atlanta and literally LIVE on our screened porch. We have a big ceiling fan that keeps it cool in summer. We think adding it to the house was one of the best decisions we ever made. Most of our dinner parties are hosted out there and I drink my coffee there every morning. We also have a place in Hilton Head which has a huge deck, but no screened porch...YET. Have a great weekend and good luck with the house hunting!
I like your argument in favor of a screened porch. Yours sounds heavenly! Have a great week, Cindy.
DeleteI would love to have a screened in porch! Or a sun room!! I've daydreamed about putting one in, I know exactly where it would go and how I would decorate it. Nothing fancy, but oh it would be so nice! I also daydream about a front porch with a swing. Sigh... one day.
ReplyDeletejust some food for thought: when we built our house (shreveport LA - about 3 hrs from you)
ReplyDeletewe built a large screened in porch on back, facing east for morning sun. I have to tell you we hardly every sat out there because of 1) heat 2) my furniture was always mildewed because of humidity and heat 2) bugs....even tho screens are supposed to keep them out, it seemed there were always dead bugs lying around. SO....we glassed it in, leaving 4 of the windows on the end working windows for breezes but all the glass across the back is fixed. That was prolly 20 yrs ago. And I cannot tell you the last time my husband has sat in our real family room. In fact, the sunroom has become our family room. It's where we go when we get up in mornings and where you will find us before bedtime!!!
I do have a big front porch with swings and rocking chairs so if we want the real outside, we can get it there. It's just too hot and humid here for our screened in porch!! (and way too much work for this mama)
I'd have to agree with jmac. We have a lovely open back porch, pretty furniture, firepit, drop down blinds and we still rarely use it in the summer because it is sooo hot. We have two highwind fans but they just seem to stir the heat around. We've thought of glassing it in but we simply do NOT need one more room to this house. You will find the perfect house I am sure. Dallas has some gorgeous homes and one will be yours soon I bet.
ReplyDeleteCircling back .. I see you have a range of opinions here and you will arrive at the right one for you. No one has mentioned the most important thing --- this is the best time to invest in one-story living! You will be there soon enough. Get it now before you are forced to find it.
ReplyDeleteOkay the funniest thing besides the dog walking side gig is the concept of a screened in porch. I don't know if we have those here in CO (kind of joking). My in-laws actually built one off their deck. I think with no bugs and zero humidity it's a tradeoff for a really cute and cozy sunroom. I did get a Dutch door during Covid. I love that door! I am trying to teach Elliott to get his front paws on the door like every other dog and a Dutch door. Good luck! What else is on your wish list? I need to email you a photo of Elliott. His 2 year gotcha day is coming up in mid-February! laura
ReplyDeleteStill giggling about the dog walking gig ;0) Happy Week friend! I have three first time home buyers in a cash market. Face smack! Denver is insane and I know TZ is too. Keep the faith I just saw a 1/2 dozen homes listed under $1.7
ReplyDeleteVERY CUTE THE GRAND DOG!
ReplyDeleteI weep over not having a three season room. We are planning on extending a deck from the barn. A weak compromise at best.
ReplyDeleteI laughed right out loud at the dog walking story, will you and Chow be sneaking around the neighborhood?
xoxo Annie G.
Although I have family & friends in Dallas, Austin & San Antonio areas, I couldn't stay longer than a year while being in my 50s. I lived in Texas for a few years when I was in my 30s and it was much easier to tolerate the heat & humidity because having kiddos to run to places was what I was doing during the Summer. In 2019, I felt trapped inside all year long in Austin area and missed my daily walks and the cool breezes of WA. I'm happy that you get to be near your #2 and you have lived in Texas before, but remember it can be unbearable as we get older so please get as much a/c that you can afford & an indoor exercise equipment for those unbearable months indoors-- of course, you may enjoy the heat. What do I know?
ReplyDeleteI am live in san antonio and need a apartment move out cleaning in san antonio in affordable price can any tell me about this
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