The backstory and the floorplan

Jake and I are about to start a big, scary adventure, if all goes well it will result in our new house. I know it's going to be a journey and I decided I wanted to document it, mostly for ourselves so we have something to look back on and for our family and friends that want to follow the progress. I plan to update the blog periodically throughout the building process.

Here's the back story, we first started looking for houses with the idea that our next house would be our forever house, we looked and looked over a couple years and nothing was exactly what we wanted. I really loved historical houses yet still wanted something open and airy. Jake wanted high ceilings and importantly, acreage so we can eventually foster and rehab German Shorthair Pointers.

This was all at the same time we started renovating our current starter house and we came to realize we didn't want any of the trouble, surprises and frustrations that come with a major reno. The cherry on top was the 250+ year old farm house we rented on the Cape in October, it had it all, original wide plank floors, beams, mice in the basement, the stank of mold/rot and critters in the attic. Half way through that week I was completely on board with Jake that we need a new house and we would incorporate the historical elements we love so much in the construction.

We had been looking at plans for a while, lots and lots of plans. This is the first plan we both loved and considered it to be "the plan" for some time until we realized that 3,400 feet is way to much house for us size wise and building cost wise.

Over time and looking at many more, the moment we found this plan we knew it was perfect. It had all the elements we liked in other plans and none that we didn't, this one somehow had everything that was important to us. It has a very open familyroom/kitchen, master on the first floor (we've considered the many polarizing opinions on first floor masters and it is what we want), the right sq footage and lots and lots of big windows, it looks like an old farmhouse with a modern twist.

Really soon after we found the plan, someone in Texas began building it and sharing their photos online. They have done a lot of modifications, for example moving the guest bathroom over by garage and putting a larger pantry in the portch area are two ideas we loved and wouldn't have thought of on our own. Our fearless builder is currently working on designing and pricing those and some other modification ideas in addition to other changes required for a home in New England. We continue to be on the hunt for the land.

Now you're up to date!