Welcome Home....or home it shall be...eventually

     So there I was, the end of the school year and I was flying to Seattle. Upon landing I was optimistic. Yes, I can do this. I can find a house, make an offer that is accepted, and get through the inspection. I can do this all in five days, right? Sure. I had my own selection of neighborhoods and homes that I wanted to see. I ranked areas, their neighborhoods, and even local schools. Did I mention that I LOVE research? Ok, we can discuss that later. Success was in my grasp!

       Two days later, and over 20 houses later, we had two houses that had earned the privilege of a nickname. The Floating Fish House, so named because of the pond that greeted you just prior to the front door. It was once, probably, a lovely pond, beautifully landscaped that delicately trickled the relaxing sound of water into your ears. On that day, though, it appeared there had been some sort of aquatic apocalypse. Not a single fish lived, all floating haphazardly in the murky water. My five year old nephew accompanied us on much of our quest for housing. Instead of stating what was obvious to the adults, we simply declared the fish to be floating.....never addressing their life status. The fact that their skin was peeling off didn't seem to matter. So yes, lets check out the house the greets you with death, why not? Insert background music of Michael Jackson's Thriller.
       This house was on 1/4 acre lot, which I loved. It was custom, unique, with and expansive living area. Half the house was dark though. There seemed to be a few incomplete projects. Like the upstairs french doors that would lead you out to the roof, which you could promptly fall off.  It was oddly placed at the back corner of the lot. It was also at the top our price point. 
        Completely opposite of the Floating Fish House was the Not So Shabby Split Level. This house redefined boring. The walls were baby puke brown. That's just upstairs! Don't get me started on the dysentery yellow and diarrhea brown downstairs. Not to mention, I despised split levels. I don't love the idea of walking straight into a staircase. Welcome to my home, make an instant decision about your path! Very bad Fung Shui, for sure. On the up side, despite its boring nature the home checked every box on my list. Except the box for potentially a very cool home with character. It was a block from a good school. It had 4 bedrooms, and three bathrooms. This meant our parents and friends could visit and stay comfortably with us. It had a decent size yard, and the deck actually had stairs going down to the yard. Two stories would be hard on the dogs, and I didn't love that either. 

       After spending a little more time searching I (we) made the painstaking choice between the Floating Fish House and the Not So Shabby Split Level. I convinced myself that due to the location, the Not So Shabby Split Level was the way to go. It was less than a mile from a lake. We could walk to school. We could walk to get groceries, which I never actually do, which I frequently do. It was also a decently wooded area which I adored. Ya till the first major storm when I watched the massive trees sway and their branches break making my yard look like the tornado in Wizard of Oz. So we'd work on the boring house, or sell it in a few years. Maybe, we'd fix it up and then sell it! Yes, it would be, ok.