Time to Move!

I've been terrible about blogging.... You'd think since we're all cooped up at home right now bored out of our minds, that I'd be inspired to write, but I've been too busy re-watching old sitcoms and eating my weight in cheese.  

But, moving day is almost here!  The new house is 97% complete and is supposed to be move-in ready by the end of the week... I never thought this day would come.  Construction started in August and our contractor claimed the house would be done by Christmas (ha!)... We knew that was super ambitious, and thought February was more realistic.  Fast forward 9 months later, and it's nearly finished. Finally. 

This process has been really HARD for me, but I won't get into all of that.  Let's just say that I don't like someone else working on a house for me, I'd rather be doing it myself... I'm looking forward to getting my hands dirty with some DIY projects and landscaping after we move in.  

Ty and I have moved 8 times in our 8 years together....and as I've whined about many, many times on this blog, Ty would be perfectly happy living in a van down by the river, but your home girl here wants to plant ROOTS.  I finally got my wish, and I couldn't be more excited.  We could easily spend the rest of our lives in this house.... (Speaking of happily ever after, we get to "upgrade" our residency status to permanent next month!)   

Here's a few pics of the outside... I'll share interior pics in another post.  

The front entrance.... There's going to be a pergola added over the driveway soon.  

Looking down from the rooftop, laying the brick driveway and sod... 

Some of the things I'm reeeeeeaallly looking forward to, in no particular order:

• The laundry room!!!  As much as I love dropping off our dirty laundry at the lavandería and picking it up the next day perfectly clean and folded, 19 months without access to a washer and dryer has been less than ideal.  (I'm tired of hand-washing my unmentionables.)
• We have a dishwasher!  Dishwashers are not common in even the nicest of Mexican homes because of the hard water and humidity, but I'm sick of arguing with Ty about who's turn it is to do the dishes.  
• Purified water on-demand and an ICE MAKER.  Ty splurged on a water filtration system that'll be hooked up to our kitchen sink and the fridge.  You really take the "normal things" for granted when you move to another country... The standard here is to exchange your empty 20-liter garrafone (jug of purified water) for a new one and you use it for drinking, making ice, brewing coffee, etc.  We keep a water pitcher in the fridge so we have cold water, so not having to fill it up 10 times a day, or make ice manually, is going to make me feel like the Queen of England.  
• "Smart" stuff... We bought fancy light bulbs and a bunch of other techy things that I can operate from my phone.  (As if we need an excuse to be even lazier than we already are.)  So when we're out late goofing off with friends (post-apocalypse, of course), I can turn on the porch lights from my phone.  Pretty cool. 
• Privacy.  Enough said.  
• High-quality plumbing fixtures, ceiling fans that actually move air, sinks that won't rust, real wood that won't warp, sturdy furniture, a comfortable couch, etc. (I'm so over renting.) 
• Speaking of which... I'm looking forward to sleeping in a comfortable bed!  Mexican mattresses are notoriously hard, especially if you're living in a low-rent place with cheap furniture.  
• Our own pool!!!  They're gonna start filling it in a couple days...we could be quarantine-ing poolside by next weekend!
• Our own yard... The yards in the little community we currently live in are all "shared"... So the backyards all run together and fences aren't allowed, meaning Bloo can't just come and go as he pleases.  He'll enjoy being free to wander... 
• Landscaping/gardening/decorating, etc.  Gimme all the projects! 
• Having bathroom counter space... Pedestal sinks are the norm here (why?!)  But our new bathroom even has his-and-hers sinks! 
• Speaking of our master bathroom... This will be the first home we've owned where we actually *have* a master bathroom!  Our first house was built in the 1950s when one bathroom was the norm and our second house was a similar layout.  Even most of the places we've rented (including the current one) haven't had master en suite bathrooms.  What a treat! 

Anyway... I should get back to packing...interior house tour coming soon!