It’s actually a funny joke. When Hayden and I began looking for our first place that we would call “home” together, we were a bit overwhelmed by the market. We weren’t sure we wanted to purchase a home just yet because of everything that being a homeowner entails. We wanted to enjoy each other fully without worrying about home maintenance or other homeowner problems. We knew we wanted to live in southeastern Massachusetts or eastern Rhode Island, as we wanted to be close to our friends and family. We began looking at options for apartments in quiet rural towns, as we both grew up in quiet neighborhoods and quite frankly, aren't fans of living in the city and the chaos that accompanies it. By chaos, I mean loud cars/motorcycles driving by, frequent sirens, audible chatter on the sidewalks, constant scary-sounding dogs barking, etc.... However, what we weren’t prepared for were the steep prices that rent would cost in these quiet and rural towns. We calculated that it would cost us more to rent than it would to just buy a house to own. Discouraged, we decided against our previous decision to stay within a rural town and we began looking in cities. We searched rental real estate in Taunton, Fall River, and Plymouth. To our surprise, there was BARELY a difference in the cost of rent. Mind you, I previously failed to mention that the standards we had regarding the overall appearance of our property were set high. We wanted something we would love to return home to after a stressful day of work; something clean, well kept, updated, and, most importantly, COZY. We also wanted a property with a short lease length. It wouldn’t have been ideal for us to be locked into a lease for any longer than 10-12 months. We had toured a handful of apartments, but none of them felt right or met our expectations. We prayed tirelessly in expectation that God was saving the very best for us and we just hadn’t seen it yet. I had been routinely scrolling through Realtor and Zillow first thing every morning and then again later in the day to stay updated on any new rentals that may have been added to the market. One Tuesday morning I came across one that looked like a virtual dream. I immediately selected it to view more details and I began scrolling through the pictures. My jaw dropped and I immediately sent a message to the owner to inform him of my interest. I heard back within the hour and set up a tour. Hayden and I were so excited to finally be on to something way nicer than we could’ve imagined that was right in our price range. The following Sunday, we excitedly drove to what could be our first home together- we were nervous, as neither of us have ever lived away from our parents homes, but the feeling of excitement outweighed any feelings of nerves or fear. It was quite the drive from our parents houses; it took about 35 minutes, but the drive was pure bliss. We were driving along the most beautiful classic New England coastline. As we were nearing the property we crossed over the sweetest little bridge onto the little island where the property was located. Although the drive was long, it was worth every second of breathtaking beauty that you see when you’re within one mile of the property. We slowly pulled up to the house and sat and stared in amazement. The owner briskly greeted us and welcomed us into his home. He showed us around, discussed rent with us, and directed us to the town beach that was only a stone's throw away. We went straight to the beach to observe the oceanfront, as Hayden began gaining excitement over the fishing he would be able to do. There was so much more than a mere beach - there were hiking trails, a beach boardwalk, a dog-only beach, and the list goes on. We felt as if we had just found paradise.
As we drove away, we felt like we were living in the bliss of a dream. Everything was exactly what we had been praying for; it was immaculately upkept, it was modern, it had on-site laundry units, it was an 8 month lease, and, best of all, it was a single-family home that came fully furnished! We waited to hear from the owner as to whether or not we would be the tenants, as he explained that he had a long list of other potential tenants for the property. We confidently prayed and understood that if this was the home God wants us to live in, He will direct the landlord to choose us as tenants regardless of how “good-of-a-fit” the others may seem. Two days had passed before I received a text message from the owner expressing that Hayden and I seemed like the best fit to be tenants in his home. I immediately called Hayden shrieking in excitement!!! We have a home!!! We were so beyond excited for our first home together - we visited a few times to just sit and look at the outside in awe that it was going to be ours. Now that this huge detail was figured out, I was able to move on with wedding planning (as you may already know, was a disaster, see related blog post). Fast forward to September 14th - it was finally move in day! We didn’t exactly have much to move in, aside from ourselves and our clothing and shoes. Everything we could’ve needed was provided for us and available at our disposal. I want to say i was filled with excitement and joy while moving in, but I wasn’t. I was filled with sadness and many tears. I was sad to be leaving my childhood home where I had lived for 23 years. I was sad that I wasn’t going to be living with my parents, who I irrationally complained were always “too loud” on the regular. I was sad that I wasn’t going to have my BFF mom around all the time to care for me when I’m sick, sad, or hurting- something I have always assumed men/husbands likely don’t sympathize with. I was sad as I reflected on all of the memories I had made in that home with my family and friends. All emotions that I did not want to hold in, as I assumed they were normal, especially for a “sheltered” girl like me. But here I am on an island, which was beginning to resemble more of a retirement community than anything else, far away from everything I had grown up knowing. It had seemed as though the bliss of our “perfect home” had faded and I just wanted to move back into my childhood home. I felt horrible because I did not want Hayden to think that it had anything to do with him at all. It was me. I was just homesick. He comforted me, hugged me, and encouraged me. He was determined to help make this place feel like the cozy home we first fell in love with. After the first day, the sadness began fading away as we began creating routines and figuring out this new life together. We rode bikes to the beach, watched lots of movies, sat and chatted on the humongous back porch... the bliss was returning. Now here we are, one month into living out our dreams- which, by the way, still just feels like an extension of our honeymoon, and we’re getting ready to pack up and move to Florida! What? Plot twist!! Catch more of that on a future blog post ;) but for now, enjoy these sweet pictures of our cute little cottage.
Comentarios