the first week

So, this is what the house looked like when we got it on July 1st...

The "before" shots!
Day 1.

Gabe contemplating how he's going to fix our yard:

Front yard, first day. Thankfully, we got it mowed that afternoon.

The inside:

Needs all new flooring, and new paint on the walls (and trim). We're also changing the downstairs layout and making it much more open - Gabe is hiring his own boss, a general contractor, to help him take out the wall between the kitchen and living room to make it just be all one big room. So he's basically getting paid to do work on our own house, which is a really sweet deal - and also great when you're short on time...

Video, first day:

wall shots:

kitchen...

gross carpet with the hair (and petstains) from "three big dogs"

Gabe ripping out the carpet:

the beginning

So we closed on this house in Raleigh, North Carolina on July 1st. Since it was in "pre-foreclosure," we got a great deal! 1300 square feet, 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 baths... and our mortgage payments will be less than the 1 bedroom + den apartment that we've had downtown for the past year. It's right near where we're (probably?) going to be for the next 3 years - and it's only a few minutes from the highway, near tons of shopping, etc. It needs a LOT of work... but we can see what it'll look like after we're done and are very excited about it!

Basically this blog is a way to track our progress as we go along - by writing updates, and posting pictures and videos.

More to come soon!