My parents have lived in the same house for 40 years. As a child, I had the same bedroom from the day I was born until the day I graduated high school. Something about all that constancy made me lose my junk after graduating, and I moved around A LOT. Over the course of 7 years, I lived in 6 states, attended college in 4 different time-zones, and lived in 18 different apartments.
I was just killin time, you know? And I’m so glad I had those years (and those collar bones).
And then I met this beautiful man, and things became SO STABLE.
Before we move on, let’s discuss the fact that I’m a normal-sized human. Some would even consider me taller than average. So with that knowledge, go ahead and scroll back up and look at that pic of Nick and I and take note of how insanely tall he is.
Back to stability… I remembered wayyyyyy back in the early years of our marriage (and this blog), I actually wrote a post about all of this stability. It’s a pretty fun read, especially knowing it was one of the first blog posts I ever wrote. And before I had hundreds of thousands of people reading my thoughts.
I tell you all of this to let you know that when we bought this beautiful home in the countryside, I was SO DONE WITH MOVING. I was done being a wanderer and ready to put down roots and be established. And that’s exactly what we’ve done.
A few years back, I shared a post about the unique way that we found this home and fell in love with it. After signing those papers, I started this blog the next day. And since then, I’ve published 1,145 blog posts… most of which are DIYs and updates to our home. (You can take a tour and see all we’ve done here)
We’ve been here for 9 years, and have brought home 3 newborn baby girls to this home. It’s filled with so many memories, and I have ALL THE FEELINGS. We planned to stay in this home forever.
And then one day last fall, my realtor friend emailed me and said ‘I know you’re not in the market, but you HAVE to see this house’.
And do you know what I did next?
I DELETED THE EMAIL WITHOUT LOOKING AT IT.
About an hour later, Nick called me from work and said ‘Did you look at that email with the house listing?’. I told him I hadn’t, because we’re not moving… so why bother?
And he simply said… ‘you should really go look at it’.
Friends, I opened that house listing and stared in disbelief at this insanely gorgeous historic home. As I flipped through pictures, I just knew it would be out of our price range, so I wasn’t getting too attached.
Until I looked at the asking price: $104,000
WHY IS THIS HOUSE SO INEXPENSIVE? Obviously there’s something seriously wrong with it. I’m sure it’s covered in black mold and has foundation issues. And there’s probably a sex-offender living next door.
But there’s no way I could put this home out of my mind until I went and walked through it myself. I called Nick and said ‘soooo, I need to go see that house ASAP. Like at this very moment. Like before I do anything else in this life.’ He laughed, and agreed.
You walk in to this gorgeous curvy stairway in the foyer. Then you turn left into the living room…
I quickly realized that the ornate details and craftsmanship of this home are OFF THE CHARTS. The intricate crown molding with hundreds of tiny/ornate corbels, 11 foot ceilings, original wood floors.
And there’s a sunroom.
And a library. (are you picturing a rolling ladder? ME TOO)
Y’all. There is NOTHING WRONG WITH THIS HOUSE… other than the fact that nothing has been updated since 1932. Everything is in pristine condition like it’s been frozen in time. The foundation is strong, there’s no black mold, and there are no sex offenders nearby.
We bought this house.
It belongs to us.
And I love every square inch of it. (well except for the kitchen, but you’ll have to wait for Part 2 of this post… UPDATE! Part 2 is here!). There is SO MUCH more of this house to share, but I’m going to save that for a video tour or Facebook LIVE. I haven’t decided which. 
We fell in love with the character, the history, the neighborhood, everything. It’s amazing how when something is SO RIGHT, it changes everything. I never thought I could leave our home here in the country with all the memories that have accumulated and all the projects that have been executed here. But for the right house, your heart knows when to let go.
Of course there are still things I’ll be sad about when moving day actually comes. And this house will ALWAYS hold a special place in my heart.
I know there will be a lot of questions about this turn of events on our blog, so I’m going to try to tackle some that I know will come up. Feel free to leave more questions in the comments and I’ll get to them in a future post!
- 1. Are you moving because you ran out of projects in your current home?
NO… in fact there’s still so much we had planned for our homestead in the country, and our list of things we still wanted to accomplish was long. I might even feel like we’re leaving a project half-finished when we leave.
- 2. Where is the new house, and why isn’t there a picture of it?
The new house is nearby where we live now, but it’s closer to Nick’s work place. I regret showing pictures of the front of our existing home on the blog for all of these years for security purposes. I don’t want to worry about people recognizing our house and stopping in for a visit. You might think that would never happen, but IT HAS! And it’s really weird. And we have small children that we’ve been tasked with raising and keeping safe. So we won’t be showing exterior pics of the front of our new house for that reason.
- 3. What about that amazing attic space you just finished?
This whole thing came about in the middle of our attic makeover, but we wanted to finish it and be able to enjoy it for a few months before we leave! AND, we feel it will be a big selling point when we go to put this house on the market.
- 4. Are you sad about leaving behind the willow trees?
No, because we’re taking them with us! Nick has done lots of research on moving trees, and we think they’re small enough that we can pull this off. We’ll be sharing more about this later.
- 5. When are you moving, and how will this big change affect the blog?
I will go into more detail on this in a later post, but the main thing that’s keeping us from moving in right now is the fact that we’re getting ready to demo the tiny kitchen in the new house and will be building on a new (larger) kitchen. It’s going to be a big messy thing, and we’re so blessed to be able to stay in our current home during this process. We hope to be ready to move in sometime in July! Nothing will change with the blog, except that we’ll be doing home projects in a different house. We will still share furniture builds, crafts, etc between home projects. In fact, we already have some updates we need to share for progress we’ve made in the new house! We’ve been busily removing carpet, wallpaper, painting trim, etc! So stay tuned!
- 6. Do you think your Chartreuse kitchen cabinets will make it hard to sell your house?
YES, and so I shall repaint them a more neutral color. Thinking a light gray? Or white? Perhaps I’ll put a poll on my Instagram Stories one of these days.
- 7. Will you miss living in the country?
Yes. This is what I’ll miss the most. But our ‘new’ house is on the outside edge of town with a large yard on a quiet street, so that will help. But I will miss the sprawling acreage and being able to yell at my kids without neighbors judging my parenting. LOL! Just kidding! Only not!
Yet at the same time, it will be SO NICE not having to drive a half hour to get a gallon of milk. As always there are pros and cons for both. But I’m so excited for this new adventure, and so blessed that my people are excited too. We’re going to make new memories, and give our touch to a new home!
I can’t wait to share more details in the coming weeks, and take you guys along for this new chapter in our lives!
~Bethany
UPDATE! Below are links to posts that we’ve published about our ‘new’ house and it’s progress!
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Hey buddies! Nick here! It's been almost 4 years since we purchased this home. And…
Would you possibly, maybe want to do a post with the floor plans of the house? I love pictures and videos but sometimes a floor plan can help me visualize better how things are situated.
Wow ! I have never seen a house this old , so well preserved ! It is soooo beautiful and the possibilities are endless . The rooms and spaces just keep going and the attic and basement are in such good shape . The price you paid is also unreal , and gives you so much more money to fix it up just like you want . I just found your blog today ( 10-7-2018 ) and I’m looking forward to seeing your great adventure and talents turn this into a dream home ! Have fun in your Happy Ever After creation . I’ll be checking in soon . SPA
Awwwwww, Susan WELCOME! You’re so sweet! Yes we’re so pumped about this house, and will be moving in within the next month! The kitchen still has a ways to go before it functional, but we’re going to go for it anyway. Just might be eating a lot of frozen pizzas in the toaster over. HAHA! Stay tuned!!
Omg! I somehow missed this announcement until just now. How amazing. Your new house looks beyond stunning and I’m so jealous!!! Love it so much. Congrats, friend. So happy for you guys and this new chapter! Can’t wait to see more!
I LOVE IT!! I can’t wait to see what you two do with it!
I understand your friend. When I saw that house, my heart stopped. I literally had a physical reaction. Convulsions. Chills. Whatever.
I am a BIG fan of Victorian novels and aspire to own old homes one day. O. M.G. Amazing. Enjoy the hose and PLEASE keep true to it!
Haha, it’s amazing, isn’t it! Yes, we’re planning to honor the history of the home as much as possible, while still making it our own. 😉
Congratulations to you & your family! May you enjoy many wonderful years at your new home! (And many wonderful projects as well!!!)
Part of me is so excited for you and to see what magic you work on that old beautiful house. The other part of me is sad and wants to buy your farm house!! haha!!
<3 you and me both
I am curious what the long unfinished list is on the farmhouse?! That will bring me closure! I am SO glad the new house is getting herself a blog!! I can’t WAIT to follow your fam restoring her beauty!!
Haha! Oh man, we wanted to redo the flooring in basically the whole house (the kitchen is STILL peel and stick linoleum tiles), we have trim issues in several rooms and should replace quarter-round in many of them, there are cracks in some walls from the foundation settling that need to be repaired and skim-coated, there are several rooms that still need the popcorn ceiling removed, I had big plans to get beautiful bamboo blinds in all of the rooms that don’t have them yet to replace all the mini blinds… I could go on and on 😉
Wow! What a steal and you guys are perfect new owners to bring out all of the house’s glory. I can’t wait to follow along!
OH. MY. GLOB.
I never thought I’d see the day that you left that sweet farmhouse! It has been an utter joy and pleasure to follow along with you and Nick as you worked on all aspects to make that house a home, and bringing your three precious girls into the world. It’s been incredible. I am GIDDY with excitement of all the possibilities of the new house. You guys are totally going to ROCK it. Seriously can’t wait.
I just bought my first house after being a renter for 11 years. It feels AMAZING. My twins (6 year old girls) and son (4 years old) were very apprehensive about moving, we had a lot of serious talks about their feelings of leaving behind what they have known, the memories, and changing schools. I didn’t know 6 year olds could have such anxiety! They get it from their mama… LOL. It has been an adjustment, but they are doing SO well and it has helped to let them pick their rooms, arrangement of furniture, decorations, etc. They loved making a new place all theirs. I am sure your girls will do just fine as well.
SUPER CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!
#loveyoumeanitbye
Haha! Meagan, you crack me up! I never thought I’d leave this house either. And YES, 6 year olds have soooooo much anxiety. It’s crazy that our twins are the same age and we’re all moving for the first time. Cheers to a new adventure!
OMG soooo happy for you!! I’m so giddy about this I have so many questions I am going to burst! Ok, when do we, I mean you.. move? I ask because I live a beautiful life, vicariously through your blog.
Will your dogs have a big yard to run? Most importantly, will you have a workshop for doing projects.. your miter saw, lathe, etc.,?
I love the boho- historical vibe in the new place. Please do a video tour. Can I buy your existing house? Kidding.. not really ?
Bahahaha Mia, I literally laughed out loud at your comment. WE are moving some time this summer, whenever the new kitchen is done. 😉 And, believe it or not, WE’RE BRINGING THE ANIMALS INDOORS. Pray for us. 😉
Bethany, you are so sweet, wicked smart (huh…haven’t said “wicked” since I moved down south), and I love your blog! Just want to say congratulations to you and to thank you for taking the time to respond to your fans… how you find that time is a whole ‘nuther blog. I can’t wait until WE move! Lol Best of happiness to you and your beautiful family?~Mia
Ohmyit’ssobeautiful!!!! Ha, good for Nick for bringing it up. The house you painted our backsplash in was the house we weren’t going to buy because we were never going to leave our acreage. And then we did. Ours is less than five miles away, but I so regret not moving our three lilacs (wedding, kid 1, kid 2, whose is hysterically the largest of the three) and my flowering pear (mother’s day year 1). Alas we planted too close to the septic tank and they grew too well (coincidence? Ha!) and it’s now been six years. Move those willows!
Also, I fully endorse your normal height comment. You are! 🙂
Happy new house, can’t wait to see what you do with it.
Awwww Trela! Thank you for the encouraging words! And yes, we feel very strongly about moving the willows. We’re not sure yet if we’re going to put them in our new yard, or in my Grandmother’s pasture. We know we won’t be able to move them again, so we want to make sure they can stay somewhere where they’ll always be in the family. We’ll see ! 😉
Change is always good. You will so enjoy that beautiful house!
I’m thrilled for you guys. If anyone can make this house come alive again, it’s you two. I bet your brains are on overload with all your plans and ideas for this gem. I’ll be here, in South Florida, waiting for updates. But one question, does it have a garage or workshop?
Mary
YES, my brain is exploding with ideas! I can’t wait to share more here on the blog! Stay tuned 😉
What exciting news! The new house looks fabulous! I can’t wait to see future projects there. Congrats on the super awesome find!
This is the first time I’ve visited your blog. You popped up on my Instagram feed and let’s just say that willow tree and swing reminded me of being back home in SC. I have no idea what state you live in but I’d hate leaving that home. Then I saw pictures of your new place and I am absolutely blown away! I love it and if I’m being real honest if I could convince my SO to live in a place like that I’d move heaven and earth to get out of CA. I am looking forward to seeing your projects and to check out more of your posts as we are currently doing some renovations so we can list our house and start building ourselves. Congratulations on the new home and best of luck to y’all.
Heather you’re so sweet to leave such a nice comment! Yes it will be hard to leave our home in the country, but we’re so excited for this new adventure, and to make new memories in a new home! And by new, I mean REALLY OLD. Haha!
Good luck with your own renovations, and I hope you’ll stick around to here on our blog to see our new house unfold! <3
Congratulations! My stomach aches with jealousy. I WANT that house!!! But my heart knows that a house like that would be the end of my marriage (my husband + decorating/DIY/home improvements = no bueno). I must live my dream vicariously through you. I’m a big fan of your blog, but not a big fan of country rural life, so this new change is SO PERFECT. You’re so lucky!!!!
Thank you Lyndsey! And I totally get the marriage comment. Even just going through some of these big renovation decisions is testing our love for each other. HAHA! But we’ll get through it. 😉
Congratulations! I am so jealous! Can’t wait to follow your new adventures! Please do a video tour rather than Facebook. I find it very hard to trust Facebook and am not allowed to be on it because of my work. I sure would love to see the tour.
I second this – please do a video tour! I haven’t had a FB account in years. This house looks gorgeous! I actually LOVE the carpet on the stairs – any chance that’s sticking around? I also really want to see more of the upstairs.
I will definitely do a video tour! And have been thinking about ditching Facebook myself.. especially after all of this security drama. Stay tuned for the video! (and Jessica, the carpet is already gone 😉 )
Wow!! I can’t wait to see what you do with this beauty. When it’s right, you know. We just sold our first house and I was so bummed when we accepted the first offer because (super selfishly) I didn’t feel like the couple was the right new owners. Well, it fell through and we had to relist and the new family that moved in is just perfect. They are SO EXCITED about the house (unlike the couple who “figured it was okay while they keep looking” *sideeye*). Anyway, knowing that the house will be loved made it so much easier for me.
I love that story! Isn’t it amazing how things work out just the way they’re supposed to? I have similar feelings about hoping that JUST THE RIGHT FAMILY will end up buying our home in the country. I hope it’s loved!
I’ve never understood why a paint colour…paint…easy to cover…would make someone hesitate to buy a home. Personally I love your colour and I think it brightens up the room beautifully. Are you absolutely sure you want to paint over it? Just my opinion of course. Love the new house, and couln’t believe the price…I can hardly wait to see your new projects. God bless.
I completely agree with you Linda! But I think it’s really hard for some people to visualize anything that’s not right in front of their faces. We haven’t decided for sure about painting them yet, but we’re leaning toward yes. Especially since we’re seasoned DIYers and don’t mind spending a Saturday painting cabinets… when it might seem like an overwhelming task for the average joe. You know? Thank you for the encouraging words either way! <3
WOW how wonderful! This reminds me of my childhood in an old house. We were the envy of all the cousins who wanted to come over and slip and slide on our hard wood floors! Your girls will love it and there’s plenty of room! Cant wait to follow along on this journey.
Gorgeous house, Congrats!
WOW Beautiful!! Here’s to an exciting new chapter in your lives. Just goes to shows you never know what tomorrow may bring. 🙂
Isn’t that the truth!
I am so jealous! My hubby is finishing school and I am CRAVING buying a house like that. Guess I’ll have to leave Utah (which I plan on!)
OMG!!!! My first thought was “I can’t believe they are moving!!!” and then I saw the house. Are you kidding me? How could you not move for that price? I wouldn’t even have to think twice about moving!! That place is beautiful! The woodwork itself is to die for! And those bookcases and the arched doorways and that STAIRWAY!!! Can you see your girls coming down that stairway with their prom dresses on? Or better yet, their wedding dresses? It looks like it needs a few gallons of paint, a few buckets of water with some Murphy’s Oil Soap in it and a real good cleaning. Man, I think you guys really fell into it this time! I can’t wait to see what you have in mind for this place! Congrats and I am sooooo very jealous!!!
Haha, YES it definitely needs a good cleaning and fresh coats of paint. In fact, there’s so much to do I don’t really even know where to start! HAHA! But all of the character is just SO AMAZING. And yes, totally picturing the girls coming down those stairs in their wedding dresses or prom dresses. We already took pics of them for the daddy-daughter dance in front of these stairs, and it gave us allllll the feelings. So excited for all the memories we’ll be making!
Very cool old house. CONGRATULATIONS.
Bethany!!! That house is GORGEOUS and I can’t wait to follow on your new journey!!!!!!! So exciting! xoxo
Holy moly those pictures make me want to move there from VA! Congrats and best wishes as you work on updates!!
I love that you mentioned the willow trees. When I first read you bought that house, my first thought was ‘what about the girls’ trees?!?’. Whew… Congratulations!
Haha! Right?! Moving the willow trees was non-negotiable for me. 😉
Oh my gosh, congratulations!!!! The house looks beautiful, I can’t wait to see what you all do with it!
Thank you Jesse! We’re so excited about it!
Happy for you guys! This is going to be great!