So yea, we are
moving! I’m very excited and also a
little nauseous about the whole thing.
As I mentioned in my last post, it happened a lot faster than
expected. We honestly just started
talking about this in January and BOOM…here we are. So how and why did we get here?
I love my house and where we live, but always knew that we'd need to move before another baby comes along. It's a little cozy for the 5 of us, but more importantly it just doesn't work with a mobile, busy, never-slowing down toddler. Other than his bedroom, there is no "playroom" or area of the house where I can safely contain John while I get anything done. That means that the littlebrat angel gets my undivided attention almost all day long. That clearly won't be an option with another babe in the picture. Sorry, John.
Side note...no, I'm not pregnant or even thinking about getting pregnant, but I'm a bit of an over-planner. If you know my mom, you understand.
So, we knew that we'd need a new house eventually, but I had it in my head that I didn't want to live in PV or Nocatee. Nothing against either, but I just never pictured myself there. Then again, I didn't really picture myself anywhere else in town expect right here on Hodges. There are some beautiful neighborhoods near us and I'd love to live there. One hitch to that plan...can't afford the houses and even if I could, we can't afford Jax private schools and would not be happy with the middle and high school in this area.
And that's that...when you factor in what we can comfortably afford, Nocatee was a no-brainer for our family. Is it my dream neighborhood? No, but I think it's going to be an amazing place to raise a family. As much as it pains me (and it. is. painful.) to admit, I have to be an adult (sniff, sniff) and make decisions for John and hypothetical Baby #2, not just me and Bud. Bud and I want John to have a childhood similar to ours...surrounded by kids his age, playing in the street until dinnertime, going to terrific schools, etc.
There are things I don't like about Nocatee, but I think they are things I'll get over. I wish there were more restaurants and a Target, but I'm sure they will come soon enough. I hate that they mow down every tree in the neighborhoods (there isn't a single tree on our lot), but there are miles of nature trails right there in Nocatee. I hate running into people at Publix and I foresee a lot of that. OK, that sounds weird...I don't hate seeing people I'm friends with, but I hate seeing some random girl from middle school that I'll make awkward eye-contact with because neither of us know if we should say hi or not. Hate that.
All that said, I don't want this to sound like I'm shitting all over Nocatee...it really is going to be great for me too. We have a lot of friends out there and we are building an amazing house that I'm SO excited about. I've always wanted to build a house and this will probably be my only chance (we plan to stay in this house a looooooooooooooong time).
We chose Greenleaf Village for many reasons...it has several parks, a dog park, is walking distance to the school, and we'll live very close to US-1 so Bud can get to and from work quickly. After we chose the builder we liked best, there were only 2 lots left that didn't have a neighbor right behind you (a MUST in our new pad). Plus, prices are also rising constantly (our model has gone up $10K since we signed our contract in March!). Those 2 factors kinda held our feet to the fire so we decided to go for it. I mean, why wait and lose the neighborhood we want, you know? If you click the link above and go to Site Plan, we are lot 409 on Breezeway Court on the far left side of the map.
Our new house will be 2 stories - the first floor is a dining room, kitchen, family room, powder room, and Master suite. The second floor has an huge loft that will be a playroom (aka place to corral all the kid shit for the next 20 years), 3 bedrooms and a bathroom. We will have a design appointment soon to pick everything out...cabinets, countertops, floors, even grout color...everything. Here's a link to the floorplan if you're into that thing.
I hate that I'm going to be further away from a lot of people I love and things to do, but I swear it isn't as far away from the rest of the world as you might think it is. It takes me about 15 minutes to get to Town Center and about 25 minutes to get to Jax Beach.
Now, we just have to sell this house...you know, minor detail.
I love my house and where we live, but always knew that we'd need to move before another baby comes along. It's a little cozy for the 5 of us, but more importantly it just doesn't work with a mobile, busy, never-slowing down toddler. Other than his bedroom, there is no "playroom" or area of the house where I can safely contain John while I get anything done. That means that the little
Side note...no, I'm not pregnant or even thinking about getting pregnant, but I'm a bit of an over-planner. If you know my mom, you understand.
So, we knew that we'd need a new house eventually, but I had it in my head that I didn't want to live in PV or Nocatee. Nothing against either, but I just never pictured myself there. Then again, I didn't really picture myself anywhere else in town expect right here on Hodges. There are some beautiful neighborhoods near us and I'd love to live there. One hitch to that plan...can't afford the houses and even if I could, we can't afford Jax private schools and would not be happy with the middle and high school in this area.
And that's that...when you factor in what we can comfortably afford, Nocatee was a no-brainer for our family. Is it my dream neighborhood? No, but I think it's going to be an amazing place to raise a family. As much as it pains me (and it. is. painful.) to admit, I have to be an adult (sniff, sniff) and make decisions for John and hypothetical Baby #2, not just me and Bud. Bud and I want John to have a childhood similar to ours...surrounded by kids his age, playing in the street until dinnertime, going to terrific schools, etc.
There are things I don't like about Nocatee, but I think they are things I'll get over. I wish there were more restaurants and a Target, but I'm sure they will come soon enough. I hate that they mow down every tree in the neighborhoods (there isn't a single tree on our lot), but there are miles of nature trails right there in Nocatee. I hate running into people at Publix and I foresee a lot of that. OK, that sounds weird...I don't hate seeing people I'm friends with, but I hate seeing some random girl from middle school that I'll make awkward eye-contact with because neither of us know if we should say hi or not. Hate that.
All that said, I don't want this to sound like I'm shitting all over Nocatee...it really is going to be great for me too. We have a lot of friends out there and we are building an amazing house that I'm SO excited about. I've always wanted to build a house and this will probably be my only chance (we plan to stay in this house a looooooooooooooong time).
We chose Greenleaf Village for many reasons...it has several parks, a dog park, is walking distance to the school, and we'll live very close to US-1 so Bud can get to and from work quickly. After we chose the builder we liked best, there were only 2 lots left that didn't have a neighbor right behind you (a MUST in our new pad). Plus, prices are also rising constantly (our model has gone up $10K since we signed our contract in March!). Those 2 factors kinda held our feet to the fire so we decided to go for it. I mean, why wait and lose the neighborhood we want, you know? If you click the link above and go to Site Plan, we are lot 409 on Breezeway Court on the far left side of the map.
Our new house will be 2 stories - the first floor is a dining room, kitchen, family room, powder room, and Master suite. The second floor has an huge loft that will be a playroom (aka place to corral all the kid shit for the next 20 years), 3 bedrooms and a bathroom. We will have a design appointment soon to pick everything out...cabinets, countertops, floors, even grout color...everything. Here's a link to the floorplan if you're into that thing.
I hate that I'm going to be further away from a lot of people I love and things to do, but I swear it isn't as far away from the rest of the world as you might think it is. It takes me about 15 minutes to get to Town Center and about 25 minutes to get to Jax Beach.
Now, we just have to sell this house...you know, minor detail.
