Plan B, Chapter 3

I feel we are definitely closer to making our decision after visiting another Tacoma-area builder today. In fact, we may have found "the" one. We spent a good amount of time in this particular model and most everything about it felt right, to the point where we were standing in the living room discussing where things would go - the wood secretary (china cabinet) that has been in Rex's family for years, my curio cabinet, the TV, the wood stove we don't have yet but plan to get, etc. The layout, as Rex put it, "does everything we need". It is the spacious "great room" concept with no walls between the living and dining areas and kitchen. The kitchen has an incredible amount of counter and cabinet space, along with the large island in the center of the kitchen that would provide the space I need for not just preparing food and having future buffet dinners, but things like blocking larger crochet projects, cutting out garments (now that I will soon again have room for my sewing machine) and wrapping packages, which I presently literally have no place to do except to try to chase the dogs off the bed or floor. The master bedroom is good-sized; the closet is not as large as some other models we have seen. But it is still large enough that we would not have to put out-of-season clothes in storage but just move them to another part of the closet. And of course, the "me" room (for me to sit and crochet and store my yarn; my stair stepper and the second tv will also go in there) and "his" room (for his "stuff" and books) also have their own closet. There is also a 4th little room off the master bedroom that could serve as a computer room/library instead of combining that into Rex's room. Both bathrooms were also lovely, with huge bathtubs and spotlights above the mirror in the master bath. So this place seemed almost ideal, especially the kitchen and great room. The only drawbacks were the main closet not being as huge as I'd prefer and the outside looking a bit "boxy" except for the shingled dormer in the front. I can live with "boxy", especially since we can gradually upgrade with a deck, window boxes and landscaping as finances permit. This builder works with the lender we want and she has pretty much pre-qualified us for this home.

Rex stopped short of having the man in charge of site development make an appointment to evaluate our site (which already has had the septic and well for up to a 4-bedroom home for years) since we have one more builder to visit (who will also work with our lender). But the more I think about this home (especially the kitchen!), the more right it feels. I am just about ready to sign on the dotted line, but agreed to wait to see what the remaining builder has to offer. Rex, who knows more about construction than I do, feels the builder we haven't visited yet uses superior foundation materials and methods while remaining comparable in price, and they have a lot of floor plans we need to see before making a final decision. So, while my heart is in that wonderful kitchen we saw today, we shall proceed to Chapter 4....