Reno Therapy: Lessons We've Learned As First Time Homeowners

Now that I have finally been able to catch my breath after starting the kitchen renovation back in January, I finally have time to process everything... all the highs & lows, all the pivots, and all of the lessons.

As first time homeowners, this was our first major renovation. The laundry renovation was, what I now call, a starter renovation by comparison. We went into the kitchen renovation with our eyes wide open and still found ourselves blindsided by so many aspects of the kitchen renovation. For what it's worth, though, I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason & there's always a lesson to be learned.

DesignAlbie KnowsJune 15, 2021renovation, kitchen, home buying, reno therapy

6 Months Into Home Ownership

6 months later — 6 months of being a whole homeowner — to say it’s changed me would be an understatement!

The past six months have been 180 days of designing, renovating, shopping, and, above all else, learning. The transition from renting to owning was one that I expected to be riddled with lessons but I think it would be apropos to say that the past 6 months has been “baptism by fire”… learning lessons I didn’t even know I needed and constantly on my toes & problem solving.

LifestyleAlbie KnowsJune 13, 2021the hygge ranch, home buying

The Hygge Ranch: 2021 Home Goals & Projects

LifestyleAlbie KnowsApril 8, 2021the hygge ranch, home buying, my home, vision board, home goals

The Hygge Ranch: 60 Days Later & Projects We've Done So Far

Dear Diary -- some days, I honestly can't believe that we bought a house. And since this is my diary and a safe place, I feel okay with saying that there are even some days I wonder if we made a mistake.

Do I regret buying our house? Not even close!

But... baby... I most certainly underestimate how much I didn't know about being a first time homeowner. There really is so much that no one ever talks about, and not just the buying process.

LifestyleAlbie KnowsJanuary 12, 2021the hygge ranch, shopping, home buying, my home

Why We've Decided To Buy A House

Admittedly I had a home on my vision board for the new year — our home buying conversations were becoming a thing and we found ourselves wondering about “what’s next” for our family…stay in Washington? …move back East? We weren’t sure but we knew renting in perpetuity was no longer an option. By the second quarter of 2020, personally, I was juggling being a “single mom” with my husband deployed, the beginnings of my second new job in a year, COVID-19 forcing us all into quarantine, and witnessing a modern day civil rights movement. One or two of these events may not have done much for changing my mind, but all of em together… well I quickly went from, “it’d be nice to own my home” — hence the vision board — — to “I want to own a home!”

LifestyleAlbie KnowsOctober 11, 2020my home, home buying, the hygge ranch