Everything we do is an adventure.
The adventure of our new forever home is short and wild and sort of overwhelming, but in a good way. It’s all good.
About a week ago, we decided to start looking for a home casually. This is the last time I am moving (I swear) and we want to do this right. We feel a strong need to find the right place. I have been scouring Zillow for months, waiting and waiting for the right home to come up.
It’s been rough. Our list is short, but crucial. Must have two full baths and a main-floor potty. Must have a basement for severe weather. Must have a yard that can be fenced. No well water.
Do you know how hard it is to find houses with two full baths in our area??
On a whim Saturday, we visited an open house. We wanted to get a feel for what 1,400 square feet might feel like. It sounded small, smaller than our last town home, but the layout in our last home was as open as open can be. I didn’t want to go down that road again either.
After 5 minutes in the house, we both knew it was “the one.” That night, we joked about putting in an offer. We both sort of agreed that it was crazy because we hadn’t seen anything else and who does that??
Well, we do.
By Monday night, especially when we heard another offer was coming in, I was pretty much desperate to make this home ours. Quite hesitantly (because “people just don’t do this, Mag!”), John called in a offer. He was not happy with me, but I’m a girl who knows what I like.
We got into a double-bidding situation. After a meeting with our realtor, we had to put in our highest and best offer for the home. As I grew more and more anxious, I decided to write a letter to the sellers to ask them (or beg them, really) to choose us.
(This has been edited for location privacy)
Dear Sellers,
We are writing to ask you to give us the privilege of purchasing your home. Our family is very early in our search. In fact, yours is the first and only home that we have visited. However, last Saturday, when we came to your Open House, we knew right away that your home is the perfect fit for our family. It is exactly what we need and want for our forever home.
We have been prayerfully waiting for the right home to be available in this neighborhood. As a child, I attended ______ and when our youngest daughter was born with special needs two years ago, we knew that we would be moving back from _______ so that she could attend _____ as well. The school is well-equipped for her needs. We sold our previous house and have been living with my parents while we wait for the right place and the right timing.
Our four-year-old is very excited about the backyard and that we may be able to plant some vegetables in the summer. We envision cook-outs and family gatherings on the brick patio. The location is perfect – we frequently visit _______ and their proximity to the home cannot be topped. We are in love with the kitchen space. I am not always excited about doing dishes, but when I think about doing them by that window in the kitchen while the kids play outside, it’s much more bearable. 🙂 My mother-in-law visits regularly to help us care for the girls and I know that she will appreciate her own bedroom space on the main level, rather than sleeping on an air mattress in the girls’ room. My husband has been mapping out plans for the basement “man cave” and I would love to use the other first-floor bedroom as a sensory play room for our youngest daughter.
We are ready to settle into our forever home. We can tell by the care that has been put into your home that you have kept it well and that it has been loved by your family. We love it too, and would be proud to make it our own.
Many thanks for your consideration,
John, Maggie, Ellie, and Tessa
Long story short, after a nerve-wracking two-and-a-half hour wait, we received word that we had won the bidding war. Even though our bid was slightly under that of the other party, our letter convinced the owners that we were the right family. We are over the moon with excitement. It has been a whirlwind week, but finally, finally, we are going home.
Yo soy La Lay 