A Final House Tour
We moved into our Arizona house in late July of 2015 and lived there almost three years to the day.
In that time, we repainted every square inch of that house (with the exception of the pantry and the master bathroom), tore out all the carpet and replaced it, ripped out the massive (hideous) stone entertainment center and replaced it with more modern open shelving, hung wallpaper in the laundry room and Ella’s room.
I’d basically felt like the house was entirely done except for two things and in the last couple of weeks, we got those taken care of too.
First, we tore out the stone in the living room/dining room and replaced all the walls. The old drywall was so damaged from the stone and chicken wire contraptions that Bart stripped it down to the studs and we started over with brand-new drywall, sheetrock, texturing and paint.
We also replaced the granite in the kitchen (it had had previously had some fairly homely granite on the island, but they’d left the non-matching laminate on the surrounding counters, so they were both ugly AND not matching) and whoa, that granite made a world of difference.
It went on the market over the weekend and I thought it’d be fun to show you the photos from the real estate listening.
It’s actually kind of trippy to see these photos because it only vaguely looks like MY house to me.
I feel like we are pretty clean people, but we certainly don’t have NOTHING on any counter tops or tables or bathroom counters in our daily life.
There are no puzzles on the coffee table or 50 library books lined up on the bottom shelf in the family room or Munchkin cups next to the sink.
And I cooked a total of two meals on those new granite countertops and the living room/dining room only looked like that for about 6 hours before the photographer came (that morning, we were still painting the baseboards and putting the furniture back where it belonged), so both of those spaces don’t really feel anything like they looked for the past three years.
Plus, our real estate agent, Jodi Anderson from Call Realty, brought in a few items to stage the house with, including some pillows and shelf decor, and the two gold chairs in the family room, which makes it also feel differently than it did for the last three years.
But I love looking at these photos and seeing all the projects we did and remembering all the happy memories we made in this house over the past three years.
We never expected to stay in this house long-term, but we brought our fourth baby home here, Ella started kindergarten here, and we spent so much time together in this house.
It was such a happy home for us and I hope the next family that lives here enjoys many wonderful years here too.
Office Chair // Rug // Full office tour here
Bed frame // Side tables // Bench // Full master bedroom details here
Crib // Double Rocker // Rug // Cactus Print // Full navy nursery details here
Bed frame // Chair // Side Table // Rug // Full pink girl’s room details here
Full basement playroom details here
Bookshelf // Couch // Dollhouse
Hanging Basket Chair // Bed Frame // Bedside Table // Full room tour here
If you’re curious, the full MLS listing is here!
The granite is beautiful and the pantry looks so spacious. What a nice basement/play area! Congrats on getting your home projects done! You inspire me to do a home tour on my blog when we return home from France this fall. Blessings on your move!
Thank you so much! It’s been a wonderful home for us.
It looks wonderful!
Thank you!
You can tell you guys put so much into making this house a home for you and your family. I’m excited to see the fun touches that you bring to your new home. Also, Jay was looking through all these pictures and was obsessed with all the different trees you guys have in AZ. It was pretty cute!
That’s so darling! Definitely doesn’t look like Utah in our backyard.
The house looks beautiful! You guys did a great job. Was it a difficult decision to make those final changes as you were moving out instead of just leaving it? Were you concerned it would be difficult to sell the way it was? Anyhow, it looks like an awesome house and I wish you lots of luck in your new place! 🙂 I hope you’ll post pics of your new home, too!
Our realtor suggested we make those last changes and I agreed with her, so it didn’t feel like a tough decision. We both thought it would sell faster and for a better price if you weren’t overwhelmed with that stone right when you walked through the door.
Looks so nice! I’m beyond impressed with your lightening speed of getting your house on the market. We are listing our house in next 2 weeks but it’s been MONTHS of work (granted we’ve lived in it for 10 years). What an enormous task to get it ready for sale. Great job!! Love seeing your pics.
I feel like I’ve done nothing but work on it for two weeks. Whew! It is CRAZY amounts of work, isn’t it?
Looks great! (Even the desert landscaping, which I dislike in general!) I’m sure it’s a little bittersweet to leave after all the memories and work that you put into the house. Enjoy your new adventure in Utah!
The previous owners did a great job with the landscaping!
I love that photo in your master bath. Memories. You should bring the girls on a trip to Austin and we could all go boating together again!
I would LOVE it! The realtor actually specifically commented on how gorgeous that photo was.
It looks incredible!! I’m curious (for future reference when we sell our house some day) – it looks like most of the furniture & decor & items on the shelves are yours? Will you have movers pack up & bring those things to you after the house sells? Or do you plan to drive back down to do all of that? Congrats on Bart’s new job & your new home!! I can’t wait to see pics of it after you’re settled:) xo
Yes, we’ll come back when the house sells, movers will load it all up and we’ll drive it up.
Hmm…the listing link doesnt work.
Thanks for the heads up! It should be working now.
Always loved the navy paint! It’s so striking and a favorite color of mine. I’ve been to Utah twice and absolutely love it. Best of luck!
Thank you so much!
What a beautiful house. You guys did a great job with it.
Thank you!
We’ve been in our house for 8 years and it has always felt completely unfinished because we (still) aren’t sure whether this is our forever home. But, you’ve inspired me to get working on it! Is the white paint in your living room Alabaster from Sherwin-Williams? I’m on the hunt for the perfect shade of white and yours looks just the right amount of warm and creamy. Thanks!
Yes! I LOVE Alabaster. Planning to use it in this house too.