I know that a lot of people think we are crazy selling this house. Yes it is undeniably beautiful and I feel very lucky that it is our home. I wouldn’t necessarily say that I was ready to move yet but with Sonny starting school in September we thought that if we are going to do it, then it should be before he starts. Meaning only one child is being disrupted by the change.
Let me give you a little background on our house journey so far. We bought a wreck of a 3 bedroom semi detached house in Broadway over 6 years ago. It was our first home and we were just so excited to have actually got onto the property ladder. Harbor was 3 months old and Si was working 12 hour days, meaning all renovations were taking place from 8pm till the early hours. I remember stripping wallpaper off at 1am thinking ‘is this adult life?’ We actually lost a lot of friends during this period of our lives. Having no free time to see anyone anymore meant we just lost touch. Sadly some of those friendships never rekindled. I guess it was because we were so young and no one understood why we wanted to spend our weekends in B&Q rather than in beer gardens. I am thankful that we made those sacrifices though. It was such hard work being a new mum, using a bathtub as a sink for 6 months and not owning a cooker for the best part of a year!
This was our kitchen. We very quickly learnt how to tile, how to assemble Ikea kitchens and turned it around. Our budget was so so small that most jobs were done by us and family members.
After 18 months we had made some money on this house and with Si working in Cheltenham we wanted to shorten his commute so he might have a chance of spending a little more time with the boys (that never materialised, he still works very long hours) and we fell in love with a Cheltenham townhouse. I’m still so fond of this house! It was purchased and completely renovated by a builder before we bought it. Meaning there wasn’t any major work to do for a change. I thought this would be perfect but actually I really missed renovating a house. I think I had caught the bug.
In short this house was lovely but after 18 months the need to move again kicked in and it led us to buy our house now.
Why are we moving this time? It isn’t really anything to do with this house. Being brutally honest I don’t think we will have anymore children. It has been an idea I have been toying with recently but I am not sure it is something that I want. Sonny will be starting school soon and I really want a house that is a bigger project than we have undertaken before. I love interiors and the idea that I will have some more spare time to actually dedicate to creating our forever home makes me so excited. Of course we could stay here, maybe extend, but I just want something completely new to get my teeth into.
I really want a large sociable kitchen with an island. It is pretty much the only ‘must have’ thing on my house search list. Even that is fairly loose as if the house has room to extend then I know I will be able to put a new kitchen in. I would love to have big windows as light is so important. The problem is that our budget isn’t massive. Especially with me becoming self employed recently. Fortunately Si has such a great eye when it comes to houses. (He did a degree in architecture meaning he knows what is possible with extensions) I am confident we will find something lovely soon. I will be very sad to say goodbye to the fireplaces though!
So in short we are moving because thats what we like to do! The next house will need to be one to see us in for at least ten years, to get the children through school. So we need to choose wisely!
Loved this article. You sound very similar to my husband and I. We are on our 4th house in so many years, each one bought and renovated to some degree, made money and moved on. We are now in a house which could be our forever home and is absolutely beautiful ….but I still can’t help but think there a few a more move left in us – one of being a larger renovation like you speak of. I love your house but can totally see why you guys are moving and you sound like you’ll make the right decision for you and your family! Good luck x
Author
Thank you! I really hope it is the right decision. Time will tell!
As an army brat, I spent all my childhood moving around every 18 months or so. As an Adult I always thought I’d want to stay put. But wanderlust is pretty incurable once you’ve got it and we’ve moved several times in the last 11 years. Moving with children is a bit harder because of the schools consideration, but if you’ve got the urge; That’s it! Best of luck.
I can totally understand the excitement of a project. I moved 2 years ago to a house that was generally sound, in a good area and within walking distance of my daughter’s secondary school. I have extended it and now have my dream kitchen with that island I have always wanted. You will find that right house for you and your family as you have vision when you view properties and can see their potential. Good luck and I look forward to following your next renovation project.
Jacqui
home_is_hillcrest
Really interesting read, and I loved seeing photos of your previous homes (because I am nosy!)
Your beautiful home is the reason I started following you on Instagram 18 months ago or so, and I look forward to seeing what you do with the house you buy next.
I love this post, i totally relate- we have just done our 4th move in 8 years.
Like you guys, each move has involved a renovation or refurbishment of small scale, all being period properties.
After finishing all the major stuff on our last house, I fell out of love with it. I’d refurbed like a developer- so it had a nice kitchen etc, but not the kitchen of dreams!
We’ve just moved to a 1988 ‘executive home’ that is also a project! We are battling through artex and bright red carpet, but nothing structural or too expensive to put right.
I am loving the space and the fact that’s its not a period property means I don’t feel I need to ‘protect’ features, which really restricted my plans in the last house (I know that makes me sound like a brat!)
Your current home is beautiful but if you need something to get your tenth into why not?!?
Great post and it is good to hear that people move when they have kids. We have two children (6&3), the youngest is due to start in September and we are looking to move town. The thought terrifies me but we need to move as we have a small 2 bed bungalow which is not ideal with a boy/girl. I’m looking forward to following your next adventure, we are looking at new builds also I love the idea of a huge kitchen/family room that no one has ever lived in.
Moving is always stressful but never hold back if you want something better, nothing is more important than your home. Hope the move went ok, Cheltenham is a lovely place x