The open house has passed, but there was a nice turnout! We had several people stop by and we were able to discuss our home building process with them. We highly recommend traveling to an open house when beginning this process so you can visualize everything! After the open house, the final lighting and painting began. We had a fan installed through Wayne and it was cheaper than buying it Home Depot. They also finished our recessed lighting, pretty chandelier like light in Lanie’s room, extra lights in the garage, a fan in our master bedroom, basement lighting, extra lights above the shower (very good idea to add these!!!), and a light in Jaxon’s closet. We had an amazing company who did a pristine paint job. What we didn't realize is that the price only includes flat paint. This is something that you really need to consider when doing upgrades. We were able to have him upgrade the kids’ rooms to eggshell or satin so that they would wipe clean easier. We had to pay for this using our PPI since we didn't add it in the mortgage. I do wish that we would have thought more about this area (and for Wayne homes to discuss it with you) because paint truly is a big deal. We were going to paint the bedrooms before we moved in, but when Mandie tallied up the price of everything and our own not-so-pristine painting skills, we opted to have the company do it. We went to Home Depot and picked out the additional paint colors for the kid's rooms and our master bedroom. We texted them to our paint guy and he was able to find everything. The paint turned out better than I (Mandie) had dreamed. All of us love it so much!!! Painting was completed, the front porch rail was finished, electric and plumbing were hooked up, appliances were being delivered, and installing the water, sewer, and gas lines. Not only that, but we had some things to do on our own, such as pack, pack, pack! We were knocking down the door to closing and had to get focused and ready to ship up and move in. We got all of the rest of the tasks done generally without major hiccups which was nice. The excavator also came and installed the downspouts and french drain from where the spring leaches down the hill, and he also did a final rough grading of the lot. We've been working on little projects since we've moved in, such as tilling the dirt and getting it ready to plant grass seed (which is tonight), getting plans in place for the back deck (which will start soon), and getting the generator turned on (also tonight). Many more projects to go, but that's the life of being a homeowner, always growing into your space and making it home for you.
After the paint, the flooring went down. This was a whirlwind of about 2 weeks and it flew by so fast. We upgraded the kitchen floor to this gorgeous looking wood, however it's premium vinyl. It is by far the prettiest floor I have seen! The carpet throughout the home had the upgraded padding underneath, which we also highly recommend. The carpet in the bedrooms is gray but the carpet in the office/living area/playroom/steps is a light tan.
After the flooring was installed, the appliances were delivered. Bryan was there when they came with everything. The fridge was a perfect fit and everything else looks amazing. We ended up doing a complete matching set, but that wasn't on purpose. It just turned out that our favorite appliances all matched! We have all GE Adora from Home Depot. The refrigerator has this auto-fill sensor that when you place a cup and press the button, it fills it up for you which is a great idea for Jaxon especially! Reduces spilling!!!
At this point, the house was pretty much done. We met with our amazing field manager to do a final walk through. We had done a walk through with him about a week or two prior to point out some things that needed fixed. We saw a few paint marks, a small hole that needed filled, and door stops that we wanted put up. We also had them fix a spot in our master bedroom in the subfloor. During the final walk through, Tim gave us our keys and went through the entire house with us answering any and all questions. It was a pretty emotional time after he took our picture out front with the keys. We couldn't believe the process was completed. We hugged Tim and we didn't want to lose him. Makes us want to keep building houses so we can keep in contact haha!
We closed on July 27th, moved in on Saturday, August 5th, all after breaking ground on March 30th officially. It was such a fast moving project, but I'm glad. It was nice to come out and always find something new that had been done. Moving was a lot of hard work, but thankfully I (Mandie) have a co-worker with a college aged son and a friend looking for some extra money. That was a pretty smart thing to do because they were very strong and able to work for several hours! Building a house had always been a dream for us, and now it is done.
We have been in the new house for over a week and every box is unpacked. The basement is another story because we have a lot of stuff to go through and get rid of. It'll happen in time. I don't think we could be any happier with how everything turned out. We will be planting grass seed soon and having a deck installed as well. There will always be projects to work on and that is fine with me!
If we have anything to say, it's that you should build with Wayne. I was terrified to build because I had no idea what to expect, but the team at Wayne made it so easy and smooth. Please contact us with any questions as we would be so happy to answer them. We had a friend who was moving in to her new home at the same time we started ours and she and her husband helped us out a lot! Sometimes you need that. Best of luck on your journey to your new home! One of our greatest dreams has come true, and we are now and truly...home.
The next few pictures below show the final rough grading of the lot. I'm definitely pleased, and with the tilling and getting it more smooth ed out, it will be even better once the grass is in.
The hillside below, while it doesn't look it, is quite steep. We just ordered some wildflower seed and will be planting them on the hillside to bloom in the spring. This way the hill looks nice without being a pain to mow and an eyesore.
Below, the garage door was installed.
With the new plumbing, our sinks were installed (pedestal sink and toilets were finalized after flooring).
This is the basin for the washing machine upstairs. If it overflows, it is tied into a line to drain to the basement.
Below, main water line access from outside into the house.
Below begins the pictures with the new lighting up and running.
This was the one piece of lighting we truly added, Mandie got this for Lanie's room at Home Depot.
Below begins the painting! Turns out the paint code we had for Lanie's purple/pink hybrid turned out to be pure pink in our painter's database. We liked it though, so we kept it, even though he offered to fix it for us.
Lighting in the basement below.
Shelving was WONDERFUL, our walk in pantry is massive and perfect!
Coat closet coming in from the garage.
Kids' linen closet.
Jaxon's closet.
My walk in closet in the bedroom.
Mandie's walk in closet in the bedroom.
Our master bath linen closet.
LOVE how the paint colors turned out!
Painted doors and flooring below!
We had some very large rains not long before we moved in. The state's culvert was clogged by a log, causing water to flow over the road and washing out a lot of our gravel.
I've been using the clay and lots of rock that is natural in our soil to help fill it in as I have been tilling the dirt prepping for grass seed. I used some wire mesh and rebar to make a wall that will eventually be covered with concrete cloth when my step-dad can help me to finish it off.
Below are some pictures of the house since we moved in and our kitchen after all the appliances have been installed.
One happy couple!!
The house is ours!!
Our dreams have all come true, it's wonderful to be home!
It's truly amazing to see how far we have come with this! Thanks for following along our journey! If you have any questions about building with Wayne Homes, please don't hesitate to ask!!
