We usually start the new year out with some sort of project….and this year is no different. The only difference is….we aren’t actually doing the work. I briefly told you about the new adventures we are on this past October. We bought a little beach house in the coastal town of Carolina Beach, NC. The house is in great condition…with new bamboo floors and fresh paint….but the kitchen was in need of a little reworking. Since we are about 10 hours from the beach house we decided to let a contractor handle some of the work. Here are a few pictures so you can get the idea…

This house sits about 2 1/2 blocks from the beach…which makes it very bike/walker friendly. The community is an original old beach town with plenty of mom & pop shops and diners that have been there since the early 50’s. We fell in love…fast… with this little town. It reminds us both of Avalon (where I spent my summers growing up). It is the kind of place where people carry their own beach chair to the beach…no big resorts taking up the best spots with the blue loungers….we like that;)

The house sits up on stilts and you can pull a couple cars underneath. We are putting in an outdoor shower to make it easier in the summers to keep the house sand free. My Grammie had an outdoor shower…and I spent 22 summers there….never once showered indoors. Not once.

The front has a great covered deck that we will eventually screen in….we have already had the light replaced with a ceiling fan. I imagine a couple of bright blue Adirondack chairs and a large margarita:)

The lot is long and allows for us to expand in the future. We love the large trees that will provide some nice shade in the summertime. We also have a nice storage space for sand toys and beach chairs, and bikes.

When you go up the stairs and come in the front sliding door you walk into the family room. We wanted to make use of the open space so we decided to have the wall that was in between the kitchen and eating space removed. It is now a half wall…..this will allow for a nice open feel to the whole family space.

We had all the wall cabinets removed and this half wall will eventually be a breakfast bar. The pantry is a nice size and will provide any storage we may have lost with those wall cabinets.

We are hoping that the base cabinets can be cleaned up and painted…we are going to check it out at the end of January when we visit.

The house is a 2 bedroom with one bath…plenty of room for us and nice options for rooms to add onto in the future. We decided to place a queen bed and a bunk bed in the larger bedroom….and a queen bed in the other room. The family room will also have a sleeper sofa.

A few folks have asked about renting….we are not going to be renting this house. We are really excited to be able to use it ourselves….but we are equally excited to let our parents use it too. They have worked pretty hard….and deserve a little retirement time. This house is open to them (along with our siblings) whenever we are not going to be there. Plus, my dad is pretty handy….so if I need a little project done….I know he will help me out;)

Ahhhhh….I cannot wait to go back;) More details soon:) I am excited to share this journey with all of you….