Are you curious?

I have had one hell of a day/week. I need to keep my mind busy (I'm sick, so I have little energy).

Are you curious as to what we are excited about? I thought I'd go ahead and share.

We picked the MILAN model.
http://www.ryanhomes.com/file-grab/5457b854-5d9e-49a2-960e-8bf0e8c99627

Some of the upgrades we had to have are:

~The family room turned into a study on the first floor. This will serve as an office/play room.

~Instead of the really cool loft, we needed a 4th bedroom

~We are also upgrading to the deluxe master bath.

~ Extra carpet padding in the hall, study, and den.

The total sq. footage I think is 2524 sq ft.

There are other upgrades we opted to put in for now, but when the counter comes back we may need to cut back them on them. Some of them include:

~Elevation L (How it looks above although it looks kinda squished in that photo)

~bigger patio out back

~flood lights out back

~ceiling fan rough-in in all the bedrooms

~an over head light rough-in for the study (these room come with a light switch to control a light you plug in the wall. We want overhead and fans)

~Upgraded counters to granite

~Upgraded cabinets to 42" AND cherry

~ An island in the kitchen with the upgraded cabinets and granite

~upgraded appliances to smooth top range/microwave and upgraded dishwasher (energy star)

~a banister upstairs instead of a 1/2 wall

~ second sinks in both bath's upstairs

~ fireplace in den

~ upgraded flooring (wood) in foyer and in kitchen/mudroom/downstairs bath (higher grade linoleum in these three)

As you can see, we really did try and build our dream house. Why not, right? If the counter is too high we will rethink the elevation, the size of the patio, and the kitchen counters and granite and make some compromises. By the way...they are running 1/2 off all upgrades up to $20K (so a $10K cap). So that really helps!

I don't think we went too crazy. We didn't get the gourmet island and "morning room". We didn't upgrade the carpet (let's face it, I have 3 young girls, and a dog. That carpet IS going to need to be replaced in a few years no matter what. Why waste the money). We aren't paying to have the garage finished either. We were told we could do it cheaper ourselves. I know I did go a bit over board with the cabinets and granite, but like I said, lets try for the jackpot first. We can always edit later if needed. I did not go for the recessed lights in the kitchen either. I want my florescent one. I want to SEE what I'm cooking. The lighting in the kitchen in this house ... HORRID! I miss my bright kitchen.

All these homes are energy star rated. So that helps us feel better. I was reading one blog from a woman who built a 2700+ sq ft home and her bills are about the same as mine now (in this older 1900 sq ft home).

Maybe you can understand why we are so excited. It's a lovely home. It is. The model of this home is over off Sugar Creek Rd. in a development there. We fell in love the moment we walked through it. We weren't too sure about the plans, but then we walked through it and wow!

So anyway, I decided to share ahead of time. My family has had a blow today, and I needed to concentrate on something more upbeat. Although I awake several times a night dreaming of the house, and such. I worry too much.

Found out we needed to get some paperwork in...so we're getting that together. Hopefully Friday, we'll have answers.