Door #2
Seventeen years ago, Don and I each gathered our two children and brought them all together to create a family of six - a new family. We both had the a desire to keep each other’s family values in tact, but also create a new version of “us” and just like all paths we embark on in life, we had no idea how this one would twist and turn.
The twisting and turning thankfully, wasn’t with our people, but with where we lived, the houses we’ve inhabited. We’ve bopped around to support our children, our jobs, our dreams and desires! We always knew from the beginning that once the kids were out on their own, we wanted to live along the New England Coast, that was ‘our dream’. So each decision was an important step in that direction. A quick recap:
Old Orchard Road - where it started, but we felt to support each child we needed a larger space for the six of us.
Farm Road - Our “home” and will forever feel that way to me. Where we truly came together as a family, the six of us, three dogs and the home to support us all. So many memories and so much love.
Peckham Hill - a deliberate stepping stone; two of our children were off to college and Don was leaving his Corporate job of over 25 years to begin his own business allowing him to be home more. This home nurtured this phase of our life beautifully.
Main Street - Our first ‘rental’ also a deliberate move giving us the ability to begin our search on the coast once our youngest graduated from High School. This is where the search for ‘our dream’ began.
Chapel Road - Our second rental on the coast of New Hampshire. The decision to rent wasn’t accidental. We wanted to get to know the area, make certain that this really was where we wanted to live. And like with any big change we had nagging fears - “could I still work with my clients in Massachusetts?” “Could I build my business in New Hampshire and Maine?” “Could Don’s business survive from here.” Those fears proved to be fruitless but we wanted to keep our options open and our feet nimble.
Now here’s where things started to shift beyond our imagination! During the first year of our life on the New Hampshire coast we fell in love. This was it, the worries subsided. Don’s business was going well, I was doing fine moving back and forth between expanding my business in New Hampshire and continuing to work with my established clients in Massachusetts. Things couldn’t be better … we were “home”.
HAH! You know the saying, “man makes plans and God laughs” well this is the way we started to feel. At the exact mid-point of our three year rental the pandemic happened. On March 12 Don’s job stopped. He’s in the hospitality business that thrives on hotels, meetings and people traveling for business. I had no idea what would happen to my business then, if I couldn’t meet with my clients in person, how will this work?
Three unforeseen things happened:
Don began working diligently with his partner to create webinars and online events to keep their audience engaged, just to make it through. What has actually resulted is a stronger, more resilient and more prepared business ready for the opening up of travel.
I have been amazed, blessed and so thankful in how the interior design business thrived during this time and the willingness of clients to do virtual consultations, zoom meetings and keep the ball moving.
The prices on the Seacoast of New Hampshire went bezerk!!! As in, priced us right out of “our dream”
Not only that but the competition for houses that were for sale made things even more insane! We actually made an offer on four houses near us that fit ‘the dream’ close to the coast, in the region we loved. They needed lots of work but we were determined we could make it work. We were outbid on all four - one of them almost $80,000 and what we found, like many during this time in the real estate market, there was no negotiating. It was all about the best cash offer.
Here’s where Door # 2 opened…
We were discouraged and disappointed. Then one day we took a ride and stopped for lunch at a little golf club that we have played at in a Charity Golf tournament for the past four years. As we lunched (at the bar of course) we got talking to the bartender and found out that the owner of the club is also a developer and he was building a new collection of homes. We should talk with him. Two weeks later we purchased a lot overlooking the 9th green of the golf course and 1.5 miles from the most glorious stretch of beach in Maine. The twists and turns had led us right to Door #2 - our dream.
Over the next few months I’ll be taking you on the adventure of building our home through Instagram posts, stories and my blog. Though this will not be a truly ‘custom’ home, we are getting in at the beginning so we will be able to add/remove those items that will make it feel like ours. Allowing me the opportunity to showcase my design ideals - #vibrant, #intuitive, #collected and that what we build nurtures our family in this newest phase of life. The dream is being realized, maybe not the way we’d originally envisioned, but sometimes, what’s behind Door #2 may just be what you’ve been waiting for the whole time!
Let’s Design for Good,
Kim
