Our New Home: A Preview

Last week I was finally able to tell the secret I’ve been keeping for months: we’re moving! Thank you SO much for all of your sweet comments and well wishes about our new home on that post! They really mean a lot!

Our townhouse is in the process of being sold, and we are building a house just a few miles down the road. After looking at a number of listings for existing homes in our area (We were committed to keeping our son in his same elementary school.) and not finding anything that felt like “us,” a build seemed like the perfect solution– we’ll be able to start with a blank slate and really make it our own.

A preview of our new home build with Ryan Homes, the Palermo, Elevation L.

While I don’t have pictures of exactly what our new place will look like, I thought I’d do my best to try to give you an idea of what we’ve chosen so that you can know where we’re headed when I share progress photos.

We will be building in a Ryan Homes development, and we chose the Palermo model, elevation L, which is a craftsman style. This photo is the closest I could find to what the shape of our house will look like:

A preview of our new home build with Ryan Homes! This is the Palermo, Elevation L.

via

While the shape is pretty close to what we chose, the colors of our house will be different than what is pictured. We chose a dark-ish gray siding (Pewter) with a slightly lighter gray shake (Flint). Our shutters and door will be black, and the trim will be white. The color of the stone will be slightly different as well; the one we chose is called PA Sierra Fieldstone. 

The other difference I can spot between this house and ours is that we will not have a metal roof over the porch; ours will be regular shingles. So after all of those changes, explanations, and caveats, can you kind of picture it? 😉

Here’s a look at the floor plan…

A preview of our new home build with Ryan Homes! This is the Palermo main level floor plan.

via

Floor plans can be a little confusing, but I could study them for hours. I just think they’re fascinating!

The only major option we went for on the main level was to add the morning room off of the kitchen. The view out of the back of our house will be pretty amazing, so we thought it would be great to have that room with all of the windows to be able to enjoy it.

Speaking of windows, we added just about every set of optional windows possible on the main floor! After living in a townhouse with windows only in the front and back (none on the sides), I wanted as much natural light as we could get!

In the kitchen, we opted for the gourmet island and white cabinets (Rushmore Painted Linen) since I still love the ones in our current house! We also love the quartz countertops in our townhouse, so rather than choosing one of Ryan’s counter options, we are going to have our own installed right before we move in. We went with Caesarstone Organic White in the townhouse, but I think we may go for Caesarstone London Grey in the new house.

Kitchen decor at JustAGirlAndHerBlog.com

{the kitchen in our current townhouse}

Donnie is excited to finally have an office that is at a normal temperature and not crawling with spiders! (His current office is a dark, freezing 8′ x 8′ space in our basement– eek.) His new office will be right off the main living space in his own little corner of the house.

We went with all hardwood floors on the main level of the house, choosing a 3 1/4″ wide Mocha plank.

Things that we didn’t add to the main level: a third spot in the garage (We currently only have one car, so a three car garage seemed like a bit much!), a first floor bedroom, an extension on the office, a fireplace.

Moving on to the upstairs level of the house…

A preview of our new home build with Ryan Homes! This is the Palermo upper level floor plan.

via

There is one part of this upper level that makes me squeal with glee. See that nice large, beautiful bonus room? THAT is going to become my office! Yippee!! I can seriously barely contain my excitement when I talk about it. So many possibilities. I am pinning all the things to get ready to make that space the perfect place to create and photograph projects, write posts, and be inspired. I can’t even wait. I’m hyperventilating a little just thinking about it. 😉

Home Office Decor, Just a Girl and Her Blog

{my office in our current townhouse}

Now that I have that out of my system… In the master bathroom, we decided to go with the “Opt. Owner’s Bath with Shower” option. We’re not really bath people, and there is a bathtub in the Cs’ bathroom if we ever need one, so we thought a larger shower would be nice.

We added a second bowl to the vanity in the Cs’ bathroom– no fighting at teeth brushing time 🙂 — and we went with white vanities (Rushmore Painted Linen) + white countertops in all of the bathrooms.

Our plan is to keep the Cs in the same room for the time being. They love sharing their space (I actually think Caleb would be devastated if he couldn’t share with Con), and moving to a new house will be a big enough adjustment for them at first.

One of the other bedrooms will be a guest room, and I think I’m going to use the 4th bedroom to hold their toys, at least at the beginning. (YAY for a room where I can close the door and hide the toy chaos!!)

Shared boys' bedroom decor, Just a Girl and Her Blog

{the Cs’ shared boy bedroom in our current townhouse}

The hardwoods from downstairs will carry through to the upstairs hallway, but the bedrooms will be all carpet, and the bathrooms and laundry room will have ceramic tile flooring.

We didn’t end up adding any of the optional windows on the upper level because I was worried about how they would affect furniture placement. We also did not do the optional 4′ extension on the owner’s bedroom.

And finally, the basement:

A preview of our new home build with Ryan Homes! This is the Palermo lower level floor plan.

via

We are leaving the basement unfinished at first and will probably come back and finish it ourselves sometime in the future. We added rough-ins for bathroom plumbing to leave that option open, but mostly it will just be a big, blank space for the time being until we decide to take the plunge and finish it up.

Well, that was a lot more info than you probably cared to know! 😉 I just thought it might be good to have a reference point for all of the changes you’ll be seeing soon. We are due to break ground on Monday, June 6th, so be prepared for lots of construction photos coming up!

I know there are a lot of people out there building Ryan Homes as well, so I thought I’d include a quick reference list of our choices in case that would be helpful– the decision process can be absolutely overwhelming! Here it goes:

Exterior

  • Palermo- Elevation L
  • Garage- Resort Facade
  • Scenic Scape Scheme- Siding Vinyl
  • Pewter Siding
  • Flint Shake
  • PA Sierra Fieldstone Stone
  • Black Door + Shutters
  • Morning Room Added off Kitchen
  • Bonus Room Added over Garage
  • Floodlights Added

Garage

  • Standard 2-Car Main Level Garage, Front Entry
  • Utility Tub Added in Garage

Main Level

  • Hardwood Floors- Dundee Oak 3 1/4″ Plank, Mocha
  • Hardwood on Stairs
  • White Balusters for Stair Railings
  • Upgraded Baseboards (No Crown Molding)

Dining Room

  • Side Windows Added

Morning Room

  • Side Windows Added

Kitchen

  • Gourmet Island
  • Kitchen Cabinets Upgrade 2- Rushmore Painted Linen
  • Cabinet Crown Molding
  • Laminate Countertops (Replacing with quartz before we move in.)
  • Stainless Steel Appliances
  • Satin Nickel Fixtures (Will probably change out faucet.)
  • No Hardware on Cabinets (Will add our own.)
  • Recessed Lighting
  • Rough-in for 3 Pendant Lights over Island

Great Room

  • Cable Hookup
  • Recessed Lighting
  • Overhead Fan Rough-in

Home Office

  • Side Windows Added
  • Recessed Lighting

Upper Level

  • Hardwood Floors in Hallway- Dundee Oak 3 1/4″ Plank, Mocha
  • Carpet in Bedrooms- Level B
  • Ceramic Tile in Bathrooms + Laundry room

Master Bedroom

  • Overhead Fan Rough-in
  • Cable Hookup

Master Bathroom

  • Shower Only Option
  • Ceramic Tile in Shower
  • Vanity Cabinet Upgrade 2- Rushmore Painted Linen
  • Vanity Tops Cultured Marble White
  • Satin Nickel Finishes

Other Bedrooms

  • Overhead Fan Rough-in
  • Cable Hookup

Kids’ Bathroom

  • Vanity Cabinet Upgrade 2- Rushmore Painted Linen
  • Vanity Tops Cultured Marble White
  • Satin Nickel Finishes

Bonus Room

  • Recessed Lighting
  • Overhead Fan Rough-in

Basement

  • Unfinished
  • 3 Piece Plumbing Rough-in

Follow Our House Building Journey:

I’ve held this in so long that I feel like I might burst. (Moving announcement!)

Our New Home: A Preview (You’re here!)

The State of the Move: Some Updates

New House Update: We’re Getting Close!

Our New House: The “Before” Photos

Have you ever built a home? We need all of the tips and tricks we can get! Be sure to leave them in the comments!

Have a wonderful week, friends!

Abby

123 Comments

  1. Maybe I am just weird, but I love looking at floor plans too! This looks like it will be a fabulous house and I can’t wait to see how the process works!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Mikki!

      ~Abby =)

  2. So happy for you and for the fact you will have an office in the large bonus room, but what really excites me about your floor plan? You will have a second floor laundry room!!!! Yay! What a blessing. 🙂

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Seriously! One of my favorite features for sure! Thank you, Betty!

      ~Abby =)

  3. Gretchen | Gretchruns says:

    I could also stare at floor plans for hours! They’re so fascinating. I’m so happy for your family and can’t wait to see the finished product!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much Gretchen!

      ~Abby =)

  4. Hi Abby, Thank you for a great blog 🙂 I want to find out I know that your home make over deal ends soon however I am residing in South Africa and did not budget for purchasing something like this (with the ZAR USD conversion it will cost me R500.00+ which is an amount that I need to budget for) however I would really like to obtain a copy. Would it be possible to run this promotion beginning of July again? Even if only for a week? Have a great day 🙂

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Hi, Anelle! Unfortunately, I don’t have control over that. The people at the Ultimate Homemaking Bundle make those decisions! 🙁 Sorry about that! They do offer a wonderful bundle every year so I hope you’ll be able to join in on the next one!

      ~Abby =)

  5. The.Restless.Worker says:

    Looks amazing – good luck! 🙂

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much!

      ~Abby =)

  6. How exciting! Building a house is fun, but also full of decisions. Enjoy the process. It’s worth it in the end to have exactly what you want!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you, Randi!

      ~Abby =)

  7. Sue Dearing says:

    I love house plans too! I have a list in my Cozi that is called New House for all the things I would love in my house. I think my favorite things to have would be cookbook shelves on the ends of my island, a walk-in pantry and just decent storage everywhere. Have fun putting together your new home!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      I love the cookbook shelves idea! Thank you, Sue!

      ~Abby =)

  8. Hi Abby, I’m also excited and happy for you and your family building a new home! I can sort of picture the house that you mentioned in the 5th paragraph but find it a bit hard 🙂 Can’t wait to see the progress and the actual house! Thanks for sharing!

  9. What a wonderful project – and family! I hope it goes really well for you.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you so much, Clara! You are the sweetest!

      ~Abby =)

  10. Heather Alexander says:

    Thanks for sharing Abby! I think it’s going to be amazing and you’ll make it just beautiful with all your sweet decor skills + style. How very exciting! You’re not alone in admiring house plans, btw. I love looking at them and studying them, too. It’s really fascinating and it’s odd to my hubby that I understand what (most of) it means 😉 My dad is STILL trying to convince me to be an architect. lol. <3 God bless, chica!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much, Heather! Who knew that floor plans could be so fun? 🙂 Have a great week!

      ~Abby =)

  11. Rachel Gault says:

    So exciting, congrats! It looks like it’s going to be a beautiful home. Can’t wait to see the final!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much, Rachel!

      ~Abby =)

  12. So happy for you! The house looks beautiful and what a fun project it will be to add your stamp of personality as you decorate it to make it your own. Thanks for sharing the process.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Jen!

      ~Abby =)

  13. That is AWESOME, Abby! I can’t wait to see your next posts. Congratulations of having a new house!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much!

      ~Abby =)

  14. Your new house sounds and looks beautiful! Congratulations! Have a blast decorating and organizing it! Thanks for sharing!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Beth!

      ~Abby =)

  15. I can’t wait to see what you do with all that office space-that’s going to be fun!!! So happy for you and Donnie and the boys!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Mel! I am actually giddy thinking about all the potential ideas for that office! Eeek! 🙂

      ~Abby =)

  16. sandytharp says:

    I am so excited for you! We built our own home years ago and I can still remember how exciting it was to create the floor plan and pick out all of the colors. And to walk through it as it was being built. You will so enjoy the whole process.
    Congratulations!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much, Sandy!

      ~Abby =)

  17. Marianne Hölscher says:

    Looks great! and I also love to study floor plans. The one thing I don’t see is in which direction the house is facing? Will the house be placed parallel with the road?

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Yes, parallel with the road! All of them are that way in our community. Thanks so much for stopping by, Marianne!

      ~Abby =)

  18. Good Morning, Abby, I’m so excited for you & your family! What will you do with all of that space? What is the square feet of the new home & your townhouse? I never knew until now that you lived in a townhouse! I can’t to follow the progress & excitement with you! Thank you for sharing your new home & the progress over the next months ahead!

  19. I’m so excited for you guys, Abby! We built our house 3 years ago and have absolutely loved personalizing it. It’s so nice not having to do home improvement projects to bring things up to code or upgrade outdated features. All the hard stuff is done and you get to skip to the fun decorating parts immediately. 🙂 Can’t wait to see all the progress along the way! You guys so deserve this.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Eeeek! I can’t wait for all the fun decorating! Thanks so much, sweet friend! Hope you’re having a fabulous Monday!

      ~Abby =)

  20. Andrea Goodman says:

    Were at about the stage as you in building too, picked floor plan and finishes.it will be fun to follow along. Hoping we’ll be in our new home by Christmas!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Andrea! Congrats on your new home, as well!

      ~Abby =)

  21. justaddconfetti says:

    Congratulations, friend! I’m so happy for you! Your new home is going to be absolutely stunning! I’m so excited to follow along with the building process…and then see all the wonderful things you do in the decorating process! Have a wonderful weekend!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much, sweet friend! <3 Hope you're having a great Monday!

      ~Abby =)

  22. kleinworthco says:

    I just love it & totally feel your excitement. I so badly wanted to share our experience. Unfortunately the people K worked for at the time wouldn’t have approved of our location & so we couldn’t share any part of our journey socially in fear they would find out. It just about killed me to not talk about it as I’m sure you understand.

    Love your floor plan- very similar actually to ours & you chose many similar things- including adding tons of windows. So funny us bloggers & the natural light. We opted for a 3 car+tandem for the garage & to fence the lot- instead of a basement. I do wish we had the extra space sometimes. You will love the bonus room. That’s where my studio is too & I still swoon over it.

    I’m so stinkin’ excited for you guys & I love that you can share the process here!!!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      It really was tough! It would have been SO hard to never be able to share! Thank you so much for your sweet words! Have a great week!

      ~Abby =)

  23. Oscar Riojas, Jr says:

    Hey there, Abby- I’m probably one of your newest followers as I just “stumbled” across your website last weekend, on a search for a hideaway trash bin. First off, congratulations on the upcoming new house! I can totally relate to the feelings of hyperventilation, as my wife and I experienced this 7 years ago with the purchase of our fixer-upper! Our 5-year goal is what you have going on right now – a new build. With prayer and hopeful success of my eventual blog-site, we will get there! 🙂

    Second, I am forewarning, I may be reaching out to you all quite a bit as I build this website- ha! The tips and resources you all have provided thus far have been extremely useful, but at times, I end up venturing off too far, and have to shit the multiple windows down as I tell myself, “okay, focus, back to justagirlandherblog…..”

    Thanks for everything you do, and more importantly, sharing in the philosophy of paying-it-forward. Your work is a blessing.

    Cheers!

    1. Oscar Riojas, Jr says:

      OMG- that is supposed to say “SHUT multiple windows down…”!! I am so sorry, Abby!!

      ….wow, not a good first introduction, Oscar. 🙁

    2. justagirlabby says:

      Haha! No worries, Oscar! It happens to the best of us! 🙂 Thank you so much for your well wishes with the house and I’m so glad that our blog has been so helpful to you in creating your own. It can definitely be overwhelming so don’t get discouraged! Just keep plugging along! Have a great week and happy blogging!

      ~Abby =)

  24. Jann from Newton Custom Interiors says:

    Abby, that’s so exciting for you guys! I love looking at your floor plans! It sounds like you have made a lot of good decisions. Can’t wait to see the finished house, and how you decorate it!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Jann!

      ~Abby =)

  25. guaranteedallauthentic says:

    Congrats Abby ♡ the color of your house is lovely ♡
    fr.your fan here in Spain

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much!

      ~Abby =)

  26. I also love floor plans. Have ever since I was a child. I used to swipe my mom’s Southern Living magazine and look at all the cottage plans. Congratulations on your new home. I hope you and your family really enjoy this new phase in your lives!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Nichole!

      ~Abby =)

  27. So exciting! I am also in the process of building a house, and my feelings are usually split between “overwhelmed” and “beyond excited”. We are at the stage of pouring foundation, but rain is delaying everything. I’ve also been inspired to start a blog to track the whole process (https://www.nextthingblog.com ). I’ve gotten a lot of information and inspiration from reading your blog, to wanted to express my appreciation for that. Good luck with your build!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Milissa! Congrats on your new home, as well!

      ~Abby =)

  28. Beth Anne says:

    This was super cool to see! And Abby – that office space is going to be amazing!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you, Beth Anne! I am SO excited for the new office! 🙂

      ~Abby =)

  29. Becky Bruening says:

    Best wishes on your new home. Construction can be a trying time, but you have such wonderful plans, I am sure it will go well. We are just about finished with building our dream/retirement home and I am down to designing my craft room – so many decisions!
    Best of luck and I look forward to seeing your progress.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Becky! Congrats to you on your new home!

      ~Abby =)

  30. Angela O'Brien says:

    Abby, I am so excited for you! The floor plan is open – and all the extra space you will have. I look forward to following you on this exciting journey.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Angela!

      ~Abby =)

  31. We loved our 2nd floor laundry in our last house! A couple of considerations that made it more enjoyable: we added soundproofing to the laundry to cut down on the upstairs noise. Drywall does not insulate noise at all. A neighbor didn’t, and they had difficulty watching tv while laundry was going. We both had families of 5, so laundry was always going — especially in families with active sports lifestyles. And consider reinforcing the floor to reduce vibrations. We replaced our washer with a front loader with vibration reduction technology because the spin cycle would vibrate the whole second floor! Enjoy!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Those are great suggestions! Thank you, Beverly!

      ~Abby =)

  32. Kristine Puzel says:

    I am so very happy for you and your family. I had a feeling this was coming, and I am delighted it is happening for you. I salute your decision to keep the boys together in the same room in your new house; it is very smart and very caring of you. It will no doubt help with easing their transition into a brand new home. Very much looking forward to futures posts!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much, Kristine!

      ~Abby =)

  33. How absolutely exciting!!! You guys have worked so hard and deserve to be rewarded with this gorgeous new home. Looking forward to following along!! XO

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much, Christy!

      ~Abby =)

  34. Sounds like your new home will be beautiful! I’ve never heard of a morning room, but it sounds really neat. We have two sinks in our kids’ bathroom and it makes a huge difference. It’s nice that you and your husband will each have your own office space. A toy room sounds like so much fun! My kids used to have one, until their younger brother was born, and I know they really enjoyed playing in there. Thanks for allowing us to share in your journey.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Brenda!

      ~Abby =)

  35. That’s great Abby, having just completed a major Reno plus a new build (while working full time – crazy, I know) I can envision the ride you’re in for, but the end product is worth it. I love your plans as they lend themselves to creating a very adaptable space no matter where in your life you’re at. We made our media room a potential downstairs 4th bedroom and the downstairs powder room a full size bathroom to allow for wheelchair access. We also incorporated a ramp into the design which means the home is both wheelchair and pram friendly. My office is separate from the house over the carport, this means in years to come if I no longer run a business it can be changed into a granny flat and generate extra income.
    Like you we love the light but here in Queensland it can become too hot, our solution was to add the Windows but have them tinted.
    All the best with the build, I’ll be following along.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you, Carrie!

      ~Abby =)

  36. How exciting!!! I was chomping at the bit during our entire room addition build! It is so exciting to plan and design a new space!! Can’t wait to see the progress!!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Susanne!

      ~Abby =)

  37. Congratulations! So exciting. I love the elevation y’all chose! Couple words of advice: 1) Keep a punch list of every upgrade you chose and make sure they get done correctly. No company is perfect and mistakes do happen. On our first build, my husband and I were moving back to our home town, so my parents had to check in on the building for us and take progress pictures. I had upgraded to 3/4 of the house being tiled, and they ended up installing the wrong tile. Thankfully when my mom sent a progress picture, I questioned if it was the correct tile, and lo and behold, it wasn’t. Luckily they had not grouted yet, so the tiles just had to be popped up. 2) Make sure and get plenty of extras of anything they have. For example, tile, floor planks, shingles. We had to replace a couple broken tiles within the first year, and now because of a pipe leak in the laundry room, we are going to have to replace a good amount more. Having extras makes the process so much easier when you need to make repairs in the future.

    Enjoy the journey even when it gets frustrating. 😉

    Can’t wait to see what you do in your amazing office space!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      These are AWESOME tips, Heather! Thanks so much!

      ~Abby =)

  38. Tania McFarlane says:

    Thanks so much for sharing Abby, you all must be sooooo excited , its a beautiful house and you and your lovely family will make it a wonderful home. We built new a number of years ago after losing our house to a fire…yeah I`ll eventually blog about that. Anyway just a few things which may or may not be helpful for you. Have the plans out on the table all the time so you are always “walking through” them in your mind, think about how you would move through the spaces at different times of the day. Its just that here in NZ if you change something post sign and once build starts it costs alot to change. Also have you thought about solar panels on roof for power, it removes your power bill and you can sell back to the grid (well here in NZ we do) Also collect rain water with tanks and recycle your grey water. The other thing to think about is how you will use your rooms and spaces in the future, i.e when your wee boys become teenagers…yes it does happen and they certainly need their own space then. I could go on! hope these are helpful ideas.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much for your helpful tips, Tania! So great! Have a wonderful week!

      ~Abby =)

  39. I’m so happy and excited for you and your family! Thank you for taking us with you on this exciting adventure!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you, Michele!

      ~Abby =)

  40. Carol Bowles says:

    Loved you shared your plans♥ Great add ons,i have been married 48 years,and i always tell people if you can build a house together you can last anything. Have some fabulous fun and I love reading your blog NanaNinja

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Carol!

      ~Abby =)

  41. Your new house looks amazing! I can’t wait to see pictures as it begins to take form. I’m like you, I like floorplans and the process of it all. Thank you for sharing 🙂

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much! 🙂

      ~Abby =)

  42. Hey, I love that you chose to go with a house from scratch (relatively). I have been a custom home builder for many years, and love to see a well-made house. You are probably well passed this decision but I would just recommend, if at all possible, building with ICF systems and in-floor hydronic heating. They really make a fantastic and very noticeable difference; not only in feel but in energy sustainability. (And they don’t cost much, if any, more than suitable building methods with other materials). My other recommendation is to make sure you view the entire house as a whole integrated system rather than separate unrelated systems. A well-designed house is treated as a whole organism with integrated design throughout, from orientation on the lot to how crown molding transitions, and continually through every aspect; the most important of which are the energy cycle systems, water systems (including humidity), and above all (which you visualize very well), utility flow and purpose of each space. I hope you love it! I look forward to your progress! Keep up the great work!

  43. Another weirdo here. For some reason looking at floorplans makes me happy – I love visualizing in my head all of the decor options. Thank you for sharing your home plans with us, and I cannot wait to read all the posts about the process.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Jessica!

      ~Abby =)

  44. Hi!! We are actually in the process ourselves of building our modular home. We went with that because it’s built just as a stick built home would be, to the same codes, but it was cheaper. We should be moved in, in July. They just started the foundation and the home is already built and ready to be delivered. We’re getting a 4 bd, 2 ba, 2300 sq ft on 18 acres. I’m so excited as I’m sure you are too. We also chose to do some things ourselves since my husband is an electrician and has also flipped homes in the past so he’s doing some of the work to help save on cost. And just as you are excited about your new office, I’ll also have a new area for my craft/hairbow making room for my business. That is exciting. I can’t wait to decorate it. CONGRATS!!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you, Monique! Congrats to you! So exciting!

      ~Abby =)

  45. globallocavore says:

    You are completely adorable! I could feel your excitement bursting through the screen. And now I am so excited for you. I had no idea I wanted to know all about floor plans, but it turns out, I do! I am definitely excited to see you work your magic and turn the new house into a home.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much! Who knew that floor plans were so much fun? 🙂

      ~Abby =)

  46. LeAnne Martin says:

    Congratulations, Abby! It looks like it will be a gorgeous house. So today is the day, huh? Hope all goes well!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Yes, today is the day! It’s taking all I have not to drive up already and see if progress is being made! 🙂 Thanks so much, LeAnne!

      ~Abby =)

  47. Your new home is going to be amazing! I’m sure you will really love having a nice big office to yourself 🙂 Enjoy!

  48. Love everything! The morning room with your incredible view will be amazing!!!

  49. Kristen Duke says:

    Congrats! So excited for you! My teen boys still share a room, and we have a spare guest room, they love to be together, and I love that!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Kristen! That is so sweet! I hope my boys still love it when they are teens!

      ~Abby =)

  50. C Palomino says:

    Congratulations on your new home, Abby! This is a long-awaited dream for you. We just had the blessing of being able to build our own home last year. It is our third home, but the first one that we got to specify all the goodies on. My husband is from a home insurance (water loss) and construction background, so we approached the whole process from that perspective. We did the following:

    1) We visited the site daily, since we could catch any issues before they become hidden and a later problem.
    2) We photographed the interior after the plumbing and electrical were installed, but before the drywall was hung, so there would be no mysteries about what might be behind the wall later.
    3) We also made sure to get abundant electrical outlets, although it did not occur to me until too late that I needed an outlet in the floor of my office space. Large rooms can call for that, depending on their use.
    4) We also made sure to have a hose bib installed on each side of the house, since we knew we would have something we needed to water on all sides. I only wish that the back hose bib had been placed near the deck where we can easily get to it, but at least I’m not running hoses all around the house.
    5) Finally, we paid special attention to the interior anytime it rained to see if we could spot any evidence of water intrusion–puddles, wet wood, etc.–and nip that problem in the bud.

    I hope this is helpful to you. We were so surprised to learn that garage door openers did NOT come along with our garage!! I hope you only have happy surprises on your journey. I can’t wait to see it all unfold!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much for all your helpful tips! I’m excited for the journey and it’s so great to be able to have all these things in mind as we go! Hope you’re having a great week!

      ~Abby =)

  51. Andrea Bowersox says:

    Abby, This is amazing! We’re in the process of designing floor plans for the house we’ll be building, so it was interesting to see yours. We had to tear the old farmhouse down. It ended up having more structural issues than we thought when we bought it. So, we’re building a new house on the land. Your house is going to be beautiful! Congrats!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Oh, how fun (not the structural issues I’m sure)! But congrats on your new home, Andrea! I’m sure it will be gorgeous!

      ~Abby =)

  52. Congrats on the build! We built our first home for same reasons. What I would do differently, too much to comment. My best advice-visit often! All those wonderful options barely make it from paper to site without a watchful eye. Almost every upgrade or change we had to tell the contractor to do. Changing windows to sliding doors, knock down ceilings. Imagine my horror walking into popcorn ceilings in my living room! ?
    I had to find my inner ‘evil boss’ side to make sure it got done correctly. At the end I let things slide I had a 5 week old first baby with no nursery-I just wanted to move in! I’m sure your builder is better.
    You have to find your ‘bridezilla’ side! We should coin a phrase for a homeowner overseeing a build.
    Good luck getting to the basement ‘down the road’ we said the same thing about adding our Florida room. We had them pour the slab for it. 14 years later, still a slab! Maybe this blog thing will bring me great success and will get that done!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Gina! All great tips!

      ~Abby =)

  53. Kathleen Duffey says:

    How exciting for you and your family! I would be doing cartwheels in that office space. It is dreamy! Love your blog. I started my own and got your Framework book. It is fabulous! Hopefully my hubby will be able to quit his job and help me with mine in the future.
    God bless you for helping others and congrats again!

  54. We built this house two years ago! We love it. There are a few things we would do differently but we really love the layout. The kitchen is fabulous. Just make sure they put the front door on so it opens into the hall and not the dinning room. Hopefully they have corrected the plans by now. ;). Feel free to email me if you want. -Jenny
    http://www.paintyourselfasmile.com

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you so much for the tip, Jenny! I’m popping over to stalk your blog for photos now! 🙂 Other than the photos on Ryan’s site, it has been hard to find finished pictures of the Palermo– you may be hearing from me, lol! Hope you’re having a wonderful weekend!

      ~Abby =)

      1. Haha I know what you mean. I stalked everything I could trying to get an idea of what I just bought. I can send you some photos via email too. My blog has only has a handful of house photo as I am still figuring out how I want to finish rooms. There is a nice outside Christmas photo of the house and my son’s room that was part of the Orc and a red chest I stuck in the mud room but that’s about it I think. You will love your house and of course I think the “L” elevation with the bonus room is an amazing choice! 😉

  55. Hi, Abby! How exciting for you and Donnie! We lost our home in a wildfire in 2007 and rebuilt a brand new, beautiful home to replace it. I’ve written about the fire and rebuild on my site and my advice to the other blogger (Tania) who lost her home in a fire is to write the story – it’s very cathartic. A total loss is a devastating experience that takes years to get over, so writing about it helps!

    I’ve read the other comments and the ones with new build advice have all been sound and there really isn’t much for me to add. Except this: cherish these moments. Cherish the moment you walk onto your new foundation and all the rooms and closet are laid out in front of you. Cherish the moment you walk into your new home once the framing has gone up. Cherish the moment when your walls are plastered, your windows and doors installed, your cabinetry arrives, your flooring is installed. These are exciting times and while it seems like forever in the building process, it really flies by and then its over. Cherish the day you move in, although it will be one of the most physically challenging and emotionally charged days of your life. Take a moment to hug each other and look around at all you’ve accomplished.

    There will be glitches along the way – those are inevitable. We were so lucky because my husband had retired and was able to go to our building site every day. I’m sure his being there, on site, made a huge difference in the progress because he was able to make instant decisions when a glitch came up. Since you and Donnie are building in your same neighborhood, that will make it easy for you to keep in constant contact with the building team.

    Congratulations! You two deserve only the best and all of us in your blog world share in your success and are cheering you on!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      You are too sweet, Carole! I love that advice. It is so easy to get swept up in the details and not enjoy the process! Thanks so much for sharing your story with me. Hugs to you!

      ~Abby =)

  56. Abby,
    I’m so excited for your family! We started blogging when we built our Ryan Home (about a year and half ago)as a way to show our children how their house became their home. At first it was just going to be a fun hobby for us but now it has turned into a neighborhood blog and I have been frantically reading everything I can of yours on blogging to help me! Please check our our blog for some great tips that really helped me when choosing our home upgrades and selections.

  57. Craig Blakey says:

    Great post! I love analyzing floorplans too. There’s something about assessing the options and envisioning the finished product that is exciting. Congrats, your success is inspirational!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Craig!

      ~Abby =)

  58. Misty MaGouirk says:

    This is so exciting! We are in the process of shopping for our next home. I also love to look at floor plans and imagining all the details it takes to make it our own. Wishing y’all great success!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Misty! You too! 🙂

      ~Abby =)

  59. We just built this exact Palermo model, and we LOVE it! The elevation makes it stand out from others in our community and we always get compliments on it. We also opted for the bonus room to use as a playroom for our 3 kids. It is huge and we spend most of our free time in there. You will really enjoy it! Our only frustrations have been with the stairway being so close to the front door and the narrow hallway upstairs. Luckily we had strong movers to maneuver our furniture, they literally had to pick some of our furniture up and over the banister to get it up the stairs. The morning room really opens up the house and lets the light in! With all the windows we opted for in the house, it has taken awhile to find just the right curtains and blinds. It is still a work in progress! I would be happy to send you pictures of what it will look like. We had the same struggle trying to envision it because there were no others around our area. I can tell you, it looks even better in person!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Oh, this makes me even more excited, Kirstie! Thanks so much for sharing! I would love to see pictures! You can email them to justagirlandherblog@gmail.com! Thanks so much and have a wonderful week!

      ~Abby =)

  60. Kristin McCutchen says:

    Thank you for this blog it has been really hard to find someone blogging about building the Palermo. We are building elevation D I love the elevation you are building its beautiful. Ours should be completed the end of September. I can’t wait to see more pics, I need decorating inspiration.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Oh, fun! Congrats on building your new home! Ours should be done at the beginning of September… fingers crossed! Thanks for stopping by!

      ~Abby =)

  61. Roberta McColl says:

    I’m so excited I stumbled across your floor plan blog post. (I had been wanting to see it.) I love floor plans. Nick thinks I’m a little crazy about them.

    We are so exited for you guys! I hope you love our build process as much as we did.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Aw, thanks so much, Roberta! I love them too! haha We have enjoyed the process but are SO looking forward to closing in a week! Hope you all are doing well! <3

      ~Abby =)

  62. Massimo99 says:

    Wow! This is the house of my dreams! Congratulations! I save my money and I hope that soon I will be able to build your own house.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much!

      ~Abby =)

  63. Hello Abby! I recently subscribed to your blog when I saw a pinterest post of your new home. My husband and I also chose the Palermo “L” in the grey color scheme. I am sure you know how thrilled I am to watch your progress with your home as it will help give me ideas along the way of what may work for our home as well! I just had a quick question. Did you add the 2 foot extension to your garage? I was looking at the nook in your bonus room and it looked quite big already and I know that the 2 foot extension on the garage will make it even bigger! We chose to make this our children’s playroom and I am thinking about making it a reading nook with a window seat for them! Thank you in advance for your help!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Hi, Tiffany! Congrats on your new home! We love the Palermo, and I know you will too! We did not do the 2 foot garage extension. We did consider it, but ultimately decided that we thought we wouldn’t need it. I will say that the nook is a good size without it, but I mean, a little extra space is never a bad thing either, lol! Have fun with the process!

      ~Abby =)

  64. Ralph Hughes says:

    Nice post, Good job. I love kitchen section and also the color combination that you used to decor your new home. Thanks for sharing the beautiful ideas!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much, Ralph! Have a great day!

      ~Abby =)

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