• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Join Me On

Love Always, Joann

Stay Connected!

  • Home
  • About Me
  • Disney
    • Recipes
    • Disney Planning
    • Disney Vacation 2019
  • My Story
  • Special Needs Parenting
    • Autism
  • Blog
    • Health & Beauty
    • Sponsored Posts
    • Product recommendations
    • Cooking & Baking
    • Travel
  • Etsy Shop
  • Privacy Policy

on September 1, 2020 ·

Our First Home

When my husband and I moved into our home, we were newly married. Although our home was in the general area where we grew up, we were new to the town and the neighborhood. We purchased a two-family home that was built in the 70’s and had not been renovated since then. We were fine with having to do repairs and updates, so it didn’t hold us back from putting in an offer. We were so happy that our offer was accepted and we could start the next chapter of our life together.

When we first started looking, we searched all over New Jersey. We had found a few homes we really loved but it just didn’t work out. It was my mom who found our home for us. She rode around the neighborhood and when she saw our home, she called to tell me all about it. The house was only a few blocks away from where I used to live with my parents before they moved to North Carolina.

When I took a ride to check it out, I was pleasantly surprised; it looked like a nice house. After scheduling an appointment to see it, Gabe and I decided this would be our home. Even with its dated decor and finishes, we knew it had excellent potential.

As I mentioned previously, the house was stuck in the 70’s. You can see from the pictures, the entire kitchen walls were tiled in this lovely mustard yellow and brown pattern. (You know I’m being sarcastic, right?) We didn’t care for the way the appliances were laid out either, so we knew we wanted to change that. The cabinets were awful. They were a dark brown color and the stove hood was a wonderful shade of yellow (still sarcastic!). This was the very first home project we tackled. As I have said before, my dad is very handy. He can do it all – woodwork, plumbing, and electrical work. You name it and he can do it. We knew we would be doing the work ourselves. 

The first thing we started to do was look at how we wanted to change the design. I wanted to put the stove in the middle and have the sink in the corner with the dishwasher to the right of it. Once we figured out the placement of the appliances, we started to look at the cabinets and countertops. It’s funny because back then we knew we wanted a darker cabinet and granite. Today, we both agree that the next kitchen will be lighter. Don’t get me wrong, our kitchen came out exactly as we had envisioned and we love it. 

  • Upstairs Apartment – Living room
  • 2nd fl Kitchen before new floor
  • 2nd fl Kitchen with new floor

Since we purchased a two-family home, we needed to do as much updating in the upstairs apartment as quickly as we could. We wanted to make sure we had it rented right away and then we could work on our own apartment. We also had a budget to stick to; so, for upstairs, we put in all new carpet and new laminate flooring in the kitchen. We painted all of the rooms and updated everything in the bathroom. We purchased new appliances for the kitchens and laid flooring in the attic. We also put in new windows and carpeting through the hallway. It was all ready for the new tenants. We were fortunate to have the apartment rented rather quickly. Finally, we could move on to our updates. 

It was exciting to be able to pick out cabinets, paint color, flooring and new appliances. We did purchase all of our appliances right before we moved in, mainly because we needed them. I also picked out the light fixtures as well. It was the fixtures that helped us come up with the color scheme we wanted. After picking out the cabinets and the flooring, we started looking at all kinds of countertops. We wanted granite but, with our budget, we had to really look around. Finally we were able to get find a beautiful granite countertop that was within our price range. Once we had everything picked out, it was time to get to work!

It was demo day! Since we had been living in our home a few months before we started, I had the pleasure (not!) of emptying everything from our cabinets. My husband, my dad and brother-in-law had to take down everything else. As you can see in the pictures, we left nothing but the studs. It was a nice mess! As messy as it was, it felt so good to be able to get started. Over the next few weeks, the kitchen began to really come along. Little by little, the sheetrock went up, the cabinets went in and all of the plumbing and electrical work was completed. We had our countertops installed and, after shopping around for the perfect backsplash, we went with a neutral subway tile. Gabe installed the entire backsplash himself and it came out very nice.  

Completed Kitchen

Our kitchen is an eat-in kitchen. Our apartment had a dining room, but we decided to close it off and make it a third bedroom. The kitchen was large enough to hold a decent-sized table and seat six people comfortably. Over the last 12 years that we’ve lived here, I’ve changed the paint color twice. We are about to change it again because, well, I get bored.

Dining room before we closed off the wall to make it another bedroom

I have really enjoyed reminiscing and sharing our kitchen renovation pictures with you. I love the way pictures can tell the story of your life; and, thinking about this time in our lives was so exciting. We were just married, had purchased our new home and we were making it our own. I’d love to hear your stories too! Please share your house reno projects or new home projects in the comments below.

Tweet
Pin3
Share
3 Shares

Filed Under: My Story Tagged With: first home, kitchen renovation, new home

Previous Post: « My Daily Journal For Kids
Next Post: Back To School During Covid »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Louise Sharpy says

    September 1, 2020 at 7:58 pm

    I love seeing the before and afters. Are you still in this home ? In the downstairs ? I bought a smaller home. 2 bed . 1 bath and it was perfect. It was me, my baby girl and her dad .(Only for 7mo) The house, I’m still in , as for him?, he’s been gone YES!! IT is a great thing for sure. I never married, still haven’t. (I know. Bad Catholic. Ha ha) we have been together 13 yrs now. Anyway. I have painted and did the flooring, and bathroom (tub and paint and tile flooring) being a single mom , I never had enough money to do anything to it, and then I had to retire early (SLE lupus) he moved in , and then he had 12 surgeries on his ankle and it’s been a mess (for 6 yrs we spent caring for him being in bed.) He had so many problems (Comparment syndrome and RSD/CRPS) . We are just starting to do home last year FINALLY New roof and paint come within 2 weeks. Being broke sucks. Ha ha ha ha when I redo inside , I’ll share

    • Joann says

      September 2, 2020 at 12:21 pm

      Hi Louise,
      Yes, we are still living in the downstairs apartment. We will probably be here until we relocate to Florida in about 7 or 8 years. I applaud you, that is great deal of work for a single mom! It shows how strong you are and I admire that. I can’t wait to see your redo! Thanks for sharing.

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to our mailing list

Recent Comments

  • Joann on 5 Kitchen Tools You Need In Your Kitchen Today!
  • Joann on 5 Kitchen Tools You Need In Your Kitchen Today!
  • Jamieadstories on 5 Kitchen Tools You Need In Your Kitchen Today!
  • Lisa | Mind and Body Intertwined on 5 Kitchen Tools You Need In Your Kitchen Today!
  • Joanne on Let’s Make Disney’s Churros at Home!
DisneyStore.com

Recent Posts

  • Let’s Make Disney’s Cheeseburger Pods Together!
  • What I’m Taking To Disney!
  • We’re Going Back To Disney!

Archives

  • April 2023
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • April 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018

Categories

  • Autism
  • Beauty
  • Cooking & Baking
  • Disney
  • Disney Planning
  • Disney Vacation 2019
  • Disney Vacation Planning 2022
  • My Story
  • Product recommendations
  • Recipes
  • Special Needs Parenting
  • Sponsored Posts
  • The Little Things….Monthly Favorites
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

lovealwaysjoann

Lovealways,Joann
"I Am Buzz Lightyear; I Come In Peace." And I am A "I Am Buzz Lightyear; I Come In Peace." And I am Alex, no where close to the word “Peace!” 😂 But I love him! Anyone else have a loud kid? #buzzlightyear #boymom #momlife #disneyfamily
I love shopping at Disney Springs! Is this a must I love shopping at Disney Springs! Is this a must do for you too? #disneysprings #disneymerch #disney #wdw
Happy Sunday friends! Last week we attended an aw Happy Sunday friends! Last week  we attended an award ceremony at Michael’s school.  He was nominated by his teacher and his other service providers to receive the title of his school’s hero award.  Michael was recognized for demonstrating the Play principles at his school.  I will share more about it in my last year end Youtube video on how Michael is doing in his new school.  We are so proud of the progress Michael has made this past year and I can’t wait to tell you all about it! Stay tuned! Have a good evening and a great week ahead! #autism #autismmom #autismfamily
We loved Disney’s All Star Movie Resort and we d We loved Disney’s All Star Movie Resort and we definitely would stay again! Hopefully soon! Have you stayed at any of the All Star Resorts? #disneyresorts #disneyallstarmovieresort #allstarmoviesresort #vacationmemories
It’s about 91° right now, I would have really It’s about 91° right now,  I would have really enjoyed this pool today! ☀️🔥☀️😀 #summervibes #allstarmoviesresort #disneyresort
It’s that time of the year when everyone is plan It’s that time of the year when everyone is planning their summer vacations and/or staycations! Last year, I started my Summer Vacation Postcard Exchange and I’m doing it again this year! I was thinking how cool it would be to see where all of you are headed to. ☀️🌴🏝️⛰️🏰🛳️🏕️
How it works: 
You send me a postcard from wherever you travel and I’ll send you one back from my summer vacation. 
This starts today, June 1st and runs through September 1st. 
Please see the link in my bio for all the information and where to send your postcard. 
Last year I received postcards from Florida, Colorado, Paris, just to name a few.  I’m looking forward to see where you travel to this year! Thank you in advance for participating! Happy travels! #summer #postcardexchange #postcards #happytravels #vacationpostcards #summer2023 #staycation
I’m having a few technical issues today uploadin I’m having a few technical issues today uploading my vlog to my YouTube channel.  I didn’t want to leave you hanging, so I thought I’d share a throwback picture of me holding on for my life, riding SDMT for the first time in 2019.  I hope to have the vlog up by later today or tomorrow morning.  Be sure to subscribe so you know when it’s live! #throwback #tuesdaymood
This afternoon we celebrated Alex and Michael’s This afternoon we celebrated Alex and Michael’s 11th birthday at Dave And Buster’s.  After the kids enjoyed cheeseburgers, fries and Mac & Cheese, they had fun playing all kinds of games! It was so nice to invite Michael’s friends again this year.  His friend Elise from his old school and a new friend Roscoe enjoyed being a part of the fun too! Michael really had fun on the motorcycle with his dad! We always encourage Michael to try everything.  We may have to make accommodations for him but it’s worth it to see that smile on his face! It was a great day! #birthdayparty #twins #autismmom #autismfamily #daveandbusters
Good morning ☀️ Happy Friday and Happy 11th Bi Good morning ☀️ Happy Friday and Happy 11th Birthday to my boys! Now Michael had school today but Alex is off so we’re off on our fishing adventure! Have a great day! #happybirthday #gonefishing #twinmom #twinmomlife
I’m going fishing tomorrow with Alex and my husb I’m going fishing tomorrow with Alex and my husband.  Never thought I’d say that! Wish me luck! Me fishing is equivalent to Dolly Parton trying to fit in a training bra! #gonefishing #boymom
The legend himself- our main mouse, Mickey! #legos The legend himself- our main mouse, Mickey! #legosdisney #disneysprings #mickeymouse
Sometimes you just need a hug! #monstersinc #disne Sometimes you just need a hug! #monstersinc #disneyworld #hollywoodstudios #wdw #disneyvacationmemories #vacationmemories
I think it’s time to start planning another fam I think it’s time to start planning  another family trip! #magickingdom #wdw #disneymemories
Happy Friday friends! I hope you were able to catc Happy Friday friends! I hope you were able to catch my latest YouTube video.  This week I decided to make chicken tostadas with all the leftovers I had in my fridge and pantry.  They came delicious! If you haven’t had a chance to see it, I would love it if you could watch it when you have some time.  Also, please don’t forget to give it a thumbs up, comment and please consider subscribing if you haven’t already.  Thank you and enjoy the rest of your day! #chickentostadas #youtuber #easyrecipes #leftovers
Throwback to when I was able to pick a pearl at th Throwback to when I was able to pick a pearl at the Japan Pavilion at Epcot.  This was so much fun! I got two pearls and had them set in a ring. I will definitely do it again! Have you ever experienced the pick a pearl and did you get one or two pearls? #tbt #epcot #pickapearl #epcotworldshowcase #epcotjapanpavillion #wdw
Mother’s Day photo dump! #twinmomlife #autismmom Mother’s Day photo dump! #twinmomlife #autismmom #momlife #boymom #mothersday2023
Happy Mother’s Day to all you sweet mamas! Enjoy Happy Mother’s Day to all you sweet mamas! Enjoy your day! 💓#mothersday #happymothersday
Happy Heavenly Mother’s Day mom! Love you! #heav Happy Heavenly Mother’s Day mom! Love you! #heavenlymother
Happy Friday friends! The weekend is finally here! Happy Friday friends! The weekend is finally here! I’m so excited because tomorrow my husband and I are having our yearly (joke kinda) date night! Of course, Mother’s Day is Sunday and I’m looking forward to spending the day with my boys. 
Speaking of Mother’s Day, yesterday I posted a new YouTube video about handing Mother’s Day after a loss.  I absolutely know what that experience is like and wanted to share some ways I have been getting through it. 
Lastly, I think it’s time for another “Chat & Bake.” In a few weeks I’ll be baking for my boy’s birthday so why not  answer your questions while I bake?! Stay tuned, I’ll post a question box in my stories soon.  Have a great evening!
Good afternoon friends. No video today, but late Good afternoon friends.  No video today,  but later this week watch for my new video when I talk about how to honor your mom on Mother’s Day after she passed away. I’m hoping by offering some tips  it helps you get through this difficult day. 🦋 #mothersday #mothersdaygrief #griefjourney #motherlessdaughters #grief
Load More... Follow on Instagram

© Joann Salas and LovealwaysJoann.com, 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material (including photos and videos) without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Joann Salas and LovealwaysJoann.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.


Deprecated: Hook genesis_footer_creds_text is deprecated since version 3.1.0! Use genesis_pre_get_option_footer_text instead. This filter is no longer supported. You can now modify your footer text using the Theme Settings. in /var/www/wp-includes/functions.php on line 5788

lovealwaysjoann · Copyright © 2023