if you’ve been following me on instagram, then you may already know that my little family recently started the process of hunting for a house. for nearly 10 years now, brendan and i have always lived in relatively small apartments in urban areas, and never even dreamed of owning a home. but since having a baby, moving to redlands, and falling in love with the community here, we’ve gotten more serious about finding a place to call our own. we currently live in a cute little rental, but we don’t have much of a yard, and it was never our intention to stay here for very long. we live in the historic district, surrounded by darling craftsman-style bungalows, cookie cutter victorians, and charming spanish-style villas. it is just about impossible to keep myself from daydreaming about living in some cute little vintage house as i go on walks with adam around the neighborhood. (i even started posting to instagram with the hashtag #housesofredlands.)

so after casually looking at the real estate listings for several months, i finally laid my eyes on this charming 1920s beauty. the house is on a ridiculously idyllic tree-lined street only a short walk from the historic downtown. when i saw the listing, my heart began to pitter-patter and i did my best not to get my hopes up too high. but if you’ve ever been on the hunt for a house, then you know how quickly you begin to imagine yourself living there forever. it was the perfect house. tons of vintage charm with the original bathroom mostly intact. the kitchen was redone in the ’70s, but it was nothing that a few coats of paint and a new countertop couldn’t fix. and beneath all of that dirty old carpeting was the original hardwood flooring, just waiting to be revealed. just the type of fixer-upper that can easily be restored to it’s original charm by someone with the vision to do it!

but alas, it really was too good to be true. we were outbid without a chance to counteroffer and the house is now pending. i can’t help but find myself hoping that the sale will somehow fall through and we’ll get that call. but i know that it’s been long enough that i need to let go and continue searching for “the one.” but the whole process is much more emotionally draining that i ever thought possible. there are so many factors out of our control. we need to be patient since those barely untouched gems don’t pop up often, and even then, there may always be someone willing to put in a higher bid.

do any of you have tales to tell about your search for the perfect home?