Yesterday, Brett, Emma Kate, & I did our final walk-thru before Stan and Sal (aka Lolly & Pop) move into their new house/neighborhood! I wanted to share some pics of the house. I feel as though I should recap how this whole extravaganza started...in one word...my crazy Dad! My rents were living in a gated-neighborhood just beside their "soon-to-be new neighborhood." The only difference was that there was nothing on the land except a trailor & old home that the people who owned the land lived in. They owned the land for many many years and had slowly sold off parts of it. While Stan was cruising on his motorcycle one day he went & chatted it up with the son whose family owned this land.
Then, his crazy plan started to form...he decided that he wanted to buy the 5 1/2 acres with a creek, built their "dream home with lots of garages", and develop the land into a neighborhood. He wanted to divide the land into 6 oversized lots (a rarity in the area) ranging from 1/2 to 1 1/2 acres. Then, sell 4 lots off. Keeping one for their house & no suprise here, one for Brett & I to bulid on someday with our family! This was the ONLY way my mom went for his plan. If we would build on one of the lots so they could be steps away from seeing their grandbabies grow up! Plus, we all know who is going to be taking care of the Stan & Sal duo someday anyways.The plan went into full motion, but it was not easy. He had to deal with the city A LOT, which proved to be quite a challenge at times. Some things that had to be done before the house could even start: rezone & annex both sides of the land into the city of Carrollton, finish Marsh Lane, create a turn lane entrance into the neighborhood, create a cual-de-sac street for the 4 lots on the one side on the creek, bulid a huge stone wall, & landscaping.
Oh yes, then one day the workers discovered a natural-spring on the property. Pretty nice right? Yes, because my Dad owned it therefore he now had natural water right there. It turned out to be lots of water, enough to water all the lots once people buy them. We think that's a nice selling point too. This discovery brought on the whole "creek/reservior" phase into the project. I guess developing a neighborhood wasn't enough, he decided he wanted to use this natural-spring to have actual running water flowing through the existing creek. The best way to acheive this was to build a reservior in my parents backyard next to the creek. It looks like a big pool, but without chemicals. He had 2 waterfalls built. One at the beginning of the creek & one at the end connecting to the reservior. The water is pumped into the reservior and sent up & down the creek. Honestly, it seems like more work than a pool (which he said he didn't want again), but it turned out amazing! You can hear running water all the time when your outside & it's such a peaceful relaxing place to be!
He has sold 2 lots as of now! Yay! One family is already buidling their home. 2 more lots to sell. We have our fingers crossed that after he sells one more lot we can start our house! It really is wonderful, but has to be the right person looking to build their own home...stay tuned with what's to come next in Diamond Creek! That's the name of the neighborhood. Brett came up with the name & it was the winner!
I'm very happy for my parents to be finally moving into their "dream home." This house & neighborhood shows a lifetime of hard-work and love between a couple! :)
front of the house
front door/entry way
dining room & study
living room & the AMAZING kitchen
master bedroom & bathroom
master bath & closet (If you keep walking you end up in Sal's excersise room.)
view of the backyard
Stan's Domain
his garage doors & The Big Ass Fan (that's really the name of the fan.)
This is 5 car garage. He'll have a lift to stack a pair of cars in the back part.
Sal will NOT be parking in here. She'll park in the 3 car garage. Yes, that's 8 spots.
Those are the pulls in Stan's bar. Kinda fun!
View from my dad's "man room" first.
Next, is the view from the master bedroom & living room.
My parents want Emma Kate to come live with them! She has her own room & bathroom of course.
I continue to tell them that's she's with me! I'm sure she'll be visiting a lot though!
Here's a pic of the infamous reservior.
On the porch beside my dad's room.
