WE BROKE GROUND TODAY! YAY!

We were supposed to break ground yesterday and our PMs told us on our Weekly Wednesday call that the machinery failed and they could not start which means we were disappointed when drove up to the lot.  They told us we were rescheduled for today, Thursday, May 19.  My hubster drove by the lot and this is what he saw--an opening--some progress but nothing to make us jump for joy.

and SO IT BEGINS!

I sent an email to our PMs letting them know what we witnessed and could they give us an update.  The email reply was an automatic reply from our PM who noted her absence for today and our SR is out on Thursday and Friday.  Thank GOD for two PMS!  I followed up another email addressing the other PM who sent us the picture above.
I AM TICKLED PINK!
We are leaving the office to check out the lot and take more pictures!!  YAAAY!

It's a STAKE out!!

This is the little gadget the surveyor uses for accurate measurements to stake out your lot.  It has a  picture of your entire plot plan. Look closely and you can view the plot plan of our lot.

We were scheduled to meet with our SR who showed up at 11:00 am and the surveyor showed up at the same time.  This timing was impeccable. We were able to catch him in action. He said it would only take 5 minutes to stake out the four corners; but I asked him to stake out other points so we can get a better since of the house layout.  He was very generous laying out the additional stakes per my request.  This made both my hubster and I very grateful so that we can get a sense of the layout.

This picture shows the young 23 year old engineer student with the additional stakes in his tote.
He is a senior at Towson University.

THE FIRST STAKE!  YAY!
He said once he stakes out the lot it is automatically sent through his gadget and they return for the next phase.  There are three phases to stake out the lot.  Phase 1 - the four corners  Phase II - The additional stakes for the foundation walls Phase III - Precise stake locations before foundation walls are installed for concrete guys to pour the concrete

BEFORE STAKE OUT!

AFTER STAKE OUT!
YOU CAN SEE ALL THE ADDITIONAL POINTS HE LAYED FOR US!

Breaking Ground

During our Weekly Wednesday check in call with our SR and PMs, they confirmed the plan to stake out our house on Monday, lay the rocks for the driveway etc etc etc which means this is the beginning of breaking ground on our lot and possibly digging the hole by the end of the week. We are scheduled to meet with our SR on Monday at 11:00 am to a take a picture with the new signage.  They replaced the signs and we no longer have a sold sticker on the new signage, so we decided to have her take a picture to get a full photo instead of a selfie.  We are not sure if it will be staked out at that time; but it's definitely scheduled to be staked out on Monday.  :-)  Unfortunately, my granddaughter will be in school but we will return so that all three us can be in the photo.  Our PMs told us that our building materials for our house will be delivered in June and we can expect closing in December.  They also said, we may get lucky and close in November since our basement will be unfinished along with good weather conditions.  Toll Brothers take approximately 6 - 8 months to deliver a home so we are happy to be on the schedule to close before the end of the year.  When we built our first townhouse with RH we closed the day before Xmas eve.  It was awesome; however, I pray we get to close in November before Thanksgiving.  

2nd Pre Construction Meeting

Today was our second pre construction meeting.  
We asked for this meeting in an effort to be on the same page with all of our selections because we had countless email communication between us, SR, PM, the Big Girl PM and the consultant at the Design Studio.  The meeting went well and we were able to identify and add some additional selections that were not noted.  For instance, we had no clue that the bannisters we saw in the model were NOT the standard bannisters.  I have walked into the room with the brick, stain door colors and bannister options many times and never paid attention to the bannister options sitting in the far corner.  I noticed that there were several options and our paper work reflected the standard.  I am so happy I saw them today to upgrade them to the white stylish option.  The standard was straight and boring.  I considered the iron balusters but with my decor the white was the better option.  We spent a lot time on the electrical and will visit after installation to be certain all fixtures are installed according to our placements.  We did not get the mother in law suite on the first floor as I hoped because the request was too late; however, we can still turn that room into the suite easily since the basement will be unfinished.  Overall, we are pleased and still waiting for the permit with the greenhouse revision.

How do you like your FRIDGE?

Check out the Video...I AM IN LOVE!

I absolutely love this refrigerator!  I love gadgets and technology!  This refrigerator won my HEART!  Which refrigerator did you choose and how do you like it or hope to enjoy it? I have found that the counter depth are really nice to align with the kitchen cabinets but they compromise on space.  I have not used it; however, looking on the inside it feels like there is some precious space missing.  I would suspect that with a minimum of two people the size should be sufficient but I am willing to differ.  In the meantime, I like the 28 cubic feet fridge with water dispenser and the additional features on this fridge just tickles me.  My only challenge will be syncing in up with the iPhone because this is a Samsung product.  I just switched from the Samsung note and feel inclined to switch.  I don't know how many times my hubster and  I would ask what is inside the fridge so that part of the app is a lot of fun.  Anyway, this is on the top of my WISH LIST! 

Getting Closer

We are getting closer..

We received word that the original permit was finally approved, the fees were identified, the check was written and the runner has returned it with our new structural revision of the greenhouse. Oh happy day!!  This means we are just two weeks or less from getting the new permit back so that we can get our lot staked and break ground.  In the meantime, we will meet with our SR and both PMs for another pre construction meeting on Tuesday, May 3, to be certain all of our customs, upgrades and options coordinate with the paperwork.

Buy a House in 2016

 We were clear having had sold our Ryan Home the Rome that we would purchase a new home to suit our fancy.  Well, we signed the purchase agreement on September 20, 2015, with the expectation that we would be moving into our new home at the beginning of the year.  A FRESH START, A FRESH YEAR!  As things would have it, we will be moving into our new home the YEAR 2016; however, little later in the year.

We are in a semi-stand still which we are managing to be patient, because partly we are the ones who chose this route.  First, we did not know Toll Brothers took 6-8 months to build your home, whereas, Ryan Homes could build your home within 72 to 90 days.  During our first round with Ryan Homes it took 72 days to build our townhouse and when we built our Rome in Fairwood, it took 120 days because of the weather and the additional customizations we requested for our home.

Secondly, this is a Toll Brother issue--the introduction of a new model that was never built in the community.  Prince George's County took nearly 4 months to approve the first permit/home, two months to approve the second permit (someone knew somebody that knew somebody) and our permit has taken over 5 months (along with inclement weather) and still waiting.

Third, we had plenty of time to study the home since we did not have a model to look at in the area.  None.  We were buying sight unseen.  During our research, we discovered a few structural upgrades to our home. We requested them and the suggestion was to wait for the original permit to return and submit a revision.  The permit was finally approved this week; however, we are still waiting for them to receive it permit to submit the revision.  Once the revision has been made to the permit and it is in hand of our PM, they will be able to stake our lot and schedule a date to break ground   We can't wait.  Our prayer is that we can break ground in May with the expectation of a settlement date in late September or October.  This means we officially accomplished our goal to buy a house and move into our new home in 2016.
YES!