Story Time

When I started this blog a few years ago. I was interviewing successful people and finding more about their careers. I wanted my life to be theirs. As time has gone on I have realized I am slowly becoming the person I want to become. The key is patience and being consistent. If there is anyone interested in being interviewed and having an article written about them I would love to do lunch.

I also love to write and have taken advantage of this blog to share things that I have written as well as using the blog it to promo my job as a loan officer.

I love being a loan officer. I have never been so happy with a job and its starting to turn into a career. I love helping people make their dreams come true of getting into a home or building their dream home.

I have written a very short story where a doll is given a great opportunity and everything falls into place.

"I remember the day like it was yesterday. Her mom carried me up the steep stairs. As she pushed open the door to her daughters room I fell in love. As I peered through the clear plastic of the box I was stuck in I saw a bedroom filled with a pretty blue castle, beautiful dress-up dresses, magical wands and bright yellow stars that covered the ceiling.

My eyes moved around the room scanning the walls covered in pictures of fellow princess’s. I instantly spotted the purple roof of my soon to be new home. As I looked inside I had never seen so many chairs and beds. Each bed was carefully decorated with hand stitched blankets and soft woolens.

The mother handed me to the child and as my new friend pulled me out of the package she screamed for joy. I looked up and saw her tiny freckled nose and big rosy cheeks. We looked into each others eyes and instantly we were best friends. I was everything she needed. She was everything I needed. She hugged me and didn’t let go for what seemed like hours. The painted smile on my face grew even wider.

We played together until darkness filled her window and her mother called her to go to bed. She took me by the hand and carefully placed me in the sheets beside her. She fell fast asleep with me tenderly in her arms.

Then the real magic began. All of my new friends came to pull me from her tight grasp. Each princess greeted me with open arms. They complimented me on my fine made yellow sparkling dress and long gloves. They all wanted to try on my shoes. After spending time getting to know each other we decided it was time for some fun and a pajama party. The music was turned on and the party began. I had never danced to my own song, “Tale as old as time”.

Throughout the night we took care rides with the top of the convertible down, the other girls fought over sitting next to Prince Eric. We went on horseback rides through the mountains. We made a fire, told ghost stories and roasted marshmallows. My favorite part of the night consisted of changing in and out of endless dresses and clothes. I never thought in my wildest dream I would try on Aurora’s beautiful pink dress. I was even more surprised when when I squeezed into Rapunzels purple dress. I never thought a princess could have so much fun. I never wanted to night to end.

As the soft morning light began to peek through the blinds we quickly cleaned up our mess, fixed our bed and put everything back in it proper and precise place. The princess’s then helped me climb back on top of the bed, under the sheets and into the little girls arms. It was the best night of my life."  

Do you want to build a snowman??

After listening to my little girl sing "Do you want to building a snowman?" for the 1,000th time and after spending way too much time watching the mens USA hockey team beat Russia, my mind was fixed on the frozen tundra, I am not sure why and I am not sure what these has to do with building a home but I hope to figure that out by the end of the post.
I have created a few simple steps to take when building a home.

First, figure out a budget of some sort. Figure out what you want to pay each month, and for how long. Most people I build a home plan on staying there for a long time, if that's not you then why do you want to build? Be smart about it, no one wants to house poor, especially if you are building your dream home. Learn whats its going to heat and cool your home. What much do you need for a down payment and money to furnish your new home.

Once, you have a number in your head I strongly suggest before doing any lot shopping or floor plan laying out that you meet with a loan office and find out exactly what you qualify for and what a monthly payment would be. You will have two loans, one is a construction loan that will be moved to a permanent loan once the construction is complete.

Typically building a home costs between $130-$160 a square foot. That does not include the lot and the more bells and whistles your home has the price will keep going up.

Once, you have decided upon numbers and budgets go find a contractor, talk to friends, talk to people who have built before. A good contractor will make all the difference, he will help with making every decision along the way, all the way from paint to sinks. He will have worked with good subcontractors and no all the ins and outs.

A lot of contractors know builders or if you already have found a lot make sure you know everything about the lot, setbacks, weird easements, etc...

Once you have built your home the loan will switch from temporary to permanent and you will be on your way to creating lasting memories and a place to build a snowman or watch the olympics on the big tv! (there I did it I came full circle)