I have debated whether to go ahead and post these "before" pics of our new flat now or wait until we get it all set up and post before and after pics together. Obviously, I decided to go ahead and share some photos, BUT I feel the need to make a few disclaimers/explanatory comments.
First, I hope that it will be clear to anyone who looks at these that painting is going to be an immediate priority! We already have painters lined up to come the day after we sign the contract, so we will NOT be living in a red and yellow house. Currently, even the ceilings are bright yellow! I mean, if they had tweaked it just a bit and gone with garnet and gold, we might have considered it (not really!), but bright yellow walls AND ceilings are just too much.
Second, because we live in the desert (well, in a huge city surrounded by desert), any surface that is not frequently cleaned ends up disgustingly dirty. This apartment hasn't been cleaned in a while, so all of the floors in these photos are VERY dirty. There is nice white tile underneath, though, and a little soapy water and a big mop will have them looking great again soon!
So when we're looking at apartments, we have to look past certain easily-fixable things to see the things that really are most important (layout, location, etc.--the same kinds of things you would look for in a house). We had to do some explaining to the kids about why we didn't want to choose another apartment that was located very close to this one. That apartment had normal, muted paint colors and was sparkling clean, but the layout and size were not quite as appealing as this one. We can fix paint and dirt, but we can't fix a bedroom that's too small for our furniture!
Okay, so here we go on the Grand Tour:
The door in this photo is the entrance to the apartment. That spot to the left will be perfect for our shoe cabinet. In this part of the world, it's customary to take your shoes off when you enter someone's home, so we make a habit of doing that at our house, too. The door is sort of located in the middle of the apartment. When you walk in, a large living area is in front of you, and then the hallway you see above leads back to the rest of the house (kitchen, bathrooms, & bedrooms). First, the living area...
This is the view directly forward from the front door. The area by the window will most likely be our school "room," and then in front of that (nearer the door) will be our dining table.
I took this photo standing in the same spot, but turned slightly to the right. The sliding doors lead to a balcony that overlooks the mosque and small garden area in front of our building.
And this photo is also taken from the same spot, turned a little more to the right. Where Sawyer is standing (what is he doing, anyway?), we'll put our living room furniture (couches, love seat, recliner and entertainment center). I love the windows across the side wall. While they do add to the heat some in the summer, I am a big fan of sunlight, and this room will have lots of it!
If you turn around and walk past the front door and down the hall, the first door you come to is the kitchen.
Our dishwasher will fit nicely in the spot right by the sink. The empty spot on the right side is where the oven will go. There's not an oven in the apartment, so we'll get to purchase our own. On the other side of the kitchen (where I stood to take the photo) is an empty space that will be good for a small table and chair and possibly some shelving or storage of some kind. We're not sure exactly what we're going to do with that space, but we're excited to have it! The kitchen also has a door that opens to a tiny balcony.
As you continue down the hall, you come next to the guest bathroom.
I don't have a lot to say about the bathroom, except that it will work fine. Our washing machine will probably also be in this bathroom (with our dryer possibly in the other one). Washers are usually located in either the kitchen or the bathroom, and dryers are almost unheard of, so there's never a good spot for them.
The three bedrooms are all close together in the back of the house. First, Sawyer's room...
then the girls' in the back corner. I'm not sure why this room got left stark white when every other inch of the house is ridiculously bright! Ironically, the girls want to paint their room teal, so it won't be plain for much longer!
The girls' room has doors that lead to a balcony off the back of the apartment, but we're probably going to end up putting some furniture in front of them. We can still get to the balcony from our room, and it will work best with the girls' furniture to use that wall (plus, then we don't have to worry about kids going out there unsupervised!).
Finally, the last bedroom is the master.
The red wall has some texturing in it that we'll probably just leave and paint over. The other three walls (and ceiling!) are yellow. We'll be changing that to something a bit more understated.
Here's the master bathroom...
and here's a view back down the hallway from the end.
And that completes our tour! We very much look forward to showing you updated pictures as we get things painted, bought, moved in, and unpacked. We are excited about living life here.
And here's one final picture: This poor building is across the street from ours, and it was meeting its demise the day we went to take these pics. The buildings here are made entirely of concrete and rebar, so that's what the big machine was (loudly!) working on demolishing. Sawyer watched, mesmerized, as it worked, and must have said at least six times, "That machine is AWESOME!"
As you can see, the building next door to it is also unoccupied, but there are plenty of other buildings with residents in the neighborhood. It is a quiet area, but located just two short blocks from a major street with all kinds of stores, restaurants, and other places that we'll frequent. We are so grateful to have found a place that we believe will work so well for our family, and we're looking forward to all that is in store as we settle in this new part of town!
