Eeeee! That’s my delighted dolphin sound — I do an impressively dramatic impression when I’m extra excited (according to my kids). I’m thrilled to share a tour of our new Florida house as it looked the first time we saw it back in February. That was also the last time we viewed it in person, since our spring break trip was cancelled and we’ve been staying put at home. A lot has changed in the months since — both because of the global pandemic and due to the renovations our contractor and his small, socially distanced crew have completed. What felt unlivable then has steadily been fixed over the last several weeks.
When we first walked through there were holes in the floor, no working AC, and a bathroom where the sink had been sitting in the bathtub. Fast forward a little and those problems have been addressed: the floors are repaired, the AC runs, and the bathroom has a functioning toilet. This house sat on the market for over eight and a half months in a charming neighborhood only a few blocks from the beach — it scared people off because of its issues, but we are so excited it waited for us. The outdoor spaces and the gorgeous old trees sealed the deal. There is a lot to love here.
We wish we could be there in person overseeing every detail, but we can live with a few more weeks of renovating from afar. By the end of the first week of May the house should be livable enough for us to move in — just in time for the Pod we shipped from Richmond to arrive. We’ve been working for months toward one big goal: owning one smaller house and actually living in it. Downsizing was a challenge — packing everything for the new home into one Pod felt like a giant game of Tetris — but it already feels worth it.
We’ll share a lot more about the renovation process on our upcoming podcast and in future posts, including progress photos as projects unfold. For now, here’s the before tour.
When you step in the front door you get this view. Yes, that is a hole in the floor — water damage was a recurring issue when we toured the house:
The main living area on the first floor will be a combined kitchen and dining zone with a casual seating area. Ignore the soffits and the mauve counters for now — the centered sink window brings lovely light and a nice view. This room is deeper than it looks (about 25 feet) and will be a flexible space for cooking, eating, and hanging out. There’s enough room for a dining table and a cozy spot for reading or board games.
The door on the left in that photo is a closet that houses the water heater and HVAC, with a little storage room for a broom or vacuum. Facing the front door from the kitchen, the original wall paneling throughout the house felt full of charm to us. We were smitten by the many big glass doors that open onto the wooded lot — there are twelve of those doors in total across the house, and the setting under the magnolias and oaks is beautiful.
It rained the day we toured, but the house still felt bright thanks to all those windows. Fun little superstition: it’s rained the first time we’ve seen every house we’ve bought — so when it rained in Florida we joked that meant we were absolutely going to buy it.
If you walk around the peninsula pictured earlier and turn left, you come to what used to be a formal living room. We immediately realized that would make a perfect bedroom. Closing off the wider opening and removing an odd triangular post will create a private wall for our bed, with six large glass doors that we can wake up to every morning.
From inside the bedroom, looking back toward the kitchen, once the larger opening is drywalled we’ll have a private sleeping space with a separate entry. We’re dreaming of bamboo privacy shades and breezy white curtains to soften the light. Outside those six doors there’s already a lovely grouping of trees; we plan to create a little private patio so we can sit out in the shade and enjoy the green view.
Stepping further into the bedroom, there’s a fireplace wall that we have big plans for. I can’t wait for cozy mornings with the kids, a fire going, and that light pouring in from the doors and windows. We’ll likely install an electric or gas insert depending on what makes the most sense when we’re living there and weighing options.
On the right side of that shot you can see two more big glass doors, bringing the total in that room to eight. They lead to a small side deck that’s roughly 10 by 10 feet — the perfect footprint for adding an ensuite bathroom and closet in the future. When we toured the house it was listed with fewer bedrooms and a single bathroom, but this small porch presented an obvious opportunity to expand and create a second bathroom down the road. Until then, we’ll share the hallway bath.
Trees surround the property everywhere — zero turf to mow — which thrilled us. We even gave our mower away. Walking out of the bedroom back toward the kitchen, the layout becomes clearer and you can see how the rest of the house connects. That missing floor spot is more obvious from this angle.
There’s an oddly deep closet that opens into what was the only true bedroom with a closing door. It felt strange that a closet would connect to the kitchen like a secret passage, but that layout actually solves a storage and flow problem we’ll detail in a future floor plan post.
After renovations began, we learned the water damage was more extensive than expected. The crew had to remove first-floor drywall and repair hidden leaks — a blessing in disguise, since we avoided discovering a major leak after moving in. Seeing the repairs under way confirmed we made the right decision tackling this house.
Down the hallway is the linen closet and the only bathroom the house had at purchase. At the time it wasn’t functional: the vanity had been removed and the sink was placed in the tub — more evidence of the water challenges we found. That bathroom will be fully restored before we settle in.
The bedroom that will become our daughter’s room had a standard eight-foot ceiling in the before photos; since then it has been vaulted and planked, and the transformation is dramatic. She also has two glass doors that open to a small side porch — we may replace them with a picture window or keep them for light while locking them permanently for safety.
Next to the bathroom was a large laundry room that we’ve repurposed as our son’s room; that ceiling was vaulted and planked too, and it completely changed the feel of the space. On the wall were small drawings we later learned were created by a local artist who once lived in the house decades ago. That connection to the house’s history felt special, and we photographed the artwork before the damp drywall had to be removed so we can preserve it.
Upstairs there’s a huge, light-filled flex space that will serve as our main living area, office, and kids’ art spot. It opens onto a large deck and feels airy and bright — perfect for work and play. We’ll keep bedrooms on the same floor so the kids don’t have to go up and down stairs at night, and the upstairs space will act like a communal basement-style area with a great outdoor hangout.
The floors throughout are old pine, like our previous beach house, and we plan to refinish and clear-seal them. Parts are already sanded and they look gorgeous. Outside, we have a covered side porch and an outdoor shower that will eventually lead to a pool — more outdoor living to enjoy with minimal lawn care.
A small serendipitous moment: after touring the house we signed the offer over lunch at a local spot that had a tiny gift shop with a single book — illustrated by the very same artist who once lived here. It felt like a wink from the universe. We signed quickly, and as our plane touched down at home we learned our offer had been accepted.
This project has been a wild ride so far, but we are thrilled for what’s ahead. We’ll keep sharing updates, progress photos, and plans as we renovate and settle into this special little house.