our place: A New Start

I have a confession to make... we're in the middle of renovating our new live/work space! Hopefully we'll be able to move in within the next few weeks. And did I mention that I'm supposed to be giving birth in about 5 weeks?

So, here's how this development came about: We've been living with my parents since we moved back to Utah last year, and renting a separate studio. But when we found out I was pregnant, I decided that we needed our own living space. Preferably with a workspace attached. We looked high and low in our town, but decided that we couldn't afford something large enough for both living and working. So we started looking further afield... and discovered that real estate is very very affordable in the charming Sanpete County. 

We had found several promising listings online, I was in touch with a real estate agent, and we were planning a little scouting trip down there. But then I happened to mention it to my parents...



Although they were completely understanding of our desire to have our own place to live, they were really sad to think of us moving away with their grandchild (it would be about a 2-3 hour drive). Their first grandchild lives across the country, and they obviously miss him a lot, so they really wanted to be able to keep our Ingrid (grandchild #2) close.

As a result, they proposed that we turn part of their walkout basement into a separate apartment... a live/work space! We liked the idea. It would allow us to stay close to both of our families and all our friends in the Provo and Salt Lake areas. But we didn't bring it up for the entire month we were working in New York to see if they were really serious about it. Turns out they were.

So... we've been busy clearing out the space, planning, renovating, etc... This big unfinished part will house the studio (office area, shipping area, printing area, inventory area) along with a small kitchen and laundry area. There will be a door through to the bedroom and bathroom where we've been living. On the other side of our bedroom is a large entryway that we're turning into a cozy little living room. There's a staircase leading from that living room up to the main part of my parents' house, but we've already had a wall built and a door hung to separate our space from theirs. Oh - and our bedroom had two built in bed nooks that Kirk demoed to make room for the door to the studio and for Ingrid's  corner.

We'll be in close but comfortable quarters when we're through with it. I just wish it were already done! It'll be a great situation for our family business and new baby. I can just walk through a door to get from the studio to the bedroom/nursery where I'll feed Ingrid and put her down for naps. We'll have our own private space, but will still be close to my parents. (Although I don't want to take advantage of them, I'm sure they'll be happy to help out with Ingrid here and there!) And even though we are paying for the renovations and will begin paying utilities and rent, it will still be more affordable than renting out a similar live/work space somewhere else.

We feel so grateful towards my parents. By sharing their house with us, they've really allowed us to take the leap into making Sycamore Street Press a full-time career for both of us. Since Kirk joined me over a year ago, our little company has been able to grow so much more than if I'd still been trying to do it on my own. Now we'll have Ingrid in the studio with us as well... we can't wait!

I'll keep you updated on our renovations, etc... if that's something you lovely readers are interested in...