When we started this journey following
Cindy Conaway and Chris Whann, they were moving upstate and looking to buy their first home.

(To read along, search Choosing a Home on SimplySaratoga.com)

“What we wanted was a mid-century ranch house within walking distance from downtown (or at least a place to get coffee) and a local pool, either in Saratoga Springs, Glens Falls or Ballston Spa.

What we are buying is... not that. 

But it is…an “Open Concept Split Bedroom Layout” house at a price we can afford, with the interior design style planned to our liking, a potential for aging in place, and as “green” as we can afford.”

Cindy tells us…

“I may have never wanted a house
but am excited to see the vision come to life.”

We moved in last fall, and the furniture fit just fine, including our new mid-century modern shelving for our tons of books and memorabilia collected from our travels. The gardening service hydroseeded the lawn before the snow started, and in addition to the trees and bushes we were entitled to (named Cherry Seinfeld, Matthew Pear-y, and David Hydrangea Pierce) we purchased a Kousa Dogwood for the backyard. Insulating the 3-season room turned out to be a poor idea - for our desire to provide a cat-free plant sanctuary. I had hoped to emulate Aerin Lauder’s “napping porch” from Architectural Digest, even though our sunroom is 1/3 the size and vintage Italian Bonacina chairs were not in our budget. The Pottery Barn chairs and tables from the MOMA Design Store give a similar vibe. We bought a black walnut dining table from Black Dragon Antiques and chairs from The Furniture House. Our friend Betty, an artist, sent us a painting that would look great nearby.  (The artwork install and kitchen backsplash didn’t make the photo shoot unfortunately)

Our kitchen is beautiful with space for everything—so different from apartment living.  The house is so easy to entertain in, including hosting 40 for our annual Chanukah party and our wedding weekend in June. With a tent on the driveway and seating in and out of the house – including the island AND a sunroom! - there was plenty of space. It was a lovely weekend and Rainer's Gourmet Catering was fabulous.

I started a six-month sabbatical in February, and, knowing that June was going to be very full with the wedding, I got right to work on a scholarly book, an exploration of Seinfeld’s cast and crew, in my cozy office.

Sometimes I miss just calling a super or the landlord and I don’t go downtown for coffee as often as I hoped. But overall, we are very pleased. I still marvel at the beauty of our bathrooms.

I never wanted a house, but I love the one I got.