Some people watch TV, play video games, or click around YouTube for hours. I am a unique breed. I look at houses for sale. I somehow stumbled upon the idea of doing this five years ago - shortly after securing my first job in Joplin, Mo. I knew I didn't want to live there forever, let alone even two years. I knew I wouldn't buy a house there, but it was just so exciting to plan out my future. I've gone in spurts over the past five years of looking and not looking. Lately though, it's been turned to full throttle. Lucas and I are very serious about buying a house in the near future. I even convinced him to go to our first open houses.
The first house (pictured on the left) is just north of the Ingersoll district. I really like this area of town. It's close to I-235 and downtown but still convenient to West Des Moines. It's nearly 100 years old but well kept. Unfortunately, the space was weirdly divided upstairs. Lucas isn't sold on buying an older home, but I love them. I am still open to buying a newer home, which is why we looked at the second house (pictured on the right). Being built in the '80s, the Urbandale abode has a nice split level design, a great deck, and a lovely wooded backyard. Lucas fell in love. It wasn't perfect though, and we really aren't looking to buy until February/March. Maybe it's too early for the open houses. I don't want to keep breaking his poor little heart. My heart as gone through dozens of crushes over the years and knows there are many great houses out there for us to