If you look at the site plan below, you'll see our lot -- number 31, over on the right side.

Why Lot 31?
If you wonder how we narrowed it down to choose the lot that we did ... well, it was more like that lot chose us. Most of the lots we liked were part of Phase 3 or 5 and won't be built on for some time yet. We were limited to looking at Phase 1 and Phase 2 lots (see site plan), plus a couple from Phase 3 or 4 that had special dispensation to be built on, because they adjoined a Phase I or II lot.

The early phase lots mostly didn't appeal to use because of their location in the inner part of the subdivision. Eventually, another lot will back up to each of those. I don't think Lillian Montalto quite understood our resistance to that -- she correctly pointed out that with each lot averaging an acre, that means nearly two wooded acres separating the back of one house from the back of the next, so it'll be remarkably private. Yet we resisted. We've lived for almost seven years within whispering distance of five neighbors, and this is our chance to finally have a truly private backyard. No question, we wanted a lot that backed up to the wooded open space bordering the development.

As dog owners, that makes a big difference in going for a walk too. It's one thing to get out collars and leashes and march through the neighborhood to get to the trails, and quite another to walk through our own backyard and right into the woods.

With that woods access as a major priority, and the limitation of which lots could be built on this early, it basically came down to Lot 31 or nothing. We were nervous the day in April we went to examine the lot -- if we didn't like it, we were prepared to walk away from the whole thing, no matter how much we liked the neighborhood and the home plans.

The big moment
We all trooped up to Lot 31 that day -- us, Bill's mom and dad, our realtor Dick Barrett and the builder Shep Spear. At first we were dismayed because we noticed a slope on the lot. It was pretty mild, just a slight grade, but could we have a low deck -- a major priority for us -- on a sloped lot? It was fairly flat at the edge of the property, then started sloping gently downward into the woods.

Shep showed us where the property lines were on the sides, and about how far back on the lot he envisioned the house being. He saw the slope more as an opportunity than an impediment, since it would allow for a nice walk-out basement.

Unsure, I walked back into the trees a short distance, followed by Bill and Dick. Within seconds we were out of sight of the road, completely surrounded by graceful birch, beech and pine trees. We kept walking farther and farther back. Even before I reached the end of our property, I knew we had found the right lot for us. The slope broadens and widens into a sunny valley of widely-spaced trees, and there's a little trail winding by. Bill and I started down the trail a short ways, and an enormous brown and yellow butterfly looped and swooped past us. "What's next," I said, laughing, "little robins alighting on our shoulders to sing a cheery song?!" :-) We were completely taken in by the beauty of the property.

Extensive discussion with Shep in the days since has convinced us the grade of the lot is extremely minor, and that we can figure out a way to keep the deck (or the deck stairs) from being too high. In other words, it's just about perfect.

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