our neighborhood

In the hectic-ness of my first trimester of pregnancy (not the most fun...), 
adjusting to my new job (and new 4:30am wake up call - thank you market hours!), and 
studying for the CFA, 
I never had time to update you on our move.

When we found out I was pregnant, we knew we needed to find a new abode.  We loved our little Pacific Heights one-bedroom, but knew we couldn't swing it with a newborn and no washing machine, no dishwasher, and no extra space to put a baby (let alone all the goodies that come with it).

Since we weren't (and still aren't) sure on exactly where we want to end up, we decided to continue renting.  But it didn't take us long to figure out that the rental market in SF was completely and totally insane.  The type of place we wanted in Pac Heights would easily end up setting us back $5000-6000 a month.  And you'd have to compete with copious other eager renters (with freshly baked cookies in hand) to get it.

After much searching (and me telling Stefan we would NEVER find anything), Stefan stumbled upon a gorgeous little spot in the Sunset - an area we had never heard of before.  While we were unfamiliar, we knew it was right on Golden Gate Park (perfect for long runs and walks) and closer to my commute down to Palo Alto.  Seemed like a win-win.

We headed over to the open house and found no less than 50 people waiting outside.  We pushed ourselves inside and immediately fell in love: it had a fireplace, gorgeous molding and details, a backyard, a washing machine and dishwasher (what luxury!!) and two nice, sunny, airy bedrooms.

Stefan quickly starting chatting the rental agent up, but it was hugely apparent everyone else there was trying to do the same thing.  This place was going to be competitive.  And there's nothing the two of us like more than some good competition.

Without any further thought, we went immediately home to fill out an application (complete with letter and pictures of the two us).  We sent it in and then Stefan called the agent to sweet talk her some more.  
And tell her we'd be willing to move in the next day.
And pay six months rent in cash in advance.

We moved in three days later.

Only thing was that we hadn't really done our due diligence on the neighborhood.  As we walked out to get a bite to eat (our kitchen still in boxes), we discovered we'd landed ourselves in little Asia:

Our dinner options included some intriguing choices:

While we were first quite nostalgic for our old stomping ground, we've grown to love our little neighborhood.  It has all the essentials: La Boulange, Citibank, Walgreens, a better-than-Whole-Foods grocery, an awesome Thai take-out joint, and really, REALLY cheap laundry and nail salons.  Plus, we've discovered all sorts of little hidden treasures along the way: case in point.  Come visit and you'll see! :)

xoxo
KK