As promised, I’m finally giving you a tour of our new home. Jessa, Liam, and I have officially moved out of our past setup and into this house in Samboan, Cebu. It’s a rental, and the plan is to stay here for about 18 months while we find the perfect land and build our dream home from scratch. We’ve already got the house design in mind; we just need the right plot to put it on.
The property is mostly fenced in, which is great for the boys, though I need to add some netting to one section where the wall is a bit low to keep the neighbor's dogs out. We have a small caretaker house on the lot, but we don't have anyone living there full-time. We might hire some help for cleaning later—being full-time parents and working means our time is precious—but for now, we're handling things ourselves.
We’re paying 20,000 pesos a month for this place, which includes a part-time caretaker who handles the trash and keeps the grounds in order. For the view and the space we have, I feel it’s a fair deal.
Inside, the kitchen is one of the highlights. It’s spacious and bright—the perfect spot for my morning cereal and coffee. We aren't fancy people; we still use coffee sticks, though Jessa found some slightly healthier Stevia options. We also have a "snack cabinet" for Liam, which we’ve had to child-proof because he figured out how to open it almost immediately!
Since I’ve managed to scale back my work hours, we actually get some quality family time in the living room in the evening. We have some simple wooden chairs with cushions that work like a charm for my back. We’ve also limited Liam’s TV time to less than an hour a day; he’s much happier playing around the house now that he has more room.
The house actually has bedrooms upstairs, but since Liam is still little, we decided to set up our main bedroom on the ground floor for safety. The upstairs has become more of a storage area for my gear and a guest space for when family visits. I’ve even set up a "provisional" office in the living room using some spare furniture and pillows for back support. It’s not a permanent setup, but it allows me to work while still being close to Jessa and Liam.
The best part of the house, though, is the balcony. When the sun goes down and the air cools, there is nothing better than sitting out there with a cold beer and looking out over the mountains. It’s incredibly peaceful.
While we love this place, it’s strictly a rental for us. The owner’s asking price to buy it is just too high, and if we were to own a home, there are so many things we’d want to change. By building ourselves, we can get exactly what we want—stronger, safer, and exactly to our taste—for less than half the cost.
Thanks for following along on our journey. See you in the next one!
