Living | Christy Baker

The Nissleys’ family room is brightly decorated with long strands of paper leaves and several cheerful, cut-out owls. Maria Nissley, 19, recently celebrated her high-school graduation and the décor is in her honor. Her youngest sibling, Anna, 16, helped make the whimsical garlands and critters and has decided, informally, to leave them up for awhile [...]

Living | Christy Baker

Tucker Comer, 2, is learning all about the wide world of nature in his parents’ Gordonsville backyard. (Photo by Marcy May Photography) Challenge: Integrating a toddler into the garden By Elexis Comer’s estimation, her family’s garden plot is over 3,000 square feet. She has pictures of her husband, Jamie, preparing the bed in early spring [...]

Living | Christy Baker

Karina Hange’s bedroom functions as a sanctuary, a place where she can relax, get work done and ultimately, be herself by herself. “[My brothers] aren’t really allowed to come into my room. Ever.” (Photo by Cramer Photo) Karina Hange (15) just got her learner’s permit and her younger brothers (Kristopher, 12 and Lukas, 8) are [...]

Living | Christy Baker

  (Photo by Cramer Photo) According to 10-year-old Jake Bowling, his dad, Jim, is pretty into the family’s backyard basketball court. “He loves it. He gets out there a lot and shoots hoops.” And dad isn’t the only one. “We do other stuff,” says Jake. “We do [play] basketball, but we just basically play around [...]

Living | Christy Baker

 It’s been three snotty, sore-throated weeks in the Baker household. After a lovely snowed-in weekend with family up in Philadelphia, we brought home some belated Christmas gifts and what we have been referring to as the Demon Cold from Hell. The sickness first hit me on the return drive to Charlottesville. My two sons, Pierce [...]

Living | Christy Baker

GROWING ROOM How to be the cool uncle Challenge: Prepping an adults-only space for young visitors Mark Farmwald’s loft apartment acts as his bachelor pad, commercial photography and film studio, gallery of sorts, and office. Lighting equipment, rolls of paper and glossy prints populate the vast 1,400-square-foot space. The décor incorporates quintessential modern design (marble-top [...]

Living | Christy Baker

GET REAL Location, location, education Having kids changes everything—including what’s important when you’re buying a house. Suddenly, a walk-in closet matters less than which school the neighborhood kids attend. According to Charlottesville-based Realtor Erin Garcia, of Loring Woodriff Real Estate Associates, school district is in the top five determining factors for families purchasing homes. When [...]

Living | Christy Baker

Stacey Smith with Maia, age 7 and Hall, age 4. Photo by John Robinson. Upside of a downsize Challenge: Moving to a smaller home and embracing the change The sad state of our economy has forced many to downsize, adjust and rethink how they live. Stacey Smith of Charlottesville recently made the tough decision to take [...]

Living | Christy Baker

Despite the massive construction site not 50 yards from their Fry’s Spring front porch, Rob and Adrienne Dent maintain a joyfully serene home. Just inside the front door, the family’s shoes are neatly tucked into old wooden post office mailboxes. Their children, Laurel (7) and Alden (6), drag out a painted vintage suitcase and happily [...]

Living | Christy Baker

 The Gallaghers’ in-ground backyard pool shimmers in the summer afternoon light, offering a welcome respite from Charlottesville’s August heat. A child-proof, gated safety fence keeps Caitlin and Sean’s two young children, Amelia (4) and Brendan (2) from venturing into the water alone. Managing a safe environment in and around the family pool has been an [...]

Living | Christy Baker

Problem: Deciding what stays and what goes Erin and Mike Garcia have lived, with their two children—Elias (4) and Charis (2)—in their 1950s Fry’s Spring home for a little over a year. Their relocation from Crozet was prompted by the desire to be closer to town and their offices (Erin is a local Realtor and [...]

Living | Christy Baker

Problem: Making room for play, no matter what the weather Becky Scott and Andy Orban’s backyard stretches past several stately oak trees and down to a creek nearly a hundred yards behind their North Downtown home. Their children, Nathaniel and Carrie (3-and-a-half years and 22 months, respectively), are outside nearly every day, now that spring [...]

Living | Christy Baker

 “We’re in a tower right now,” explains Sam Gorman, 15. Sam and his brother Max, 13, are showing me around what their mom, Susan, refers to as their “man cave.” High up in their Nelson County home, the room consists of video game paraphernalia, TV, computer and a funky green velvet couch propped up on [...]

Living | Christy Baker

 Problem: Welcoming a baby into a small apartment From the northeastern window of the Sparling family’s fifth-floor Charlottesville apartment in the 90-year-old Altamont Circle building, you can see rooftops, steeples and the gray-blue edge of the mountains. The approximately 750-square-foot space is home to 7-month-old Arlie Pearl, her parents and two medium-sized dogs. What this [...]