I still feel like a little boy within. I have a hard time looking in the mirror and recognizing a real adult. You might have thought the birth of my 2nd child would have changed it, but I still appear to be in self-denial of the aging process.

In regards to aging — or instead putting it off — my wife and I bought a brand new house and this house possesses room in the basement for the exercise room my dear wfe had always sought. But I’m seeing dollar signs when I ponder the many big and small items necessary, from the essential but oft-forgotten weight benches and fitness mats to determining the most versatile stationary bicycle.

An exercise bike can be tricky these days. Do I buy a recumbent or an upright exercise bike? Should you choose an analog or electronic?

And then my wife seems determined to get one of those elliptical machines too. You understood that correctly. An exercise bicycle and an elliptical trainer — not just one or the other. My estimate is that it will go with the stretch mark cream she began utilizing after she bore our youngest child. Oh boy I’m gonna get it for that joke.

I have to be particular with our budget because our new home is more of a fixer-upper. We required it to be this way, yet we still have to carefully budget every little thing, down to the cabinet knobs (I’m not jesting). My dear wife has an ambitious cabinet refacing design planned, but must remind her the sinks for the bathrooms she wishes put in shall cost a fair amount, as well.

Gratefully, she and I both appreciate the natural, rustic style, so we’re furnishing our new house with unfinished furniture. Of course, it still requires some finishing, but she and I can keep our expenses down and create better furniture than we might find in any store.

I found a good table for coffee with some decent, natural knotting and a console table in matching cherry wood. For our outdoor patio we’re exploring outdoor fireplaces and we will go with a little inexpensive furniture made with wicker to start.

Providing for a new home might seem so mature, but I cannot help but sense I am merely playing house. The new exercise equipment and furniture merely feel like a new era of playthings.