Lakeside home in Georgetown has country feel, convenient location

At 124 Merganser Court in Georgetown, homeowners Bill and Sandy Gaither are all about peaceful living.

When you step inside, just beneath your feet is a large yinyang inlay made from Brazilian hardwood. The living room is a tranquil blue, and beautiful crystal chandeliers hang above the entryway and over the dining room table.

And hardly any two ceilings are alike. Each has some kind of arched design or unique lighting.

“We didn’t want a cookie cutter house,” Bill said.

They had it custom built about 14 years ago, down a big hill at the edge of a lake. They had all three daughters living at home at the time, and it was a good time to make the move from Louisville as Bill did work for Toyota.

The family practices tai chi and martial arts, and their daughters are all black belts. Sandy follows feng shui, so every item and piece of furniture is arranged harmoniously.

“We wanted a country setting but close to the city, where we don’t have to drive an hour to go to the theater. And we didn’t want to have to deal with traffic,” Bill said.

The fireplace was supposed to be built against the far wall of the living room, but Bill wondered why they would put it there when they have such a view.

So they put in large, arched windows, letting in lots of sunlight and the view of the huge lake just behind the home.

“This is a game preserve, so about six to 10 deer come to the house and eat corn every day. We have opossums, raccoons and squirrels. We’ve had some river otter and beaver in the lake. We feed the ducks. We really like the nature part of it,” he said. “The views out are just unbelievable. In the winter, we’ve got ice and snow (on the lake), and it looks like a postcard.”

The master bathroom has a stained-glass window over the bathtub depicting Sandy’s favorite flowers. It also has two spacious walk-in closets.

“This house was built for a family,” Bill said.

The kitchen has a connected laundry room, solid wood cabinets and quartz and granite countertops (and, not to mention, a friendly turtle by the window in the dining area).

Going up the stairs, there’s a glass oriental design on the wall, complimenting the living room’s yinyang inlay.

The upstairs bedrooms were originally supposed to have one bathroom, but with twin daughters, Bill said they just couldn’t do that. He put in two bathrooms with separate walk-in closets, and each of his daughters’ bathrooms has a custom vanity. There’s also a large bonus room, perfect for his kids to get away from ‘the evil parents,’ he said.

“The guy building it said, ‘Nobody needs this much storage.’ I said, ‘You wouldn’t believe.’,” he said. It has an intercom system and a built-in chest that holds the family’s assortment of board games.

In the basement is a gym, a theater room, sitting area and lots of storage space. The bedroom has a handicapped-accessible shower.

Lots of natural light pours into the space, with many windows looking out over that perfect, peaceful lake.

“We get the morning sun, and we have beautiful sunrises,” Bill said. “We spend time out on the deck. The (grandkids) like to come out here and play. In the summertime, I like to get out here about 6 o’clock, when the sun’s starting to break.”

The house and each neighbor have a private dock and most have boats, and Bill said they’ve enjoyed fishing and boating on the lake that’s only for area residents.

“There are restrictions on the boat and motor size, so it’s family friendly. There’s a lot of swimming and paddle boarding that goes on,” he said.

When they first moved in, he said he was wowed at the house itself and the surrounding property, but after a while, it became a home.

“You’re going home instead of ‘going to the house,” he said. “There’s a big difference. We built it for a family, and that’s who needs to be here.”