Well, we’re finally here!

Welcome to our home:

We still have a ton of pictures and curtains to hang, but we’re here and we’ve gotten a lot done in just 5 days.  The rooms not shown are no where near as done. Our kitchen chairs are still not finished being painted white, we have a stroller in the kitchen (why?), I just was able to clear out the boxes in the play room/office a few hours ago, and Savannah’s room is a mess with a million stuffed animals, and every room is in desperate need of things on the walls.  But, it’s looking so good and we’re loving having our own space! After 5 days it’s starting to feel less like a hotel I designed and more like our home.

And, I have to brag on Savannah for a moment: She has done amazing with so many changes this week. Not just moving from the only house she’s ever known, but also moving out of her crib into a big bed AND saying goodbye to passy. All in one night!  I truly thought that giving up the passy would be the hardest, but she easily has forgotten about it without a single tear and has not asked for it since we told her the passy doesn’t come with her to the big girl room.  The only issues we’ve had is getting her to sleep the first few nights, understandably since it’s a whole new place AND bed. And then, she would wake up around 3am and be wide awake for 2 hours before finally giving into to sleep again (oh, the sleep deprived frustrations!).  I still think that’s minor to what it could have been, and thankfully each night has improved as she is getting even more comfortable. I can’t believe how grown up she seems in just the last few days, her third birthday is just 11 days away. Crazy!

And now, back to hanging and unboxing things…

Paint? check.

Blinds? check.

Curtains? check.

Shower Curtain rods? check.

Washer and Dryer? check.

Uhaul truck? check.

Guess what we’re doing this weekend? MOVING! All we need is some furniture and food and our then house is finally our home.

It’s amazing what some paint, blinds, and curtains can do to a house making it feel more cozy. I’m excited to see it all come together with our things instead of just pieces here and there.  I’m excited for it to look like a home, not just an empty house. And not just any home, but our home.  But, I can say I’m overwhelmed thinking about all the tasks I will be taking on to manage our new home (paying more bills, doing all the grocery shopping, cooking every night after a long day of classes, etc.). Living with the in laws the past 3 years has allowed me to just do a little bit of these things as they come up, now it will be my job all the time.  I feel the stress already.  I’m hoping to start out organized both with time and physical clutter so that I can maintain it, like with menu planning for example. Any tips?

Anyways, I”ll post pictures once we get some furniture in/arranged and you can tell which room is what. Happy weekend, folks. We’ve got a busy one ahead!

I love chocolate milk.

Especially on my living room walls.

As I said yesterday, this house buying thing is a roller coaster.  However, I’ve heard of much worse situations and I’m grateful that ours has gone relatively smoothly over all.  The waiting just stinks right now.

So, while I wait, I thought I’d share what I’ve learned while on this crazy ride:

1) Find an amazing Realtor. I contacted several Realtors online before I found the one for us. The others just sent me quick little emails saying how excited they were for my decision to purchase a home and sent me a link to start house hunting. But wait, we weren’t ready to buy a house yet! At that point we were only wanting to wet our feet and prepare for a purchase months down the road. It was more about educating ourselves versus jumping into a new home asap. It felt very impersonal and like they just wanted a quick sale to up their commission (tip to Realtors, that’s not a good strategy).

Thankfully, I stumbled upon our chosen Realtor accidentally on my local Mommy board (yet another reason I love it!) when she replied to a question I posted. I truly think our Realtor was a god-send for us, we just clicked from the moment we started emailing and from the beginning she was willing to answer questions thoroughly, get to know us as a couple, and help educate us on the process before diving in. (If you live in NC/SC and need a fantastic Realtor, email me!).

How do you find an amazing Realtor?  Word of mouth. Ask your friends who they used and why they liked them.  Ask on local mommy boards, ask on citydata.com, etc. And make sure you talk with several Realtors before deciding, you’ll know when you’ve found a “match.”

2) Research. Research. Research. I cannot tell you how important it is to research the areas you are looking at to live in.  Research the schools, even if you don’t plan to have kids any time soon because of resale value. Research the crime rates and pedophiles. Research the cost of living in the area, like taxes.

We were thisclose to putting in an offer on a townhouse that was an amazing deal…until I decided to pull up the crime reports. Yikes. We instantly knew this was not the place for us and knew to rule out this entire area in the future, making it easier to pick where we wanted to focus our search on.  Research helps you zoom in your focus.  Like I said, I asked around on citydata.com and my local mommy boards, but also looked at the county/state crime records that are available online. And of course, our Realtor had some information as well.

3) Educate yourself. There is SO much to know about buying a home.  There are lots of terms related to the banking world that are important to know and understand before signing anything.  Our Realtor was amazing at helping us understand what we needed to know, and still, I learn something new everyday about this process.  We had to take this quick online course for our loan and I wish we had seen this in the beginning. It’s a great over view of options and important things to know. http://www.freddiemac.com/hrc/

4) Keep an open mind. You hear it all the time, you can’t everything you want, and first home buyers tend to think they can.  There’s got to be compromise some where, whether it’s in the location, the price, the size of the bedrooms, a gas fire place, granite counter tops, etc. Something has to give.  Setting priorities is a must. For us, location and price was at the top. We wanted great schools, safe location, and close to Mark’s commute and thankfully we found the perfect place for us that fit those basic needs.

Also, if your Realtor suggests an area or a house that you hadn’t thought about before or don’t think you’ll like, test it out anyway. In the area we chose, we never even considered it and it turned out to be our dream spot.  Keep an open mind to their suggestions, they may have something great to show you that’s outside your imagined box.

5) The Cost is More Than Your Monthly Mortgage. Our initial budget was a small one because from the start we wanted to have room for the extras in life, like traveling and going out on date nights, buying me a new car, and having another baby. But for a a brief stint, we explored what a higher budget could get it. Yes, it was appealing to add in a bonus room, a garage, and a bigger kitchen. But when we crunched the numbers? It just caused stressed.  Technically we could have afforded it and were approved even higher, but when we included the cost of utilities and HOA fees, it pushed us into an uncomfortable range. Ask lenders for Good Faith Estimates to help you decide what you are paying monthly and include utilities/all expenses on top. Also, think about what you need for a house, like a washer and dryer, furniture and blinds (even small things like curtains add up FAST). And of course, the closing cost fees. Even if you have 100% financing, there are some costs that need covered. Make sure you’re prepared for that.

6) Have Patience. In our small budget, demand of a great location, and still having enough room for our family, it could be discouraging at times to go into home after home and realizing we weren’t comfortable paying the price or just didn’t love the house.  Persistence and patience to keep trying were important. Thankfully, we were/are in a place we don’t have to move out quickly so taking our time to find our perfect home (and now, to move in!) wasn’t rushing us.

The same goes for after you’ve found your home.  It’s nerve wracking and it takes patience at times because no road to a house is completely paved smooth from what I hear.

7) It’s a Roller Coaster. It has many highs and many lows.  From trying to find your house, to waiting to hear back from the seller about your offer, to getting the financing together, to hearing the results of the inspection, to waiting for the closing.  Expect things to come up and hang on to your seat. It’s a fun ride, that’s for sure, but some times things can be intense!

We still haven’t gotten the keys to our new house.

We were set to close this past Tuesday but several last minute things came up that delayed us into this coming week.  My heart was set on last Tuesday. I was so ready to start loading boxes and organizing to the point that I didn’t sleep well at night because I had visions of kitchen dishes, room layouts, and shower curtains dancing in my head. Things had gone very smoothly from the time we found our house up until the day of closing, so I wasn’t emotionally prepared to have to put off my super house planning agenda.  But, Tuesday came and we got that dreaded call.  Wednesday we got another dreaded call, as well as Thursday and Friday.  At first I was angry, sad, and frustrated but now I’m numb to it. We literally rode an emotional roller coaster this week, with super highs thinking that “YES! We’re almost there!” to “No, not again…” several times. I’ve had to force myself not to expect certain things for fear of let down again. Our next goal to close is this coming Tuesday, but with the way things have gone this past week, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s even later.  If it’s not one thing on the paperwork side, it’s another thing with our own weekly schedule.  Will this ever happen?

It’s also lost it’s excitement. I’m hoping when we DO finally get to step foot in that office, sign our life away, and finally get those beloved keys the excitement will be back.

Me last week: WOO! We’re moving! (!!!!!!) Me this week: Oh, we’re maybe finally moving? Great…

Here’s to hoping that we’ll be official homeowners sooner rather than later. Until then, I’m holding onto my seat.

Remember my cry for help on what to do with this table and chairs? Let me remind you:

It’s not a great overall shot of the chairs, but I’m sure everyone here has seen these before. They’re county looking, not really my style.  And while I would love to splurge on some new chairs that are my style, with the new house and the many (many) purchases we’ve had to make to be able to live in our house (like, shower rods, blinds, the every day things add up to be a lot!) it’s just not possible right now.  So I was determined to make this bargain steal for $50 work for me to tolerate it.

After some thinking about what was do-able at my skill level, what would cost too much and wasn’t worth spending on (I contemplated adding cushions but the cost of fabric and batting wasn’t worth it once I added up the costs), this is what I’ve created:

I had my father in law cut off the pointy tops and simply painted (and painted…and painted…) for the last 2 days while enjoying our spring-like weather. Yes, it’s still country looking, but it’s more classy as well. Crisp and clean.  I love it! The table is being painted white as well, still working on it.  Also haven’t even started on 2 of the chairs. But, at least it’s progress…

It’s amazing what a coat of paint can do.

I know, I know. Christmas was 3 weeks ago, and I’m just now getting to posting pictures?  Life is busy.

The high lights:

-Savannah got way too many toys. I guess that happens with a Dad who’s a kid at heart himself and many sets of grandparents.

-She got pretty much all things princesses. The only thing she asked for this year (she went right up and told Santa herself) was a Snow White dress.  We used this desire as a bribe to reward her for sleeping through the night (it worked!) and so Christmas she finally got it. It’s funny how much she loves princesses and yet she’s never watched any of the videos, fine by me.

-Mark’s big gift from me was Panther’s football Tickets. He’s a huge sports fan and didn’t think we could afford tickets right now. His face was priceless! (Once again, I love me some mommy board finds!)

-I got mainly house stuff for Christmas and loved every minute of it. Between gifts and giftcards, we’re almost all set to go now!

-We had our Kaylee Christmas visit, staying the night again.  Savannah and Kaylee had a blast playing  together, I love watching them and the friendship they have formed.  Kaylee is really possessive over Savannah being her “baby sister” and doesn’t like to share play time with her brother, poor Blake gets left out. Mark and I had fun hanging out with their parents as always.

-I gave Kaylee a photobook for Christmas that shares a little bit about her birthfamily. Most of it is my family of course since that’s what I have more access to, but I contacted Kaylee’s birthgrandma for some information about her Birthdad growing up I could include. I added a page or two or random facts like birthdays, where we went to school, our hobbies, eye color, etc. and also shared our dating story and some pictures.  Kaylee liked it, but was totally confused that her birthdad is not Mark.  Hm…don’t know how to explain that one to a 5 year old!

-And to end my winter break with a shabang, I had my visit with Victoria!  We had our week jam packed with things to do and it was a blast (exhausting, but a blast)!  I saw historical things like the Liberty Bell in down town Philadelphia, we went snow tubing in the Poconos (so much fun, everyone should go!), went bowling for her birthday, got our nails done (first time since I got married, what a treat), painted pottery, ate the most amazing burger and french fries I have ever had at The Pop Shop (it was on the Food Network, it’s that good!), and finally got to meet her birth family.  It was so much :-)

-I, however, decided I can ever live in the north because the drivers and the road designs (ie. lanes just suddenly ending with no warning signs) stresses me out way too much.  We seriously almost crashed 20 times.  I love my easy going south.

And the big news:

We close on our house next week!

I am unbelievable excited and have been shopping like crazy to get the rest of the house things we needed. We also bought paint tonight while it was on sale at home depot.  I cannot wait to see what a difference the paint makes. We just need a washer and dryer, food, cleaning supplies, and blinds and we’ll have a home :-)

I don’ t know what it is about Christmas break, I get in this writing slump even though I have all the time in the world to actually write something. It happens every year!

What’s been happening?  Well, for starters I ended up with 4 A’s and 1 B as my final grades. I’m pretty happy with that, being my senior year (and I just like being good at things, okay?). I’m so excited to have just one more semester to go, I’m ready to get it started and be done for ever!

House wise– my brain doesn’t stop working thinking about paint colors and room layouts now.  We’re still waiting on getting the inspection done, but since the house is 3 years old I doubt (I pray) anything serious will be wrong so we can continue to move forward.  We feel so at peace with our decision, not just in the house, but location and even moving out earlier than planned. We are ready. So ready, that I already started packing. I thought I’d get a head start while I’m not in school and since I’ll be out of town visiting family and Victoria (!) for two weeks.

I’m sure I’ll be back, eventually, when the Christmas hub-bub is over. When the ridiculous amount of toys are opened and thrown everywhere, when we’re stuffed with good food and filled with joy.

God has been so good to us, I pray you have a blessed,  joyful, peaceful Christmas as well.

I may not be holding babies in my arms right now like I should be, but God has given us another blessing this week (what great timing He has!) that makes my heart leap with joy and possibilities.

(I wanted to put a big red bow on it but Flickr wouldn’t let me without paying, so a Santa hat will have to do)

Since we had Savannah at 19 and still in college, Mark’s parents have been amazing in letting us stay with them for the past 3 years as we finish school and get on our feet.  Now, finally, it’s time to move out. And while I’m so incredibly grateful we had this time and extra hands to help out, we’re so ready to have our own place! This is all happening a little sooner than planned (originally wanted to move after I graduate in May), but this house and the price were too perfect to pass up. We’re all so excited! Savannah is excited about getting a “princess room,” she’s already planning on having it be purple  (it was pink last week, what will it be by the time we actually paint?)

Now I need to start working on that kitchen table!  And…packing…that doesn’t sound like fun though…

I’ve mentioned before that now that we’re getting serious about moving out, I’ve been collecting furniture as well and finding inspiration online.  I’ve been finding amazing deals on my local Mommy Board and Craiglists that are just too good to pass up. However, sometimes I find things that are a great deal but will need some work to become our style.

Take for example, this kitchen table and chairs I just scored for $50!  The table is exactly what I’ve been looking for, well, shape wise, I plan to either stain (or paint) it an espresso brown to match our other furniture or paint it white. But the chairs?  I’m not loving the chairs at all. And while I could go out and by brand news chairs for $50 a pop (bringing me up to over $200, which I might as well buy a new table set for) I asked for some help over on Better After to generate ideas.  I’d rather take these chairs and make them into what I fits our taste.

So far I’ve heard great things like painting them a contrasting color, adding slip covers, sanding down the extra bumps on the backs for smoother lines, remove the seats and make them padded fabric cushions (if I can?). So, so many great ideas that my head is buzzing with the opportunities to create something! I’ll take pictures once I get a game plan together and finish the project. I can’t wait to see what it’ll turn out looking like!

What would you suggest?

(Also, head over to Better After to at least give her some love. A “Troll” has been attacking her amazing blog and we all remember how frustrating that is!)