So much has happened since my last post! The journey to our new home has been full of craziness!
So, as of when I last posted, we were 3 weeks (and 1 day) from moving. The only thing we were waiting for was the appraisal; of course we thought that was a given. I mean this house is a steal! Well ... as I'm sure you've guessed - it didn't appraise! The house appraised for $10,000 less than the amount we had agreed on with the sellers (after several days of negotiations, because they wanted more).
Which brought us back to square one! We told our realtor that they needed to drop the price by the $10,000 that it was short, or we'd be finding a new, new home. Fast forward past several phone calls from their realtor to ours asking how much of that $10,000 we were willing to pay (the answer was ALWAYS $0!), to Monday, August 5 (3 days before our closing date on BOTH houses) we FINALLY hear from the buyer's agent. He said that if they can keep their curtains (but leave the two story ones), they'll move forward with the closing. CURTAINS?!?! Seriously?!?! Of course, take your curtains, I don't like most of them anyway! At last, 3 days before closing (and thereby being homeless) we know where we will be moving! Even better: we got it at the price we FIRST offered them!
Ugh - those were some of the longest weeks of my summer! Not knowing where we were going to move was hard! We had gone back to looking around at the market and there just wasn't anything that was what we wanted. We were basically back to building ... but we really REALLY didn't want to wait the MONTHS that it would take to then move to our new home. We did have the arrangements all figured out, but it was not going to be a smooth transition.
August 8th brought an excitement and a sense of relief! Finally, this whole crazy process was about to be OVER! We closed on our house in Farmington in the morning. Then went to the closing on our new house in the afternoon. Well, that was an adventure -- you see, when the sellers wait until there are only 3 days until you're supposed to close it makes it VERY CHALLENGING for the loan officers to get everything through in time! There were addendums (addendi?) and resubmitting of paperwork with the new price ... to the point that our loan officer was working like a mad man to get it done, and the financing went through as we were finishing up the closing!
PRAISE GOD!!! THE HOUSE IS OURS!!!!!
So, we get to go and move into our new house - thankfully, we have some awesome family and friends who were at our disposal through this process, there is no possible way this would have worked without all of you! Many late nights were put in packing/cleaning our old house and then moving/unpacking/cleaning at the new house!
Breath a sigh of relief, the house is mine! One of the things we knew coming into this purchase was that the microwave didn't work. No big deal, microwaves aren't THAT expensive. Well ... what we didn't know is that the dishwasher didn't really work, the washing machine sounded like a monster was trying to escape and the fridge didn't make ice or chill water ..... ugh!
We have now, FINALLY, gotten mostly moved in (there are boxes remaining, that will wait for winter to be unpacked). The house feels like ours (minus the fact that I have NOTHING on the walls), the girls are loving their new house (though miss friends from our old house), and we are all getting to know the neighbors.
God is so good! He knew all that we would go through, and that His plan would prevail. I am so glad that we waited on His timing and didn't try to force any of this to happen in our timing!
Friday, November 15, 2013
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Our moving adventure, part 1
As I sit here in our cozy little house, with family and friends sprawled all over it, I find myself counting the days until we are able to move to our bigger house and then fill that one with our family and friends ... and that led me to writing about our journey in moving thus far.
Back in March, our friends (and neighbors) listed their home for sale so that they could build a new home. We once again found ourselves wishing that we could move to a more "suitable" home for our family. It's not that our house is awful, it's just not good for how we use our spaces. We went as far as talking with a realtor only to find that we couldn't afford to sell our house. Oh well, that's what we expected. The market has been bad for quite a while, and our neighborhood was hard-hit with foreclosures.
Fast-forward to the end of April, our neighbor's house sold, as did another neighbor's home ... at much higher prices than we were told we could sell for ... we contacted our realtor again, who said that he had been planning to call us the next morning to let us know that he'd been watching our neighborhood and was amazed, but we could sell for about $20,000 more than he thought! So, in a hurried frenzy, we got our house ready to list and then left for vacation (not-so-secretly hoping it would sell while we were gone for 10 days).
Once we were back from vacation we started looking at houses. The first day we were out, we went into a fantastic bank-owned home that was in Shakopee; not quite where we were thinking, but the location was great and the price was amazing. We put an offer in ... they had 5 others and we were not the best one. Oh well, we went into this process saying that we didn't want a house unless it was the one God had for us. So we kept looking. We later found another that we really liked, put an offer in and again it had multiple offers and we didn't get the house. No big deal, we are still figuring out where we want to be anyway ....
Fast-forward again, this time to July. Our house still hadn't sold, we are beginning to lose hope that it will sell. We get a call on July 3 that someone wants to see our house on July 4th in the evening ... of course, we say yes, they can come ... but inside I'm thinking that these people are awfully rude/weird to interrupt my plans on the 4th of July! Don't they know that we were going to have friends over?!
Skip to July 10 (our anniversary), we are out to meet our realtor and look at a couple houses that are new to the market. We get to the first house and our realtor says, "So ... I have news ..." my heart dropped and I assumed the market had dropped to a point that we would not be able to sell. "We have an offer on your house." We talked with him about this offer as we looked at the two houses that we were looking at that day. Discussing how crazy it was that we had that offer, because it changed everything! With our home sold, we could afford a larger home that was more like what we were wanting. Craziest part is that if we hadn't had that offer presented to us at 1:30, we would have been putting an offer in on the second house we saw that day ... one that we didn't LOVE, but it met our needs and was a nice house in an AMAZING location. BUT, because we had that offer, we held off putting in an offer until we could see what came of this offer and what opened up with a higher price-point. We did end up negotiating a sale, and had a great anniversary gift from someone we've never met - a sold house!
We had our realtor change our MLS search criteria to include higher-priced homes and sorted through the 50+ new homes in an evening ... narrowing our search down to 2 homes ... an existing home that had been on the market for quite a while, or building our own home in a desirable neighborhood in Shakopee. We wanted to see the existing home before deciding to build, so our realtor scheduled that.
On Friday, July 12, 2013 - I walked into a home that I am quite certain God had been holding for us! It was everything we wanted and more! It has a great neighborhood (we had looked at another in the same neighborhood, but it wasn't quite what we were looking for), large yard, great features and it's on a cul-de-sac! What more could we ask for?! It had been on the market for quite a while (since the end of May), there had been interest, but never an offer. It still is rather surreal to even think that in 3 weeks (and 1 day) that will be our home!
God has shown himself to us in so many ways throughout this process. He has taught us to rely on Him, to not settle for less than what He wants for us, to FULLY trust in Him... and so much more.
Back in March, our friends (and neighbors) listed their home for sale so that they could build a new home. We once again found ourselves wishing that we could move to a more "suitable" home for our family. It's not that our house is awful, it's just not good for how we use our spaces. We went as far as talking with a realtor only to find that we couldn't afford to sell our house. Oh well, that's what we expected. The market has been bad for quite a while, and our neighborhood was hard-hit with foreclosures.
Fast-forward to the end of April, our neighbor's house sold, as did another neighbor's home ... at much higher prices than we were told we could sell for ... we contacted our realtor again, who said that he had been planning to call us the next morning to let us know that he'd been watching our neighborhood and was amazed, but we could sell for about $20,000 more than he thought! So, in a hurried frenzy, we got our house ready to list and then left for vacation (not-so-secretly hoping it would sell while we were gone for 10 days).
Once we were back from vacation we started looking at houses. The first day we were out, we went into a fantastic bank-owned home that was in Shakopee; not quite where we were thinking, but the location was great and the price was amazing. We put an offer in ... they had 5 others and we were not the best one. Oh well, we went into this process saying that we didn't want a house unless it was the one God had for us. So we kept looking. We later found another that we really liked, put an offer in and again it had multiple offers and we didn't get the house. No big deal, we are still figuring out where we want to be anyway ....
Fast-forward again, this time to July. Our house still hadn't sold, we are beginning to lose hope that it will sell. We get a call on July 3 that someone wants to see our house on July 4th in the evening ... of course, we say yes, they can come ... but inside I'm thinking that these people are awfully rude/weird to interrupt my plans on the 4th of July! Don't they know that we were going to have friends over?!
Skip to July 10 (our anniversary), we are out to meet our realtor and look at a couple houses that are new to the market. We get to the first house and our realtor says, "So ... I have news ..." my heart dropped and I assumed the market had dropped to a point that we would not be able to sell. "We have an offer on your house." We talked with him about this offer as we looked at the two houses that we were looking at that day. Discussing how crazy it was that we had that offer, because it changed everything! With our home sold, we could afford a larger home that was more like what we were wanting. Craziest part is that if we hadn't had that offer presented to us at 1:30, we would have been putting an offer in on the second house we saw that day ... one that we didn't LOVE, but it met our needs and was a nice house in an AMAZING location. BUT, because we had that offer, we held off putting in an offer until we could see what came of this offer and what opened up with a higher price-point. We did end up negotiating a sale, and had a great anniversary gift from someone we've never met - a sold house!
We had our realtor change our MLS search criteria to include higher-priced homes and sorted through the 50+ new homes in an evening ... narrowing our search down to 2 homes ... an existing home that had been on the market for quite a while, or building our own home in a desirable neighborhood in Shakopee. We wanted to see the existing home before deciding to build, so our realtor scheduled that.
On Friday, July 12, 2013 - I walked into a home that I am quite certain God had been holding for us! It was everything we wanted and more! It has a great neighborhood (we had looked at another in the same neighborhood, but it wasn't quite what we were looking for), large yard, great features and it's on a cul-de-sac! What more could we ask for?! It had been on the market for quite a while (since the end of May), there had been interest, but never an offer. It still is rather surreal to even think that in 3 weeks (and 1 day) that will be our home!
God has shown himself to us in so many ways throughout this process. He has taught us to rely on Him, to not settle for less than what He wants for us, to FULLY trust in Him... and so much more.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3:5-6
This has become a key verse for us and has become our mantra!
Oh - and if you need a GREAT realtor, contact Chuck Hinsz!!
Oh - and if you need a GREAT realtor, contact Chuck Hinsz!!
Sunday, February 3, 2013
BUY THE BOOK!!!!!
You know that really awesome book you've been hearing so much about (if you're my friend on facebook or talk to me in real life, you're probably ready to tell me to shut up!)? It's time to BUY THE BOOK!!!!!!! Here are the details on the free bonus content you'll receive ... go ahead read it ... I'll meet you at the bottom!
Everyone loves a good investment…especially one that comes with a big bonus! This is one of those investments that you don’t want to miss!
Purchase Jill Savage’s new book No More Perfect Moms anytime between February 3-9 (online or at a store…and yes, electronic versions such as Kindle and Nook count too!) Send a copy of your receipt to NoMorePerfectMoms@moody.edu. Scan it, take a picture of it - just be sure to send it to the email! You'll be given access to well over $100 worth of resources that will help you on your mothering journey - absolutely free!
What will you receive?
6 Sixty Minute Audio Workshops (MP3 format) from Hearts at Home
OK - are you still with me?! Did you manage to read through all of that without leaving me to go and purchase your very own copy?
Are you still on the fence about buying the book? Well, first - who doesn't love FREE stuff?! You get more than the value of the book in return! Second - this book will change how you approach your life. It's not just about moms, it's about changing your outlook on life, changing how you look at things, changing how you appear to others. It's time to love one another, mommas, imperfections and all.
Go, do it now!! You won't regret it. Seriously, go now! (I believe that you can click on the book cover to do so even)
Everyone loves a good investment…especially one that comes with a big bonus! This is one of those investments that you don’t want to miss!
Purchase Jill Savage’s new book No More Perfect Moms anytime between February 3-9 (online or at a store…and yes, electronic versions such as Kindle and Nook count too!) Send a copy of your receipt to NoMorePerfectMoms@moody.edu. Scan it, take a picture of it - just be sure to send it to the email! You'll be given access to well over $100 worth of resources that will help you on your mothering journey - absolutely free!
What will you receive?
6 Sixty Minute Audio Workshops (MP3 format) from Hearts at Home
- Desperate for Wisdom - Dr. Juli Slattery
- How to Fight for Your Marriage - Dr. Juli Slattery
- It is Well with Your Soul - Jennifer Rothschild
- Multiple Intelligences - Dr. Kathy Koch
- Ten Stress Strategies Every Mom Needs - Jill Savage
- The God Who Sees You- Tammy Maltby
- 10 Stress Strategies Every Mom Needs
- “Love Is”--I Corinthians 13 for Parents
- Mom Rules
- How to Fight Fair In Marriage
- Live Free by Kendra Smiley
- Growing Grateful Kids by Susie Larsen
- Real Moms Real Jesus by Jill Savage
OK - are you still with me?! Did you manage to read through all of that without leaving me to go and purchase your very own copy?
Are you still on the fence about buying the book? Well, first - who doesn't love FREE stuff?! You get more than the value of the book in return! Second - this book will change how you approach your life. It's not just about moms, it's about changing your outlook on life, changing how you look at things, changing how you appear to others. It's time to love one another, mommas, imperfections and all.
Go, do it now!! You won't regret it. Seriously, go now! (I believe that you can click on the book cover to do so even)
Thursday, January 17, 2013
No more perfect homes
Ok - so just the title is daunting ... you see, I live in a home that is not what I would like it to be. I find myself thinking, if only it were a little bigger. If only it were a little closer to anything. If only it were a little farther from everything. If only our yard was bigger. If only my kitchen were bigger. If only my house were clean. If only my garage could hold both of our cars. If only ... if only ... if only ....
You see, I have what Jill Savage so accurately diagnoses as "perfection infection" in her new book "No More Perfect Moms (BUY IT February 4-9, 2013). I want my house to be just like the ones you see in a magazine - you know the ones. Big, beautiful, organized, and (dare I say it) CLEAN!
If you were to stop by my house on any given day you would likely find: remnants from our last shopping trip on the floor in the entry, the next load or two on the floor in the laundry room, toys in the family room, blankets strewn on the couch (hey, it's cold down there), possibly laundry waiting to be folded on the couch as well. You'll likely find things waiting to go upstairs with you on the steps (hey, grab those for me, will you!?). Once you get to the top of the stairs ... just set that stuff you grabbed from the steps on the half-wall, that's where everything else is! The dishes on the table/counter are from our last meal (or two), and my tiny kitchen is housing dishes and schoolwork and a myriad of other things that likely don't belong there. Haha ... did I mention the TOYS all over the floor of the living room? Oh, and we may or may not still be in our jammies!
"It's not the size, style, decor, or classiness of a house that really matters. It's what goes on inside the house that makes the most difference. A house doesn't make a family. A family makes a house a home."
Jill Savage, No More Perfect Moms
I am trying really hard to make sure that I not only believe that statement, but live it. I want my house to be clean; I function better then. In fact, it is a great source of stress when my house is not clean. However, in this stage of life, that is not my reality. So, I will do my best to keep it bearable (for me) and keep it real, for you.
Momma's we have an infection to get over - one day at a time!
-----------
I was given a pdf copy of No More Perfect Moms as part of the launch team. All thoughts/opinions are mine.
Monday, January 7, 2013
Car seats
I know, this is long overdue (hehe ... cute play on words for those who are waiting for their little ones). You see, I wanted this post to be just right ... but if I keep waiting for "just right" you'll never get to read it! So, here we go!
Car seats are one of the more valuable things that you will purchase for your baby. You don't want to go cheap and regret it, but you don't have to go with the top of the line either. Here's a little secret - ALL car seats that you find at the store have met safety standards. Now some exceed them and others just meet them - but they all at least meet them. You're not going to be putting your baby in danger by purchasing an affordable car seat!
A few things to note:
Infant seats - are for INFANTS - they are designed to be rear-facing ONLY, and will come with a seat and a base. You buckle the base in your car and snap the seat in the base when you are going somewhere. Nice to be able to put your little one in the seat in your warm (or cool, depending on the weather) house, and not have to mess with it in the cold (or heat). Your seat will be the "right" temperature for that little snuggle bug you are loving! While these seats will fit and "snap" onto most shopping carts - DO NOT put them there! It is not safe and they can tip. Most infant seats will not get you to age 2, which is the current recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics to wait for before forward-facing.
Convertible seats - these are a seat that can rear-face or forward-face. Most of them can take infants up through toddlers/preschoolers. They have a rear-facing height/weight limit, and it is recommended that you get a seat that can rear-face as long as possible. Jenna just turned 2 and is still happily rear-facing in her Graco MyRide65. She will be too tall before she is too heavy to stay rear-facing. You can then take this seat and turn it around so that your child will face the front of the vehicle.
Forward Facing seats - these seats come by many names and various features. These are seats that will ONLY face forward. It is not recommended to turn your child to face the front until they are at least 2, or they have out grown their convertible seat's rear-facing height/weight. You want to keep your child in a 5-point harness for as long as the seat will allow. Kate is 4 and still very comfortable in the 5-point harness on her Graco Nautilus. Don't let anyone tell you that a seat belt is just as safe (many people, including some doctors will say that you can switch to a seat belt when they turn three) - IT'S NOT! Keep that child in a 5-point harness for as long as the seat allows! When they've outgrown the 5-point on the seat, it's time to either purchase a high back booster or to convert your seat to a high back booster (most of the forward facing seats do this).
Straps
If your child is REAR facing, the straps need to be in the slot that is AT OR BELOW the top of their shoulders.
If your child is FORWARD facing, the straps need to be in the slot that is AT OR ABOVE the top of their shoulders.
The chest clip should always be level with their armpits.
You should not be able to pinch the strap away from their shoulder, if you can it's too loose!
Car seats have an expiration date stamped on them ... find and treat it as such. Plastic can wear out and become brittle over time. Yes, there is debate on if the amount of time that manufacturers recommend is the same as degradation .. I, personally, will not risk my child's safety on a guess. I would hate to find out that the manufacturers really did know what they were talking about, at the expense of my child's safety.
Never, NEVER, NEVER buy a used car seat!!! Now, I suppose there can be exceptions - like if you know the person that you're getting the seat from, but even then ... be cautious. It only takes ONE accident to compromise the integrity of the seat.
Keep those babies buckled in tight (and safe)!!
More to come on carseats soon (told you this was a passion of mine)!!!
Car seats are one of the more valuable things that you will purchase for your baby. You don't want to go cheap and regret it, but you don't have to go with the top of the line either. Here's a little secret - ALL car seats that you find at the store have met safety standards. Now some exceed them and others just meet them - but they all at least meet them. You're not going to be putting your baby in danger by purchasing an affordable car seat!
A few things to note:
Infant seats - are for INFANTS - they are designed to be rear-facing ONLY, and will come with a seat and a base. You buckle the base in your car and snap the seat in the base when you are going somewhere. Nice to be able to put your little one in the seat in your warm (or cool, depending on the weather) house, and not have to mess with it in the cold (or heat). Your seat will be the "right" temperature for that little snuggle bug you are loving! While these seats will fit and "snap" onto most shopping carts - DO NOT put them there! It is not safe and they can tip. Most infant seats will not get you to age 2, which is the current recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics to wait for before forward-facing.
Convertible seats - these are a seat that can rear-face or forward-face. Most of them can take infants up through toddlers/preschoolers. They have a rear-facing height/weight limit, and it is recommended that you get a seat that can rear-face as long as possible. Jenna just turned 2 and is still happily rear-facing in her Graco MyRide65. She will be too tall before she is too heavy to stay rear-facing. You can then take this seat and turn it around so that your child will face the front of the vehicle.
Forward Facing seats - these seats come by many names and various features. These are seats that will ONLY face forward. It is not recommended to turn your child to face the front until they are at least 2, or they have out grown their convertible seat's rear-facing height/weight. You want to keep your child in a 5-point harness for as long as the seat will allow. Kate is 4 and still very comfortable in the 5-point harness on her Graco Nautilus. Don't let anyone tell you that a seat belt is just as safe (many people, including some doctors will say that you can switch to a seat belt when they turn three) - IT'S NOT! Keep that child in a 5-point harness for as long as the seat allows! When they've outgrown the 5-point on the seat, it's time to either purchase a high back booster or to convert your seat to a high back booster (most of the forward facing seats do this).
Straps
If your child is REAR facing, the straps need to be in the slot that is AT OR BELOW the top of their shoulders.
If your child is FORWARD facing, the straps need to be in the slot that is AT OR ABOVE the top of their shoulders.
The chest clip should always be level with their armpits.
You should not be able to pinch the strap away from their shoulder, if you can it's too loose!
Car seats have an expiration date stamped on them ... find and treat it as such. Plastic can wear out and become brittle over time. Yes, there is debate on if the amount of time that manufacturers recommend is the same as degradation .. I, personally, will not risk my child's safety on a guess. I would hate to find out that the manufacturers really did know what they were talking about, at the expense of my child's safety.
Never, NEVER, NEVER buy a used car seat!!! Now, I suppose there can be exceptions - like if you know the person that you're getting the seat from, but even then ... be cautious. It only takes ONE accident to compromise the integrity of the seat.
Keep those babies buckled in tight (and safe)!!
More to come on carseats soon (told you this was a passion of mine)!!!
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