Lots to do!

This is a busy week for us as we move this coming weekend. We loaded a pod this past weekend, and we'll still need to load another pod or a truck this next weekend! I can't believe how much stuff we have, even after we cleaned out a ton of things before putting the house on the market. I'm hoping that we can go through it again as we get settled in our new house, and maybe we can get rid of even more. Erik keeps telling me that just because we're moving to another home doesn't mean I can fill it up with more stuff! Of course the reality is, even if I try to not collect a lot, there will be stuff...kids just seem to attract stuff...big toys, small toys, clothes in every imaginable size, diapers, wipes, blankets, cribs...it is neverending. I try to keep on top of things and go through the clothes every month or so to store the clothes that no longer fit and bring in the new sizes that fit.

Well, back to being a pod person. I need to do some more packing for the pod!

Got it!

We found out Friday night that our offer was accepted for the other house! SO, we close on our current home and that new home on November 12...two weeks from today! I cannot believe it. It is still pretty surreal. Lots to do here...

It must be from God though. We really are starting to see different reasons why this is the right time and the right place to be moving to.

Sold & Offer In!!!

Well, I can hardly believe it, but we finally decided after much thought and prayer that we should sign the final ammendment paper for selling our home! And in the same day, we heard that the house that we liked had an offer come in, so we decided to put an offer down on that house! We'll know probably in a few hours if our offer was accepted. So, our home is sold now, as long as the closing goes fine on NOVEMBER 12th, and that is the day that we would hope to close on the other home as well. I can't believe that it is 2.5 weeks away. I have some work to do! We have some packing that will need to take place and then the cleaning of course. Here we go...hopefully...I shouldn't get too excited until we find out if our offer was accepted or not. If you happen to read this tonight and would like to pray for that offer, that'd be great.

We had our boiler worked on today. Remember, this is a 1923 house...but our repair guy said that it was one of the WORST boiler situations he had seen as far as it being very dangerously dirty. Good thing he came, right? He started working on it but will have to come back one more time to do a good cleaning on it. There goes another chunk of $$$ down the tubes...but we're so glad that it will be in good working order for our last few days and then for the new people.

Hope ya'all are doing well...blessings...and thanks for the prayers!!!!!

It's not over 'till it's over...

Well folks in my blogosphere, here's the latest news from my world...

As I wrote last, our home was sold subject to inspection last Tuesday. However, at the inspection, the inspector apparently found a whole laundry list of things to fix...I'm talking roughly 25 or more things. And some of the things were absolutely hilarious and we seriously laughed about them. For instance:

1. Tree branches in front of house are to be pruned so as to not touch the house.
2. (re. a project of covering up Styrofoam in the basement laundry/storage area...) it shall be painted a shade of white agreed upon by the buyers.

And there were many more things. Some of the things were truly things that were safety concerns and we should certainly fix them...things with the boiler, plumbing, electrical, etc...but these people wanted ALL of these different projects to be taken care of by licensed professionals...and really, why can't I just hop up on my roof and cut the tree branches myself? I guess that would be something that typically Erik would do, but anyway, you get my point.

SO, what we did is come back and say that we would not fix any of these things, but that we'd give them some more money off of the purchase price, so that they could put that towards fixing things. And they said no, "we're done." Now we don't know what we're going to do, except that we must be patient...and that is THE hardest thing for me right now.

In the meantime, we had gone out with our Realtors who are absolutely dear, and we found a house that we LOVE and it was such a good price for us and would suit our needs and dreams very well. Apparently there is now an offer on that home, so we don't know yet if it will be accepted or not.

It is very probable that if we do not sell this home before Thanksgiving that we'll just take it off the market for the winter and wait until Spring when things pick up again. Then in that time period, Erik and I could continue working on the laundry list and have it all perfect for the next inspector. :)

Our Realtors who have been in this business for over 30 years said that they have never seen such a huge and unreasonable list of things to fix.

God must be teaching us some lessons right now, but it is really hard to swallow that pill sometimes. I had my ideas but He has his..."my ways are not your ways, neither are my thoughts your thoughts, declares the Lord." (I hope I got that in the right order...I think it is from Psalms, but can't remember right now.)

If you would please pray that our house sells in the RIGHT time to the RIGHT people and that we find the RIGHT house, that would be so much appreciated.

Thanks so much...blessings to you all...and may you rest very well tonight.

SOLD!!!

Pending inspection, we SOLD our house two nights ago!!! YEAH!!! Thank you to everyone who was praying for us about this. It truly is a miracle of God that our home sold in this very slow market and at this time of year. So, there were the two offers...one was asking $30K less than our current asking price and then another person wanted to make an offer and was told of the first offer existing...SO, that 2nd person made an offer that was only $5K less than our asking price! And the first people put their offer up $5K making it now $25K less than the asking price. All this to say, we accepted the better offer and we're feeling relieved and blessed!

NOW, we are on a quick search to find somewhere else to live, temporary and/or permanent. If we don't find what we want for permanent housing right away, then we will just rent something month to month until we find the right spot for us.

It's all crazy but good here, and the hardest part is over...or so we hope, Lord willing. Inspection is this Saturday, so if you think of it, would you please pray that it goes well and that nothing too huge is found? We're hoping we should be in good shape, but you never know...especially with this old 1923 cute house.

We'll miss our home a lot...this chapter is closing, but another is beginning. It is sad but exciting all at the same time!

2 offers!!!!!!

We were supposed to meet with our realtors tonight to discuss the offer that came in, but then another offer came in from a showing today! So, tomorrow night we're meeting to discuss BOTH offers. :) This has been such a crazy day...quite a whirlwind. We would greatly appreciate your prayers for the right buyers, the right time, and the right selling price, and then for a place for us to live once we sell this place! If we can't find a house we like right away, we plan on renting something for awhile. THANKS for praying!!!

Oh, and I LOVE teaching voice. It is so much fun to see and hear people improve! I really feel blessed.

Possible offer & Awesome day with church

So, we might be getting an offer on our house but we haven't seen the papers yet or heard what the offer might be! Nonetheless, it is exciting and scary to think about the prospect of leaving this home and starting another...Please pray with us if you think of it.

THANKS!

Also, I had the wonderful privelege of singing with my church choir yesterday for a special 60th anniversary celebration of the church. I had a solo in a new piece that was commissioned for the day, and it was written by a dear friend and colleague of mine. He is SO talented, and the music was just glorious. I felt so honored to be singing yesterday. We truly worshipped God as a church family, and it felt like an incredible bonding experience. Not only did we have a huge special service in the morning, but there was a gigantic concert in the afternoon. It was an awesome day, but geepers, I am super tired out today! After performance letdown I guess! Anyhow, I really felt the Holy Spirit in our midst and it was way cool...

Back to Blogging

I have been out of touch with writing my blog, and just decided that tonight was the night that I would write again! Life has been so busy lately...well, I guess life is always busy, but it seems like my life lately has been full of much running around and going lots of different places, and doing lots of different things. Sometimes that can be a great thing, and I do enjoy variety, but sometimes it is also tiring and draining.

I am an introverted extrovert, and Erik is much the same. We both love to be with people, but at the same time we really enjoy "alone" time by ourselves, and feel rejuvenated when we have that time. Perhaps since I have been married I have become much more this introverted extroverted person that I am, or maybe it was in grad. school when I had my own apartment for a year and a half. I really liked that time and space that I could call my own. Sometimes I miss that apartment. It was such a cute little place, and I have such happy memories there...lots of friends coming to visit and stay since I was in a different state, dinners and movies with friends...and it represented grad. school, which for me was such a great time in life. At times I really miss being in that time of life, just full of learning and opportunities. But you know what? God has really shown me that my life right now is a really good thing. I love being married to Erik, and I love being Kristi's Mama, and I really love singing random gigs and teaching voice lessons, and just doing all the other things that come along with all those roles. Life is good. We have different seasons and changes, but through the changes, GOD is good, and He never fails. He has never ever failed me yet.

Change is hard for me. I'm anticipating lots of new changes with our home on the market and hoping for a sale, the hope of then finding a different home to live in, and hopefully at some point having more children. What is so neat is that through each change that I have undergone up until now, I have grown as an individual, and I have been forced to give up my selfish nature and trust that God will take care of me. And He has. I know that He will continue to take care of me and my family. I trust Him for that.

Anyway, this has grown into a much longer post than I had originally planned on...but I just wanted to share that God is making me listen to Him and His plans for my life, and our life as a family. It isn't always easy, truly, but I'm slowly learning...

Possible house offer

We might have a possible offer coming in on our house already, and it has only been on the market since this past Tuesday! Crazy! I'm excited but it is also bittersweet as we love our place and the thought of leaving it is sometimes hard. We're hoping to be in an area with better schools and also a bit more space to grow into. It will be interesting to see just what God has in mind for us. We are praying that He will place us in the right place. If you're reading this, would you please pray with us for the right buyers for our home and also the right home for us to buy? THANK YOU!!! We covet your prayer support over this matter.

Ideas for Cleaning???

Hello there! Our house will be on the market probably this next week and I'm trying to figure out how to keep it clean daily as there will hopefully be lots of showings. I'm guessing I'm just going to have to pick things up all day long as messes occur...brilliant! This is not my typical behavior, the picking up regularly part, but hopefully I will adopt that behavior soon out of necessity.

Erik is painting our basement tonight, so it is going to look smashing soon! We meet with our realtors tomorrow night to do the paperwork and figure out last minute details, etc...kind of crazy!

All that being said, I best be on my way so that I can accomplish some more things tonight before going to sleep.

Any ideas from you blog readers on how to keep things picked up all the time and cleaned??? I like flylady.net for ideas, but sometimes it is just overwhelming. I'm learning that one step at a time is really the best thing.

new blogger!

Hey there everyone!

I finally decided to hop on the blog wagon as I have thoroughly enjoyed and benefited from reading many great blogs over the last several months. I hope that you enjoy the adventures of me and my family.

Today my dear mom came over and helped me work on packing up, cleaning out, and throwing away things in my kitchen. My husband Erik & I are getting ready to sell our home in just a few weeks and there are SO many last minute details to take care of. I had no idea just how long this process would be, but it is fun to finally be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Once we sell this place, then we can consider other properties to buy. I am certain that God has great plans for us and that since He knows where we will end up living, we can just trust in His plan for us...even though there are certainly moments where it is hard to trust and believe things will work out. But I know that it will work out!

I'm not going to write much tonight as I need to get some rest and I need to finish cleaning up the house before I can go to bed. My little girl is asleep and things are peaceful. I love this time of night!