House Hunting

I thought I would share our experience so far about our BIG news. We finally accepted an offer on our townhouse. The close date is set for July 17, 2009. This day is fast approaching. Justin and I thought this would be one of the most exciting times in our life... we were very sadly mistaking. To tell the truth this had been one of the most stressful and trying times.

To start with we are not "making money" on the sale of our town home. We will actually bring money to closing which is embarrassing and sad. At this point we know it is the right thing to do to get out of the town house so our family can grow. Our main reason for moving is so that Chewy and Jackson can have more room! We also do not feel we can have another baby in this town home. We are not planning on baby number 2 just yet, but do hope it is in our future in the coming years.

So... knowing that we have to bring money to closing changes our finances a bit, as we will not have as much to put down on a new home. We are still very fortunate to get a loan which I know can be hard in this economy. SO... we have a preapporval, money in the bank and are ready to by a home. BUT we cannot find one! We have actually fallen in love with two houses along the way in the last 3 weeks but for this reason or that reason the houses/ deals have not worked out. There have been a variety of reasons that all seem crazy. We have been in about 12 houses at this time, driven miles and miles through neighborhoods and spent countless hours online looking at houses. We don't believe we are being too picky but we do have a lot to think about when buying a home. The reality is that we could be in this home for 20 years or 2 years. We do not know if Justin's job will pick us up and relocate us, so we feel we have to make a smart purchase for resale of a home. We also want to be sure that a home does not need lots of work (roof, HVAC, windows) in the coming year.

This stress is testing Justin and I in so many ways. We are trying to have faith that everything happens for a reason and that God has a plan for our family. At this time we will be moving in with my parents in Warrensburg, MO. We will stay with them for about 4 weeks. During that time we will also stay at my dearest friend's home during the week a few nights while I work and Jackson goes to daycare. Alli and Andy are out at camp all summer and have an empty house for a few nights a week- they will be letting us stay there for two nights a week. We are so lucky to have this as an option so we do not have to sign a lease on an apartment!!! I am not imagining the next few weeks will be easy, but we do hope the end result is worth it all!!

There is the story. I of course have left out the sleepless nights, lack of appetite, tears, arguments and full blown breakdowns out of this story. We feel blessed to have the support of friends and family and are hopeful for the future.