Homes visited: 9
Interested: 2
Offers made:1
Offer status: Under contract!
We saw a bunch of homes last Friday and found one that we fell in love with. As we thought about it over the weekend, we liked it more and more. So we went and visited the house again on Monday to make sure all of our stuff can fit because we have BIG furniture. I don't know how we fit it into our small apartment, but one of our biggest problems has been finding places that are big enough to have our stuff and not feel cramped. So we were stoked that everything fit. I found this kind of surprising because it's only about 780sq.ft. on both floors (there's a basement!), so it looks really small. Looking at it from the outside, I still think it looks small, but when you walk it, it's all open and spacious. Amazing!
It's got a big backyard for Kayla to play in with her future puppy. It's got a separate 2 car garage that's big enough to store everything we need. There aren't any major projects we need to do before we can move in (like a new water heater, roof, carpet, etc.) which is amazing. We've seen some bad houses...but this one we can see ourselves living in. It's in Orem, so a good location between our jobs. And it has AC! No swamp cooler! Yay! We can finally be cool in the summertime.
All in all, we're way excited about this house. So we made an offer on Monday, they countered on Tuesday, and now we are officially under contract! So if everything runs smoothly, we should be moved in by the end of July.
We've been so fortunate to find a house so quickly and one that fits our needs so perfectly. I'm guessing some Divine Direction has been used, and I'm grateful for it. I believe we're moving in the right direction. Deciding to not go to California was a big deal for us, but we couldn't really see it working with the situation we're in. Brandon can't be a intern, working 60-hour weeks with no pay for 6 months and no guarantee of a job offer afterward. That just doesn't work for a family man. Not to mention the cost of living there is practically triple compared to Utah. All signs were pointing to staying in Utah, and especially now with a house, we'll be sticking around for the next little while. I think it's a good thing. We're still close to friends and family. And for right now, this is a good place to raise Kayla.
We feel good about this decision. And I'm so relieved we're no longer renting. No more sharing walls with neighbors and having cold showers. No more walking to the shack behind our place to do hopefully do laundry if no one else is using it. No more having a parking lot for a backyard and heavy, loud traffic in the front. We will have a place of our own. Yes, there will be more work we'll have to do and more bills to pay, but they are ours. We can make our own decisions about changing things in the house without asking permission. We can buy the puppy I've wanted for years now. We can.
So I guess to sum it all up, I'll just have to show a picture.
Yeah, we're pretty happy. Yay for home-ownership!
More news to follow...
For the next little while I'll be posting up updates about our house hunt, but not dedicate a whole blog post to it.
Homes visited: 3
Offers made: 0
Sometimes Kayla can be a real menace. I think she's just got so much energy, she needs some sort of outlet. Here are some ways in which she does that:
This is Kayla trying to help Brandon clean up the family room...
Doing laundry...
And cleaning up messes.
Sometimes, though, she can act like a real lady. Don't believe me?
Just look at that pose! So cute! Or...
Pinky's up!
But if that still doesn't prove it, here's one to illustrate that she really is meant to be in today's world:
But today's post isn't just about Kayla. Today is Father's Day, so I want to talk a little about Brandon. He just finished up his last class for school, so he is officially done! He decided he won't be Walking in August, so we should be getting his diploma in the mail soonish.
It was also Brandon's first Father's Day, and I gotta say that he's one proud daddy. He's such a good father. He watches Kayla every morning so I can go to work. He loves to play with her and make her laugh. I fully believe she is a Daddy's Girl, and I think she will always be one. Who wouldn't be with the kind of father she has? He's amazing!
I was a Daddy's Girl, too. My dad's been gone for 6 years now, but I still remember the good times we had together, all the precious moments I'll never forget. I will miss him till the day I die. I'm sad that Kayla won't get the chance to know him as she grows up, but she has another awesome grandfather that will dote on her, I'm sure. We have an amazing family, and I don't want Kayla to miss out on any of it.
So Happy Father's Day to all those Daddies out there. You're awesome!
Kayla was born last year, the Chinese year of the Rabbit. However, right now she's acting more like she's a Monkey. Here are a few pictures to illustrate:
It started out innocent enough. She wanted a little extra stability for her bottle. So she's got a bit of Monkey feet. And then...
She has a very strong grip, and she just wouldn't let go. Believe me...Brandon tried.
This is one of her favorite spots in the apartment (the others being by the screen door and climbing the rocking chair). Today she even got onto the ledge because that was higher than any other spot there. If she sees something she could possibly get to, she'll go for it. That girl is fearless.
And now she just gets into everything. We can't contain her. She is a free spirit, and she's got to climb higher and higher. We love our little monkey.
So Brandon and I have finally decided to begin the journey that every responsible adult has to one day. It's a graduation of sorts. We thought we were doing pretty good when we got married and then when we had Kayla.
But this is a completely different ballgame. With the score set back to zero, and the players are people we haven't even seen but we know are real competition. We have a fantastic team that will help us as best they can, but the final decision will ultimately be ours.
It's the biggest thing that will tie us down in Utah. It's definitely the biggest thing we'll have purchased. The biggest responsibility we'll have and the biggest risk if we can't make it. It will be our biggest adventure yet.
Yes, my friends, we have decided to buy a house.
We went down this road a few years ago, but things fell through when I lost my job. It's all for the better now. I have a great job with awesome people. Brandon's done with school and is working on building his filming reputation. I believe he's in a good spot to do that here. Kayla's the joy of our lives and we want to find a home that will be best for her grow up in (for a while anyway). And the housing market is better now than it was. It's a great time to find a good deal.
We still have the same realtor that we used before. He's great, and we know he'll find something great for us preferably out of Provo. I've lived in Provo for 8 years now, and I feel a move is a bit overdue.
We'll find a home with a yard so I can finally get a puppy that I've always wanted:
A cute sheltie puppy that will one day turn into:
For something that will keep us in Utah for the foreseeable future, I feel like we're finally moving forward. I can't wait to get started.
And so The Hunt begins again...
Wish us luck!
