New House Photos

Our Idahome

I really want to thank everyone who helped pack up and clean our house.
THANK YOU!
We were so stressed but people just kept coming (thanks to Julie for doing the recruiting). I feel like I bonded with everyone who came. I should have had you all come clean my house long ago. We'll miss our neighbors but hope to keep in touch.
Also, the Logunns came Saturday night, worked late, slept on our floor, went to church with us and then pulled our ox out of the mire. Any day is a good day for service. They are saints.
Well, I didn't get a front porch but I did get a back porch and the neighborhood we wanted. This is the house that I wasn't able to see. Dan really liked it and promised me that we would make whatever changes I want. The home is vacant and we can move in as soon as the appraisal and loan are finalized. Until then I'll be hanging out in sunny Santa Clara.

Edit:

I can't believe I didn't mention the Stanleys. They stopped on their way to St. G. to empty out our attic. This involved dumping out a gazillion bottles of water which were recycled and replaced by 50 gallon containers on sale at Walmart. Git em while they last.

Pack It Up, Pack It In

Packing with kids is hard.
Who knew finding a house would be so FREAKING, CRAPPING, STINKING, HECKA, DANG HARD! I've driven up to Boise twice (5 hours each way with kids=f-o-r-e-v-e-r). We haven't been able to find the right house. If the house is right, the neighborhood is wrong. There is a particular neighborhood that we like. It has lots of kids (our #1 priority), walking paths, pretty canals, parks, a new elementary and swimming pools. But none of the homes work for us. Well, we discovered another one for sale by owner and he told us that he could show us on Wednesday. So I arranged for my girls to spend the night at a neighbor's and I flew up with Fred Wednesday evening. The guy failed us. His basement (not of the house for sale) flooded and he said he couldn't meet us. !!!!!!! What a waste of time and energy and $280. $287 if you count the snacks I bought in the airport.

The reason I didn't drive is because I need lots of time to get the house packed up and cleaned. I wasn't too worried about this because my mom was coming up. Was. Now she has kidney stones.

So, lots of you have offered your help. I'll take it. Friday and Saturday will be the big packing and cleaning days. Come by anytime. Bring your own gloves. I'll provide the Diet Coke. Which I don't get. Gross. Is it the caffiene that keeps you coming back? Whatever. I'll support the habit if you use the artificial boost on my house. I'll also be serving corn dogs, frozen burritos, ice cream and whatever else is in my fridge and freezer. Thanks. See you all soon.

Stella Turns Three!

Stella turned three today. And, boy, did we celebrate. Saturday our little family went to Texas Roadhouse Grill. They made Stella sit on a saddle and YELLED REALLY LOUDLY her name and age and asked everyone to give her a yee-haw. She was pretty bashful. We gave her a puzzle that says the letter when you remove the piece. It’s high-time she learn. After dinner we went to the park. That’s always a hit.

We hadn’t planned anything for her bday because we weren’t sure if we would be in town. But on Friday she said she wanted a butterfly party. I was so excited that she didn’t request a pink or princess theme, I said, “ok”. Saturday I called up a few neighbors (no time for invitations) and started preparing. I punched out a billion butterflies for a garland. Made a butterfly cake. My first attempt at decorating, kinda sloppy. Spent $45 at the party supply store—including some slutty wings for her to wear. They were the cheapest and smallest. I don’t think she cares that they were made out of black lace and hot pink satin. The party turned out to be more elaborate than I intended. Here is what the house looked like 2 hours before party time:

So I called in reinforcements (thanks Miller girls, we’ll miss you!). They wrapped presents, decorated, watched Fred, stuffed the piñata (which broke after the third little girl hit it), and made the pin-the-antennae-on-the-butterfly poster. When the kids arrived I painted their faces while the girls helped them decorate bags that were meant to be used to pick up piñata candy but glitter glue doesn’t dry fast—fyi--so they ended up using grocery sacks. Then they directed the butterfly game while I continued to paint faces. Then we did the piñata, ate cake, and opened presents. Stella was pretty grumpy. I thought she would like the attention but when I asked her later why she was so grumpy she said, “I just didn’t want everyone to be by me.” She wouldn’t let me finish painting her face, wouldn’t wear her slutty wings and wouldn’t look at me in pictures. She did enjoy present time though. And ironing everyone with her new toy. They had candy and crackers for dinner. I was worn out. I don’t know what I was thinking. This is our last week in our house. I should be packing and cleaning. I guess I wanted them to have a little farewell fun. And I just couldn’t say no to, “Can I have a butterfly birthday?”

Soon To Be Homeless

When we decided to move to Boise I considered getting a new (to us) house as a pro. Not anymore. We spent all week in Boise and looked at soooo many houses. I like the craftsman style and I really want a porch. But we couldn't agree on one. It gets frustrating. There is a lot for sale and that only makes it harder. Our neighborhood in Lehi has so many little kids. Chloe does not want to leave her friends. So the most important thing to us is finding a neighborhood with lots of kids. Lots of girls. Around age 5. Is that asking too much?

It was a long week. Ear infections, coughs, teething, allergies, pneumonia, whining, sleep deprivation. It is a miracle that none of Chanell's family got sick. {Thank you so much for letting us stay!} We are staying in Lehi this week for dentist appointments, and a preschool field trip. We'll head up to Boise again this weekend to search some more. Then we'll come back for doctor appointments, preschool graduation, and doll club. I'm not looking forward to the drive.

Wish us luck. We're running out of time.

Under Contract!

We woke up to snow. Agian. Stella wanted to go out and build a snowman in her sandles. Chloe said, "It's supposed to be spring not winter." That's what I thought, too. I should watch the news to know when to turn off the sprinklers.

We've accepted an offer. HOO-to-the-RAY! The buyers have until May 15th for their loan to go through. Let's hope there are no problemas. We are heading up to Boise for a few days to visit Dan (and the Reichners, of course) and to look around at some homes and neighborhoods.