I know I need to do a monthly recap. This is more of a smorgasbord of thoughts. I
plan on doing a recap once I get all the million pics off my cell phone. But just
so you know, Jackson doesn't quite run everywhere anymore. He jumps. It’s
funny. And he’s obsessed with bunnies. And The
Wheels on the Bus videos. And he’s using the potty. I’m not going to write
much about that because I’m scared to jinx things and I can’t believe this is
happening…
Isn’t this a phase?? Don’t
boys take longer?
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| Enjoying a healthy smoothie |
I think Jackson is on his 15th haircut too. It
helps when grandma cuts hair for a living!!!
We started looking at houses. Wow. Exhausting!!! Even more
when you’re looking during the arctic blast and blizzard. [Insert frozen face.]
Why not move to Arizona?
We didn’t expect to find a house during our first run
through. Problem is the location. It’s quite the distance outside The Cities. It’s
like Roscoe back in the 80s (the town in Illinois I grew up in). Very country.
Very little to do – no gas stations for miles away. BUT, that’s something Karl
and I were hoping for in a weird way.
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| Isn't she pretty? |
Houses are ON TOP of each other otherwise, unless we can
fork over half a million or buy a house that was built over 30+ years ago and
requires quite a bit of work. We’ve been living in a town home where we share walls with the
neighbors and there is ZERO yard. We want SOME land. We want a garden. We want
a yard Jackson can play in. We’re over our neighbors looking into our home.
Yet, we realize that our townhome IS REALLY nice. I bought
it brand new and I have taken good care of it. I didn't realize how
well until we started walking through houses younger than ours and noticing the destruction. And this is probably why we’ve subconsciously hung on to our townhome for so long. That, and we wanted to wait as long as possible to sell so we could get SOMETHING for it.
In the meantime I cleaned out our master bedroom last
weekend. NINE garbage bags FULL of stuff. NINE. I have my work cut out for me.
It’s PURGE TIME.
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| Just the start of PURGE FEST |
Anyway, we found a house for a GREAT price (bank owned). The
view is awesome. But the house would require a little work. Do we have time for
repair work?? Can we fork over money for new appliances, carpet and paint from
the get go? We can barely find time to keep up with our own place.
The kitchen is huge. There are custom closets. An unfinished
walkout basement. A wonderful deck. A slop sink and a laundry area! But I’ve
heard the commute (though same miles I drive now) isn’t the best. What to do? What to do?
I now see how this is going to be a little more difficult
than I thought. I’m going to have to compromise some wants, aren't I?
I keep thinking something awesome will fall in our lap like it
did for my brother and sister-in-law…
Also, my dad went in for his open-heart surgery and I can
report he is AWAKE and gave us all thumbs up (via a text message my mom sent)! Can
you tell I was trying to keep my mind busy with house stuff? I couldn’t stand
the thought of my dad's chest getting ripped open.
Doctors went in and discovered the quarter-sized hole in his
heart was even BIGGER than that. They also replaced his mitral valve with a pig
valve. My dad looks young for his age, but he’s been breathing heavily and
napping multiple times throughout the day. Seemed so odd. He’d walk up three
steps and have to stop.
You think a massive hole in your heart might be the reason? BINGO!!!
Let’s hope this surgery helps. I pray for a speedy recovery.
This is my reason for living out a healthy lifestyle. I know
my family’s heart history. I pay close attention to what goes in my body and
the amount of sleep and activity I get every day (sleep varies now that I'm a mom). I know it makes me sound
psycho from time to time, but I know what happens when you don’t take care of
yourself. Why not start from a young age and establish GOOD habits to carry on
forever? Then it doesn’t seem so daunting and overwhelming.
I'm also going to try to blog about my weekly meal plans. Basically I rip out healthy recipes, write out a grocery list, search for coupons and hit up the store ONCE a week. We're good for the week. It's such a HUGE relief knowing what I'm going to make when I get home from work and all ingredients will be there.
What I need to work on is stress. But I think that rings
true with most people! This is why I’m trying to figure out a workout schedule.
I feel SO GREAT after working out. But fitting it in is so tough!!! I did get
one work out in last week. This cold weather is totally killer. Can’t even step
outside for more than 5 minutes without my nose hair icing up on me.
Stay warm out there!
