Our First Home.

Good Morning!
 I've been up since 5 this morning, and figured this would be as good a time as any to fiddle with the ole' blogger.

I hear birds chirping away outside my window, which makes me think a warm day is here, which it's not, really. I'm very ready for a warm day. And no coats that don't have to button around big bellies. And no more little chapped hands because I've become a total hand-washing germ nut over my toddler. No more illnesses this season! I'm determined!

 

(Our backyard- I love it. We've done a lot of work here in the past few years and it still needs some more. We cleared everything out, added the fence, grew some grass, added some new plants, and Matth and Luke built the pergola.) 

 

We have had a busy, and exciting, and overwhelming two weeks. Matthew has been back and forth to Nashville, working long hours to accomplish two jobs instead of his usual busy one. He's been to Nashville twice this week, and will go again next week. I just told him I'm glad it's only about 3 hours away, which should give him plenty of time to get back if I go into labor. Funny, but not really.

(Our first home! I wish we could just move it to Franklin- we'd live in it forever. We love our 1950's home with a good-sized yard and great neighbors. We did a little work to the front, but the back was mainly our focus as it was filled with 50 yr old brush, bricks, clutter, and poison ivy.)

We officially listed our house for sale by owner. I spent one day scrubbing each room and strategically moving all the contents from one room to the next. I'd pile everything on the dining room table and take a picture of the spotless kitchen looking like it's not lived in at all by a family that eats at least three meals a day in there. I took down lots of pictures off the walls, since that's what HGTV says to do, but I've already put them back up. I couldn't stand living in a house that looked so bare bones. Totally worth it though.
 

(Dining room- With no kitchen table, we eat most of our meals here)

 

 

We had two showings on Saturday, and had a full price offer 30 minutes later! We are officially "under contract" but of course, nothing's final until it's all said and done, or signed. We are still taking a lot of calls about the house, and will gladly take five back up offers if need be!

(Our sunroom/playroom/sewing corner. That trunk was my great aunt's brought over from Germany and that lovely floral patterned chair was my mom's- which will be recovered at some point.)

 

For the two showings, I piled Eli, the two dogs, a laundry basket full of junk, a bouncer seat, and a bale of pine straw, and headed out for two hours. What does one do with all that time and that type of crew in their car? We got chicken biscuits and watched trucks in the parking lot. We got a coffee and watch a little Lion King. We went to the dog park and froze in the 30 degree weather. Then we sat down the street in our neighborhood until I got a call saying we could return home. A good time was had by all. Eli has told everyone his most memorable events from that day, "I wan weally fast with Hucky at the dog park, and Booney wan slow, and Hucky pooped, and then Booney pooped, and it was weally stinky!"

(Our kitchen- not my style of finishes, but a great sized kitchen for an older home. We would have have changed it up if we were to be here forever) 

 

We are THRILLED to have an offer we are comfortable with, and although it makes us think we could have asked for a little more, we also know we priced our house to sell fast, and it did! We will now have that weight off of our shoulders while we await for this little baby and then make the move to Franklin. We were afraid we might be waiting months and months for this house to sell in this poor market while we lived separately from one another with a new little baby to care for. The other huge blessing is that we can close a little later. This couple buying our home is very flexible with their closing date, and we can wait until after the baby comes and I have had a chance to heal for a few weeks. When the realtor first called, Matthew told her we could be out the week we get home from the hospital. I lovingly told him he was totally nuts.

(Sold our kitchen table and barstools, moved my little hand me down sewing table in. I miss our barstools-they are great for little helpers!)

 

We have made an offer on a home in Franklin that I LOVE, and in the neighborhood I grew up in, but we were a little late, and we are their back-up offer, so unless something randomly falls through with the first one, we won't get it. Our plan right now is to keep looking for other homes, and we'll just live with Matth's parents starting in April until we find something we really like.

(hallway to bedrooms- we left up our family pictures here, and took out our runner)
 

Last, baby news! I went to the dr. yesterday and this little boy is estimated to be about 8 lbs right now. I have exactly two weeks left until my c-section date, unless he comes on his own before then. I have been having Braxton Hicks contractions every ten minutes or so for the past two weeks, and every day a few painful ones. However, the dr. told me yesterday she unfortunately thinks God just made me to be someone whose body doesn't really prepare for labor very well, which means I never dialate on my own. I think we are "ready". I have his bed, clothes, diapers, etc. ready to go. I have the pack n play in our room, which will be his "nursery" until we move. I have re-ordered all the lovely breast pump parts, as I didn't think we would be so close when Eli got here, but we became best friends. I couldn't resist and I did buy a few new teeny tiny cozy outfits for him. I just need to pack my bags and put the car seat in, and I think we're ready! We still don't have a name nailed down- well, I'm pretty sure we have a first name, just not a middle. We'll get there, right? I'm feeling pretty much like any woman in her ninth month probably feels-- really tired, uncomfortable, ridiculously large, out of clothing options, and emotional. I cried at Teen Mom the other night, if that tells you anything. In my defense though, those poor girls.

(Living room- All toys and giant train table have been hidden for this pic. Try to ignore that giant t.v. I protested and lost.)

(Other view of living room- matthew's fave spot- a leather recliner. Coffee table is Goodwill that I painted so kiddos could ruin it without worry.)

 

Guest bath- I hid all Matth's morning clutter and lots of bath toys)

 

(Guest room down to bare bare bones. A vanity my parents bought me in high school but never refinished, my grandmother's little desk, and Matth's childhood bed we painted. I think his mother cried a little to see it white.)

 

(Down to a few books only- this room was all knotty pine wood paneling and bookshelves- I painted and painted and painted)

 

(Eli's room down to bare bones- in the past week we've built him a headboard, and put up more art and pics. It looked too blah for a little boy, even for just a month.)

 

 

(I'll get him actual big boy bedding eventually, when I know where we're going to live and what I want to do for two little boys. That's my childhood mattress, a hand me down dresser, and a Sam's Club bookcase we bought for our 1st apt.)

 

(Our room. Walmart night stands, goodwill lamps, hand-me-down king bed from my brother, ikea curtains, and we finally purchased a real grown-up headboard just a few months ago. Still need the slipcover to it.)

 

(Armoire we bought for our first apt in the clearance section and my mom's dresser.)

 

(Our teeny tiny master bath you can't even take a picture of.)

 

Our first home! I will definitely be a big sad mess when we move. This has been our first home as a married couple, as parents to two dogs and a cat, our home we will have brought both of our babies home in, and our first five years of marriage spent here making memories in a town all on our own. We are SO EXCITED to move back, but are also sad and overwhelmed at the thought of leaving our first sweet home.