The Tenth of May » New House

Welcome Home

Amanda — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 19:02:57 +0000

Today Lennar brought us over a Welcome Home banner, balloons, and a BIG red bow for our door. It was a few months late, but still just as special.

Yes, we do have an address, Ben just filled it in, so no one could stalk our house, lol

Updates!

Amanda — Sun, 31 May 2009 00:23:54 +0000

It is definitely time for some updates. If you remember I reported back in March that Ben was laid off the day we got the keys to our new house. It has been about 2 months since and things have been better than ever. We considered his lay off a nice vacation for him, which he definitely deserved. About 3 weeks in he was already under contract working again, but this time from home. We figured that was what he was going to do just work freelance from home for whoever needed work. Everything really could not have worked out better; with the new house he has his own office so he is really able to “get into the zone.” That is what I like to call it because he comes up with some pretty sick looking designs in there. I love that he has a space in the house all to himself, but I can still see him from the living room so we can give our little looks and I love yous back and fourth. He is an amazing husband and a wonderful provider for our growing family!

How about updates on the house next. The house has been an amazing thing for us, we have lived there for just over 2 months and we absolutely love it. We do things that we never really did before or were able too. We go out in the backyard and water our flowers; we eat dinner together on our back patio and front patio, take long walks around the neighborhood, and have picnics in our backyard on the grass. It is crazy how much of a difference a new home can make. We have been trying to get the house ready for a house warming party but it takes sometime, so far we have about 10 things on the walls, mostly all of the rooms are filled minus the dinning room. The dinning room is empty because we are having a hard time finding a table that we love. We are hoping by party time there will be a table and not just a big empty room. The only room I have a picture of is the kitchen so I will post the before and after shots of that. Lets see, yesterday I rec’d my vanity chair in the mail, that could not have matched any better. I knew because it was wood, it would look good with the bathroom cabinets, but no joke it looks like the wood was carved out of my bathroom cabinets, SCORE! Our next big tasks for the weekend is to get Ben’s office looking awesome for the at home computer classes he is starting.
Before:

After:

Busting out the stainless steel

Ok so next on the list of updates; our little man’s nursery. I have kept it all pretty hush about what we were planning for the nursery. To be honest I was not sure myself until the bedding came in yesterday. I was very pleased with everything. I knew I wanted something modern but not to wild for a little boy, after all he is a baby not an adult. Some of these baby beddings they have out now are just insane and a lot older looking than they should be for a new born, at least in my opinion. I will post a few pics of what we have so far, which is actually just the bedding and his closet because everything else has not arrived yet. A little side note: newborn diapers are adorable and super tiny. Ben and I bought our first pack of Huggies the other day, but I was too anxious so I opened them up right away. They are the best things I have ever seen, felt or held for baby so far. They are white with baby green and yellow and Disney characters. I will post a pic of them too; it just isn’t the same until you see them. It felt so real when I had one in my hand. I looked over at Ben and said pretty soon we will have something to put in this, ahh how amazing I can’t wait to put them on his little bottom. I highly suggest going and getting a pack a newborn diapers for the pure joy.
His closet is getting pretty full, well at least the one side

Slater dog in the baby’s crib

His first pair of shoes picked out by his daddy

His bedding up close

Just some goodies and no his name is not Jonathan that is just the scrap book I made for him and we have not put his name on it yet!

His bedding all put together

My awesome glider chair, I can see a lot of holding happening there

Everything is moved

Amanda — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:01:49 +0000

Today we officially finished moving everything out of the old house, it is pretty funny that I say we considering the fact that I never even went to the old house in the process. I did a lot at the new house though to make up for it. Today Ben took me there and I was in shock, it was so crazy to see it completely empty and everything off of the walls it just did not feel the same inside. I guess that holds true with anything though, you make it what it is. I remember when I first met Ben; he had nothing on the walls but a guitar picture in a plastic frame, all different types of appliances, two mattresses on the floor made up the made, and completely white walls. It is amazing how much we did together in 3 years to make that house a home. It just makes me even more excited for this new home. It will be so nice to start customizing the home and making it our own. It is a different feeling when you have made something together. Anyone can buy a house but it is up to you to make it a home.

On a side note we will be having a new renter in our house on Friday. The whole situation worked out really perfect for us. I was a little bummed at hurting my brother’s feelings that was originally going to move in but I know it understands why.

Now all that is left it just to get all these boxes out of the new house. Hopefully by the end of week the house will be, “guest ready.”

Wow: Almost everything has been moved

Amanda — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 18:00:16 +0000

Today was a blast. First me and Ben started our morning off by making breakfast together. We had breakfast burritos, they were really yummy. Then we immediately got started on the house. By 12 o clock everyone was already over the new house with a ton of stuff. It is hard to believe we have as much stuff as we do, and people would say our house was not crowded it just needed to be organized. No way there was way too much and when you see it all spread out between two living rooms it seems crazy that it all fit at our old house. I actually heard my brother say our furniture looks tiny in the house. The packing pretty much lasted into the whole night on Sunday, at one point my mom and I were so tired we would just laugh at the stupidest things. An example would be when we were putting away the socks and my mom started making a game of GO FISH out of out, Do you have this black sock, no, GO FISH, so funny, we were having a blast. I remember looking at my grandma every time we would do something and she would just have this big smile on her face, it was a fun night.

Our new house is finally starting to feel like a home. It is so amazing being here and I feel so blessed with everything we have been given in our lives.

We are s l o w l y getting there

Amanda — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 17:59:22 +0000

Today was a huge moving day. Friday we got some stuff moved in but no big furniture or anything really important. I was so impressed though, because I had to work so I did not get to the new house until 3 in the afternoon and already the house was coming together. My family brought a huge load of our couches, beds, dressers, tables, chairs, you name it. Since I am pregnant I really can not do a whole lot when it comes to lifting so instead I starting organizing everything. By Saturday the kitchen was completely done minus the new appliances, my closet was all put together and organized by colors, of course, and our master bedroom had all the furniture, and the bed was ready for us to share our first night together in our new home. Thank you to everyone who helped out on Saturday it was truly a team effort and we could not have done it without you.

See you all tomorrow for some more moving.

Let the moving begin

Amanda — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 05:34:57 +0000

Tonight we began to move into our new home. We did not have everything to help tonight because it was a Friday and pretty late when we got started, but we did want to get something done. So we decided to move my closet, let me tell you this is not a small task what so ever. It took all of Bill’s truck to move all of my clothes and a small portion of Ben’s. After that we loaded up my parent’s truck with all the boxes we had packed the other night and headed over to the new house. All together it probably took us only 2 hours to empty all the boxes and find a place for them in the new house. Up to last night I thought my closet was massive and I would not even need drawers. Well boy was I wrong although the closet may be huge my wardrobe is just as big if not bigger and filled up the whole thing. I remember bill saying, it looked like a department store. I explained to him though that it was years of collecting, I think that made him feel better, maybe? After we finished in the closet we headed downstairs to the kitchen to start unpacking. It is crazy going from so a small kitchen to a larger one, because you really have no idea where to even start placing everything. Luckily I had my mom with me to show me the way; she pretty much decided where everything would work best for us. I remember at our old house we never had extra space and glasses were stacked on top of each other, now there is a ton of space and everything has a place. It feels so organized and anything one that knows me, knows I am a perfectionist who loves to organize all you have to do is look at my color coordinated closet. Can’t wait until tomorrow when we get to spend the night for the first time in our new home!!!

Keys Keys keys

Amanda — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 22:31:30 +0000

Today we got the call at 4:57 from the real estate agent Gina to come pick up the keys to our brand new home. I can not remember when I have even been so excited to receive a tiny metal key (actually like 6), but you get the point. That is probably because I have never had keys that opened the doors to a big house before. It was a pretty exciting time, I will post a pic of when we first opened the door, it was a very exciting moment. My real estate agent then presented us with a beautiful thank you card and some gift cards for dinner and the movies. Although yesterday was a very exciting day for us it was also a hard day as well. Ben picked me up from work around 3 o’clock which is when he told me he had been laid off. Immediately I was in shock Ben, the perfect example of everything a exemplary employee should be? I wasn’t sure what to say to him, I figured at this point he would be crushed and worried since he is the biggest part of our income. Instead though I was pleasantly surprised in his attitude and overall take on the unfortunate situation. His company has been struggling for quite some time, just like all others have, but we never thought it would happen so soon and especially not on the day we got the keys to our brand new home. But if there is one thing I know for sure it is that everything in life happens for a reason and it is when you give up and feel sorry for yourself that you allow things to change. So to us this is not a loss this is a gain. Ben is a wonderful man with unbelievable talents and I know opportunities will come flying in and he will finally be able to do everything he has always wanted to do. There is something Ben said to me that really stuck. He said “You know honey every time I pray, I never prayed for a secure job or money, I prayed for our unborn baby, our family, and our new home.” This meant so much to me because my mom has always said if you believe in God and you live your life for him he will always take care of you, and I truly believe that. I know when I married Ben I married the man of my dreams, a provider, a protector, a man of wisdom, strength, and a firm believer in GOD.

I feel so redundant in all my posts but what else is there to say besides that we are super excited and looking forward to continuing our life in our new home, welcoming a new baby addition to our family, and making many new family memories together.

Boxes Galore

Amanda — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 02:28:02 +0000

Today marked the night before the BIG move. Around 10:30 yesterday we rec’d the call that the house officially belongs to us. Yea, how exciting! I wish I could write about how hard it was and the struggles we went through, but thankfully everything was very smooth throughout the whole process. I feel very lucky to have had the real estate agent we did and the sellers as well. Their integrity all around was something to praise. The very minor things we did run into were taken care of without any hesitation. I really do not know how people wait months and months for not only a contract to be accepted but to move in. I was already getting impatient with the wait and we put the offer in a month ago exactly, a little crazy I know. I think it is just like anything else, once you have found something you want to buy it and take it home right away otherwise we would buy everything online and wait a few weeks for it to come in. Now I can wait for Victoria Secret but a house is a whole new type of waiting. It was exciting though and I must admit we needed all that time for all the paperwork and packing so we could move on time.

Today was a ton of fun because everyone came over to help us pack up the house. Mom, Beth, Bill, Grandma, and Jake, ok so maybe not everyone but do not fret they will definitely all be there tomorrow night and probably the rest of the weekend.

The house is officially ours, YAAA!!

Amanda — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 04:50:14 +0000

Today we signed for our home and the big check is cashed. It was a very exciting time and you know how everyone says it is so much paperwork and signing? I was pleasantly surprised on the size of our packet, it was only very few signatures with a whole lot of verbiage. The agent we had was a little nutty but made the whole experience really enjoyable for signing for a home. I guess I really can’t say that we bought our first home since we already own another one, but as a married couple it is our first home. We can’t not wait until Friday when they will give us the keys and Ben can carry me through the threshold. Hopefully he can still carry me, because you know I am gaining a little wait, well I definitely know he will not be carrying me up the stairs that is for sure.

Only 2 more days until we can start roping everyone in to helping us move, whoop whoop.

Finally I Got To See the House Again

Amanda — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 03:49:43 +0000

I have not gotten to see the house since the Saturday we put the offer on it at which point I had already decided it was the one and sat on the stairs well Ben checked out everything about it. It is crazy how you can walk into the same house and discover all these new things you never even noticed. For example, I never noticed how big the dinning room is there is like this whole extra wall I never saw, another thing I noticed was how many windows there are, and that my closet has a whole blank wall for a big mirror. I think I was just so smitten by everything I never looked at all the details. It was so funny to because there was a newspaper on the driveway and I told Ben that it was our first, obviously I knew it wasn’t but it was still fun to say. I also got to show my dad and my little brother the house today. My dad is so funny because him and Ben are identical I swear. I remember how Ben was when he first looked at the house, and my dad was the same they look at all the details of things, they open shutters, windows, cabinets, doors, everything I pretty much did not. I just ran around the house saw the kitchen and the closet and was sold. I always told Ben, “Honey I don’t care how big the house is it just has to have a big closet and a big kitchen.” You would be surprised how hard that was to find. I am obviously joking there are others things that are important, but Ben use to always tell me so we don’t need a house I just need to build you a closet, he is so funny right? I love my husband and our life.

20 days until move in…