Round 2!

We bought the house we found last weekend. Robert and I are both excited to finally have a home. I know he is especially excited since he is the one making the commute and living away from family. We haven't been able to get the pictures up on the website yet. It will probably be another week before we can post them. We are closing on the house December 7th so we will be there in time for Christmas! That is next Friday!! This means that Robert's family will be joining us there in Conway for the holiday. We are excited to have our own living space and more of it than the last house. It hasn't been bad living with Joe. He's been on extra good behavior in terms of staying relaxed which has made it nice to spend time here. That is the big news for now. No changes with JJ's sleep although I am trying different things. I did talk to the doctor and about this time babies do change their sleep habits so I figure this is normal. He's worth it!

Twas a Happy Thanksgiving

Well, it came and went. Thanksgiving was a great day spent with family and full bellies. There was no opportunity to rest as we left for Arkansas Friday morning to look for a house. We found something promising and placed an offer today. We'll see what happens. I've enjoyed today to rest and last night there was a great football game on tv. JJ is not sleeping well and that equates to no sleep for me either. I don't know what is going on - the traveling, teething, transition, ?? Whatever it is I hope it works its way out of his life soon.

Across the finish line

Well, it's done. No more '621 NW 48th St.'. That chapter has been closed. I can't believe we FINALLY closed on the house. It has felt like running a marathon from prepping to show the house through closing. I had such a relief today after it was all done. The packing and getting out of there was exhausting for me along with taking care of JJ without Robert's help. I must give props to Aunt Sandie who was a HUGE help two of the days. Whatever the cost is for the movers - it is worth it!! I cannot even imagine doing all the work they have done on our own. What a blessing that Robert's company is paying for it. When Robert and I were ready to leave the house for the last time we prayed over it - thanking God for good times and bad and His provision through everything up to today. We prayed for the new buyers to be blessed by the home. It was great! Last night when I was sweeping all the filth in each room I had specific memories for the room in which I was sweeping. It was a trip down memory lane with me and my house. JJ was being babysat by grandpa Joe. What a huge relief that this is all over. I know unpacking won't be near the task and I can't wait to be in our own space with our own stuff - all of it under one roof after three years!! Now we can focus on one house instead of two. We are all looking forward to a day with family and good food in PV. Then Friday we will head to AR for house hunting. I'm not looking forward to it only because I wanted to rest a little after this marathon but we must keep going until we find our next home!

Some relief in sight!

Well, I think the hard part is over. JJ and I are taking it easy today because the movers are loading the boxes of all of our wordly possessions in the moving rig. It has been hectic up to now but Robert gets home tonight. We will end up closing on this house tomorrow. I am excited for Thanksgiving, having Robert here, seeing family, and JJ's first turkey! He continues to be such a joy. He is the best baby. Yesterday my aunt Sandie watched JJ. He got to play with his cousins Max and Zeke (4 1/2 and 2 years old) and held his own pretty well according to the reports. JJ is going to be great at rough-and-tumble play. Robert and I plan on going to Arkansas with JJ within the week to look at houses again. I hope we find something. All of the animals are here at my dad's/Joe's house. Scout is doing great but the cats have some anxiety over the move. I think it's going to work out though. Joe has adjusted well to having his house full again. Not one complaint out of him yet! JJ is a great distraction. I can't wait until tomorrow when this door will be closed and we can enjoy the holiday. Happy Thanksgiving.

This is what we call a change in plans...

Well, we are not buying the house in Conway. A structural engineer came and looked at the house today and found many issues. It doesn't matter that it is a brand new house. The foundation was not done correctly and was poured on bad soil. It is amazing the things the engineer found in his inspection. Bottom line: he saved us a huge headache down the line. I'm really just focused on getting out of here and was at peace with our decision - oddly so. This means living with Joe Blake for an unknown extended amount of time. We are back in the saddle for house hunting to say the least. It really stinks because we really liked the other house. It is so hard to find the right combination of things you like in a house with a limited amount of things your don't like. As for now, I am just taking one day at a time.

The craziness continues...

The packers are coming tomorrow to begin boxing up our house. I am grateful to my aunt Sandie for watching JJ in the morning so I can focus on the job at hand. They should finish packing Monday and start loading Tuesday and Wednesday if they need. We are scheduled to close Tuesday at 3 pm. Once we are out of here, we will be staying with Joe through Thanksgiving and until we move to Conway. On that end, we should close the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. This is all happening so fast. We are not sure yet if the builder is going to change some things on the Conway house yet. They put a light switch right where the fridge goes!! If they don't then we will have to walk and do some more shopping. Either way at least there will only be one focus/house rather than two to worry about. Robert doesn't return here until the Wednesday before the holiday. I can't believe JJ and I are doing all of this on our own but we have help and I know Robert wishes he could be here. That is the status for now. See you soon.

Crazy times

I feel like I have been living out of my suitcase for the past three weeks. We got back from Midland yesterday for Robert's grandmother's memorial service. It was a nice service, Robert spoke and did very well. It was a nice family gathering and celebration of her life. We bought the house in Conway on Friday. We will close no later than the 30th of November. The moving company is here today getting the estimate on costs. Tomorrow we should hear when they will be here to pack and move us. So, we should be moving within the next two weeks.
JJ was such a good trooper on the flights and travel to Midland. He gets rave reviews everywhere he goes about what a good baby he is, so laid back, happy, cute, and his big blue eyes. It makes his momma proud. I've got him on a good diet now with regular feedings of prunes which has been the key for his BMs. Ever since the time change, he is getting one less hour of sleep. We have a 5:30am wake time now instead of 6:30. I'm not sure yet if there is any hope getting him back on track. Not until next spring that is! He is getting very mobile scooting around everywhere with ease. He is in the first stages of pulling himself up although not completely to his knees yet. It is fun to see his progress. He still weighs about 15 lbs. I plan to talk to the doctor about when we can start him on finger foods. A whole other chapter will soon begin.

#2!

JJ has another tooth coming in. It is a neighbor to the one already popping up. It came out of nowhere! He hasn't had much pain from teething but this one seems to hurt him a little more. JJ just loves bathtime!! He gets so excited when he sees the water running for bathtime. He's a great little guy.
We finally agreed on a price yesterday for our house here. Now we have 9 days to be out! I just can't believe this house will be empty of our things! Tomorrow we are submitting an offer for the house in Conway. This buying and selling of houses is stressful! It is such a big purchase and there is so much to consider. We will just have to roll with the punches. I'll keep you posted on the offer and acceptance in Conway as well as the closing and moving out of this house. Lots going on outside of flying to Midland tomorrow for a few days. See ya!

New season upon us

Raise your hand if you can believe it is already November! JJ is seven and half months old now and still doing great. I can see changes in him and he has become very hands-on and likes to explore everything in his path. A new thing: if you take something away from him or something drops out of his reach he cries because he wants it. He also does this growling thing with his voice. It is very funny. He continues to love bathtime and being out of his carseat. Enjoy that JJ because you are about to be back in it for a trip back to Midland for Grandmother Frances's memorial. Granted, we are flying this time and it will be Robert's first time to fly with JJ and me. I will enjoy the extra help in the friendly skies.

We are pretty much ready to place the offer on the house in Conway. Negotiations are getting tight with the OKC house due to the new roof. The buyers are young and it is their first house so they don't have a clue what to do. They are not willing to meet even half-way on the roof from which they will enjoy and reap the benefits. We have already come down from the original asking price and did not anticipate this roof issue. We hope they will come around and in the end may take a big hit on the sale price in order to just get the house sold. Please pray for resolution on the matter. It makes me nervous but in the end it is just money lost. Robert comes home tomorrow. I know he is ready to be home as he always is. He will only have two more shifts left of the rough-nek work. It is the worst way to live and I'm ready for him to be done too. The picture to the right is where he sleeps when he is between shifts. He will get to see his family this weekend in Midland, although not under great circumstances. We 3 Walkers will be together again tomorrow and enjoy the time spent together.