I’m just going to jump in… Our plan to visit the Lexar house plan we like fell through last Wednesday. The guy at Lexar put the wrong date in his calendar so he wasn’t available when we stopped by to meet up with him. That will now be pushed back to next week. We will also be parting ways with Toby next week and attending a Day Out with Thomas. Lots to look forward to. Not to mention this weekend is a family birthday party and then a family BBQ the following day. We like to celebrate!
Wednesday we had our home inspection. It went fairly well. Somethings we expected. Some surprised us. The buyers asked for a few things to be taken care and we countered. Mostly, we wanted Jeremy to be able to fix the majority of the issues since they were small and the buyers wanted a licensed contractor. Trust me, Jeremy’s got this. However, they don’t know how handy my hubby is so I can understand the standard ask of a contractor. We haven’t heard back from them yet if they accept our counter. In other news, our family has an offer accepted on a 12 acre piece of property south of Chehalis. We are super excited. We will do a feasibility to make sure the building there is well… feasible … If all goes well, my parents will be building on 6 acres and we will be building one the other 6 acres. Hopefully, sooner rather than later. We are ready to move this process forward. At this point, we will close a month from today on August 12th. We will move on August 8th, so we are already less an a month away from the big transition. I’ve been steadily packing boxes and pairing stuff down. I’m feeling good about what we will be taking with us to my in-laws house and what will go to storage. I should also give a shout out to my in-laws who have been making space for us. They have been so gracious and generous. I am grateful for their cheerful hearts and their willingness to take in this crazy ragtag bunch. Praying we don’t drive them nuts!
Now that the move update is out the way, let’s move on to daily life. This last weekend, we went to the beach to celebrate our 10 year anniversary! Since Graham is nursing and Owen loves the beach, the boys came along too. Romantic, I know. What was also romantic was the fact that Jeremy and I slept in separate full beds on opposite sides of the trailer stayed in. Jeremy doesn’t fit in a full bed. His feet stick off, so he sleeps diagonal. Jeremy and Owen took the bedroom and Graham and I took the living space. I’m thinking we’ll make 11 years the romantic, kid-free getaway. My friend, Maggie, owns a trailer at the beach and she offered it us free of charge. It’s an adorable 1950’s trailer with lots of wood paneling and Maggie has it decorated so cute. When we arrived there was a gift basket waiting for us. A bunch of friends and family had chipped in. There was a picture frame, chocolate, sparkling cider and gift certificates to local restaurants. It was such a surprise and sweet gesture. We felt loved and blessed. We packed our time at the beach with all our favorite things. The weather was rainy, but it made things quiet and cozy. We took advantage of breaks in the rain and got outside a few times. It was a fantastic family weekend. I love my husband more than words can say. The last 10 years have been better than I could have ever imagined. Jeremy is my best friend and partner in crime. He balances me out and encourages me in so many ways. I know that I am a better person because he is my life. He supports and loves me and values me. I am one grateful lady. God gave me the best!
After the high of the fun family weekend, Jeremy left on Sunday to go to kid’s camp for the week. Which means I am home. alone. with the boys. At this point, we are all still living. Sunday, we stayed after church to have lunch with him and say our good-byes. Then it was home for nap time, a walk with the dog and a movie. Yesterday, my mom came over in the morning, the boys had a bubble bath and then we went over to Nana & Papa’s house for dinner and playtime. Today, we went down to Portland to Powell’s City of Books. Oh my word. I wanted to buy the whole children’s section. It was bad. Books are a weakness of mine. The boys got three new books and each one got read at bed time tonight. My mom and sister joined our little clan on this outing. We had lunch out. Owen got “panda rice” (Panda Express). I got to do a little shopping. It was super helpful to have my mom and April there to distract the boys so I could take few minutes to focus on my wardrobe needs. When we got home from our adventure, we attempted to take the dog for a walk, but it started to rain so we had to turn around. Gotta love this July weather. Last summer was so hot. I am grateful for the cool weather and even the rain. I know. I’m weird. The rest of the week is filled with friends, family and church.The only day I didn’t plan anything on was Friday… Which could be a LONG day since Jeremy doesn’t get home till late. I might have to make up a Friday outing so we are just staring at the clock wondering when Daddy will get home.
That about sums up life. Oh, I read a book. It’s called It’s Just a Phase So Don’t Miss It. It’s written for leaders that work with kids and teenagers about maximizing your influence at each phase in a child’s life. Each phase is important and shouldn’t be overlooked. It was an easy read filled with good information and fun charts. There was humor and honesty spread throughout the pages. As a parent, it was helpful for me to remember to be intentional with my boys where they are now, but to have a plan for the future. I am raising adults. Since this was only the third book I’ve read in 2016, I was proud of myself. When Jeremy isn’t home and I don’t want to go to bed at 8:40pm, I actually take the time to read.
Okay. Now I’m done!
Settling in at the beach
Flashback to July 8, 2006
Graham’s first visit to the Tillamook Cheese Factory. Owen remembered it from last summer and was thrilled to visit again!
Boardwalk selfie in Long Beach
Saying our good-byes before sending Daddy off to camp.
Time for a movie and popcorn
Tubby time!
Reading one of his new books at Powell’s
Sister selfie in Powell’s
A big mouthful of Panda rice! Yum!!!
We are under contract! Our house is pending! Woo hoo! The papers have been signed and our closing date will be August 12th. Of course, things can always change with inspection and appraisal, but we are praying for the best and hoping things continue to move smoothly. Now that our house is pending, we met for the second time with Lexar Homes to talk through the building process and where to start. We are excited to do a home tour of the plan we are considering this next week. It will be great to see the floor plan in person. I’ve learned that I’m really bad at picturing things so I’m excited to see the floor plan I’ve been studying off the screen and in real life. Next week, we’ll have the septic pumped (oh goodie) and possibly the home inspection. The ball is rolling! I’ve already started packing some non-essentials and moving items into the garage. My philosophy is I’d rather pack a box or two a day instead of packing the whole house up in short time.
I’ve been radio silent the last few weeks on our next big change. I was waiting for certain pieces of the puzzle to fall into place and I think we are far enough along in the process to share what’s going on. We are moving!!! Well, we hope to move. We just listed our house on Friday. The plan is to sell our home and move to a piece of property where we can live beside my parents. I’m looking forward to having more land for my boys to roam and I am excited about having my parents closer and more involved in our lives. Oh and I’m over the moon excited about having a home where we pick the plan that works for our family and we get to pick the features. I’m not entirely jazzed that it takes months for homes to be built, but I know that the end result will be worth the wait.
Amy Scott's Thoughts 