When you know.

I was driving to California, and every second I got closer, it felt like I was driving home.

I am not quite sure how to explain it.

Even months ago when my husband and I were looking for houses.

We had to make a quick stop at Walmart, and as we were leaving, we felt like we should be driving back to our house.

The house we didn't have yet.

When we got the house, I hadn't even seen it yet.

The offer was accepted, and it was our 4th offer on our 4th house.

As soon as we had honed in on a neighborhood, Peter was relentless.

We weren't going to live anyplace else.

I checked real estate websites for months. Every day.

I saw houses come, I saw houses go.

But I felt peace.

We lost out on house one. I felt peace.

We lost out on house two. The WISTERIA house.

I felt peace. It wasn't perfect.

We lost out on house three. I started to be concerned, because time was getting short, but, still. . .it didn't turn to stress.

We put in a bid on house 4, it wasn't perfect, but it was in the neighborhood.

I was worried about the color, the size of the kitchen, the fact that there was no pantry, the layout, the fact that it didn't have a back yard, but. . .

I still felt fine about it.

We got it.

I felt peace.

Not excitement yet. But peace.

I drove 6 hours to go to the home inspection. This was going to be my only chance to see the house before we moved into it in a little over a month.

I pulled up.

It was a better color than I thought (It looks kinda pink in the pictures)

It had a better layout than I thought.

The tiles and carpet were all really nice! (House #3 had Forrest green carpet. . . so glad we lost out on THAT one)

The kitchen was big. . enough.

(The no pantry is still hurting, but I think I might convert a closet)

We have a lot of painting to do, but there were no crazy paint colors! (VERY common these days)

With each room, my excitement grew, and I knew. This. Was. Home.

If you have ever gone from owning homes, to renting one. You know.

How nice it is to finally call another space home.

I am so grateful.

It is perfect. For us.

It is big enough, for us.

It is close enough to the stores, for us.

It is wonderful to us.

I cannot wait another second to go HOME.

I am not sure how I can call a house that I have never lived in, in a town I have never lived, home. But I can.

And I am sure.

And it feels amazing.

I wasn't sure this day would come.

But it did.

What do YOU wake up to?

I wake up to this. . .




I.know.

That is buggy for you. Notice that she is not in pain, in duress, or anything of the like. She goes from one or two "Momma's" to full on shrill screaming.

It isn't my favorite way to wake up, but I felt like it is something that needs to be documented, FOR SURE!

Because you know she is never going to believe me when I tell her she screamed like a banshee when she got up in the morning. That said, my days with her in a crib are numbered, and I had to be sure it was documented!

Things that are good. . .

• We found a house. . . that feels AMAZING. Even though I haven't even seen it. (And it has no backyard)
• We have a move date, and it is before school starts. YAY!
• I am packing. . . and feel pretty good about the progress, but still worry about those last two weeks. Oy.
• I cleaned up my facebook account! No more clients. . . unless I love you MORE than just being a client.
• I get to leave Arizona! I am super excited to leave this place. . I like Arizona as a place to live, but everything else has pretty much STUNK.
• I get to start a new life! This may seem like something I am sick of doing, but in this case, I am super super excited.
• We finally signed our Area Development Agreement with Papa Murphy's! We are now the proud owners (co-owners) of 8 Papa Murphy's locations in the Inland Empire of California.
• Wade is obsessed with California. He talks about it all the time. The funny thing is, he has done this ever since we went there for Thanksgiving LAST YEAR.
• I am in a really great place with my kids. . . I look at them each day, amazed that I had them all (it really seems crazy to think about) but, I look at them and love them for their little personalities. They are all SO different.

Things are good. . .

Cart Before the Horse . . Or worst kept secrets.

This post has been a long time coming. And it might just be the most delayed post I have ever written. I wrote it MONTHS ago. I mean, MONTHS, but I am finally ready to post it. And so. . .here it is. It is probably the worst kept secret in my life, but I am ready to put it out there for everyone to see.

I don't think it will be shocking to ANYONE. Especially after my LAST post, but here it is.

Spring is my favorite time of year. Maybe it is because it is my Birthday! Maybe it is because I love the blooming flowers. Maybe it is because my Anniversary is in the spring! Maybe it is because the world seems to start anew. Maybe it is all because of new beginnings I have had, and I have had lots.

If you have been reading this blog for any length of time, you would know that the past couple (3) years have been a big challenge for our family in many, many ways. If you don't know, you can read about it HERE.

Things seemed to calm down right around the time that Kaylie was born. However, they really didn't. That year Peter started a new job, we moved (for the 9th time in 10 years), and Peter embarked on doing a Master's Degree along with working full time. With a brand new baby, it was a lot to take on. Extreme stress and long hours became the name of the game. Not to mention, there still seemed to be a bit of "un-rest" with our new situation. It didn't sit well with Peter and he was uncertain our lives were moving in the right direction. Oy.

That was hard for me. (And him) Because we had been trying to get back on our feet for several months. Trying to re-group. Trying to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps. Trying to "buck-up". But even though he got a job (not a great one) and was re-careering, we still felt like we weren't quite there yet. We figured it was just because we were busier than ever, and in a job that was several steps backward. He interviewed, and interviewed, and interviewed. We even had several "final interview"s and we never got the offer. Something was still standing in our way, and we weren't sure what.

In November, Peter was laid off.

It wasn't what we were expecting.

He was only a year into his Master's Program, that his job was paying for.

It was the main reason we were at that job.

At first, it seemed like a curse.

Then we realized, it was a blessing.

This was our big chance.

To make it right.

Our family was reeling from the news, and once again faced with uncertainty. Or, continued with uncertainty, or increased our uncertainty. Been there? For three years? Really? It's not fun.

We have earned our stripes, and made it through. I am not going to say it was completely without scars, but I can say, we are stronger. We have finally chosen a direction to go, and almost feel compelled. Which is such a relief after years of uncertainty and question. Our new "trajectory" is taking us to a new place. A new STATE.

California.

I can hardly believe it as I type that. Peter and I have lived in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Washington, Arizona and now we are going to add California to our repitore. I can honestly say that neither one of us has EVER had a desire to live in the state. Don't get me wrong, it is a great place to visit, but I can honestly say, it wouldn't be our first choice, but it is now.

And we are going.

We feel peace. More peace that we have felt in a long time. We were scared, and took painstaking measures to make sure this was the right thing for our family. We have done countless hours of research and know exactly what to expect, and how it is going to go down.

But it has been decided, and it is final.

We are going to California.

And we are going to open a new franchise in a little town called Temecula.

And that franchise is one that we know well, and love, and have researched a TON.

It is:

Ever heard of it?

VOTE FOR MY HOUSE!

VOTE HERE! _------------------------------------------------------------>

Okay, in reality, you aren't going to pick my house, but this has really become a difficult decision! I think I know which way I am leaning, but, any help would be appreciated. :) In reality, there will be lots of prayer and thought that goes into this and many other things we have to think about. Anyway, It would be nice to have some help! So. . . HELP! Haven't you always wanted to pick a house where it has virtually NO impact on you? :)

You can click on the name of the house to see pictures and the actual listing.

Dodaro House:

Cons:

Smaller Square feet

On the corner and entrance of the neighborhood.

Only thing in the yard is the pool. No other space.

7.7 miles away from work. 15-25 mins depending on Traffic.

Pros:

Pool

Good Schools

Golden Mist House

Pros:

Large Yard

Large Square Footage

Shutters on all windows

Nice Neighborhood

Good Schools

Out of Town/Closer (by 10-15 mins to beaches)

Cul de sac

Cons:

Out of Town/ 8.7 Miles away from work

No Pool or HOA with a Pool.

Desert Willows House:

Pros:

Big house

Nicest upgrades

Nice Neighborhood

Cons:

Schools aren't quite as good as others

No pool, or association pool.

Needs work. Paint, Door, new carpeting in some areas.

Futher Away. 9.7 miles.
Wisteria Lane House:

Pros:

1.7 miles from work!!!!!

Association Pool

Cul De Sac

Name of the address! DESPERATE HOUSEWIFE!

Good Schools

Cons:

Smallest House

No Pool in the backyard, but nice back yard

Not as much storage space.

Closer to work, but much more traffic to fight to get anywhere, in a busy part of town.
With all of the great opinons, I decided to give everyone a real opportunity to see the options!