Trying to remain calm...

If anyone thinks that buying a house is easy, it's not exactly true. I'm trying to remain positive and calm mainly for myself, but also for my husband. The fun part was walking through other peoples' houses trying to determine where our furniture would go, if it was the right fit for our family, and finding all the little nooks and crannies that made the house special.

Since our offer was accepted last Wednesday, we've been rushing around like mad to try and meet all the deadlines for everything. We had to complete a release form to remove our secondary offer on another house right away. Then on Thursday, I called up a few more house inspectors to check on pricing and make sure they had all the qualifications and insurance. We found one we liked so our agent offered to set up everything directly with the home inspector and the sellers.

Our weekend in Champaign, IL was just what we needed to just get away from the craziness and enjoy spending time with relatives. Then, Monday morning, we had Tim's cousin watch the kids while we did our home  inspection for close to 3.5 hours. I started to fall more in love with the house. It's still kind of surreal. Anyway, the inspection went as well as can be expected. No flaws! haha.. right.. in my dreams! There are definitely some things that need to be fixed up. So we have to get some estimates and try to figure out what we want the sellers to fix and what we plan on taking care of ourselves.

After speaking with our agent, I felt a lot better. She was able to reassure me that we'll get everything figured out and to try not to be overwhelmed by the list of defects and safety issues that need to be addressed. Obviously people are living in the house right now, so there's no immediate attention to some of the items on the list. It's still a little intimidating to think about. Are we going to be able to maintain this house? Of course we will! We might just need to ask for a little help every now and again or just flat out hire a professional.

Once we figure out estimates and how much the seller is willing to fix, our lender will order an appraisal and they can move forward with processing our loan. So, our next deadline to meet is Saturday. Hopefully the sellers will be willing to pay to have the electrical parts done and maybe the plumbing.... We'll see. Just trying to take it one day at a time.

We went with.... House A!!!

After looking at about 20+ houses, we finally bought House A!!! It's the one that has the fenced in yard and is right across the street from the elementary school. We'll still be in Port Washington so that'll keep us close to stores, church, the library, and stay in the Port/Saukville school district!

Here's a picture of our new home:

For those of you that participated in my little survey a few posts back, House B decided to take theirs off the market on the same day that we were going to put an offer on it. We actually looked at 3 or 4 more houses after that because we were so disappointed and didn't even want to look at House A anymore. Well, after a lot of praying, God kept pushing us towards House A. :-) 

As long as everything falls into place with the home inspection and funding our loan, we'll close on May 17th! 

Pulling out my hair at times

Parenting is not always easy. Sure, the kids can be very sweet at times, almost angelic. Yet, they have their moments where they like to push your buttons and see how far you'll go. Empty threats of discipline followed by sitting in the corner on the "naughty chair," being put on yellow or even red light, losing special privileges.... I just need to find something that works. Yes, I'm talking about my little boy. Lately, he has been a lot more sassy and has either lost his sense of hearing or is choosing not to listen to mommy and daddy. He's even been teasing a kid at school and doesn't always listen to his teachers. This is not the same kid I placed in 4K at the beginning of the school year. I'm hoping it's just a phase that will pass by.

The other day, I felt like a failure of a mother. I can't control my own kid! But... I have to remember that he has a mind of his own and I won't always be able to control his behavior or the words he says. It was easier when he was littler and acted so sweet and innocent almost all of the time. I'm not ready to be a parent of a 4 and 1/2 year old! Well, I'm ready, but apparently not very well prepared. I guess Caleb will just have to be the guinea pig like all first-borns. I'll probably make some mistakes along the way. (Hopefully nothing too serious! haha) Someone reminded me that Caleb is a pretty good kid most of the time so I must be doing something right. He just seems to act up so much when I'm around that I tend to see the not so angelic side of my little guy.

I've been trying to pray a lot more for my children and also for my parenting. It seems to help a little, but at the end of the day, I still feel like pulling out my hair!

Does anyone have some good ideas to reinforce positive behavior / discipline? I feel like I've tried everything. Maybe I'm lacking consistency with enforcing our current "policies". Either that or I need to try something new and start from scratch.

Well, that's my rant for the moment. Sonya has been teething lately and just whines a lot throughout the day so that probably doesn't help my sanity much. Thank goodness she is taking a morning nap today! I better get a few things done while she's sleeping! Over and out!

Bridesmaid Dress :-)

In September, my best friend from college is getting married!!! I've known for a while, but she just decided on the bridesmaid dresses and I'm pretty excited because I'll get to wear one! :-)  I'm a little nervous because I've only been in a wedding once -- my own! I feel so inexperienced, but am honored that I get to stand up in my friend's wedding. I know she'll make a beautiful bride! Here's the dress in royal purple.... praying that I can pull it off when the time comes!

House Poll

Which house do you think is worth more?

House A:
- 3 bed, 1.5 bath
- fenced in yard
- located across the street from an elementary school
- new roof
- half-finished basement = rec room/computer room

House B:
- 3 bed, 1.5 bath (plus 3/4 bath in lower level)
- new windows
- new furnace
- remodeled kitchen and bathrooms
- ceiling fans and big closets in bedrooms
- near Interurban Bike Trail

Tough decision....
When there are at least 5 responses, I'll reveal which one has the higher asking price. Have fun!