Home Sweet Home!

It's been a LONG time coming, but as of this past Friday, November 15th 2013, we are FINALLY homeowners!!!  Yay!!

We've been married for five and a half years now, but we've never felt comfortable buying our own home.  Not because we weren't ready and willing, but because we have moved around so much and didn't want to make this investment until we were truly settled.....At least for a while!  Five moves in five years----I'm OVER it!  We really love Jackson and I can definitely see us raising our family here for the long term.  I just wish it wasn't 10 hours from "home", but I guess you can't have it all, right?

Matthew's parents and my Dad came up Thursday night to help us with the move.  (My Mom had to stay behind and work but she'll be retired in less than a month and she'll have more than enough time to visit!!)

Friday at noon we met our realtor at the attorney's office for our closing.  I've never been so terrified, excited and overwhelmed in my life.  I felt like I was signing my life away, and I guess I pretty much was!  In less than 30 minutes, we were walking out with keys to what was now OUR home!  Such a strange feeling! By the way, Chuck Miller is the BEST realtor and I would highly recommend him to anyone looking to buy in the Jackson area.  He was great through the whole process!  (He even had lunch catered and delivered to us on the day of the move!  So thoughtful!)

First time homeowners!!

Friday night, our friends Pam and Jeremy graciously offered to take Kyndall off our hands so that we could concentrate on moving all day Saturday.  THANK YOU, Pam and Jeremy!!!

We spent ALL DAY moving on Saturday and we couldn't have possibly done it without the help of our parents as well as several of Matthew's employees who so generously devoted their entire Saturday to us.  We are blessed!

While we were gone to pick up another load from the old house, Matthew's Mom organized this sweet gesture which we found when we walked back into our new house on Saturday afternoon......

That's Welch's sparkling grape juice, for those who were wondering!! =)

Later that night we had a fun little "toast" to our new home

Kyndall called it "parkle juice" (sparkle juice)

My first and most important goal was to get Kyndall's room set up and ready to go.  Even though the rest of us may be living out of boxes for a while, I wanted her to feel settled and secure.  I thought this would also be a good time to transition into a toddler bed.  (Yes, she's been in a crib all this time---don't judge me.  She wasn't attempting to climb out so I figured why mess with a good thing?  But alas, it is time)  

She spent the night with Pam and Jeremy Friday night and when I picked her up Saturday afternoon, I told her that we had a surprise waiting for her in her new room.  Here she is checking it out for the first time.......

SO excited!!!

I threatened her with everything I could think of and warned her that if she didn't stay in the bed, we would quickly be turning it back into a crib!  The last thing I need is a curious toddler wandering around our dark house in the middle of the night!  So far she's done GREAT!  She has stayed in the bed and she just yells for me in the monitor when she wants to get up.  So much easier than I had anticipated!  She's actually been ASKING to take naps and to go to bed before I even had to enforce it!  My baby is growing up!

We're still living in chaos and tripping over boxes, which drives me insane.  I like order and organization and I can't stand clutter.  Moving into a new house definitely tests my limits, but I just keep reminding myself that eventually, it will all get done.  I just want it done like....yesterday!  =)

We are so blessed and so thankful for our new home!  I never imagined living anywhere but Tallahassee, much less settling down and being happy ten hours away from there.  But, our plans aren't always the Lord's plans and as I've come to realize, usually His are MUCH better than ours anyway!  

Now, everyone come visit us!!!  (But not until all of the boxes are gone!)  =)