A home of our own...

Front of house

Playground in the backyard

Future art studio

This weekend Nate watched the girls while I flew to Utah to check out some house leads. I stayed with his parents because mine were in Baltimore for the Masters National track meet. The Starleys took me to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building for dinner at The Garden (so yummy!) and we walked along the Salt Lake Temple grounds (Nate and I were married there in 2002).

Saturday was a busy day. My mother-in-law, Colleen, walked through 8 houses with me and was a big help in pointing out pros and cons about each one. As we walked through one in particular it really seemed to fit the ticket. In fact, my in-laws are good friends with the owners. As we were leaving another couple came to walk through and my stomache just dropped. Colleen knew them as well (so popular). My realtor said the market has really changed and it's extrememly rare to be in a multiple buyer situation and feel comfortable taking my time going over everything with Nate.
Saturday night was filled with visiting the Wade's new baby girl Cassidy, prepping Anne for Prom (Nate's sister), and watching Twilight with my neice and sister.

Early Sunday morning as I was boarding my flight home, I received a call from my realtor. Bad news. The other couple put in an offer. A long story short today we put in our best offer and a few hours later the sellers accepted. We are in the process of buying a house. I am still in shock but feel very calm and peaceful. I am just so grateful that things seem to be positive and that our family on both sides have really rallied to guide us. I am even grateful to the awkward relationship with our neighbors below us because otherwise we wouldn't have had that extra nudge to plunge. I guess our trials really can be blessings. We're praying everything goes well in the next few months with closing protocols. We'll keep you posted on the developments.

Updates on the Girls:
**As we were climbing the steps to our apartment this morning Katelyn called up, "I'm coming to rescue you Mommy." I am not sure where she picked that line up from but it's nice to know my toddler has my back.
**Katelyn's experimenting with potty training and we spend a lot of time near the toilet. Sarah was so curious what the big deal was she pulled her little body up and was about to fall head first into the bowl...

**Baby dolls just seem to be the toy of choice these days. Sarah has loved them since birth and Katelyn has followed suit just recently. It does make life a little easier other than the days that they each want both dolls...
**Sarah emptying the measuring cup drawer, climbing in, and attempting to close the drawer while crouched inside...