I have been dreading this appointment for probably over a year for AJ--the 5 year-old, ready-for-school, check up. This isn't your annual height and weight measurements with plotting on a graph to see how your little one compares to others their same age. Our hour and a half trip to the pediatricians office was much more than that.
The entire ride from school to the office, I contemplated if I should tell AJ she would be receiving shots at this appointment. She is one of those who is able to comprehend things better if she is told in advance what will be happening. This is a method we have been using with her since she was little and works very well. So I calmly explained that she would probably have to get a shot at the appointment today, and when I looked in the rear view mirror, I saw tears rolling down her cheeks. Oh no! After explaining it would be OK and promising lots of special treats she calmed down, just in time as I pulled into the pediatrician's parking lot.
The trip started with the typical measurements of height and weight. This girl has only gained one pound since February and grew 3 inches in 1 year! She weighs just under 43 pounds and is 45.8 inches tall. The child's height predictor predicts she will be 5 feet 10 inches tall! Perfect for a volleyball player :). Next a child's blood pressure cuff was wrapped around her arm for her first ever blood pressure-98/56. After a failed attempt at leaving a urine sample, we were escorted to the exam room.
The nurse then rattled off everything that would be happening during the visit--eye exam, finger stick for lead value and CBC, four vaccinations; oh and would you like a flu shot to go with that? I quickly glanced at AJ to see how much of that conversation she heard, (which was of course all of it), and her eyes were huge. I quickly explained to the nurse that I would NOT be giving her all the vaccinations today. She still has 10 months before she will be enrolled in school-plenty of time to catch up with vaccinations, (possibly another plus about a Fall birthday).
Testing vision in a five year old can be sort of tricky-how do you know they aren't peeking around the hand that is covering one of their eyes? Instead of using the typical Snellen Chart with the big E at the top, a chart with shapes is used instead. She passed with flying colors with 20/20 vision.
The lab tech came in next, trying to make small talk with AJ, before putting a hole in her right index figure. I wanted to yell "stop the chit chat and get it over with!" I tried to make a joke by reminding her about when Buddy the Elf got his finger poked and how he ate the cotton ball. She wasn't too amused but did like her Hello Kitty band aid.
I was then a little surprised when the nurse put a paper gown on the table and asked AJ to undress and put it on. AJ thought it was ridiculous and froze her little tush off while waiting for the provider. After eons of waiting, the PA student came in first to do her assessment. Luckily, AJ is a patient patient and didn't mind having to go through the entire exam twice, with checking her reflexes as her favorite part.
Finally, the tough part had come. As a mother, you have to be an advocate for your children. In my opinion, 4 shots for a five year old is traumatizing. Heck, 4 shots for an adult would be horrible! I did ask AJ if she wanted to go ahead and get all 4 shots out of the way today so she wouldn't have to come back, but she agreed to just two, plus the flu mist. Although this will require an extra trip to the pediatrician's office, I feel it's worth it. Plus, she would be receiving 3 live vaccines if she received everything today, and I like to spread those out.
AJ was so calm and took the flu mist like a champ. As I lifted her onto the table and she saw the syringes, she became a little frantic. It is horrible holding down your infant child as needles are stuck in their legs, but I think it is even more difficult restraining your five year old, who is well aware of what is going on. It makes me nauseous thinking I will have to do this again later next year and again with the twins. She did really well though and calmed down quickly when she saw the office had Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle stickers.
She left the office with extra cookies because it was her 5 year check up, and an empty specimen cup in my purse. Guess I'll be making another trip back to the office soon.
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Friday, October 24, 2014
Wray Bed and Breakfast
If you are ever looking for a place to stay, we highly recommend this place.
It is much, much more than a bed and breakfast however. When you arrive at the home, you will be greeted by the owners with a huge hug and usually a freshly baked, delicious snack. We were pleasantly surprised to see a large pan of the owner's famous apple bars in the kitchen when we arrived. Throughout your stay, you will be treated to many other yummy, homemade treats. I recommend you try the homemade chocolate chip cookies, cinnamon rolls, chili, and pancakes. It is very likely you will gain weight during your stay. (There is a treadmill you can utilize at the home).
When you return back to the B and B after a day at work or exploring the city, your clean, folded laundry will be in your room waiting for you. A hot dinner will be cooking on the stove while you change into something more comfy. The owners go above and beyond what they should do to make your stay as enjoyable as possible.
After eating more than you should have of the delicious meal, the owners will enjoy playing with your little ones, while you help clean up the dishes. The owners love children and are not afraid to get on the floor and play with them. They enjoy playing games, reading stories, and playing outside with children when the weather is nice.
While the sun sets and everyone heads inside, the owners are more than willing to help with bath time. This is so helpful because bathing more than 2 children at once can be challenging and exhausting at the same time. After a bed time snack and bed time stories, it's a group effort to get everyone down for the night.
The female owner has a plethora of jackets for you to choose from, if you're looking for something new to wear or are just sick of your own outerwear. I found myself making multiple choices from her coat closet during my most recent stay.
If you are ever in need of a relaxing get away, this bed and breakfast is a perfect place to go. With around 3 acres of land, there is plenty of room for you to explore, and rides on the owner's mower are free. Our son particularly enjoyed this perk. The large deck is a great place to relax at the end of the day, enjoying a glass of wine or cocktail. Our girls spent hours flying through the air on the tree swing, (and adults can enjoy it too).
Unfortunately, our stay is coming to an end. Huge thank you to the owners for their wonderful hospitality!
It is much, much more than a bed and breakfast however. When you arrive at the home, you will be greeted by the owners with a huge hug and usually a freshly baked, delicious snack. We were pleasantly surprised to see a large pan of the owner's famous apple bars in the kitchen when we arrived. Throughout your stay, you will be treated to many other yummy, homemade treats. I recommend you try the homemade chocolate chip cookies, cinnamon rolls, chili, and pancakes. It is very likely you will gain weight during your stay. (There is a treadmill you can utilize at the home).
When you return back to the B and B after a day at work or exploring the city, your clean, folded laundry will be in your room waiting for you. A hot dinner will be cooking on the stove while you change into something more comfy. The owners go above and beyond what they should do to make your stay as enjoyable as possible.
After eating more than you should have of the delicious meal, the owners will enjoy playing with your little ones, while you help clean up the dishes. The owners love children and are not afraid to get on the floor and play with them. They enjoy playing games, reading stories, and playing outside with children when the weather is nice.
While the sun sets and everyone heads inside, the owners are more than willing to help with bath time. This is so helpful because bathing more than 2 children at once can be challenging and exhausting at the same time. After a bed time snack and bed time stories, it's a group effort to get everyone down for the night.
The female owner has a plethora of jackets for you to choose from, if you're looking for something new to wear or are just sick of your own outerwear. I found myself making multiple choices from her coat closet during my most recent stay.
If you are ever in need of a relaxing get away, this bed and breakfast is a perfect place to go. With around 3 acres of land, there is plenty of room for you to explore, and rides on the owner's mower are free. Our son particularly enjoyed this perk. The large deck is a great place to relax at the end of the day, enjoying a glass of wine or cocktail. Our girls spent hours flying through the air on the tree swing, (and adults can enjoy it too).
Unfortunately, our stay is coming to an end. Huge thank you to the owners for their wonderful hospitality!
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
More Than Just a House
Our last week in our current house is here, which forces me to stop packing and just recall all of the wonderful memories we have had in this home.
This house is much more than just a house-so many things have happened within these walls over the last 8 years. We welcomed our first furry friend a year after we moved in, and although he remained nameless for a few days, he became part of our family. We've grown from a family of 2, to a family of 3, then a family of 5. We've hosted holiday parties, tailgating get togethers, Bunco with the neighbors and baby showers. The memories are countless.
Many firsts occurred in this home: First steps, first birthdays, first smiles. First dance moves, first somersaults and first flips off the couch. Cookies for Santa were set out, pumpkins carved and Easter eggs dyed. Tears have been shed, boo boos kissed and lots and lots of dirt has been washed down the bathtub drain. We've had eight different Christmas trees, all chosen and cut from my dad's tree farm. Each with varying decorations depending on who could reach the ornaments.
Each child has made numerous trips around and around our house, through the kitchen, into the dining room and through the foyer, pushing push toys, baby strollers or just running away from each other. We've baked many birthday cakes, cookies and muffins, with each little one helping to add the ingredients. Many bedtime stories have been read, songs sang and dances danced. Justin and I spent hours and hours calming babies at night, walking around the house, to promote sleep before laying them back down. Feeding twins in the middle of the night in front of the fireplace is a memory we will never forget.
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These walls surrounded us when we gathered both families in the living room to discuss a scary health condition. I can still picture where everyone was sitting when we made the announcement. Justin's parents were told they were going to be grandparents for the first time in our living room. Other important discussions regarding our lives occurred here: Deciding to change jobs, picking names for our three children, choosing a daycare, and most recently deciding to move.
We have put a lot of hard work into this house. Nearly every wall has been painted and every flooring replaced. Updates galore have been done so we can enjoy this home even more. It's hard to move away from a house you have put so much into.
Many balls have been kicked, thrown and hit in our backyard. We've enjoyed hours of watching little ones run through the sprinkler, giggling and screaming. Our three artists have made numerous creations on our driveway and sidewalk with chalk and sidewalk paint. They've walked up and down the street in the rain, barefoot, carrying their umbrellas and splashing in the puddles. Our Winters have consisted of making snow angels, being pulled around the house on a sled and building snowmen. A few unwanted creatures have also enjoyed our place, living under our shed. Over the years, we've trapped a raccoon (Rocky), a groundhog (Gordy), and a Opossum (Pete). We delivered them all safely to a new home out in the country. We've enjoyed the neighbors play set much more than they have and are so thankful they allowed us to use it.
Not knowing what the neighborhood would be like before we moved in, we definitely felt apprehensive. We hit the jackpot with this neighborhood: the people, the location, the parks, and the bike paths. This is what makes it so hard to leave this house. The day we moved in was the annual block party, allowing us to meet nearly everyone on the street. We remember feeling a little overwhelmed that day, but looking back, that day demonstrated to us the type of neighborhood we were moving into. We can't tell you the number of times our neighbors have helped us, (see previous post about 98th Street), and we know we will stay in contact with many of our current neighbors.
Today when I came home to an empty house and I had a mini breakdown-seeing the furniture gone solidifies what is happening. Thankfully there was some leftover birthday cake to devour and cheer me up!
This move is bittersweet but we're looking forward to our next adventure. We know the twins are too little to remember their first home but we'll have a plethora of pictures of help remind them. Were hopeful Alena's little mind will recall many special memories. Thanks for the memories 98th Street!
This house is much more than just a house-so many things have happened within these walls over the last 8 years. We welcomed our first furry friend a year after we moved in, and although he remained nameless for a few days, he became part of our family. We've grown from a family of 2, to a family of 3, then a family of 5. We've hosted holiday parties, tailgating get togethers, Bunco with the neighbors and baby showers. The memories are countless.
Many firsts occurred in this home: First steps, first birthdays, first smiles. First dance moves, first somersaults and first flips off the couch. Cookies for Santa were set out, pumpkins carved and Easter eggs dyed. Tears have been shed, boo boos kissed and lots and lots of dirt has been washed down the bathtub drain. We've had eight different Christmas trees, all chosen and cut from my dad's tree farm. Each with varying decorations depending on who could reach the ornaments.
Each child has made numerous trips around and around our house, through the kitchen, into the dining room and through the foyer, pushing push toys, baby strollers or just running away from each other. We've baked many birthday cakes, cookies and muffins, with each little one helping to add the ingredients. Many bedtime stories have been read, songs sang and dances danced. Justin and I spent hours and hours calming babies at night, walking around the house, to promote sleep before laying them back down. Feeding twins in the middle of the night in front of the fireplace is a memory we will never forget.
These walls surrounded us when we gathered both families in the living room to discuss a scary health condition. I can still picture where everyone was sitting when we made the announcement. Justin's parents were told they were going to be grandparents for the first time in our living room. Other important discussions regarding our lives occurred here: Deciding to change jobs, picking names for our three children, choosing a daycare, and most recently deciding to move.
We have put a lot of hard work into this house. Nearly every wall has been painted and every flooring replaced. Updates galore have been done so we can enjoy this home even more. It's hard to move away from a house you have put so much into.
Many balls have been kicked, thrown and hit in our backyard. We've enjoyed hours of watching little ones run through the sprinkler, giggling and screaming. Our three artists have made numerous creations on our driveway and sidewalk with chalk and sidewalk paint. They've walked up and down the street in the rain, barefoot, carrying their umbrellas and splashing in the puddles. Our Winters have consisted of making snow angels, being pulled around the house on a sled and building snowmen. A few unwanted creatures have also enjoyed our place, living under our shed. Over the years, we've trapped a raccoon (Rocky), a groundhog (Gordy), and a Opossum (Pete). We delivered them all safely to a new home out in the country. We've enjoyed the neighbors play set much more than they have and are so thankful they allowed us to use it.
Not knowing what the neighborhood would be like before we moved in, we definitely felt apprehensive. We hit the jackpot with this neighborhood: the people, the location, the parks, and the bike paths. This is what makes it so hard to leave this house. The day we moved in was the annual block party, allowing us to meet nearly everyone on the street. We remember feeling a little overwhelmed that day, but looking back, that day demonstrated to us the type of neighborhood we were moving into. We can't tell you the number of times our neighbors have helped us, (see previous post about 98th Street), and we know we will stay in contact with many of our current neighbors.
Today when I came home to an empty house and I had a mini breakdown-seeing the furniture gone solidifies what is happening. Thankfully there was some leftover birthday cake to devour and cheer me up!
This move is bittersweet but we're looking forward to our next adventure. We know the twins are too little to remember their first home but we'll have a plethora of pictures of help remind them. Were hopeful Alena's little mind will recall many special memories. Thanks for the memories 98th Street!
Monday, October 6, 2014
Alena's Golden Birthday
Five years ago we were so anxious for your arrival, not knowing your gender, what you would look like, or what your personality would be. You have grown up so quickly and have become a smart, sweet, caring five year old. Turning five is such a monumental moment for parents. When holding a newborn baby, it's easy to look ahead five years and wonder what things will be like, knowing it is so far away. However, as life often does, it sneaks up on us, and before you know it you are celebrating your child's fifth birthday. I'm just glad we didn't have to send you off to Kindergarten too; I don't think I could have handled that.
You are a great big sister and are always looking out for your brother and sister. You and Lauren play a lot together, role playing and using your imagination to create new games. She pretty much does whatever you want her to do, although I hope you realize that some day that will change. When you want to rough house or run around, you pair up with your brother. You're quiet in new situations or around new people but once you acclimate to the situation, you become loud and boisterous. You have many friends at school and I'll never forget how proud we were of you when you told us you stuck up for the friend in class that other classmates were making fun of. (It's nauseating to think teasing and bullying can start that early). Your first question to me every day you get home from school is "what's for dinner?" You remain a picky eater and I find myself apologizing daily to my parents for being a picky eater too! I outgrew it so hopefully you will also...
You enjoy school and are starting to learn to read. Trips to the library will be so much fun once you are reading and I look forward to the day when you can read stories to your siblings. You seem to have natural athletic ability and have enjoyed two seasons of soccer so far. Next year you told me you want to play softball/t-ball so maybe we'll give that a try. We still think you will be a runner as you have a long stride and are quite fast-we're anxious to see what you'll want to do as you get older, but hope that you'll remain interested in sports.
You follow in your daddy's footsteps, asking multiple questions about things throughout the day. Your mind is always thinking, contemplating, figuring things out; a typical five year old. When asked what you will miss about our current home, you said the microwave and stove. When asked if you would miss our backyard, you replied, "no, because we're going to have a HUGE yard to play in." When asked if you would miss our neighbors, you said "we'll make new friends, Mommy." And when asked if you would miss being able to walk to our favorite frozen yogurt place, you said "we can just drive there." Sometimes I wish we all thought like five year olds-optimistic, sincere and honest. We love you Alena Jane and are so proud of the person you are becoming.
20 Birthday Questions:
What is your favorite color? Yellow
What is your favorite toy? Crafts
What is your favorite fruit? Grapes
What is your favorite movie? Frozen
What is your favorite TV show? Wild Kratts
What is your favorite thing to wear? My Frozen Shirt
What is your favorite animal? Tiger
What is your favorite song? "Let It Go"
What is your favorite book? Berenstain Bears Series
Who is your favorite friend? Ean
What is your favorite snack? Granola Bar
What is your favorite drink? Apple Juice
What is your favorite breakfast food? Peanut butter toast
What is your favorite dinner? Chinese
What is your favorite place to go? The Park
What is your favorite game? Zingo
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Ride My Bike
What is your favorite holiday? Christmas
What do you sleep with? Eeyore and Piggy and many other random stuffed animals
What do you want to be when you grow up? A doctor
We celebrated your birthday by getting donuts for breakfast then heading to Ames to see Grandma and Papa. You got to pick out a new toy and then decided on where you wanted to eat dinner. You chose Valentino's and Papa made you homemade apple pie for dessert. You will have your first friend's birthday party tomorrow. It will be held at Skyzone, where there are a bunch of trampolines for you and your friends to jump on.
Over the last year, I've kept track of many of the memorable things you have said:
1/14:
I want to grow up and be a mommy some day and work with mom.
She went to the Science Center with mom alone. When I asked her if she had fun without the babies being there and she said, "I want them to come next time." I said, "Isn't it fun doing things by yourself?" and she said "No I always want them to come."
She said she can't wait to be 21 so she can drive. I asked her if she would be OK with driving C and L around too to where they needed to go and she replied "sure."
5/2014:
(While walking back from the park)-"I'm going to marry Landon." I replied, "oh really?" She said "well Lauren (friend at school), asked me to marry her but I told her I can't marry a girl." Then she asked if she could marry Caleb.
6/2014:
She was starting to ask a lot of questions about burning buildings and homes and wondered if our house would burn down and what we would do if that happened. Finally I reminded her that David was a firefighter and he would come put the fire out. She then replied "I want to be a firefighter." She also said that if there is a fire, she wants to make sure to grab her box of band-aids and art supplies before leaving the house.
7/2014:
They must have been talking about strangers in school because one day on the way home from the library she started talking about strangers. She wanted to know where strangers were. I told her strangers could be anywhere and that it was important not to ever get into a strangers car or go anywhere with a stranger. I then probably took it too far and told her that if a stranger ever approached her she was to run away screaming. Then a little while later she said "I wish I lived in the clouds." When I asked her why, she said, "because there are no strangers up there." Then I told her that if she lived in the clouds I wouldn't be able to hug and kiss her. She replied with "you can blow me a kiss."
She questioned Justin why she couldn't marry him or Caleb. Then she asked if she could marry a cousin. She then said she planned on marrying Ean (friend in school).
8/2014:
While I was washing my face in the evening, AJ asked why I wash my face every day. I told her it was because I had to wash my make up off. Then she said she will never wear make up, "ewww" The next day she asked me to put some eye shadow on her. She then proceeded to wash it off like I do every night. She also told me she "never" wants to get her ears pierced
You are a great big sister and are always looking out for your brother and sister. You and Lauren play a lot together, role playing and using your imagination to create new games. She pretty much does whatever you want her to do, although I hope you realize that some day that will change. When you want to rough house or run around, you pair up with your brother. You're quiet in new situations or around new people but once you acclimate to the situation, you become loud and boisterous. You have many friends at school and I'll never forget how proud we were of you when you told us you stuck up for the friend in class that other classmates were making fun of. (It's nauseating to think teasing and bullying can start that early). Your first question to me every day you get home from school is "what's for dinner?" You remain a picky eater and I find myself apologizing daily to my parents for being a picky eater too! I outgrew it so hopefully you will also...
You enjoy school and are starting to learn to read. Trips to the library will be so much fun once you are reading and I look forward to the day when you can read stories to your siblings. You seem to have natural athletic ability and have enjoyed two seasons of soccer so far. Next year you told me you want to play softball/t-ball so maybe we'll give that a try. We still think you will be a runner as you have a long stride and are quite fast-we're anxious to see what you'll want to do as you get older, but hope that you'll remain interested in sports.
You follow in your daddy's footsteps, asking multiple questions about things throughout the day. Your mind is always thinking, contemplating, figuring things out; a typical five year old. When asked what you will miss about our current home, you said the microwave and stove. When asked if you would miss our backyard, you replied, "no, because we're going to have a HUGE yard to play in." When asked if you would miss our neighbors, you said "we'll make new friends, Mommy." And when asked if you would miss being able to walk to our favorite frozen yogurt place, you said "we can just drive there." Sometimes I wish we all thought like five year olds-optimistic, sincere and honest. We love you Alena Jane and are so proud of the person you are becoming.
20 Birthday Questions:
What is your favorite color? Yellow
What is your favorite toy? Crafts
What is your favorite fruit? Grapes
What is your favorite movie? Frozen
What is your favorite TV show? Wild Kratts
What is your favorite thing to wear? My Frozen Shirt
What is your favorite animal? Tiger
What is your favorite song? "Let It Go"
What is your favorite book? Berenstain Bears Series
Who is your favorite friend? Ean
What is your favorite snack? Granola Bar
What is your favorite drink? Apple Juice
What is your favorite breakfast food? Peanut butter toast
What is your favorite dinner? Chinese
What is your favorite place to go? The Park
What is your favorite game? Zingo
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Ride My Bike
What is your favorite holiday? Christmas
What do you sleep with? Eeyore and Piggy and many other random stuffed animals
What do you want to be when you grow up? A doctor
We celebrated your birthday by getting donuts for breakfast then heading to Ames to see Grandma and Papa. You got to pick out a new toy and then decided on where you wanted to eat dinner. You chose Valentino's and Papa made you homemade apple pie for dessert. You will have your first friend's birthday party tomorrow. It will be held at Skyzone, where there are a bunch of trampolines for you and your friends to jump on.
Over the last year, I've kept track of many of the memorable things you have said:
1/14:
I want to grow up and be a mommy some day and work with mom.
She went to the Science Center with mom alone. When I asked her if she had fun without the babies being there and she said, "I want them to come next time." I said, "Isn't it fun doing things by yourself?" and she said "No I always want them to come."
She said she can't wait to be 21 so she can drive. I asked her if she would be OK with driving C and L around too to where they needed to go and she replied "sure."
5/2014:
(While walking back from the park)-"I'm going to marry Landon." I replied, "oh really?" She said "well Lauren (friend at school), asked me to marry her but I told her I can't marry a girl." Then she asked if she could marry Caleb.
6/2014:
She was starting to ask a lot of questions about burning buildings and homes and wondered if our house would burn down and what we would do if that happened. Finally I reminded her that David was a firefighter and he would come put the fire out. She then replied "I want to be a firefighter." She also said that if there is a fire, she wants to make sure to grab her box of band-aids and art supplies before leaving the house.
7/2014:
They must have been talking about strangers in school because one day on the way home from the library she started talking about strangers. She wanted to know where strangers were. I told her strangers could be anywhere and that it was important not to ever get into a strangers car or go anywhere with a stranger. I then probably took it too far and told her that if a stranger ever approached her she was to run away screaming. Then a little while later she said "I wish I lived in the clouds." When I asked her why, she said, "because there are no strangers up there." Then I told her that if she lived in the clouds I wouldn't be able to hug and kiss her. She replied with "you can blow me a kiss."
She questioned Justin why she couldn't marry him or Caleb. Then she asked if she could marry a cousin. She then said she planned on marrying Ean (friend in school).
8/2014:
While I was washing my face in the evening, AJ asked why I wash my face every day. I told her it was because I had to wash my make up off. Then she said she will never wear make up, "ewww" The next day she asked me to put some eye shadow on her. She then proceeded to wash it off like I do every night. She also told me she "never" wants to get her ears pierced
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| First family photo |
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| Age 1 |
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| Age 2 |
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| Age 3 |
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| Age 4 |
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| Age 5 |
Saturday, October 4, 2014
Decisions, Decisions, Decisions
It's a fact that Justin and I do not like having to make major decisions. We avoid them at all costs. Unfortunately in the 15 years we have been together, we have had to make a few major decisions: Deciding where to move after I completed school, buying our first house, and naming our three little ones.
Over the last two months, we have had to make many more decisions. This period of time has been the most stressful time of our lives (or at least it has felt like that). Ten weeks on bed rest, not knowing when the twins would be born and hoping they would be healthy doesn't compare to the anxiety I have felt these past two months.
We have always thought it would be ideal to live outside of town, on a nice sized lot. We both want a little more room than we currently have now. We've thought it would be fun to build our own house some day although if we found a lot with a nice house, that would suffice too. Little did I know, Justin had been keeping his eyes open for available lots around the metro. A few months ago he found an acre lot north of Urbandale. He kept his eye on it for a bit and a few weeks after he first noticed it, the price dropped. He then showed me where the lot was on the map and a couple weeks later while I was driving one of the twins around, (trying to get a teething twin to nap), I decided to swing by it. I immediately feel in love with the location, the neighborhood and the size of the lot. However, the surrounding homes were pretty intimidating and I found myself being really annoyed that Justin sent me to look at a lot we could never afford.
As the weeks went by, we got all of our finances in place "just in case" we found something, and discovered that maybe this lot wasn't too out of reach. From time to time we would drive by the lot, while AJ sat in the backseat complaining about why we kept wanting to look at it. We also did a lot of investigating with regards to other lots that were available and new developments that were on the rise. One evening we wrote down all the pros and cons of the lot. No matter what we found, we kept coming back to this one particular lot. We knew this opportunity would never surface again-this amount of land, for this price, in a beautiful/desirable location. We decided to take a chance and in early August, while we were "vacationing" in Okoboji with my cousin and her husband, we put in an offer. We found out that evening that the seller was a physician who was vacationing in Utah at the time. I immediately thought he would reject the offer and I started thinking "it wasn't meant to be." We ended up getting the lot below asking price. We then had two weeks to back out if anything should come up.
We quickly met with a builder/contractor who looked at the lot with us. He immediately told us to add $20,000 onto the price of the land for installation of a septic system, extra concrete and a culvert. What!? I was ready to back out at that time, thinking maybe this wasn't meant to be. Instead we hurried and met with another builder who estimated these costs to be less. We were very impressed with this particular builder and he believed he could give us the home we wanted within our price range-bonus! Things were starting to look up again and we decided to keep the lot.
Then we had to decide what to do with our current home. Sell now, sell this Spring (when the market is better), use a realtor or add to our stress and sell by ourselves. We decided the latter in hopes of saving a little money. We had two Realtors comes through the home to help with pricing and staging of the home. Less than 3 weeks later, we were on the market. We listed the price at the high end of the range, knowing that most buyers do not ask full price.
I was pretty naive with the entire process. I really didn't expect any showings until we had our first open house, which I was planning on doing in a couple weeks. The day after Labor Day, I received a call from a realtor wanting to show my house that day at 5:00. I freaked out a little bit, called my mom, and asked if she could meet me at my house to help me get everything ready. Obviously, we had already de-cluttered and had pretty much staged the house, but some cleaning was needed. We worked our butts off for a few hours but everything looked great. There were a number of items we had to move out of the house: high chairs, the kids chairs that are in the living room, Milo's stuff (and Milo), our laundry basket, etc. (I'll never forget when one Realtor called me saying "a big black cat just ran into your house." I made up a silly story that it was the neighbor's cat that the kids had taken a liking to).
Later that evening after Alena's soccer practice we moved everything back in. Wednesday morning I got another call...We had a showing (or two) almost every day that first week. Friday of that week a realtor called stating her buyers wanted to go through the home a second time. I grabbed Milo and drove over to Homemakers. He hung out in the truck while I did a little shopping. Saturday morning we received an offer. We weren't too impressed with the offer so countered back. Later that afternoon, they countered back to us. I had already committed to another showing the following day and another realtor called Saturday to say his buyers wanted to take a second look at the house. We decided we weren't going to give our current bidders an answer to their counter until Monday morning. Meanwhile, they became nervous and upped their bid. We waited all day Sunday for another offer to come in, but it never did. Monday morning we accepted their current bid. Although less than the asking price, it is the price we were hoping for. After they tried to bully us after the inspection, we didn't back down and will close this Friday on the house.
Needless to say, I never want to sell a house again. Running home every day to get my house in order, leaving the house each evening, and waiting for offers to come in, is stressful. I'm so glad we only had to do that for a week-I can't imagine those who do this for months.
We better start getting better at making decisions, because it looks like we have a lot of decisions ahead of us...
Over the last two months, we have had to make many more decisions. This period of time has been the most stressful time of our lives (or at least it has felt like that). Ten weeks on bed rest, not knowing when the twins would be born and hoping they would be healthy doesn't compare to the anxiety I have felt these past two months.
We have always thought it would be ideal to live outside of town, on a nice sized lot. We both want a little more room than we currently have now. We've thought it would be fun to build our own house some day although if we found a lot with a nice house, that would suffice too. Little did I know, Justin had been keeping his eyes open for available lots around the metro. A few months ago he found an acre lot north of Urbandale. He kept his eye on it for a bit and a few weeks after he first noticed it, the price dropped. He then showed me where the lot was on the map and a couple weeks later while I was driving one of the twins around, (trying to get a teething twin to nap), I decided to swing by it. I immediately feel in love with the location, the neighborhood and the size of the lot. However, the surrounding homes were pretty intimidating and I found myself being really annoyed that Justin sent me to look at a lot we could never afford.
As the weeks went by, we got all of our finances in place "just in case" we found something, and discovered that maybe this lot wasn't too out of reach. From time to time we would drive by the lot, while AJ sat in the backseat complaining about why we kept wanting to look at it. We also did a lot of investigating with regards to other lots that were available and new developments that were on the rise. One evening we wrote down all the pros and cons of the lot. No matter what we found, we kept coming back to this one particular lot. We knew this opportunity would never surface again-this amount of land, for this price, in a beautiful/desirable location. We decided to take a chance and in early August, while we were "vacationing" in Okoboji with my cousin and her husband, we put in an offer. We found out that evening that the seller was a physician who was vacationing in Utah at the time. I immediately thought he would reject the offer and I started thinking "it wasn't meant to be." We ended up getting the lot below asking price. We then had two weeks to back out if anything should come up.
We quickly met with a builder/contractor who looked at the lot with us. He immediately told us to add $20,000 onto the price of the land for installation of a septic system, extra concrete and a culvert. What!? I was ready to back out at that time, thinking maybe this wasn't meant to be. Instead we hurried and met with another builder who estimated these costs to be less. We were very impressed with this particular builder and he believed he could give us the home we wanted within our price range-bonus! Things were starting to look up again and we decided to keep the lot.
Then we had to decide what to do with our current home. Sell now, sell this Spring (when the market is better), use a realtor or add to our stress and sell by ourselves. We decided the latter in hopes of saving a little money. We had two Realtors comes through the home to help with pricing and staging of the home. Less than 3 weeks later, we were on the market. We listed the price at the high end of the range, knowing that most buyers do not ask full price.
I was pretty naive with the entire process. I really didn't expect any showings until we had our first open house, which I was planning on doing in a couple weeks. The day after Labor Day, I received a call from a realtor wanting to show my house that day at 5:00. I freaked out a little bit, called my mom, and asked if she could meet me at my house to help me get everything ready. Obviously, we had already de-cluttered and had pretty much staged the house, but some cleaning was needed. We worked our butts off for a few hours but everything looked great. There were a number of items we had to move out of the house: high chairs, the kids chairs that are in the living room, Milo's stuff (and Milo), our laundry basket, etc. (I'll never forget when one Realtor called me saying "a big black cat just ran into your house." I made up a silly story that it was the neighbor's cat that the kids had taken a liking to).
Later that evening after Alena's soccer practice we moved everything back in. Wednesday morning I got another call...We had a showing (or two) almost every day that first week. Friday of that week a realtor called stating her buyers wanted to go through the home a second time. I grabbed Milo and drove over to Homemakers. He hung out in the truck while I did a little shopping. Saturday morning we received an offer. We weren't too impressed with the offer so countered back. Later that afternoon, they countered back to us. I had already committed to another showing the following day and another realtor called Saturday to say his buyers wanted to take a second look at the house. We decided we weren't going to give our current bidders an answer to their counter until Monday morning. Meanwhile, they became nervous and upped their bid. We waited all day Sunday for another offer to come in, but it never did. Monday morning we accepted their current bid. Although less than the asking price, it is the price we were hoping for. After they tried to bully us after the inspection, we didn't back down and will close this Friday on the house.
Needless to say, I never want to sell a house again. Running home every day to get my house in order, leaving the house each evening, and waiting for offers to come in, is stressful. I'm so glad we only had to do that for a week-I can't imagine those who do this for months.
We better start getting better at making decisions, because it looks like we have a lot of decisions ahead of us...
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