Countdown to home ownership

T minus 9 days until we take possession of the house (see handy dandy countdown widget to the left!) Remind me if I ever buy a home again not to let the "under contract" period go on longer than 30 days. Initially we asked for a closing date of July 31, which was actually longer than the traditional 30 days from the day we made the offer. But B was travelling for much of July, so it would have been a difficult month to move.

The seller counter-offered with a closing date of August 14. Wanting to appear as accommodating as possible (given that we were offering much less than the initial asking price), we agreed to whatever would work for the seller.

So we immediately took care of everything we needed to do on our end -- inspections, appraisal, finalizing financing, etc., and it's just been a waiting game ever since. I do appreciate having extra time to pack because it has given me the chance to really go through stuff, organize and purge. The move-in will be much easier because of all the time I've had to organize for it. But I'm ready now. I just want to move already. And all the extra waiting just serves to make me nervous that things could fall through. My Realtor said to me, when I confessed my fears, "Where's my mighty woman of faith?" She is right. God has certainly had His hand of blessing on this, and I do know everything will be fine. But I must confess that worry has gotten the better of me a time or two.

Since the contract was signed, we've juggled around closing dates a bit (for several reasons regarding the Realtor and seller -- not us.) It was the 14th. It was the 7th. It was the 14th again. AND NOW IT'S THE 10th. For real. So excited. Let these nine days pass quickly, Lord!

Fun in the sun

Here's how we spent the last couple of days on our mini vacation!

Lake of the Ozarks getaway

B is attending a conference at Lake of the Ozarks, so us girls are hangin` with him for a couple of days. Tonight we enjoyed kicking back at the hotel while he had a meeting (tomorrow we play!) Here we we are enjoying room service, cable and wifi while just hanging out. Check back here for photos. I`ll just add them to this post throughout the weekend.

The Zoefamily blues

We're now going on Day 8 without the Daddy around here, and we no like it. The kids are sad, the cat is sad, the dog is sad ... the mom is sad. The novelty of having some girl time and getting some extra work done has worn off. We did that; we're over it. We want the dad back home.

When the cat's away, the mice will ... work

With B away for the better part of July for work-related stuff, the girls and I are getting ready for the big M-O-V-E! I don't believe I have ever worked as hard as I have this weekend. I'm cleaning. I'm packing. I'm organizing. I'm preparing for a garage sale. (Plus taking care of B's horses!) I'm just in the zone here. And my little soldiers are ready and willing to help. We took Little A's room and turned it into the staging room for the move (Little A moved in with Big A). Here's Little A's room before this weekend and after:

Before:


And After:



Yup, Daddy ... we are working HARD! Big A and Little A have cleaned toys and helped in pretty much any manner asked of them, so they've been rewarded as well. On Saturday we went to see "Up." And on Sunday we managed to fit in lunch at the Olive Garden (of course ... all work and no lunch at the Olive Garden would just be wrong.)

Today they are spending the day with Grandma and Papa, so I am working alone. Gotta get going and get working!

Happy Birthday Brother C

I woke up with you on my mind and just wanted you to know how proud I am of the person, husband and father you have become (even if you do have the goofiest Facebook posts!) I love you and miss you so much today!

Furnishing La Casa Zoesphere

Found a brand-new, never-been-out-of-the-packaging Ashley living room set being sold for half price because it is discontinued. I did my homework to verify that various retailers were selling it for twice what I got it for! I found it via Craig's List from a family that has a furniture wholesaling business. Yippee!

It's just so very exciting to finally be replacing everything we lost and watching my new home come together.