1.28.2003
The mortgage application meeting went really well, and it looks like things will go smoothly from here on out (I hope I don't jinx it by saying that!). This is really starting to seem *real* now, and I am getting very excited about moving into our new house and getting set up. I'm not big into decorating, but I like to work with colors, make things match in the bathroom, etc., and I am looking forward to doing some of that.
1.27.2003
Well, in a few minutes I'm off to meet with our lender to get started on the mortgage application. Last night we pulled together all the documents I'll need, except for one pay stub we couldn't lay our hands on - and trust me, we looked everywhere. It shouldn't be a problem, though, and I'm looking forward to making progress on this part of the whole house-buying process.
Thanks to all of you who have shared so many kind comments about our new house. We hope you can visit in the coming months!
Thanks to all of you who have shared so many kind comments about our new house. We hope you can visit in the coming months!
1.24.2003
Our house inspection was this morning, and our realtor was there to represent us so that we didn't have to take any more time off work. We haven't received the official results yet, but I heard from the realtor earlier today and she said that they'd only found a few very minor things, which is great news. On Monday afternoon I will meet with the lender that we've been talking with (the same one who prequalified us, etc.) to move forward on the actual loan application. The ball is rolling... things are really underway now!
1.20.2003
1.18.2003
At about 6:30 pm, we made our first ever offer on a house. At 7:45 pm, we got word that our offer was accepted! WOO! Off to deliver a check and eat a celebratory dinner out! Pictures later... WOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
1.16.2003
For the first time in several years, I am really, truly following ACC basketball again. I've been trying to catch Georgia Tech games and Duke games... GT's my team, but I've also got to watch Duke because J.J. Redick and I graduated from the same high school, and I'm pretty sure I know his sisters on an acquaintance-type basis. The Duke-UVA game last night was a really good one. J.J. scored a career-high of over 30 points (32? 33?) and the game was close all the way through to the end. Duke's a little more fun to watch when they're not pulling off a 30 point blowout. And it's good to be keeping up with basketball again... I hope I am able to watch consistently from now until tournament time.
1.13.2003
Time for a quick house update. The last few days have certainly been educational. We'd found a house we really liked - "the blue house" - a 1.5 story Cape Cod with a large backyard, huge bedrooms, and a 25 acre park behind the house. On the downside (but we thought we could live with this), the house had new almost-white carpet (not so good with dogs) and a small kitchen with no pantry. Then we found out that the house has polybutylene plumbing pipes. A few days ago, I'd never even heard of poly pipes, but now I could tell you all about how they deteriorate, the class action lawsuit, the years and parts of the country they were heavily used, you name it. We decided that the pipes are just too big of a risk to us right now, and we started thinking about another house we'd seen once and liked fairly well. This house started to look better and better - it's a ranch on 1/3 acre, has a one car garage, a screened in porch, ceramic tile in the (huge) kitchen and dining area, and fairly large bedrooms. It seemed to suit our lifestyle better than the 1.5 story would. We went to see it for the second time on Sunday and were ready to make an offer, until we found out that there had already been a verbal offer and acceptance and that pretty much everything was a done deal. We didn't even bother making an offer.
So now it feels like we're back to square one, albeit with a much clearer idea of what type of house would best meet our needs. I guess things like this happen in house-hunting all the time, and we're not overly upset about it, but I do feel a little mind-boggled at having to go through tons of listings again to try to narrow it down to some we'd like to see. House-hunting sure does take up a lot of time! However, I know it will be worth it when we're all moved in to our new place.
So now it feels like we're back to square one, albeit with a much clearer idea of what type of house would best meet our needs. I guess things like this happen in house-hunting all the time, and we're not overly upset about it, but I do feel a little mind-boggled at having to go through tons of listings again to try to narrow it down to some we'd like to see. House-hunting sure does take up a lot of time! However, I know it will be worth it when we're all moved in to our new place.
1.12.2003
Good news, and bad news... the good news first: I am a member of The 2003 Raleigh Ringers. Woo!
The bad news: we were going to make an offer on a house, but it didn't work out. So we're kind of back to square one. More updates on this in the near future, I promise!
The bad news: we were going to make an offer on a house, but it didn't work out. So we're kind of back to square one. More updates on this in the near future, I promise!
1.08.2003
Well, things are better. Much better. We're not going to be homeless; in fact, this could turn out to be really good for us. The landlord said in his letter that we could live there rent free until they are notified of the sale of the home by the bank. We weren't sure if this would be legal, but after speaking with a lawyer today, I found out that it is. He is still the owner of the home until the sale goes through, and if he says we can live there without paying rent, then we can. This is great for us because we'll most likely need a new fridge, washer, and dryer when we buy our house. The bottom line from the lawyer is that we won't have to move out before February 28 even if the sale does go through before that time, because the bank has to honor the existing lease. And because our lease has a clause about going month-to-month after the end of the lease period, we should be able to stay past Feb. 28 if we haven't yet closed on a house. I talked to the landlord as well, and it sounds like it's still early on in the foreclosure process -- nothing has been filed and there's no court date. So we can relax... we should still be able to move directly from this house into the one we buy, and we might end up with some new appliances too! Whew! Big sigh of relief...
Test
Ah, the same day that I blog about how I'm going to worry less and let go a little bit, I get my first big test of that resolution. Yesterday we received a letter from our landlord that indicates that the house we live in will soon be under foreclosure, and that when the bank takes possession of the house, we'll have two weeks to vacate the premises. This could be before or after our lease ends on February 28. (There goes the one month extension of the lease we were planning to fall back on if it turned out we couldn't close on a new house by the end of February.) In addition, our landlord is trying to get out of returning our security deposit. Needless to say, I'll be spending lots of time on the phone today, hopefully with a lawyer and the company that we think holds the mortgage on the house. Does stuff like this happen to other people, or do we just have an inordinate amount of drama in our lives? I'm trying to stay calm, but I have to admit it's not working too well. Maybe I'll feel better when I find out more information.
Ah, the same day that I blog about how I'm going to worry less and let go a little bit, I get my first big test of that resolution. Yesterday we received a letter from our landlord that indicates that the house we live in will soon be under foreclosure, and that when the bank takes possession of the house, we'll have two weeks to vacate the premises. This could be before or after our lease ends on February 28. (There goes the one month extension of the lease we were planning to fall back on if it turned out we couldn't close on a new house by the end of February.) In addition, our landlord is trying to get out of returning our security deposit. Needless to say, I'll be spending lots of time on the phone today, hopefully with a lawyer and the company that we think holds the mortgage on the house. Does stuff like this happen to other people, or do we just have an inordinate amount of drama in our lives? I'm trying to stay calm, but I have to admit it's not working too well. Maybe I'll feel better when I find out more information.
1.07.2003
This blog has suffered lately from a lack of forthrightness. I've been holding back on writing about things, and while it was necessary, it wasn't fun. People who know me in "real life" will tell you that I'm a very open person. Few things about me are a secret; though I can keep other people's secrets quite well, I somehow feel more comfortable when those around me have the story on what's going on with me. I might do well to learn to be more comfortable with concealing things, but I just don't think it's part of my personality, and I'm mostly okay with that.
The last year has seen me change my mind about where I wanted to live (as in Raleigh or Roanoke) more times than I care to count. We've been all over the place, and we've told a lot of people everything, some people nothing, and others just a little bit. The final mind-changing decision ironically took place over the holidays -- exactly one year after the first mind-changing decision that kicked off 2002 as the year that will forever be remembered as the Year of Indecisiveness. The verdict? We're staying in Raleigh. We just started shopping for a house and a mortgage. Our parents and friends are being incredibly supportive, and I think we'll be able to settle in and be happy here.
My inability to make up my mind (and I'm writing this in the first person singular rather than plural, because this has mostly been me -- poor Chris has been along for the ride) has made me feel frustrated and embarrassed, leading to a resolution to be more decisive and less worried and let go a little bit in 2003. Of course, I have analyzed just why I've been so indecisive this past year. I'm a planner and a worrier by nature -- always have been -- but I think that being out of school for the first time in 20 years had an effect on me. As a student, I had structure, and my options for dramatic life changes were pretty limited. Once I left grad school, I felt very much like the world was my oyster -- I could do anything, anything my little heart desired. I could make whatever changes I wanted to make, but all that freedom was a little overwhelming. That abundance of freedom and the fact that there were very good reasons to live in either city made it impossible to settle on something and not start to second-guess myself within a few weeks or months. This time, I'm holding firm - we're staying put, and we'll deal with whatever comes our way. Who knows what the next few years may bring? I can't control that and I just have to take things one day at a time, and have some faith in my own ability to handle what comes along. Not to mention that Chris and I combined make a pretty good team, and we've always been able to work together to deal with what life throws us.
So, there you have it. Maybe now I'll feel more like blogging.
The last year has seen me change my mind about where I wanted to live (as in Raleigh or Roanoke) more times than I care to count. We've been all over the place, and we've told a lot of people everything, some people nothing, and others just a little bit. The final mind-changing decision ironically took place over the holidays -- exactly one year after the first mind-changing decision that kicked off 2002 as the year that will forever be remembered as the Year of Indecisiveness. The verdict? We're staying in Raleigh. We just started shopping for a house and a mortgage. Our parents and friends are being incredibly supportive, and I think we'll be able to settle in and be happy here.
My inability to make up my mind (and I'm writing this in the first person singular rather than plural, because this has mostly been me -- poor Chris has been along for the ride) has made me feel frustrated and embarrassed, leading to a resolution to be more decisive and less worried and let go a little bit in 2003. Of course, I have analyzed just why I've been so indecisive this past year. I'm a planner and a worrier by nature -- always have been -- but I think that being out of school for the first time in 20 years had an effect on me. As a student, I had structure, and my options for dramatic life changes were pretty limited. Once I left grad school, I felt very much like the world was my oyster -- I could do anything, anything my little heart desired. I could make whatever changes I wanted to make, but all that freedom was a little overwhelming. That abundance of freedom and the fact that there were very good reasons to live in either city made it impossible to settle on something and not start to second-guess myself within a few weeks or months. This time, I'm holding firm - we're staying put, and we'll deal with whatever comes our way. Who knows what the next few years may bring? I can't control that and I just have to take things one day at a time, and have some faith in my own ability to handle what comes along. Not to mention that Chris and I combined make a pretty good team, and we've always been able to work together to deal with what life throws us.
So, there you have it. Maybe now I'll feel more like blogging.
1.02.2003
I feel so tired and out of it today... we got home about 1 AM and went to bed around 2. Hannah was really tired and so her snoring sounded even more like a chain saw than usual last night. I put in earplugs after she woke me up, but then Jefferson thought that kneading me with his paws and putting his face up in mine and purring loudly would be a fantastic way to show how glad he was that we were home. That went on until Chris got up to get ready for work -- then he put Jefferson in his crate and I got about an hour and a half of uninterrupted sleep. Sheesh. Crazy animals. I feel bad for Jefferson though -- I'm sure it's hard on him for us to be gone for a week and a half and then come home in the middle of the night and go right to bed. Of course, by tonight, when we'll have more time to spend with him, he'll probably be back to his usual antisocial self.
1.01.2003
So it's been a week, and it's a new year... Happy New Year, everybody! We're still in Roanoke -- we have a meal of greens, black-eyed peas, and pork to eat before we can really start the year off right. I'm having a really lazy day. Some of my relatives are here from Georgia, and last night we stayed up until 4 am playing cards (Rook). I've been staying up late on this vacation, but not that late, so I'm having trouble getting going today (and it's already almost 4 pm!). Getting up tomorrow morning for work will definitely not be easy. Neither will packing the car today... we have more than will fit in the trunk, so we'll have to decide what to pack and what to leave here. Chris is coming back on Saturday to go to a bluegrass concert with his dad and to pick up the rest of our stuff, so it's not a big deal, but I'm still not looking forward to packing the car.
Anyway, I've started the year off with a new haircut. I got it done on Monday. It's short -- no shorter than it was in high school or early college, but it's got layers, which is a new thing for me. I'm going to have to get a little more handy with the blow dryer if I want it to look like it did when the stylist finished with me, but overall I am really happy with it. It was time to go short, and I'm glad I didn't chicken out. Maybe I'll post pictures soon... no promises, though.
Anyway, I've started the year off with a new haircut. I got it done on Monday. It's short -- no shorter than it was in high school or early college, but it's got layers, which is a new thing for me. I'm going to have to get a little more handy with the blow dryer if I want it to look like it did when the stylist finished with me, but overall I am really happy with it. It was time to go short, and I'm glad I didn't chicken out. Maybe I'll post pictures soon... no promises, though.
