In Escrow!

We have offered and couteroffered and counteroffered and...     finally settled!

Since things are feeling a bit more official (and hopeful) around here, I thought I would share some photos and info for the curious.

Stats:
3 bedrooms
2 bathrooms
1,420 square feet

Photos:

With a little TLC (or maybe we should go on TLC's Curb Appeal?) this house will be looking dapper:

Kitchen.  Notice there is no oven or even hookups to add an oven... who builds a kitchen without an oven and why must we always have weirdo kitchens??  On the other hand, I CANNOT WAIT to kiss every single one of those cabinets.  I love you, Cabinets:

 Quite charming (albeit nonfunctioning) fireplace:

 Bedroom:

  Bedroom:

 

 "Other" area between bedrooms = PLAYROOM!!  HOORAY!!:

  Bedroom closet (hooray that we don't have to build one ourselves!):

 Backyard (not sure how I feel about the germy hot tub, but it is a first class "problem" to have, for sure):

  Bathroom:

Another Day, Another Dollar (Spent)

We put in an offer on another house.  No photos or description this time because I am viewing this as a "business transaction only" until things are more official (our realtor's advice to me).

I will NOT pretend we are moving in a month and start a list of what needs to be done before we move in.

I will NOT daydream about us playing in that room or me cooking in that room.

I will NOT try and remember what we used to have in our old house (it is all so far away and fuzzy now) and think of where I might put said stuff.

I will NOT fantasize about what color I want to paint the walls and how I might decorate.

However, I WILL try to instill in Roscoe the value of caring for your own home and teach him to be a bit more helpful around the house:

Big Fat NO.

We were rejected.  The place we bid on had multiple offers (and we didn't know that until we had already submitted our offer) and another offer was chosen.  Moving on...

New Job? Check. New Car? Check. New House? Pending...

Well, who knew six weeks ago that we would have so much excitement?

Monday: Ray ran across a listing for a short sale in an area we had previously considered, but weren't really looking at anymore.
Tuesday: we discussed seriously looking in that area again and made an appointment to see the house.
Wednesday: our old condo sale closed, we gathered the paperwork for mortgage approval and we toured the new home.
Thursday: we found an agent that specializes in short sales and got the pre-approval letter ready.
Friday: we are making an offer.

And then we wait.

1,430 square feet (we think), 3 beds, 2 baths, attached one car garage, yard, close to highway (for my commute) and train station (for Ray's commute).  Don't let the photos fool you (some are from the previous sale in 2000 thanks to Google); I will not think about moving into this home until someone has scrubbed it down (preferably not me).  It has been neglected recently, but it has loads of potential.

Here are some teaser photos, so you really know what is up:

Foto Friday: A Little Bit of This, A Little Bit of That

Check out the Pure Bliss on Roscoe's Face (Lowe's carts rock!):

After Ray's parents spent a few weeks in the Philippines, they went to China and saw the Great Wall (very cool) and got their grandkids traditional Chinese outfits:

The chaos that our home is (with Lolo as ringleader):

Entertaining himself at the park:

I just love watching Rocs walk these days.  He is steady, but wobbly and it is excruciatingly adorable:

He loves the bath, but he just cannot resist the thrill of pulling the plug.  Lack of water makes little difference to him in his bathtime enjoyment:

Roscoe's New Ride

We are now a 2 car family.  Here's our new set of wheels (2010 Toyota Venza):

Oooo, look at that cargo room:

And (BONUS!) it has a double sunroof:

It is used, but only has 8k miles on it and it is in great shape.  We got a lot more for our money than we thought we would, so that is extra exciting.  I never thought of myself as a red car station wagon kind of girl, but it was that or brown ("bronze") and no offense, Joel,  but brown is not my thing when it comes to cars.

Not only did I get a new car, I also got the best congratulatory video from my absolute favorite 6 year old niece: