Houses....

So we've spent the better part of the weekends for the past month or so house-hunting. We knew that we wanted a house that required minimal work on our part - painting and carpet, or minor repairs, but we didn't want a fixer-upper. We've seen houses and townhouses in every range on the spectrum, and there were some where we would walk in and then just turn right around and leave. Mostly they were in good condition, but some made me wonder if these people really wanted to sell their homes. We saw one house that had potential, but we couldn't really see the house because they had so much junk everywhere. We had walked upstairs to look at the master bedroom and the owner left a pillow or blanket under the comforter that made it look like someone was sleeping.... or dead. I was officially creeped out. Another house we walked in was clearly a fix-n-flip that ran out of money... seriously the walls were half one color and half another. It was like mid-roll, they just decided to stop.

I say all this to say that this past weekend, we found "the one." I loved it... it's cute, not too big, open and inviting.. and in our price range. Richard said he would be happy anywhere and that I'm the more difficult one to please with finding the "right" house, but I know he loved it too. So we made an offer... on Sunday night at like 11pm! That was a rush... and neither of us could really sleep that night. But they countered on Monday morning and it was right where we were hoping to end (okay.. well a little higher, but I didn't want to let it go with a difference of like 2k... really it won't make much difference in the loan) so we accepted and by 3pm on Monday we were under contract :)

What a roller coaster of a Monday .... so I'll leave you with a pic of what we hope will be our house.

A Hard Start ot 2009

2009 thus far has not been filled the joy that we hoped. Last night, while ringing in the new year with friends, one noticed her boyfriend was not around and his car was gone. When we finally reached him on his phone, he told us he thought he had totaled his car. My friend ran to find him and luckily met up with him at the end of the block... the bad news - his face was bleeding rather heavily and we knew. The saga that followed was not fun, but to sum up, his car was in a ditch, Rich and I took a ride in the back of a police cruiser but it was only to help the officer as we were not in trouble... never the less, a new experience for both of us, and friend's boyfriend was in the ER with the local police looking for him. Thank fully Mom, was kinda enough to come pick Rich and I up since the risk of driving home all after that and 2 drinks wasn't worth it.

I didn't think that we could top that, but later today, we found out that one of Rich's friends from high school killed himself on Christmas. I never met him, but it saddens me. From the little I know, he had just lost his job and with his past, hope of a new job was non-existent. He also had a baby this year with his girlfriend.... and they broke up within the last months. I feel bad for his family and all his friends. Another friend of Rich's from high school is taking this hard. I can only hope that comfort is found for all.

So to all who may read this, I hope your new year is better than our has started. Here's to 2009... well a happy and prosperous 2009. Make sure to eat your black-eyed-peas since they are supposed to bring luck.

December Already??

Man-oh-man... where has the time gone? Rich and I have been busy with planning and thankfully we are getting close to having most stuff done. And it's Decemeber. I love this time of year and the lights and cheer :)

We went to Trans Siberian Orchestra last week which is always a highlight for me. The lights, music, and excitement. I've gotten to the point, that it really isn't Christmas time until I see TSO. This year was extra special because Mom and Grace joined us. It was their first time seeing it, and their reactions made it more exciting for me. To add to that, the night was even better as we celebrated my mom's birthday. A milemarker in her life - but she probably won't want to be sharing that she just turned 25 (hehe.... well maybe not 25).

Updates from Rich's post:
We did decide on a florist -- but we still need to tell them.

We've also selected our officiant. What a character this man is! The Saturday we met him, he starts be telling us that if we're meeting with him, then we don't want a traditional wedding (true, we don't). He tells us his ideas fr our wedding and tells us about his past and who he is. After all that, we decided he's our guy: seems a little rough around the edges, but as warm and friendly as you can imagine! And his fee goes to his foundation that works in Latin and South American teaching people English and job skills (LOVE IT!!) and his tip for the day of the wedding.... a bottle of single malt scotch, no younger than 15 yrs... that's our kind of guy, so long as he drinks it after the ceremony.

Invitations - we found some cardstock we like and now have to think about wording for the invitations and perhaps try a few different printers... maybe even check out what Kinkos would charge. Definitely don't want to spend lots on money on something people will most likely throw away after the event.

Lots and Lots of Wedding Planning

Sara wrote about our cake tasting a few weeks back. It was fun. After that, we had an engagement photo session that Sara won at a bridal show (I'll never make fun of them again). The photographer did an incredible job and we're going to use the company at our wedding. This is where I don't mind spending some extra money - photos are going to be our view into the wedding in the future.

Thankfully, Sara has been busy setting up appointments and looking at things online in her spare time. I've had trouble keeping up with everything.

Since the cake tasting and photo session, we've gone to two florists for quotes (still need to decide on one) , done some gift registry and have looked at all kinds of invitations. We need to decide how to do the invitations/stationery. Companies charge a lot of money to print things. We can buy patterned paper and print them ourselves. The trade-off is obviously the time involved. I'd rather spend my time doing the stationery at home instead of paying someone an exorbitant fee to do it for me.

Now is the time to be looking for and buying decorations too. Prior to Sara's busy season (Jan-Apr), I want a plan in place to set up and execute projects. Getting the materials now would go a long way toward ensuring success of those projects.

Wedding Planning Update

This past Saturday was a huge day for us in terms of planning.... we picked out our cake!! Yummy! Thanks to Mom for joining us as we needed her opinion. Especially since cake isn't Richard's favorite thing. But we picked out some flavors that will please him (and me too!)

After the cake choosing, we had engagement photo's taken. We hadn't planned on doing engagement photos due to the additional cost and that we have so many pics of us already. But 2 weeks ago, I got a phone call saying we were chosen from a drawing I entered at a bridal show. We won a **FREE** Engagement photo session! So last minute (like last Thursday) we decided to have the pics done on Saturday cuz we knew the weather would be beau-ti-ful.. and it was. I was planning on wearing a cute little brown jacket over the shirt, but it was just too hot for that. I love that on Nov 1 in Colorado, we can have 70 degree days.

Our Little Niece is not so Little!

Where did the time go? Really, I remember the 3:30am birth of Emma Jade on Oct 24 three years ago. It seems like yesterday and she isn't even my daughter. Rich was such a tropper for only having dated for a few months. He joined me at Bren's surprise baby shower, almost won the drink out of a bottle game and then stayed at the hospital with us through the entire 24 hour labor. I can't image what it will be like when we have kids - but until then....
Happy Birthday little Emma-Bug! Aunty Sara and Uncle Rich love you to pieces. You are such a little spitfire and you are so sure of what you want. You always make us smile. And while it hasn't been easy to adjust to being a big sister - you are doing a marvolous job.

You're 3!!!!

Halloween!

Not a whole lot of time to blog, but here's us at Halloween. I was a witch and Ricky was V. We went to a party some of my co-workers had at their apartment. We had lots of fun and enjoyed our Crown & Cokes :)