Serendipity

ser·en·dip·i·ty n. pl. ser·en·dip·i·ties
1. Making fortunate discoveries by accident.

In the spring of each year of our marraige we've had pictures taken. I've had a terrible time as of late making appointments and spending money so spring had come and gone. Yet I was determined not to let a year go.


Some friends from the old neighborhood had their pictures done at a new place called FotoFly right here in Draper, then I saw the ads and then I found out that my new neighbors personally know the people who are starting the business. Last night I finally got to it and called to make my appointment (for today). While I was doing that the girl I was speaking to (who happens to be the owners wife and didn't even know I was personally interested in photography) mentioned that there was a workshop for free at the studio in about an hour. I got to go to the workshop and have a great night where the owner filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge. I felt very fortunate to have stumbled upon it.


Today we went to the same place for family pictures and aside from my children that I could have strangled, the experience was one of the best photo shoots we've had. Everyone was very patient and understanding.


Honestly though, I can't get over how well designed the studio is. They've used every inch of that small space so well. I found myself wishing I could have been the creative genius behind it. Who would have thought to paint the exit door in grafitti? Seriously it's worth going there just to see the space.


Anyhow, taking into consideration the children who were uncoorperative, we got some shots I've very happy with. (Tonight I'm having a hard time getting many of them posted tonight though, so I'll try again with more of them when I'm not so worn down.)


Here are a few...

FotoFly charges $79 for a disc with your images. Prints are $4 if you want to print them there. I left with my disc and photos in hand. I think it's a brilliant business idea and hope they do really well.

P.S. Above I linked to their website, but this is their blog. That is one cute little boy. It's a little funny that Daniel and I had commented on how cool their bathroom was.

The End

It's final. We have the money. The house is no longer ours and someone else is going to live in it.

We are so so grateful. Grateful that it sold. Grateful for our new home. Grateful for all of the people who have helped us during this time. Thank you.

Progress

There's nothing like a friend calling you and saying they want to come see your house to kick it into high gear. In 1 1/2 hours I managed to accomplish way more than all of yesterday combined. Here is a pic of the progress:





















Did you see that? Yep, that's countertop there. Want a closer picture?





















It amazing what a clean(er) kitchen can do for you. (Don't mind the rugs - we're trying to get used to the wood and not getting it too wet while at the same time trying to encourage the boys to load the dishwasher.) Oh, and don't you think I need a new garbage can?!!



P.S. Make that 7 times for Sarah.

And Here We Are

If these photos don't evoke any emotion, it could be that you've never moved.

Our kitchen of days past. Empty and ready for someone else.

Our new kitchen in its current state. Only one word suffices:

Overwhelming.

I've been waiting for this moment when I could finally write about this journey. But blogging about it takes time, a computer, the internet, and energy. Now I'm just lacking the last, but I'm going to push through it anyway.

Saturday. There was so much work leading up to this day and the big move went as well as I could have hoped. We are so grateful for everyone that helped. Asking people to come to your home and do serious hard labor for a long time is not fun, so we were incredibly thankful for everyone who gave up time in their day to help us! By about 4pm we had everything moved over and a place to sleep. Then I went into a coma for the rest of the day.

Sunday. What to say about Sunday? I felt displaced, yet hopeful. I woke up early, restless and then spent much of the morning trying to locate what we'd need for our new 1pm church. (Never have I been more grateful for a late time.) The kids did not help the situation much which plenty of drama and crying. We went to church. There were a lot of kids. 140 or so in the primary we found out. I was anxious. Lots of people I didn't know. Luckily we'd already met a few neighbors which helped, yet this is the first time in a long time that I've been the new one. But overall it was just fine and there are lots of nice people to get to know. In the evening we went to Kaitlyn's birthday party and then stopped by the old house. There is nothing like the comfort you find at home and I definitely needed comfort, but it wasn't quite my home anymore. So I promptly had a good hard cry in the back yard where the kids couldn't hear me.

Monday. While I think Michelle is awesome and I'm glad for the opportunity for my son to go to Webelos camp, I would not recommend it being the first weekday after a move. At 7:45am. In another city. And having to attend yourself. And have all the kids ready. Including swimming suits, packed lunches, scout gear, and sunscreen. Only running 15 min late, we made it and had lots of good experiences throughout the day, except for the times when the child who had held it together better than anyone all weekend melted down. The evening wasn't much better.

Tuesday: Second day of Webelos camp. I didn't have to go but instead got to have fun cleaning the old house..for 7 hours...and I didn't finish. I described the task on the phone to Daniel by comparing in to having teeth pulled. Necessary, but terribly unpleasant. (Thank you to Lora for one of the best vacuuming jobs I've seen.) I ended the time at the old house with a monumental fit of my own when I got upset at the child who after playing ALL day complained about having to roll the two garbages into the backyard. The night however, redeemed the whole day when I got to go out for some fun with women from my new ward.

Wednesday: Closing day? We drove out to West Valley and signed the closing papers on the old house. Just as we were about to leave the building however, our realtor got a call saying that there was a problem with the loan of our buyer and he had to switch loans (at the very, very last minute) and at best closing would be delayed until Monday. We had to wait while another addendum (13?) was crafted. After much of the day had passed we returned to the old house and I go to finish the cleaning! Ugh. I did complete every last little bit though and hope this whole process is wrapped up soon.

Today: Remembered piano lessons were this morning and didn't feel up to taking Isaac and having to have Adam and Sarah with me. Instead I had Isaac babysit and took Adam. His first official day and he did awesome. Very awesome. Sadly that was the best part of the day. I've spent the rest of it stressed, confused, overwhelmed and discouraged. But I did get my computer and internet back, so that's worth something.

So what above might not tell you is this:

This has been a crazy emotional week that has continually pushed my past my exhaustion point and my ability to manage in a sane, normal way.

The kids are happy about the change, but their behaviour has been far less than ideal.

Speaking of which, Sarah has peed (outside of the potty) 6 times in the last week. This is the girl who potty-trained like a pro and has more body control that any other kids I know. Stress will do that to you I guess.

I have not peed outside of the potty. Maybe I am doing okay after all.

So far I don't miss the old house quite as much as I thought I would. (Probably because I thought I'd never recover from the loss of it.) It's sad (and I already miss the people), but I'm handling it decently.

This new house is AWESOME. I'm in love. The space, the wood, the location, the neighbors.

Did I mention the neighbors? I could write a whole blog post about them. We are so lucky to be right were we are. There are the best people in this little area. I also met lots of other women in the ward boundaries and I think it's going to work out just great here.

Draper is gorgeous. Really. The mountains are so close here.

The unpacking and settling in might take me a year, but so be it. We have many little things to address (and so many big ones, like the back yard), but we will make it to a new normal here soon,

right?

Here We Go!

Isaac is sick (as in throwing up). Sarah peed on my stairs (?!). I feel mediocre at best. My guests and other family just left yesterday afternoon. The new house still needs cleaning. We are crippled by our need for boxes. The big move is in just three days.

We willing be loading the truck starting at 10:00am this Saturday morning. (Everyone is welcome and encouraged to come. Treats will be provided.) Wish us luck!