An Eventful Holiday

Last week was busy/wonderful all at once! Christmas came and went, with the usual giving and getting of gifts, and spending some fun time with family. It was hubby's and my first Christmas together as a married couple, which was fun...though not completely different from last Christmas, when we were engaged and living together. We did get no less than THREE first Christmas ornaments...we chuckled over that. They're all pretty, and will go on the tree next year. Christmas Eve was at my Nannie and Papa's, Christmas morning at my parents', and Christmas afternoon/evening with the hubby's Papa and Mimi's. It's so nice to have so much family!!!

Friday, I went to the hospital. That sucked. I apparently had a kidney stone, which I passed while I was sitting in the second waiting room. I've never hurt like that before, and with the RA, I sure do know pain. So I spent all day in the ER, and missed the first walk-through of the house. Fortunately, mom and dad were already heading down initially to see the house, but mom ended up switching with the hubby when he and dad had to go to the walk-through. That's ok though...I sent hubby with reminders of all the stuff I noticed previously that needed to be fixed...not that there was much. I went home with plenty of antibiotics (yeah, also have a UTI which means I can't take my RA shots until THAT goes away...grr...) and some hydrocodone (of which I only needed one). So that was my exciting Friday.

This weekend was nice and relaxing. Saturday, the hubby made me take it easy, and brought me plenty of juice, made me toast and eggs, and oatmeal, and basically just took amazing care of me :-). Sunday we went over to dad-in-law's house and hubby and he worked on hubby's truck. I sat with my fuzzy nephew (he's a chihuahua) on the couch and read. That night we went and got dinner with hubby's Papa, Mimi, sister and her boyfriend, cousins, mama and her boyfriend. It was great to see everyone!

Today, we got the amazing news that we close on the house TOMORROW!!! I spent today setting up the electricity for the house, and the gas. Hubby set up the cable, the water, and the garbage. All of it will be "turned on" (i.e. transferred into our names since everything but the cable is already on at the house) by January 2nd at the latest! Tomorrow, we have our last walk-through at noon, and then at three we meet with our AWESOME realtor to sign the papers...for an hour. But that's ok...after that hour, we'll have our VERY OWN HOME!!! We are both soo pumped! Dad's talking about renting a U-Haul and moving us in one load toward the end of this week...which means we've got a crap load of packing to do. But that's moving for you. We still need to submit out 30 days notice to the apartments...but we'll do that tomorrow once the papers are all signed and all parties are locked in ;-).

For now though we have friends coming over to eat pizza, and with Wii it up, or (it two others can come) get going on a game of Diplomacy (which I've never played) and watch a movie. Should be a fun night!!!

First Day of Christmas Break!

Well, technically Saturday was the first day, but I'm counting today because I would normally be at work...an hour and 15 minutes from the end of the school day to be precise. It's been a great Christmas Break so far!

Friday, my best friend came in, and she, the hubby and I went and had dinner with my parents and little brother and little brother #2. Then we headed back to our place to chat and drink a bit lol. Saturday, hubby went and got us all kolaches (he's so sweet!). After breakfast she had to leave, but then, we had to pack, so all and all the day kicked off to a busy start. After we had done some laundry and packed, hubby and I headed to one family Christmas up in the hill country. Yay 5 hour drives lol. It was completely worth it. My cousins, with one exception, are all in high school now. They make me feel old! But my age issues aside, it's really interesting to watch the people they are becoming. They're all really good kids, so that's not a problem, but it's still interesting to see them develop their own ideas and opinions about life. Makes me remember when I started coalescing all of my vague ideals and notions into more clearly defined viewpoints on how I saw the world. Of course, that process never ends. Still, it's interesting to see the "kids" embarking on that process.

Yesterday, we headed back home (can we say, turn around trip?) and cleaned house before getting dinner with one of our couple friends. Then they came over and we Wii'd it for a couple of hours: Brawl rocks!

Today, we got up and talked to one of the lenders we're dealing with. Then, we went to the house to meet the inspector. It was SO COLD outside! But, the inspection went wonderfully! The inspector said he was impressed with how "clean" the house was (read, free of problems). Most of the stuff he wrote down was minor in nature, or easily fixed. We met the construction boss today too, and explained to him what we wanted in regards to repainting some of the rooms. He said it shouldn't be a problem and that he was going to try to get the painters in today! So, now, we just have to finish hacking through the whole loan process, schedule our initial walkthrough with our broker, and the final walkthrough once the builder has fixed whatever we find wrong. Then we close on the 30th! I'm actually hoping we'll have everything in place to close by the 29th...that way on the actual day of closing, we just sign the paperwork. AND GET THE KEYS!!!

Anyways, I was just thinking how good life is right now, and how blessed I am in family, friends, my job, and future! Of course, everything's not perfect but I wouldn't want it to be. Perfection is boring.

So, here's to the upcoming holidays (and finishing shopping for them), and to the upcoming new year! May we all be blessed, and even when things don't go our way, may we all remember that happiness is as much a state of mind as a state of circumstance!

Only Half a Day to Go!

And then it's Christmas Break! That's right: two whole weeks without my kids! I'm so HAPPY! Not that I don't love (most of) my students, but they have been as itchy and hyper as monkeys on sugar! They're more than ready for an extended break, and I can't say I disagree! Of course, I am a bit sad...I'm losing some really good kids to families moving, home schooling, and school transfers/dropping out. That's tough. I hope their lives end up being fulfilling and happy, whichever path they have to walk.

But still, I can't believe I've been a teacher for a full semester! It's gone by so quickly! Before I know it, it will be summer, and I'll have taught a full academic year! Of course, I need to buckle down and get my alternative certification paperwork done so that I'll get certified on time...but there's still plenty of time for that.

All in all, I'm really looking forward to the break. Tonight we're going to dinner with some friends, and then I'll only have the kids til 11:30 tomorrow. Since today was the final long day, we had Christmas parties...so tomorrow we basically do nothing but finishing watching A Christmas Story. Then, the faculty has a Chili cookoff/mandatory meeting. THEN I get to see my best friend!!! Hubby and I are gonna take her to see the HOUSE! and then we're gonna spend the evening hanging out. THEN Saturday morning, its up early for a long drive for a family Christmas, then back the next day for dinner with some other friends. Next week, we're going through some key HOUSE! closing procedures plus Christmas! I'm thinking that maybe the second week of the break will be more of a true break than the first lol.

I can't wait to close on our house though...for it to truly and officially be ours (and the bank's lol).

We Have a HOUSE!!!

And it's a beautiful house!!! It's located only a little bit farther south from where we are right now! It was originally a model home, and they finished building it in 2007, but it's never been lived in! Here's the specs:

approx. 2,200 sq ft
2 stories
4 bdrms, 2.5 baths
a gameroom, living room, kitchen (with an island!), formal dining, and breakfast room AND the utility room is inside!
2 car garage, with an extension
upgraded paint, carpet, tile, there's a sprinkler system

Because it's a model home, they're going to paint over all the random designs in the bedrooms, AND it's already FULLY landscaped!
(...with a magnolia tree in the back yard...sigh...I love magnolia trees...there was one at my grandparents' house growing up and we climbed it all the time...)

All in all, it a wonderful home, basically ideal for us in every way! Granted, there's more room in it than we technically need right at this moment, but it's a house we can grow in to, and still have plenty of space! More, it's a house we can be in for the next 15-20 years +.

We're currently planning on turning one bedroom into a library, one into a guest room, and then the third upstairs room will be a multipurpose/storage room until we have a baby, in around 4-5 years lol. For now, we're give the apartment complex notice for the end of January, giving us a month after our close date (which, by the way, is December 30th...yikes!) to move. But February 1, we'll be in the new place!

I AM SO EXCITED!!!

Big News!!!

I'm not going to say much until after tomorrow, but suffice it to say I'm REALLY, REALLY EXCITED!





And no, I'm not pregnant. :-P

Life and Perceptions

Whew life has been busy lately! Thanksgiving was wonderful. The hubby and I went up to the Ranch in the Hill Country and pitched our tent. We camped out from Saturday til Wednesday, and then moved into the trailer for the rest of the trip...it got cold and rain kept being predicted, even if it never showed up lol. It was great! The tent was fantastic, and us plus the dogs plus a small space heater kept things warm enough at night, and then the trailer was all kinds of cozy! It was great having time to ourselves. During the day we read together and chopped wood and went on a walk or two. In the mornings and evenings, the hubby would go hunt and I'd build up the fire and either get the camp ready for the day or the night, as the case warranted, read and go on hikes. The hunting paid off early--he shot a good-sized 8 point buck on his first morning hunt!!! He saw other deer and critters moving in the subsequent days, but he'd already killed enough meat to fill out pot for the next year. That pattern held til Wednesday night, when family started showing up. Then we spent a lot more time over at the cabin on my aunt's land, catching up.

It's funny how your perception of people changes when you get older. For example, my 3 older second cousins. I used to think they were the coolest people ever! And in some ways, I still do. Growing up, the middle sister was my favorite...she was very go with the flow and had time to spend with me. The older sister was close behind...but she was always busy, and a bit less chill. The youngest sister I loved to death (and still do) but she was always on the go, and we didn't really have a whole lot in common. That part hasn't really changed, though the reason for a lack of things in common has: previously it was because she was a partier, but now it's because she's gone the other extreme. That is to say, she is a highly conservative Christian of the Baptist denomination. There was a time back in high school where I would have been able to be of a similar mindset, but now extreme religiosity grates on my nerves and ostentatious religiosity bothers me. I think that religion is a private, personal issue. That's not to say that I don't agree with living by your religious beliefs or that I don't like discussing my beliefs with others...I'm just not comfortable shoving them up their noses with my every action. That and the "we'll just have faith" attitude towards life, without any visible practical steps or awareness, bothers the pragmatic side of myself.

Anyways, back to the other sisters. While I still love the middle sister to death, I find myself able to better relate to the older sister. The middle sister and I are both laid back, but motherhood has made her more of a worrier and more overprotective than I foresee myself to be. Also, she has no problem with just taking things on faith, without questioning anything. As I've said before, questioning is of utmost importance in figuring out what you believe as well as the strength of those beliefs. Beliefs that can't withstand questioning need to be reexamined. Anyway, the self-imposed rose-colored glasses didn't bother me in high school as much as they do now. The older sister has renounced her religion (Christianity). She and her husband learned some things about the origins of the religion that shook their faith. I learned these same things in college, but my faith was already flexible at that point and was able to bend and adjust. Their faith has been built up into this untouchable, incontrovertible thing, and lacked the suppleness to withstand a shattering blow. I don't blame them, and can understand their point of view, even if I still do consider myself a Christian (albeit an atypical one). But that decision, the questioning they are doing, the open mindedness they exhibit, and the search for their truth in which they have engaged speak to me on a deep level, and make me much more comfortable talking with them than with pretty much any other family member on that subject (other than my husband and my little brother).

So maybe favorites is an outgrown term. I love them each for who they are, what they were to me when I was a child, and for what they are to me now. However, I definitely relate to the oldest the most.

Well, moving on from reflection time and on to real life, school has less than two weeks til Christmas Break! This week my kids are working on a project combo: dialogue dealing with customer/employee interactions and poster representing a clothing store. They'll present on Monday, we'll have a review on Tuesday, and then they'll take their Ch. 3 Pt. 2 test on Wednesday. Thursday will be Christmas Party day! And Friday, the kids have early release! So basically, one week of babysitting, half a week of grading, food, then 2 weeks of freedom!!! Whoohoo!
Whoohoo-ing aside, I really do enjoy teaching...I'm just ready for a break.

As far as the house hunting plan goes, we're kinda in a holding pattern. We're definitely going to buy a house by May (because come to find out, our lease is up MAY 31st, not JUNE 30th...heehee), but we're trying to time the buying process so that we don't have to pay a fee...which may or may not be possible. Basically, we need to decide if the chance of paying the full buyout fee is worth taking, when we might only have to pay a reletting fee anyway. Hubby and I have some thinking to do.

Other than that, hubby might be marching in the Inauguration Day parade in January!!! Which is SO EXCITING!!!! Needless to say, work is going well for him too. Oh look he's home! I'm gonna go spend time with him now! Ttyl!