Christmas(es)

We had a good Christmas.  In fact, we had several good Christmases, & the merriment continues this week as Trey & I await one last gift we've been working on for Reagan (& us, too).

We had a magical weekend.  For the past few weeks, we've been receiving mail addressed to the once (& future!) buyer of our house, a nice daily reminder that everything fell apart :/  My mother-in-law & our family friend Dr. Bob Huffstutter both told me where our once & future home buyer works, so Friday, in the spirit of Christmas (& the spirit of trying to clear our house of junk before we move), I took the kind lady her mail that had been piling up on my kitchen cabinet for weeks.  She was grateful, & had some interesting news.  Early last week, someone viewed her current home, loved it, & is now under contract to buy it.  I hope everything works out for all parties this time around, but I'm not as emotionally invested in the sale of our house this time since we're buying our new home regardless.  On Thursday.  Yipppeee!  Of course, I truly want everything to work out so that everyone ends up with the home they want, & Trey & I are left with only one mortgage.  One mortgage = furniture much sooner.

On to the festivities . . .

Baby Steps

Before the deluge this next week will bring (Christmas, closing on our house, & a wedding . . . ), here's what Reagan & I have been up to lately.


At church in the Christmas dress her Aunt Lisa gave her for her birthday, Reagan is busy cutting a few top teeth:

This is Our Christmas Card

Were I to select images of our family from this past year & have them fashioned nicely together in a collage-type arrangement on a festive card to mail to our family & friends, these are the images I'd choose, & this is likely what the card would say . . . so don't wait by the mailbox, because here it is, no stamp required, our 2011 Christmas card:

Lucky Thirteen

We've made it.  Today, Reagan is one year old, & while I am the same age I was yesterday, I feel a good bit older.  We continue to work on making a 'one' with our index finger, having so many reasons to need the gesture.  How old are you, Reagan?  What are the LSU Tigers ranked, Reagan?  How many terms will Obama serve, Reagan? 

Your Story

Before another year slips away & while I can still remember the details, here, Reagan, is the story of your entrance into the world.

A Mixed Bag

The real estate roller coaster continues.  I think it's starting to stress Reagan out:

After doing some thinking & some number crunching, Trey & I have taken matters into our own hands & decided to proceed with the purchase of our home.  It's probably the one house in this area that Trey & I agree on, & I also think he fears if we built I might bankrupt him.

I won't even mention what this means for me & my love/hate relationship with my new BFFs, the boxes.  I am excited that after all the turmoil & many weeks of sitting forlornly in the middle of my living room floor, the chances of my fake 9 foot Christmas tree seeing the light of day this year have improved dramatically.

More on this turn of events later, as I'm currently heavily involved in preparations for a birthday party.

The Futility of Plans

Well, the good news is my box fever has lifted.

The bad news is that it's gone because I've unpacked most of the boxes & returned their contents to their rightful place.  The packing of the boxes experience was much more wistful & nostalgic than the unpacking of the boxes.  When packing the boxes, I assumed when I unpacked them I'd be living in our new house.  Optimistic of me, right?

Box Fever

I'm not sure where to begin this blog.  I'm finding it difficult to adequately select & manipulate words to convey the depth of my frustration.

This will be a little heavy on real estate details.  If you've ever played Dominoes, use that as a visual.  Often when people purchase a house, they've also recently sold a house.  Each sale is "contingent" on another sale.  I received a phone call on Monday & was told there were some "issues" with the sale of the home currently owned by the individual who is under contract to purchase our home.  If one of the dominoes doesn't fall properly, it skews the whole effect.

Wednesday, I was told our buyer was intent on closing on our house (which of course means we close as scheduled on our home, which is obviously the transaction in which I am most interested).  The sticky issue is, as always, the approval of some financial institution granting our buyer interim funds until the sale of her home is completed.  I've learned more than I ever wanted to know about real estate.

So, while we are under contract to close "on or before" December 6th, which, if you take a gander at a calendar you'll see is next Tuesday, as I type this everything remains up in the air (except of course the boxes that are all over my floor!).  

This leaves me sitting in a house full of boxes, trying to keep smiling despite my anal retentive nature flaring its head, demanding that the boxes be moved or unpacked.  This is not how I typically decorate for Christmas (that's our Christmas tree skirt laying on the top of that pile):

My wonderful friends on Facebook keep posting festive pictures of their Christmas trees, while mine sits in a box in the living room.  I love real trees, but decided until Reagan is older, an artificial one would be best.  So, about a month ago I bought one at Hobby Lobby while their Christmas decor was on sale (50% off!).  I'd love to see what it looks like, as I'm sure once it's assembled I'll hate it a little less than I do right now, sitting in the middle of the living room in a long box that continues to provide great entertainment for Reagan.  I may just give in & post this picture on Facebook as our 2011 Christmas tree:

We'll be home for Christmas this year, & are eagerly waiting to learn where exactly home will be come Christmas Day.  Regardless, Reagan has no idea what's going on & is happy as always:

She's not loosing any sleep over it:

So, I keep giving myself pep talks as I wait for a phone call to tell me what's happening next.  I have a healthy baby girl who won't even remember our box Christmas, a handsome husband who listens to me whine, a perky dog, & a brand new Christmas tree in a box that I know will be just beautiful once I'm able to assemble it somewhere.

p.s.  -  If you've recently received an invite to an event scheduled to take place at our new address, we have a contingency plan should one be required.  I guess I've learned a lesson about being optimistic. Stay tuned! 

AZ