Colors, Colors, Colors

In an *honest* attempt to distract myself from the stress of our messed up escrow, I decided to get back to focusing on paint colors and other things that need to be decided so that we can move in.

I was going full steam on picking out colors until this whole ordeal occurred. Since we're ready to close on a moment's notice, it's best to be prepared with our paint choice, right?

It's so hard to chose a color without seeing it on the walls first...but once it goes on the walls, it's staying (it's a Catch 22) so I'm working on trying to determine what our taste is.

I really like the color Artichoke Heart by Benjamin Moore, but I'm trying to decide if it's too dark. It'll be the main color around the main level, so I better like it! The problem with it is that it looks nice a bright during the day, but looks a little dark at night.





(It's the color of the bedroom wall)

See what I mean? It transforms!

You can also see it on a bathroom wall here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/66904342@N00/2565446321 (the picture wouldn't save since it was on flickr)

Our Rock House Has Us in Stuck in a Hard Place

We were hoping to close escrow last week, that is until we received a phone call on Wednesday night stating that the seller would not fulfill his portion of the sale contingency by signing the $25K note that Countrywide required. To add further insule, we were informed that Countrywide "lost" our short sale file and would need to start their internal process all over in order to generate the final short sale acceptance letter that was required by the escrow office. Apparently this process could take up to a month.

This has been the source of much anxiety. We have already put in our notice at our condo and need to be out by the end of the month, the foreclosure sale is scheduled for June 17th and Countrywide has not yet cancelled it, and our loan rate expires in two weeks (interest rates have increased by 1% since we locked-in!).

We were told that the seller is "softening" to the idea of signing, but there's no guarentee until closing. There's been no news from Countrywide.

*Hopefully* tomorrow we will be able to meet with a real estate attorney. At this point we are looking to file a lawsuit against Countrywide and the seller for a "specific performance" and force them to perform on their end of the sale. I'm curious to see what the attorney says, especially given the sales contract had a mediation clause in it. I do know that the sellers will have to pay for our attorney's costs if we win (which since Countrywide and the seller are both in breach of contract, I don't see that there's any way that we wouldn't win).

Time will tell...

Getting Closer!

So tonight we have to stop by the escrow company and sign a few preliminary documents. Then we will be ready to close as early as Tuesday (but it entirely depends on the escrow company). We're hoping to close by Friday!

We bought the riding lawnmower for $150. It needs some work--new front tires, a new belt, and new springs--but otherwise it seems to work pretty well. Abel wants to rebuild the clutch but we'll see where that falls in line with all of our other projects!

The fridge we bought for $200. It works great but is missing a few shelves in the door and the bottom fruit/vege drawer. We'll buy the missing parts eventually and we'll have a very nice fridge. I'm so excited to have ice and water on the door--along with a child lock! :o)

Moving and Class Photos

We started packing which of course is never fun. And it's very evident that if Abel and I worked for a moving company, we'd both be fired. Me, for packing too many small things in a large box making it too heavy. Abel, for taking too many breaks.

Bella is starting to realize her toys are disappearing and she have been walking around the house with an arm full of toys. When we go places, she drags several with her and crys if we make her leave them in the car. It'll be like Christmas for her when we start unpacking (in like three weeks!!).



Here is Bella's class picture. Look how small she is compared to everyone else in her class. The age range is from 2-3, so she should be about the middle of the class but she's definitely the smallest. What a terrible picture--don't the teachers look like they've had a rough day? Picture day can never be fun...



This is the best picture she's taken for school pictures. She looks so old! I'm a little disappointed that they didn't put her bow back in her hair after they brushed it. Look how cute her little teeth are (don't put your fingers in there!).

The Minky Blankie

Bella suddenly became attached to a small minky receiving blanket. She can't sleep without it. But the problem is, it's much too small for her. It can only cover up her tummy, so I worry about her little tootsies (which look delicious to Gunner).

So as a surprise, I made her a new minky blankie. I picked out the cutest "big girl" polka-dotted bright orange fabric to go with the super-soft white minky. When I proudly showed her, she declared that "it's baby's blankie". And I can't seem to convince her otherwise. Abel seems to think she'll grow to love it over time, she just needs more bonding time with it. Her old blankie was always her safe haven when she had to go to bed. This one (hopefully) will be her haven as well...hopefully.

So her old blankie will stay at school for naptime at least for now (and sadly replace the cute cot quilt I made her a year and a half ago when she graduated from the crib to a cot at daycare--but the cot quilt can be passed down to Noah). Her old blankie certainly needs to be washed because it gets dragged everywhere but she doesn't seem to mind. That's part of what makes that blankie her favorite blankie.


(The picture doesn't quite capture the right color--it's in a color palate the equivalent of fushia pink.)

27 Weeks

Babyshower Fun

I was invited to a babyshower this weekend and made a nursing blanket with a weighted corner (so that you could throw the weighted corner over your shoulder and it won't fall off) as well as some booties. I LOVE the fabric for the booties so much that I made a pair for Noah. Cute huh?





The mom-to-be just LOVED the stuff and thought that I should open my own store. I'm glad she appreciated the work!