Swimming Success

Well, in the end, Alivia has had swimming success in her summer session. Some of the lessons were moved to the indoor pool, while many were kept outside (and we had tears and shivering to content with). I think next time, if we ever brave up to do outdoor lessons again, we will select lessons later in the season during midday hours! Alivia is swimming underwater well, will jump off the side to someone, and today, she jumped off the diving board for the first time! Yeah! Alivia is so timid, that this really shocked me. I reminded her today that it was her last lesson and last time to try the board. The kids and I were so excited to see her jump in. I wish we could do another session, but every day of swimming is a lot of work and quite boring for Addison and Asher. Now, if it would only warm up so we could all go to the pool!

 

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Good-Bye Taggie Blanket

Addison BEFORE

Weaning a child from anything is hard. I remember weaning each of the kids from nursing. Although I weaned them at a year, it was still hard and I felt like I was doing something wrong. I hated that they would sometimes cry and want to nurse and I had to distract them. At the same time, it was just difficult knowing that they were getting older.

Last Saturday, we began the "weaning" process again, trying to "wean" Addison from her taggie blanket and her thumb. She will be 3 a month from today (how scary!). Her teeth are beginning to get messed up because of her thumb sucking. She was not just sucking her thumb with her taggie at nap time and at night, or we may have been better about it. She was sucking her thumb more and more through the day. Somedays she would just sit on our laps sucking her thumb watching everyone play. So, Saturday, we set out to get a taggie replacement of sorts. We asked Addison to select a stuffed toy, then told her that she could get it if she gave us her taggie (I had already hidden the other taggies, so I thought). She quickly handed it over, hugging her new found soft puppy.

Addison & her puppy

The day went okay for the most part. We had a date last Saturday night, so I explained the whole taggie thing to the babysitter. Unfortunately, there was a taggie in Addison's bed that night, so she went to bed with it.

When Addison awoke Sunday morning, the taggie was gone. She cried Sunday night for a while asking for it. It was so sad, we just wanted to give it back to her. She cried less on Monday night. Since then, Addison has only asked for it a few times, but she quickly gets over it when she gets her puppy.

The difference? Addison can talk! I would venture to say she is chatty! She was quiet before, because her mouth was full with her thumb! Or, when she did talk, I had to remind her to talk to me without her thumb in her mouth so I could understand her. She also comes to me first more when she falls, gets picked on, etc, where before she would get her taggie first before coming to me. She is doing so good, though.

This has been a hard week on all of us adjusting to the new Addison. The hardest part for me was watching her be sad missing her taggie. It is also hard knowing that she is growing up. With her little thumb in her mouth holding her taggie, I could still see her as my little baby. Now, although still my little baby, she tells me, "Mommy, I am not a baby!"

Addison AFTER

 

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We found homes we like!

Chris and I have 2 homes we like in a place that was out of the box for us really. Both homes are new spec homes in a fabulous setting (let's just say it was NOT in the flood plain). I like one home and Chris likes the other one (where I may like it if it was decorated differently!). The first home was just down the street from the one Chris liked.

1. My choice: Backs to trees. 4br, 3ba, awesome neutral, contemporary decor, large SIDE yard, limited back yard, great price (been on the market 329 days!). Solid surfaces in baths, granite in kitchen, modern decor. Sounds like the builder is VERY motivated to get this home off of his hands. Although the basement is not finished, we are thinking the builder could finish it while still staying within our price range.

2. Chris' choice: 4-5 bedroom (Basement bedroom does not have an daylight window so is not a legal bedroom), 4 bath, finished basement, large yard backing to a fabulous, grand view! Upscale finished features (granite in baths and kitchen but I did not like it), more traditional decor (not my taste), higher price tag. The home does sit on a corner of a culta-sac which would be nice. I love the location. The house is a quite similar floorplan to house #1, but it has more square foot. I do not think it is worth the price tag. This house we would probably never want to move out of unless we move completely out of the area (because nothing could match this view!).

When I looked at the first home initially with the kids (I sometimes prescreen homes), we saw a wild turkey! (We went and saw these homes after a weekend of a busy open house and interested people coming back for the 3rd time stating they would be making their offer that week). The second time, there were deer prints in the yard! There are other homes that we would need to see before we would make an offer anyway, once our home sells, that is (if ever!). Seriously, I HATE this process. If we end up staying and this stress if for nothing, I will be mad!  Oh, and interest rates have gone back up...did I mention that?

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FSBO Update

Well, this weekend we did not have an open house so we could all attend the baptism of our newest nephew, Ben, who was born May 1st (Chris is Ben's Godfather). Anyway, while we were gone, the neighbors sold their home! I, for one, am sick about it. I was the one that was to stay home to do the open house, but I did not know how I would do an open house with the kids at home (and how appropriate is that really?). We all felt we should be at the baptism.

The "neighbors' " home is on Sprague street and is a ranch (priced higher than our home, but ranches usually are, even with less square foot and fewer bedrooms. Go figure), but sits in good eye shot of our home. They had their home on the market with CBS home. So, statistically, their home would sell quicker. However, it is extremely frustrating. The homes on the market with similar floorplans to our home have not sold. There are homes selling, as our list of homes to buy is getting rather thin. Kinda scary actually. This process sure is not an easy one. We have earned every dollar of the commission that we are not paying to a real estate company and then some, and we may not be selling or moving!

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Asher's 1 year Album: FINALLY!

Better late than never. Actually, I finished this in December...I just have to sit down, proof it, perfect it, and finally order the thing. Here it is if you have lots of time to kill! Now, onto the Austin Album for 2008 and then back to Addisons FIRST year scrapbook(the by hand one. She at least already has one like Ashers)!

Asher's First Year Album

Austin Date Night

Chris and I are far from wild people. We have never been a bar hopping couple. However, we do like to get away for some alone time together.

So, Saturday night, after taking the kids to Mass and experiencing their worst Mass behavior ever, we had the babysitter come over for a few hours. Initially, being the thrifty person that I am, I thought $30 for 3 hours of fun was too expensive. Oh, I am a changed woman. What a bargain (and I would get paid that for an entire day if I babysat A child!)! It is so nice to break away from our sometimes loud home for a quiet, peaceful dinner with conversation we can hear, food we can eat while still hot, and a nice little fruity drink (okay, Chris had a beer, but still). Oh, gotta love it. Chris and I then, being the nerds we are, headed to the bookstore just to browse. We had a gift we needed to buy (as a Godparent, Chris buys his Godchildren gifts, God based of course, on the anniversary of their baptism. Oh, what a great Godfather he is, but that is a whole other story). It is nice to go to stores, too, and just slowly looking. We looked until the store closed, actually.

We had a good night. We decided next time we would have the babysitter come before Asher went to bed and go to a movie (Yes, our babysitter drives to us now...how awesome is that!). The next plan, to get our babysitter to watch the kids so I can get my haircut!

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Wildlife Safari

Today we visited the Simmons' Wildlife Safari on exit 426. We have never been there, so we did not know what to expect. Aunt Nikki is in town from Colorado, so she was on the trip with us (and was quite helpful!).

The safari turned out to be a lot of fun, and I think everyone would recommend it. You drive slowly through the "park" of grasslands, beautiful wooded areas, and wetlands and see animals such as bison (buffalo), deer, anelope, elk, black bear & wolves (in a separate caged in area that we "hiked" to),  as well as many birds, cranes and more! If one goes with kids, a jogging stroller is the only way to go for the "hikes."  It was a nice day and loads of fun! Asher and Addison leaned out the window (with Nikki holding them in) and saying "hi" and "bye bye" to the animals, both waving! Many of the animals walked right in front of the car or were seen sitting or eating right outside our car window! We ended the trip with a picnic and playing a bit on the playset.

We will definitely take the safari again! Now lean back in your chair and enjoy the picture safari...I took lots of them!

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Swim Class Drama

Chilling Asher

Alivia and Addison started daily swim class on Monday morning. I thought it would be fun to take lessons outside for once. Little did I know that the weather would turn cold and rainy on me! Anyway, Monday was Asher's 18 month check-up, so Chris had to break away from work to take the girls to day one. I could not ask anyone else to take them because I was expecting a little drama from Addison. A "little" drama would have been a dream for Daddy who had to withstand high pitch screams like Addison was experiencing a night terror or something. Needless to say, she barely got her feet wet. Day 2 came my turn. Unfortunately, Addison behaved no differently. So, we were asked to step away from the pool as she was scaring the kids (and the parents) with her loud cries. I was mortified as the many parents stared at me wondering what was I doing to my little girl. I wondered, why is it only my little girl out of the 50 kids there that had to melt down, not one, but 2 days in a row.

So, today, I thought, I have Aunt Nikki to help and only Alivia to swim, this should be easy. I guess I should go with the motto, NOTHING IS EVER EASY. Today, after telling everyone that would listen that Addison "freaked out" Monday and Wednesday (Tuesday it rained) at the pool, Alivia wanted to take her turn. Okay, a 2 year old behaving badly or scared is one thing, but a 5 year old? Today, I was using all my strength to keep Alivia in the pool area. She was not being good. I had a "chat" with her in the restroom before returning to the pool. She got in and had 5-10 minutes alone with the instructor (normally she is in a class with 3-4 other students) to do all of today's activities. Once she had completed, Alivia got out and wanted to go home!

Let's just say swimming lessons are a big investment. There is the large fee for the lesson, the pool fee (to use an outdoor pool), etc. I am running out of kidneys and nobody is swimming here. I am looking into moving Alivia back to the indoor pool where she took winter lessons (at the same swim school) and did well. Perhaps she just does not like swimming in a heated pool when the temps are in the 60's (come on...who does?!).

Here's hoping tomorrow goes better

.

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Asher's 18m Check Up

Asher had his 18 m check up today. He is 22 lb 2 oz (7%), 31 inches tall (15%) and his head is 44.5 cm (0.61%). Okay, his head does not want to grow, not growing at all since he was 12 months.  Dr. Calderon, our pediatrician, is going to consult his wife, a pediatric neurologist, to see if we should do anything about this. Asher is at or surpassing what he should be doing at 18 months, so that is all good. Dr. Calderon is considering measuring my head to see if we just have small heads (we must be all brain!). Addison has a small head, too, so perhaps that is it. Who knows.

Otherwise, Asher is healthy. Funny, the nurse took one look at Asher, who looks like a big boy even though he really isn't, and said, "So I take it he is a good eater." Then Dr. Calderon talked to me and recommended Asher begin a multivitamin because he does not like meat or milk. Dr. Calderon was somewhat curious if Asher is allergic to milk like Chris since he completely refuses it, even if flavored. However, Addison did the same thing. I think it has to do with breastmilk and milk tasting so much different. I should had introduced it better (like 1/2 and 1/2 initially or something). Asher does not like texture of some foods, like Chris. Asher does not like bread, he will eating cookie dough but not the cookie, he does not like fruit snacks, etc. It just looks like Asher is picky like his parents. Poor thing!

Next Appointment is at 2 years! I am not even going to think about that!

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May In Review

Oh, what a crazy month!
Berkshire Hathoway, May Day, Cinco de mayo, meeting Baby Braden, Meeting Baby Ben, Alivia riding her bike without training wheels!!, I ran a 1/2 marathon, picnics, updating the entryway, FSBO, open houses EVERY WEEKEND, trip to the Maiefskis, Mother's Day, monthly trip to the zoo, Childrens museum, and fontenelle forest, Alivia's birthday party, Memorial Day and Alivia turned 5! Alivia finished preschool, Asher getting into trouble, summer is here! And we ended the month with Asher turning 18 months!

Oh, how did we survive? Now, onto another fun filled month!

MAY PICTURES

I think we are Crazy!

Or, at least I am crazy.

Okay, I know what I said...NO MORE OPEN HOUSES! However, we placed the ad in the newspaper, which then placed our home open house on several websites. We had to have an open house! So again, after a night without sleep, the kids and I went out for an afternoon of activities while Chris stayed home and got scared.

The kids and I went to the sprinkle park for the first time this season! It was fun! However, the water would be on for 10 minutes, then be off almost completely for 10 minutes. Um, our kids' attention span does not last that long. We made it an hour there and they were done. It was 1:20, and I needed to be out of the house until 3. We drove to Chris' parents house to find them not at home...oh, I should have called. We came back home and waited for viewers to leave before running in and pulling the sign. We had someone else coming for a scheduled viewing at 5:00...so we had little time.

Unfortunately, nobody got a nap. Chris was all worried because the interested party waiting for loan approval came back for the 3rd time stating their loan should be approved this week...so be expecting an offer. Great! We will be homeless this week? Another couple also came through really interested stating they would definitely be in touch! After worrying for a couple hours with few brain cells without sleep, I had to get out of the house again. Chris agreed to keep Alivia and I decided to just take Addi and Asher on a walk. It was 4:30. I returned home at 5:30 and the people were still not there. I could not walk anymore. I was hot, tired of walking (I had been walking for an hour!) and I had not slept in days now! Come on! So, Addi, Asher and I went to the backyard to play while the people looked around. They were interested as well, but had to market their home first. Oh, they are not an immediate threat. The house will be sold by the time they get their affairs in order.

So, at this point...it looks like we will at least get 1 offer within the next couple of weeks. Now, if we can just decide where we are going to live we would be set. I have an appointment to view a home on an acreage tomorrow with the kids (Chris has another showing of our home to get home to). One really has to be committed to this process to proceed because buying and selling a home with kids takes time, work and lots of commitment!

I will keep you posted!

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Asher's 1/2 Birthday!

 

Asher at 1 1/2 years old

Asher is 18 months old today! I was just telling Chris that I hardly remember when he was not walking! Now he is running and getting into trouble. Within the last week, Asher filled our toilet on the main level with a few toys and then topping it off with Daddy's flip flops while we got ready to go some place. Then, again while we were getting the kids ready to walk out the door, Asher opened the register cover and threw his shoes down it. Luckily, the vent trapped the shoes before going too far. Asher is a big talker, saying many words. His first sentence was, "More Cocoa Puffs Please!" in the car! He calls all cereal cocoa puffs, the cereal we eat only on weekends when Daddy is home. He calls drinks, "snacks" or at least that is what it sounds like. I kept giving him snacks until I figured it out! He is a very picky eater. He does not like milk and the only meat he will eat is an occasional hot dog of all things! He likes special K over Cheerios, and genenally scrapes anything sweet off of his tongue onto his hand and says, "Yuck!"

Asher likes to play with his basketball, soccer ball - even getting good at kicking it, golfballs, footballs, etc. Okay, if it is a ball - Asher will fight you for it, even if it is pink. Although he COULD feed himself for a few months, he just started actually doing it with a spoon. Until a few days ago, he would take a few bites until I sat down, then he would hand me his spoon. He likes storytime with Mommy and coloring time (or messy time) with his sisters. He is a funny boy, liking to walk around with his sister's headbands around his neck like a dog collar! :) Asher is very tough. He generally does not cry unless it is a MAJOR injury. I have seen him really crash, get up and say, "Ouch" pointing to his head, hand or whatever he hurt, hug me, and then move on. Seriously! That would cause the girls to cry for at least 10 minutes! He is also tough with Addison, who tends to take his toys. His defense: Hair pulling (okay, what goes around comes around as Addison did this very thing to Alivia). I do redirect Asher, but I do think Addison asks for it a lot! (Addison and Asher have a love/hate relationship. One minute they are getting along fine and the next minute Addison is saying, "I don't like Asher!" We have no idea where she got this phrase because nobody says it around our home except Addison. But, we are working on more Addison time so she does not think Asher is getting more attention or anything). Asher is a pretty good sleeper sleeping from about 8 PM until just before 7 AM yelling "Mommy, UP!" when he awakes. That is a nice alarm clock every morning, let me tell you! He occasionally cries out for me after going to bed, but rests on my shoulder falling right back to sleep. He sleeps on his tummy, tucking his hands under his body...so cute! He even does this while sleeping on my shoulder.  He takes one nap from 12:45 (but usually talks until 1) until 3:30 or so. Alivia and Asher get along well. She likes going down the slide with Asher on her lap, and she likes standing under him while he climbs the playset ladder all by himself (something he just started doing!).

And, at 18 months, I begin to think about potty training. I said just THINK. I got out the potties for Asher to investigate. He is very good at telling me when he goes #2 and tells me "yuck!" as he tugs at his diaper, or he smells so bad he clears rooms. I am thinking that he and Addison may be close to being potty trained at once! Perhaps I will make it a competition and see who wins! (Addison is holding out for dear life on the #2 STILL).

It is hard to believe that our baby is 18 months. Asher will go in for his 18 month appointment on Monday, and I will update then. I am sure he is well over the 19 lbs Addison was at her 18 month check up! He is growing up too fast! Have I said that before?

 

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Alivia's 5 year pictures

Alivia had her 5 year pictures taken today. Here are some of her favorites:

 

Oh, to be 5 and a little princess!

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My Take and Jon & Kate +8

It is no secret that I am a fan of 2 shows, Lost and Jon & Kate +8. Last year, I kind of got away from Jon and Kate because I was just too busy to watch TV 2 nights a week. However, I had to watch the season premiere on Monday after all of the accusations were flying around.

Now, here is my take on it.

Jon wants to quit the show. He wants his life back. He wants to work. Many men do need to work to fulfill that need and their confidence to provide for their family. He feels he is forced to stay home with his kids so his wife, Kate, can go out and travel, speaking and doing book signings. I cannot comment on if he has had an affair because nobody’s really telling the truth, so who knows. His wife has left him, in some ways, for the show and the fame. This is evident. This is not an excuse, but husband's that stray usually have non existent wives or the man just can not be faithful. Jon had been faithful, so it goes back to having a non existent (or controlling) wife.

Kate loves fame, attention and the $25-$50,000 ($1-2 million this season alone, not including the books sales) they are claimed to get per episode. The just moved into a million some odd dollar home with 24 acres and they need the show to pay the mortgage or something. Yes, I realize they have 8 kids, but if your husband is done, it’s done! I think if Kate had to pick between her husband and the show going on, she would pick the show. She would never admit to that, however. She also was very harsh, almost rude, regarding her husband in People magazine. I'm sorry, they are still married. Since neither of them are really telling what went on with Jon, she is just looking plain bad for saying the things she has said about Jon. Jon is quiet...so I think he is getting the raw end of the deal because she is loud and voicing her side. I like his quiet side better. She said on the season premiere that the kids called her by the baby sitters name. Okay, that is sad, especially sad considering she CAN JUST STAY HOME! She does not HAVE to travel, speak, etc, when they make that kind of money per episode. She always says that the show allows them to stay home with their kids. Really? Why aren’t you at home then?

I guess I liked the show because of the things they did with the kids, the places they took them, etc. I do not like watching someone’s horrible personal life in reality. I did watch, however, the entire episode. I am hopeful that the show will not continue down this dramatic path of reality divorce. I, for one, do not want to see that!

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May Visit to the OCM

May to Omaha Children's Museum

Today was our monthly visit to the OCM. The museum was busy with the kids out of school. They have a new exhibit upstairs, ELMO, that was really fun!  kids dressed Elmo with magnets, watch mommy tie shoes, played in the bakery, and they had a little "exercise" area that the kids really liked. It was a lot of fun! We moved downstairs and played a bit before Addison asked "Can we go home, Mommy?" Asher really gets into things, really liking the ball room (go figure!). I took some pictures with my phone since the camera remained on the kitchen counter. So, I will try and post them later. 

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Alivia's Kindergarten Check up

Anyone who knows about the Pre-Kindergarten check up knows, this can be a very traumatic appointment. This appointment usually consists of shots, vision screening, hearing screening and an exam. They no longer require the urine test, which helps a little. However, having worked in a pediatric office as a nurse, I am smart. HA! I had Alivia's shots done at her 4 year appointment so her 5 year appointment was not so bad. It was fun for her actually!

She passed with flying colors! She shyly answered all of their questions, performing all of the tasks asked (skipping, hopping on one foot, writing her name, etc). She weighed 37.8 lb (34%), 42.25 in tall (46%). They do BMIs now and she was found to be within normal limits there, too. She passed the vision and hearing tests well, even going away with the nurse to test without any hesitation.

The results: Alivia is physically ready for kindergarten beginning August 17. All we have left on the check-list is to learn how to tie her shoes. I think if I bought shoes with ties that would help!

Now, off to enjoy Alivia on home this summer!

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Alivia Turns 5 Years Old!

Alivia turns 5!

Today was Alivia's 5th Birthday! Alivia is such a big girl! Alivia's favorite interests are: Clothes and picking out her clothes, drawing and coloring, riding her bike "without training wheels," movies, ladybugs and butterflies, swimming and doing water activities, and playing with her friends. Alivia has surprised us by becoming a little bit outgoing. She is usually the first one out of the kids to try things, depending upon what it is. Her favorite foods are totinoes pizza (I know, yuck), Mamas pizza and onion rings, and any food one would label as junk food. Alivia is quite the helper. She helps unload the dishwasher, but is losing that job to Addison and Asher who love to help Mommy with that. Alivia on occasionly helps with dishes, clearing the table, picking up toys, and is quite organized (when she wants to be) in cleaning her room. I think Mommy's clean fleakish behavior, more so lately for obvious reasons, has shed off on Alivia a bit. Alivia is very loving, giving hugs and kisses out of the blue. Alivia and Addison are quite close. Alivia is always concerned that Addison is okay if she is upset and is quick to share with her, typically. Alivia even let Addison help her open her birthday presents today! She continues to be a sensitive little girl, shy around other kids at least at school. She does well playing with kids at the park and making friends easily though. She is excited about kindergarten and is slowing collecting things to get ready, like a new backpack, new clothes, lunchbox, etc. Chris and I are confident she will be ready for kindergarten, we are just not sure we will be!

So how did she celebrate turning 5? Well, we celebrated with the party 10 days ago, at school last Wednesday and then today. She has had a lot of birthday celebrations! Today we went to Iowa for the Memorial Day Service, then out to Grandma and Grandpa's house for a little BBQ. Addison and I got up at 5 AM, so we were exhausted and came home right after lunch so we could take a nap. Alivia and Daddy watched movies. Then, we all got up and Alivia ran through the sprinklers and rode her bike. We celebrated with an DQ icecream cake. Alivia liked it...yeah! (She generally does not like cake). We then went back out and took a long bike and wagon ride. It was a fun night. Alivia and Chris may go see a movie tomorrow afternoon (Chris took a vacation day tomorrow).

It is difficult for us to believe that Alivia is now 5 years old. We have talked about it for months, but for it to actually be here is sad. Where does the time go? It seems like yesterday that we brought home our 4lb 15 oz tiny baby girl. And now look at her!

Happy Birthday Alivia Grace! We love you!

 

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Down to 3 Weeks

Chris and I have learned ALOT doing selling FSBO that we would probably otherwise have learned the hard way. One man and his wife asked Chris what tax Levy we were in. He knew the answer, but we were not even sure what it meant. Okay,our tax levy is 2.05 roughly, which is low actually. Castle Creek, on 156th and Fort (a couple miles away), is at a tax levy of 2.503. The assessed value multiplied by the levy% equals the tax amount, so one can figure out how much tax you would pay on the sales price of the home (the more the home is worth, the more tax, obviously. Then if it is a higher levy, taxes will be REALLY EXPENSIVE!). The neighborhoods we were looking at had tax levy's of 2.677. I have deleted all of those homes. We refuse to pay $7700 or more in taxes in a year. That is crazy! Seriously, we can have a similar yard and everything and pay that much more?!  Some of the homes had the same finished sq feet (just on 2 floors with unfinished basements and larger garages) as we have now! Here is a home that Chris and I looked at SELECT HOME. I seriously loved the IDEA of this home. It has 4 bedrooms each with bath access (Master with master bath, Asher would get his own bath and the girls would share a jack n jill bath - these bath arrangement is my new home requirement!). It has nice window treatments (after shutters, one really looks at these. I do not want curtains of mini blinds!). The yard was wonderful with a natural stream running through it. Okay, it needed some repairs, so I wanted to low ball them with a contengency (which one really can't do in this market) to sell our home first. This home is special for a few reasons. 1. It is foreclosed. YIKES! I sure pick 'em! The repairs: The deck is just hanging on by a thread. If our kids got on it, it would crash down. The inside of the home needs lots of work. The sump pump went out, flooded the basement. So, it would have to be repaired. It was unfinished, but the walls were finished. I could go on and on. Anyway, if you go to the bottom of the link, check out this home's taxes. Yes, that says: $10,415! That is nearly $870 a month IN TAXES ALONE! Okay, can you see why the homeowners foreclosed? They built this fabulous home not knowing that it was sitting in a 2.6 -2.7 Levy zone and they could not pay their mortgage once those nice taxes were thrown in. Um, can't say that I can blame them. That is like giving a new small car away in taxes every year. If we could do that...why would anyone purposely do that? Now, house 2. Chris and I drove by this home and LOVE it! It is similar to another home we like...but that other home has too many issues. Taxes? $8412 or $701 a month in JUST TAXES! Seems interesting that this home is for sale within the first 6 months of their first large tax bill. Humm.

So, now I am looking at my CBSHOME favorite list. The only homes on it are the ones like ours for sale in our neighborhood that I am tracking for selling purposes and a few others. Chris and I were really leaning on building in Shadow Lake but are ruling it out because of the tax levy. We just do not wanto to throw $8000 or more away every year. Imagine how much we could save for college with that money that we would otherwise be giving away in taxes!

We invested the $200 in the paper for our ad, which has so far done nothing for us. We plan on keeping the home on the market for the next month while the ad is in the paper, at least (our initial plan was to have our home FSBO until July 12th weekend and then pull the sign and go on vacation!). If we have not sold, we are going to stay home. Chris and I  can think of a million things to do with $8000  or a year other than give it away in taxes (granite in the kitchen and bathrooms, new tile floors in the bathrooms, a deck, disney world, vacations, college savings plans...just to name a few things!). We are not doing any more open houses. We have done them 3 weekends and have decided if people are really interested, they will call and set up an appointment to see. Taking the kids out in the afternoon when Addison and Asher really need to be napping is just plain crazy and exhausting. Today we went to 3 parks, Toys R Us and then out for icecream. Chris had 1 person walk through (and they stayed over an hour!). I can not speak for Chris, but I am just going to count the hours until we can pull the FSBO sign. If and when we decide to move next time, we know what to do. FIND LAND AND A BUILDER! We are not going to run all over looking at homes that do not fit the bill in horrible locations with taxes that are seriously for the crazy and stupid. Our next home only exists if we build it. If our home does, by a miracle, sell in the next 3 weeks, we will find land and build or maybe find a home on a good levy. We have a builder...just not suitable land. And, if we have to pay those taxes, we will pay half up front and roll the rest into the mortgage, making the monthly mortgage a little easier on our eyes.

For now, let the timeline begin..
...3 Weeks!

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Alivia Completes Preschool!

Alivia & Mrs. Ehmke

Today was Alivia's last day of her second year of preschool at the Gingerbread House, marking a major milestone! Alivia went from being the shy girl that refused to talk to kids in her class until like January, to making friends and even having a little boyfriend! How scary is that. Okay, he is a boy and they are close friends. :) It is hard for us to believe that she will celebrate her 5th birthday on Monday and begin Kindergarten in the fall. Time sure flies. I feel lucky to have spend most of the last 2 years with her at home. It will be nice to have her home all day with us this summer to do as many fun things as we can. As I picked up Alivia from preschool today, it was difficult for me to hold back my tears (and Alivia said, "It is okay Mommy, I want to go to Kindergarten!") Just when I think she is growing up too fast, Alivia says something to remind me that she is still my baby (but is becoming such a big girl!).

Congrats Alivia on successfully completing Preschool!

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Testing The Minimalist Theory

We are minimalists...I have explained this before. We try to get by in life on as little as possible. We do not have a home phone, only have basic cable (because without it we would not have any TV!), the kids know at age 2 to turn off the lights when you leave a room, etc, etc. We are also big savers, saving a lot of Chris' salary each month (more than we did when I was working actually!). Now, with this said, we get into the moving conversation.

Now, we want to move into a new home, a new investment. Our home has been a relatively good investment. We were able to finish the basement, add a big day light window, 5th bedroom, fire place and a bathroom with a shower in it. All those things added value to our home to help us get some of the money out of the house. Things like new carpet, trees in the yard, fence, etc, look nice on paper and help a home sell faster...but do not really help in the price of a home. Anyway, as we are looking at our next home, we are looking at many things. We really want a kick ass (sorry, no other way to say it) location. Our current location is WONDERFUL and really can not be beat. We are practically within walking distance to HyVee, Walmart and Target, as well as walking trails, a park, sprinkle park and a school! WOW! There are also many churches near by. Now, we have looked and NOTHING has all of those things. This next location we want to back to trees, a pond, golf course (I know, we don't golf...but we could!), or something. Chris REALLY wants an acreage, but we really have not found anything close to his work that fits that our needs (they are on land but need MAJOR work).

Here is the problem with moving and our current minimalist theory. We set our budget and started looking. Our taxes, at least today, stand at $3500. However, we have been reassessed so they will be going up if we stay or for the next owner. Anyway, the lowest taxes we found in a home were $6500 (and that was just 1 house we found in the $6000 range)! YIKES! Most taxes lie closer to $7000-$8300!! We have looked in Elkhorn, Gretna, Papillion, LaVista, and Bellevue and they are all the same - VERY HIGH! Sorry, but paying $700 a month JUST IN TAXES NOT INCLUDING THE MORTGAGE payment is INSANE! UGH! We found a few homes we liked, all had extraordinary high taxes. Let's just say, this does not fall into our life theory or goals. I keep going back to lets just stay, Chris will drive a lot, we refinance to 4 point something percent for a 10-15 year, and we can rock this house out! Oh, what to do, what to do...

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Catch 22

Chris and I are in the midst of a catch 22. UGH! We had a second showing tonight of a family who is very interested in purchasing our home, even stating that our price is dead on (thank you...we think so too!). Anyway, they have to get mortgage approval, which takes 3-5 days once the paperwork is filled out for a conventional loan, or 2-6 weeks for a VA loan. So, we could be getting an offer soon depending upon which type of loan they go with (we require loan pre-approval prior to making any offers, obviously).

Now, for the catch 22. Chris and I have stopped seriously looking at homes since we can not make any offers until our home sells. Yes, we could get a bridge loan...but we have a brain. If our home does not sell, we will not be buying another one. A bridge loan is one of the dumbest things I have ever heard of! Anyway, we have done some looking by driving by and that type of thing without looking inside. We just selected a few very good potentials this weekend. Tonight, I went on our favorite list to find many of those homes SOLD. Let's just say, this past weekend was a hot weekend for more than just our house! So the catch 22 is if we find homes now that we can buy when the time comes, those homes are more than likely going to be sold when we are in a position to buy. So, by looking now, we could potentially be setting ourselves up for BIG disappointment. I was quite disappointed seeing many of our top favs GONE! UGH! Why does moving up have to be so complicated? Chris and I decided that lazy and/or smart people just stay put!

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Skipping Through the Forest

Today was our May visit to the Fontenelle Forest. I can tell from month to month how the kids are growing up as they change when we visit places. Last month, Asher was perfectly content riding in the stroller. This month, he was screaming at me to "Want Out!!" So, as scary as it was, I let him out on the deck trail that is quite high at times and not very secure. YIKES! He held my hand for the most part, then wanted up! Pushing the stroller where Addison was content while holding Asher was a task, I'll tell you. I got my work out! But, the forest is so wonderful in the morning. All the birds chirping, woodpeckers making noises, etc, makes it so peaceful. The leaves have come out on the trees since our April visit making the views different. We can not wait to come back on a weekend so we can take more trails with Daddy. As we left, 2 big bus loads of kids arrived. Oh, Mommy sometimes knows just the right time to leave!

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Open House Take 2

Open house week 2

I hesitate to say that today we had a successful open house, but I will say it anyway. WE HAD A SUCCESSFUL OPEN HOUSE! We had 9 people walk through with many seeming interested. I hesitate, however, because it is not really successful until we get an offer and the house is sold!

The open house was from 12-3, but pushed into almost 4. Our near by neighbors put their ranch home on the market with an real estate agent and had an open house, as well as another home with our similar floor plan had an open house. I drove around and there were MANY homes for sale with open houses. It was like a neighborhood open house! Chris kept rather busy "selling" our home with fresh baked cookies, Kenny G's soft music playing in the background, and fresh cut flowers.

I had gotten home from the night shift at 8 AM, got the kids ready and out the door with Chris for the morning to his parents so I could get the house ready. It took me until 10:20 to spiff things up. Then I went to bed for an hour! Whew...a whole continuous hour of rest! Then, Chris brought the kids home and we were off. After the park was nixed by Addison because it was cold, we headed to the mall play area and the Gap. Asher was sick and kept soiling his clothes. I went through 2 outfits and had to buy another one! After leaving the mall, I bought the girls icecream cones before doing some more shopping at Village Point. Okay, 3 tired kids without naps and one Mommy who more or less skipped a night of sleep shopping - bad mix. Oh, and add in Asher messing his clothes in every store. We were ready to come home when returned just before 4.

And again, we will wait. Wait and wait for an offer...

...I think it would just be easier to pull the sign and rock this house out some more!

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