change of plans :: the house

Back in October I did an entire month of posts dedicated to my thoughts on "change."  And I guess some crazy, small part of me thought maybe I could lock up "change" and keep it solely in the month of October.  But if I learned anything from that month of change, it's that change waits for no one.

So, really... I shouldn't have been that surprised when all of our so-called plans got all crazy and... well, changed on us.  It's as if someone put all of our "plans" in a massive shoe box and just shook them all up... shook the crap out of that shoe box.

First up... the house.

Remember that house?  And maybe this post?  Well, several months ago (like 6) Lance and I put an offer on the above house.  Then we waited.  Then a counter offer.  Then we waited some more.  Then another counter offer.  And just when we thought we were getting oh-so-close... the renovation portion of the loan fell through.  And just like that, we were at square one again... 4 months later.

We were trying to get a 203k loan, in hopes of being able to do some major (and much-needed) renovations when we moved in.  But once the renovation part wasn't an affordable possibility, we needed to really evaluate how (and if) we should still move forward.

After many discussions with our realtor and lots of praying, we eventually decided to put the brakes on the house altogether.  Initially we were really bummed about not getting the house, but after our decision was made, the burden that was lifted off our shoulders was huge.  I don't think either one of us really realized how much this whole-house-decision was stressing us out.  This house (and potential move) was having a major impact on several other big areas of our life... mainly adoption.

Not knowing with 100% certainty where we were going to live in the next few months put a major standstill on our adoption process.  We couldn't move forward with our homestudy process until we knew for sure where we would be living.  A delay in our housing situation, meant a longer delay in our adoption process.  Ummmm... no thank you.

So... I'm happy to report that we have gotten comfortable and settled in our current rental for at least another year or so.  Or... at least until we can bring our babies home one day:)  We love our rental... have always loved our rental... And maybe eventually we will enjoy the luxuries of two bathrooms and a dishwasher again... one day, maybe.  But in the meantime, we are excited to start our family in this little home.

settle down, it'll all be clear

don't pay no mind to the demons

they fill you with fear

trouble, it might drag you down

if you get lost, you can always be found

just know you're not alone

i'm gonna make this place your home

phil phillips - home