Our Baby Boy is EIGHT!

It's been a few weeks since it happened....but somehow our little guy grew up and decided to turn eight last month.  We decided to have a little 'Ten Days of Birthday' countdown, and he got a little something each day for the ten days leading up to his birthday.  Nothing major - just a special breakfast, or extra electronics time, things like that.  We also celebrated with the birthday banner hanging in the living room that he got from Mimi and Beepa for Christmas.  Looking forward to using it for many years to come, including when he's a teenager and super embarrassed by it. ;)

 

Right before his birthday, he lost yet another tooth!  Took him forever to lose his first, and now he seems to be losing them left and right.

On his actual birthday, he was lucky enough to have the day off school for part of his May break.  I woke up to make him his birthday pancakes to find him snuggled up under his new blanket with a backlight, reading one of his new books he got from Aunt Meggie and Uncle Kyle. :) Love how much he loves to read!

After dropping Sister off at school, I surprised him and took him back to the house and spent the entire time Riley was at school playing his new xbox game with him.  Neither of us had ever played Fifa before, so we weren't really good at it, and we laughed a lot!

We picked Riley up and then headed to meet Daddy for a pizza lunch.  Dinner was lettuce wraps, of course, and we had a special cupcake dessert.  

A couple days later, we had his birthday party with friends.  It had to be the easiest party I ever threw -- two hours of playing video games with friends and cookie cake.  Basically, I greeted the guests, cut the cookie cake, and snapped pics of the boys before they left.  The rest of the time was spent engrossed in the massive screens that filled the place. :)

 

 

Happy birthday, Gavin Jack!  You're growing into a really amazing young man and we're so proud of you.  Love you more than any other boy in this world.  XOXO

April Showers Bring...Hamsters?!

First things first --- house updates!  I did in fact make some changes, and they did not come without a lot of stress and worry.  A couple days after our first design appointment, we went back down and I scoured the countertop/backsplash options and after an hour, decided on something new.  Phew!  I felt so much better...until the next day with the designer chatted with me and wasn't confident that our choice would be a good one.  What?!?  I was crushed, felt defeated and just completely overwhelmed.  So, we (and by 'we' I mean 'me') poured over the options, took screenshots, asked for opinions of all my closest friends and family, and went back and forth many, many times, but in the end, we stuck with our countertop selection, even if the designer wasn't on board.  The backsplash we changed twice, but ended up with a gray subway tile.  I'm really hoping the vision I have in my head of a cream, white, and grey kitchen with some wood elements (like the bard door I'm hoping to add) will all come together for the farmhouse kitchen of my dreams!

We love going by and 'visiting our dirt' and I can't wait until they break ground and we can see the process get started.  It's going to be so fun to do with the kids.  On Friday night, we spent our Friday Family Fun Night running around hunting for Easter eggs on the lot, all while the kids were in their pajamas.  I loved it, and it made me think of all the memories we're going to make in this new house.

April has had more to it than just house stuff (though it definitely doesn't feel like it at times!) Jarrod ran the Bentonville Half Marathon for the second year, and shaved about 25 minutes off his time from last year.  He's doing incredible with his training and is getting SO fast.  We were really proud of him, and loved making signs to surprise him and cheer him on.  The kids were on board for the early morning thanks to Krispy Kreme, hot cocoa, and movies in the van.

We also had very special visitors!  It's been three years since the Famini's moved back to California, but they visited this month for spring break and we were so excited to see them.  Amy and I headed to Pressroom for dessert one night and we hit up Amazeum with the kids on Friday after school, before chowing down at Mama Fu's and Yum Yos, just like old times. We didn't get to see them much because Riley was diagnosed with strep throat the day after they arrived, but it was like they'd never left.  We loved seeing them again!

And one more huge event in April - the addition of ROSE!  Riley's class hamster had two {unexpected} litters back-to-back which meant 11 hamster babies to find homes for.  We avoided the first litter, but when round two came along, we decided to go ahead and take the plunge.  Gavin's been asking for a hamster for a while, and when they agreed they'd use allowance money to help purchase the necessities AND they came up with a schedule for helping clean the cage, Jarrod and I felt like it could be a good opportunity for them to learn responsibility.  So, on Friday, Rose came home with us and she's been quite the entertainment.  They love her, and have been holding her like crazy.  Thankfully, we've only had one biting incident, so I'm hoping that she'll be good with the kids handling her and we've already made it known that she needs to be petted and held daily.

And now...we gear up for the final days of April, which will include our TEN year wedding anniversary and a certain little man's EIGHTH birthday.  Where does time go??

Design Appointment for The Pate Place

Wow!  Talk about making a lot of decisions in a short time!  Yesterday, we had a three hour appointment with the designer for our home, and made every important decision, right down to the soffit color and which carpet pad we wanted.  It was crazy!

First shock of the morning was when we learned the rendering of the house we've seen all this time didn't actually include the bonus room, so the house will look much bigger than we thought.  It looks beautiful on the blueprint, and I'm so glad we added the 5' bump out onto the garage because it even adds an extra window in the front of the house.  

We went into the appointment with a good idea of what we wanted on the exterior, and ended up picking a completely different brick.  The designer was awesome in helping us get to the vision I had in my mind and I'm so excited to see how the brick looks when finished with the dark roof and cedar shutters/accents.  

I knew the cabinetry/countertops would be the hardest part for me.  What I've had in my head for my dream kitchen for years aren't available as standard options, and we were trying hard to limit our upgrades.  Thankfully, the glazed/distressed cream cabinets they had as a standard option are beautiful and I am really excited to see them in.  We left the appointment choosing this combo below - cream cabinets, a taupe/grey tile floor that I love, and Luna Pearl granite with a slate colored glass tile backsplash.  And I do think it looks good together.  BUT, I'm worried it's going to end up darker than I want, so already I'm doubting our choices, and will be chatting with the designer to see if we should change the backsplash and/or countertop.  Changing the countertop will most likely mean an upgrade, which would mean going over our budget, but it might be necessary to make sure the kitchen is my favorite room of the house.  (I'll keep you posted what I do!)

And super exciting - the lot has a SOLD sign now!  It's all very real now!  

And it begins...

We're Building a House!!

I'm completely thrilled/excited/shocked/scared-out-of-my-mind/overwhelmed...but we are under contract!!  We asked for a lot from them, and we didn't get all that we wanted.  The biggest thing was for them to pay closing costs, and they refused.  But, after a lot of consideration, we decided we'd make this work.

We could've waited a year or so and saved some more money for closing costs and the down payment, but in doing so, we'd miss out on the ideal lot we wanted, plus risk interest rates and prices rising even more than they already have.  And this neighborhood feels right...I'm so excited about that!

Unfortunately, this new home means a different school for the kids.  Of course, Riley won't be impacted as much since she's just starting, but Gavin isn't exactly overjoyed with the idea of leaving the school he's known and loved, and all his friends.  I've promised him we will keep in touch with the boys, through soccer and playdates for sure.  I know it won't be the same, but I will make sure their friendships continue to grow.

So...here goes nothing.  Bring on five months of stress, decisions, second-guessing, planning, dreaming, and anticipation.  The Pate Place is going to be amazing.