Probably the biggest news since my blog soooo long ago is that we bought a house!! It wasn't in the plan for another 2-3 years, but by our old apartment was a cute little house that was for sale and every time Jason and I drove past it we wondered how much it was-- just out of curiosity. Well, one phone call led to another and then another. Next thing we know, we've been approved for 5% fixed rate with Metlife (AMAZING) and with the first time home buyers tax credit of $8,000, Jason and I went ahead with pursuing the idea of buying a house. All the while nervous and a little scared at the idea of whether it was the right timing for us. We had paid off our van in less than two years which was over $11,000 and also paid off all of two of my credit cards I had, and with those bills paid off we had freed up over $400 a month. We were also looking at renting, but as we researched things, we found out that renting would be more expensive than owning. We were also getting the itch to live in a house rather than apartment. And renting houses is a lot more than apartments. We've been very blessed! Our search for a house was less than two weeks and everything fell into place so easily and there was no doubt in our minds that the Lord was opening doors for us, the only question was where we were going to buy a house. We looked all over Cache Valley and little by little kept moving north until we ended up in Preston, Idaho. I was really off the idea of moving to Preston. First of all it would add quite a commute for Jason, but a half hour is normal commute for most people, even just from one end of SLC to the other, also, it's a small town. I had sworn to myself I'd never live in a small town again. And lastly, Idaho?! I think of potatoes and rednecks..... Surprise, surprise... Preston is actually quite charming, the people are very kind and that's refreshing. It's a safe neighborhood, that seems to be untouched by today's world, or at least has managed to keep it's innocence longer. And everything is in walking distance from where we live. The best part is, our kids have a house to call home. :) The only downer has been that commute, especially since Jason does a paper route in Logan and leaves for work at 4am in the morning. But even that the Lord has watched out for us, and within three weeks of living here, Jason received a phone call asking if he was interested in taking routes in Preston and giving up the ones in Logan. Everything has fallen into place. I can't stress enough the miracle of how things have played out for us. We are sooooo blessed!
We love our new house! 3 bedroom, 1 bath, 0.24 acres, fully fenced in backyard, french doors, garage, covered patio, four mature trees, roll out pantry cupboards, lots of storage, and a shed in the back. It's really cute looking! The front part of the house is almost a hundred years old but is fully renovated. The back part of the house is 4 years old. And the kitchen was renovated two years ago and is very modern, styling granite counter tops, and I have a dishwasher!!!! In the future we plan on knocking down the garage and rebuilding it more towards the front of the house and adding a large great room, master bath and possibly one more bedroom. We really love it here. There's a lot of work that goes with owning a home but we're so excited to do it. And it's really different from renting. We're still adapting to this change, but it's positive!
Summer is almost here and finals is coming up for Jason and when it's all said and done I am so excited to have him home more! This year has been insane and I've missed him!!! I love him so much! He's a wonderful man! I'm doing great. Just enjoying my family and hanging out with the kiddos! Life is sweet!
