White picket fence

Have you ever had one of those surreal experiences? One where you're on your way to sign a year lease at the place you are living, only to swing by the bank first, just to see, out of curiosity if you could get a mortgage now and then, within a week, are picking out paint colors and carpet for the house you are building? Well, that was my week.

Wes and I had decided that we would stay in this place another year. Another year would let us pay off our credit debt completely and save up a little money for a down payment. But then, houses started selling in our area again, and there's that nice tax credit for first time buyers, and our credit card debt will be paid off by October, when Wes also gets promoted and gets a raise. We've had a lot of company around here (apparently babies do that) and it is clear that this place is way too small.

So we went to the bank, out of curiosity. We really wanted to see what we could get approved of in October. They approved us, right now, for $50,000 more than we expected. Well, we have a really good friend who is a realtor. We gave him a call. Two days later, we're driving to look at new houses (there are a ton out here and builders are desperate). The first place was GORGEOUS, but super expensive and the floor plans really weren't that practical for what we wanted (later, we went to Home Depot and saw the door knobs this builder had used and they were $60 a piece. No wonder the place was so expensive. And there was a light in the pantry. THE PANTRY. The sales guy said the builder was very environmentally friendly, which is why the light went off when you shut the door, like a fridge. But, it's the PANTRY. Why do you even need a light in the pantry? Thank you for listening to me rant). Then we drove to the second place.

Our friend had given me the floor plans and there was one that was perfect. I mean, almost exactly what I had always wanted. When we pulled up, Wes saw one of the houses that had already been built and said "that's exactly what I envision when I think of the house I want." Guess which house it was. Yup! The one I loved. He also loved the floor plan. But, you don't want to move too quickly, so we came home and talked about it. And called our parents. And then called the real estate agent back and said, set up an appointment. That's tomorrow and I hope everything goes well. I'm a little nervous. It would be so disappointing not to get it now. Keep your fingers crossed. And the best part: it would take 5 to 6 months to build, so we wouldn't actually get it until Oct, when we wanted it anyway (we'll sign a 6 month lease here).

The place is perfect for us. It has four bedrooms and a finished room over the garage. A living room, dining room, and a family room (the living room is the size of a den. We would put the piano and some book cases in there). The kitchen is nice and has a breakfast nook and we'll have a screened in porch, about the size of a small bedroom! What a perfect place to watch birds from. And a small porch in the front. And there's a little pond down the street. Ok, deep breath. I'm really trying to get ahead of myself, but this place would be perfect. Keep your fingers crossed.