Life as we Know it

You know what is special about plans?

 

The more you think them through, create alternates, toil over them, worry about them....

 

......the less likely they are to actually come to fruition.

 

Such is the life I am living in right now.

 

When Adam and I decided to go ahead and take this fantastic job opportunity here in KC, we laid out and plotted the best plan ever.  We had plans B through G covered and everything was going to work out exactly as we intended it to go.

 

How dumb could we have been???!!!

 

Absolutely nothing thus far has gone according to the "amazingly wonderful-never-gonna-fail-even-if-we-tried plan".

 

And that is OK.

 

Although there have been changes and deviations to "the plan", we are on track to something great, and who wouldn't  be happy about that?!

 

For example, the original plan for the house in Duluth was as follows: 

Sell it in a couple weeks, a month tops, and use our mortgage payment to supply a rental property for us short term.  We get to keep the moving bonus money and house hunt at our leisure.

 

Reality of that:

Duluth decided to extend its already cold winter a bit and dump upwards of 7 FEET of snow in the month we have been gone.  Not exactly the kind of weather people like to go out and look at houses in.  We are pleased to say that the house is now under contract and should be closing soon!!

As for the rental property part of the puzzle.....rentals must be insulated with gold at the prices we have seen!!!  We anticipated having to double our mortgage in order to find a short term lease, allow pets, utilities, and get a few pieces of furniture.  We have looked all over and considered all options, including apartments, long term hotels, RVs, and on-the-market houses.  Double the mortgage??  Try triple if you want a deal! 

 

The plan for the new house:

We would find The One in a few house hunting trips and get everything signed and closed and moved in in no time! HA!!!

 

Reality:

We did find a house that met every need and want we had and were so excited about it!  But, since we hadn't sold our house in Duluth yet, and the builder did not want a contingency offer, we lost the house to another bidder.  On the bright side, we met with the builder, found a wonderful lot in a cul-de-sac, and made some personal changes to the floor plan we fell in love with.  Deposits have been submitted, plans approved, and the building process has begun! 

But we are homeless until August......

 

Plans for Baby Girl:

Clearly the plan was to have a house before she comes along.  Easy end to the pregnancy, new place, wam, bam, done.

 

Reality:

She will be 3-4 months old before we have our own house.  And an easy end to the pregnancy??  Nope.  First, doctors were worried that I was too small and there were fetal growth issues.  If you saw me, you would wonder what on earth about me is small right now!!  But anyway, had an ultrasound.  She is growing just fine and is right on track.  But then I find out I have gestational diabetes.  No fun.  Now, the doctors are all concerned that she will get too big.  So more ultrasounds, appointments with the diabetes dietician, and regular check ups.  You know what they told me was one of the factors that contributes to GD?  Stress.  What on earth do I have to be stressed about???!!!

 

So here is life as we know it right now......We are the kids that move back home to our parent's basement with no sign of leaving in the short future.  Add to the mix 2 very busy toddlers, a new baby, 2 large dogs, and a railroader's schedule that is anything but normal, and you may start to see a glimpse of our reality!

 

At least KC came with gorgeous weather and sunshine so I can toss kids outside and say "Mommy needs a break!"  Then Daddy can get a bit of uninterrupted sleep too!