HOME TOUR {PART 3} MAKING AN OFFER

You can find Parts 1 & 2 here.

Let me start out this post by saying that if you've never bought a short sale or a foreclosure...it's a pain!  It takes F.O.R.E.V.E.R!  But with lots of patience and prayer, it can be very rewarding and we're so thankful that we chose to buy a short sale.  

When we met up with our Realtor to put an offer on the house, we told him that we wanted to offer less than the asking price.  The house was a short sale and was listed for $110,000.  Our budget was $90,000.  We had spent some time figuring out what our budget was and knew how much we could afford monthly for a house payment.  We really did not want to go over the $90,000.  Our Realtor said that because the house was a short sale, he wasn't sure if the bank would accept $20,000 less than the listed price since they were already taking a loss on the house.  He said he would put in the offer at $90,000 and then have the house re-appraised to see if it would come down closer to our asking price.  

After what felt like an eternity...we finally heard back from our Realtor and he had great news!   The house was re-appraised and it came back at $82,000!  Which meant that the bank could not accept our offer of $90,000 because it was too much.  We had to change our offer to $82,000!!!!  Nathan and I felt that this was a for sure sign from God that this house was meant for us.  

After five ridiculously long months of phone calls, emails, and waiting for the bank to take care of things on their end...we closed on our house.  We put the offer in on the house in July 2012 and closed in December 2012.  It was really exciting when the key to our first house was placed in our hands.  It was a new journey for Nathan and me and we couldn't wait to make the house our own.  

We wanted to surprise Ruy so we told him we were going somewhere special.  We put his jacket around his eyes so he couldn't see where we were going.  

We took him out into the backyard and sat him on the playground.  We said "Ok where are we?"  He said "Chick-fil-a!"  I had to laugh about it because that makes it kind of obvious where I go all the time :)  

We took his jacket off his eyes and told him that this was our new house!  He was very excited because he had really wanted to buy the house with the cool playground.  Liam was too young to understand what was going on but we knew he would eventually love having a big yard with a playground. 

It would have been so nice to be able to move in right away but the house needed a ton of work so in January 2013 my husband started the long, hard process of fixing our house.  

...to be continued.

THE FIRST DAY OF FALL

The 23rd was the first day of fall.  While I love summer, I was not sad to see it go.  We had so much fun this summer but I have been so ready for cooler weather.  I've been able to function so much better the past week or so since the weather started cooling off.  Fall also means that little Jude will be here in about four weeks so that is another super exciting reason to be happy that fall is here!

We kicked off our fall this year with a surprise visit to see my in-laws.  I woke up this past Tuesday morning and just randomly decided that we needed to go see them.  It's been some time since we were all able to get together and I knew they were really missing the kids.  So after we did school, went to my 36 weeks check-up, and ate a packed lunch in the van...we headed down to see them.  They live about 1.5 hours away so it's a pretty easy trip.  On the way down an 18 wheeler lost part of his tire and it went under my van and hit my gas tank and caused a small leak.  I had no idea it had caused any damage until I parked at the school where my mother-in-law (Kelly) teaches.  I kept smelling the gas so strongly but couldn't figure out why.  I thought maybe I had got it on my shoes or something.  Later on that day, when I got back to my in-laws house, my father-in-law (Ray) looked under the van and found the leak.  He was able to plug it and I really hope the plug solves the problem for a long time.  

Anyways...enough about crazy vehicle problems.  Kelly was so surprised to see us and so happy.  She had an hour of school left so we left the school and went back to house and we played outside while we waited for her to get home.

 ...Oh the crazy faces this boy can make!

We went and got pizza for dinner later that evening and then while I went back home and put the "littles" to bed, Ray & Kelly took Ruy to Bass Pro Shop.  He loved it and told them he wants a gift card with $1000 on it for Christmas.  Good luck with that my love! :)  

The next morning (The First Day Of Fall)  after playing outside on the driveway for a bit,

we went to a little petting zoo that is right by their house for a field trip.  I grew up in the same area that Nathan grew up in so I used to go to this petting zoo when I was little.  It's so cute and so much fun.

 Liam was protecting Alanna from the "mean" turkey.  :) He always thinks it's his personal job to keep her from getting hurt (which usually causes her to get more hurt than she probably would have) and to tell her what to do even if he is disobeying.  I'm hoping this "protecting" thing will turn into a very good thing when they become teenagers!

 & these two...my goodness!  Alanna loves Ruy so much.  She wants to be with him all the time.  He's so good with her!

The kids had so much fun.  Their favorite part was the little learning stand they had set up.  They were teaching kids about animal tracks and had some fun activities for the kids to do.

After the petting zoo, we met up with Kelly at the school for her lunch break and ate Chick-fil-a with her.  Then the kids played outside with her class for a little bit during recess and then we headed home.  

It was a fun little surprise visit and a great way to start the fall season. 

MY BABY SHOWER & RUY'S 1ST SOCCER GAME

Last Saturday a very close friend of mine hosted a baby shower for me.  Katie is so sweet and has such a beautiful home.  She is a wonderful host and an amazing friend.  I am so thankful to have her in my life.

I am also so thankful for all the ladies who came to celebrate little Jude with me.  I go to a church with some pretty awesome women and appreciate each and every one of them so much.  

All the food was delicious (especially the banana pudding) and Katie had it decorated so pretty. 

I had such a great time at the shower.  Thank you Katie for making the shower so beautiful for me and little Jude.

Ruy's first soccer game of the season was last Saturday morning as well.  I had to leave my shower a little early to make it to the game and I was only able to see the last 20 minutes of the game, but I was thankful I made it there for that.  Ruy really wanted me there and I really didn't want to miss it either.  He went in as goalie soon after I got to the field and was able to stop a goal!  I was so proud of him and he was so excited.  This is his fourth year playing soccer and it's so fun to see him get better every year.  He really enjoys it and has a lot of fun out there.

I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend and stays dry.  It's raining all weekend here! 

36 WEEKS

Chambray Shirt

September 23, 2015

 
Weeks pregnant: 36
Weight gained: 34 pounds.  I weigh 146. 

Gender:  Boy.
Maternity clothes:  Yes & No.  I just ordered some leggings from Gap Maternity and they are very soft and comfortable.  I also just bought the shirt I'm wearing in my 36 week picture from Target.  It's not maternity but I thought it would be great for a nursing shirt after I have Jude and it can be worn so many ways!  It's extremely soft and oh so comfy too! 

Sleep: Sleep is somewhat difficult.  My back hurts pretty bad right now at night time and it is unbelievably hard to move myself from one side to the other without putting a cramp in my stomach.  I've been sleeping with a pillow between my legs to keep my legs from pulling down on my back and that has seemed to help some. 

Best moment in the past two weeks: Feeling Jude with the hiccups for the first time!  And going to visit my in-laws on a spur the moment over-night trip the other day.  We had a really great time!

Worst moment in the past month:  On our drive down to visit my in-laws the other day, an 18-wheeler that was driving beside me, blew a tire and pieces of it hit under my van.  I couldn't avoid it and it ended up puncturing my gas tank and caused a leak.  My van smelled so bad but I didn't know what was wrong.  I had my father-in-law look at the van after I got there and he found the leak.  He was able to plug it but I was so frustrated about it.  We just put in a large amount of money into the van a few weeks ago and I really hope the plug works for a long time because I have a feeling it will cost a lot to get it fixed. 

Miss anything: I'm just super ready to have him so that I can do all the normal things I would do.  Run around with the kids, chase them, hold them on my lap....walk 5 steps without feeling like I need to take a nap because I'm so exhausted!  haha :)  I know it's not too far away though so I'm just taking it one day at a time and trying to prepare myself for the birth.

Movement: Yes.  He's been head down for a few weeks now so hoping he doesn't move out of that position. 

Cravings:  No cravings really but I have been wanting to drink a Pumpkin Latte every day.  Too bad they aren't free :)

Queasy or sick: Not queasy just dizzy, sore, tired...ready to have this baby :) Oh and I've had heartburn the past few days.  Normally I have heartburn throughout much of the pregnancy and all three of my babies so far have had a ton of hair.  Since the heartburn is just starting with Jude, I wonder if he will be bald???

Looking forward to:  Apple Picking.  I'm hoping to be able to go within the next two weeks.  It's one of my favorite days of the year.  Hopefully I can handle the hills.    

*If you missed Jude's Maternity Pictures post, you can read it here.   

OUR MENU PLAN & ALDI GROCERY SHOPPING TRIP

We went grocery shopping yesterday morning for several reasons.  1.  My baby shower was this morning & 2. Ruy's first soccer game was right about the same time my shower ended & 3. We were completely out of milk and eggs.  I don't know about you but it's hard to function in our house without milk and eggs.  Anyways...so yesterday we headed to the grocery store first thing after we got breakfast cleaned up.  

I decided to give Aldi another try because I wanted to look again at what products they have and also because I only wanted to go to one grocery store instead of two or three and was hoping I could find everything I needed there.  I had a pretty good amount of things on my list but was only not able to find a few of the things I needed.  So I worked with what they had and even though the items may not have been perfect for Trim Healthy Mama, I got what I could to avoid heading out to Wal-Mart.  I couldn't find low-carb wraps (but I've been told some Aldis do carry them), Natural Peanut Butter that only had peanuts in it, All-Natural Jelly, Dreamfields Pasta, Whole Wheat Taco Shells (for my kids).  I also picked up a few things that weren't on my list like...Apple Cider.  I'm almost 36 weeks pregnant so I gave into the craving!

Here is what I got from Aldi:

I spent $117.41 on everything. 

I was pretty happy with the amount of things I was able to find.  And even though a lot of things are cheaper to buy in bulk at Sam's Club, it was really nice to only go to one small store for one hour and then be done.  I wasn't overwhelmed and exhausted by the time I got done grocery shopping and that is worth spending a little extra money for me right now in the point of life I'm in.  I will probably have to go to Wal-Mart once a month and stock up on things like low-carb wraps, natural peanut butter & jelly, Dreamfields Pasta, and a few other things.  And then go to Aldi for my weekly items.  Well that's what I'm going to do for the next few months and see if it works out better for our family than going to Sam's Club, Kroger, and Wal-Mart on a weekly basis.  

After we got done grocery shopping I took the kids to the Children's Museum to play for an hour.  They had been in the car for a while driving out to the store, then all the time shopping so I figured they would enjoy the play time.  

After we got done playing we sat outside and ate the lunch I packed.  

 *Never a dull moment with these three!

Then we headed home, put Alanna down for a nap, brought in the groceries, did school, chilled for a bit, and then headed out to Small Group.  It was a busy day but not stressful. :) 

And here is our Menu Plan

Friday *Small Group 6:30pm

B- Banana Muffins

L- String Cheese, Pepperoni, fruit, pretzels

D- Homemade Pizza, Salad

Saturday: *Ruy's Soccer Game & Baby Shower

B- Fried eggs, yogurt with fruit (S)  & a second breakfast at my shower {full of lots of cheat foods but it was all very yummy}   

L- Leftover pizza from last night, apple slices (E)

D- I had planned on making black bean soup but in the hurry to get to my shower, I totally forgot.   So we had egg tacos instead.   

Sunday:  *Church 10AM, Meet & Greet 6PM  

B- Peanut Butter Overnight Oatmeal (Crossover from PB)

L- Spaghetti (meatless) with Salad (E)

D-  Smoothies, muffins (S)

Monday:  *Practice 6:30PM

B- Oatmeal Pumpkin Muffins (E)

L- Me: Apple Pecan Salad  (E)  Kids:  PB & Jelly Sandwiches, fruit

D- Cheeseburger Pie, green beans (S)  

Tuesday:  Appointment with Melanie

B- Scrambled Eggs with cheddar cheese, Shake (S)

L- Me: Apple Pecan Salad (E) Kids: PB & Jelly, fruit

D- Crock Pot Fajitas (E or S, depending on toppings)

Wednesday: *Awanas

B- Me: Trim Healthy Mama Pancakes  (S) Kids: Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes

L-  Pizza Wraps (S)

D- Parmesan Soup, salad, (S)

Thursday *Soccer Game 5PM

B- Apple Pie Overnight Oatmeal (E) 

*I'm leaving out the dates.  

L- Me: Salad  Kids:  Cheese & Bean Quesadillas

D- Crock Pot Lemon Chicken, Green Beans (E)

*I had planned on making this dinner last week, but since my sister was in town we ate with her and I didn't end up making this. Also, I have to change a few things about this recipe to make it THM.

Friday: Small Group

B- Ham & Cheese Omelets (S)

L- Turkey, Turkey Bacon, Tomato, Laughing Cow Cheese Paninis & yogurt with fruit (E)

D- Pizza & Salad (E)

Desserts:  Chocolate ZucchiniCake, Peanut Butter Chia Pudding, Pumpkin Cream Cake

*Our week was busy last week and I didn't get a chance to make any of these desserts so I'm going to try to make them this week.

Snacks: Air-popped Popcorn, Smoothies, Fruit, Nuts, String Cheese, Carrots & Ranch, Granola Bars, Protein Shakes, Yogurt & granola

Sunday Meal Prep*

Granola

Muffins (Double batch for the week)

Wash veggies, cut & package

Cook chicken

Prepare pizza dough

JUDE'S MATERNITY PICTURES

Last week my best friend took my maternity pictures for me.  We've been trying for months to work these pictures out but something always came up.  Either she was out of town,  my husband was working, one of the kids was sick,  it was raining, or it was going to be 100 degrees!  We were finally able to work out a day and get them done though.  I'm to thankful for Kim for taking these pictures.  

*Pictures taken by Kim Norman.

Editing done by me. 

JUDE'S COMING HOME OUTFIT

I've been looking for some time for an outfit for Jude to wear home from the hospital.  And the other day when I was shopping online at Gap for a sweater for Alanna, I came across a baby boy outfit and I knew immediately it's what I wanted for Jude's coming home outfit.  I got a size 0-3 month so it will probably be a little big on him, but I want him to be able to wear it for a few months.  I can't wait to see him in it and snuggle him up.  I already bought the socks and the blanket as well and will be ordering the hat sometime next week.  These socks are so soft and come in lots of different sizes.  The blanket I got on sale for $5 when she was having a store-wide sale a few weeks ago.  It's very soft and I plan on having it be his "special blanket".  They are made from jersey fabric and I just love it so much.  I bought him one in navy blue and in gray.  

One Piece Outfit // Socks//  Hat// Blanket

I'm pretty excited about the fact that I'm just five weeks from my due date and will soon be holding and loving on my sweet little boy!  I hope you found something helpful in this post.  And I'd love to hear about what you will be bringing your little one home in :) 

34 WEEKS

September 9, 2015

 
Weeks pregnant: 34
Weight gained: 33 pounds.  I still weigh 145 pounds.  And still feeling like a whale. 

Gender:  Boy.
Maternity clothes: I've pretty much been looking at Gaps maternity leggings every day trying to convince myself just to buy them because they look so darn comfortable and I know I'll wear them even after I have the baby because it takes me several months to lose all the baby weight and it's so nice to have the extra support in the belly.

Sleep: Braxton Hicks contractions wake me up in the middle of the night along with them causing me having to pee instantly as soon as the contraction hits.  The other night I wasn't sure if I was going to make it to the bathroom in time!

Best moment in the past two weeks:  I'd have to say that our field trip day with my best friend and her girls was pretty great.  We didn't do anything crazy exciting, just the Children's Museum, a little shopping, & Starbucks but it was just so nice seeing all our kids having so much fun together and getting in some much needed adult conversation at the same time!

Worst moment in the past month:  I accidentally tripped Alanna the other day and she fell and hit the bed rail on my bed.  It put a cut on her gums and a little bruise on her lip up to her nose.  Oh she cried and cried.  And I felt like the worst mother ever.  It was terrible.  I do not handle my kids being in pain at all.  I'm praying none of them every break any bones or anything.  I do not think I could handle it. 

Miss anything: Being able to chase the kids around.  They are aching for me to play tag, hide & seek, etc. but it's just too hard on me to run around after them. I get dizzy so fast and my stomach cramps.  I can't wait to get back into working out and being able to run and play with the kids like I normally do when I'm not pregnant.

 Movement:  Yes, lots and lots of movement. 

 Cravings:  No cravings.  Just not able to eat as much as I normally do because I am seriously running out of room in there!

 Queasy or sick: Still super dizzy all the time.

 Looking forward to:  Ruy's first soccer game of the season on Saturday & my baby shower.  Both on the same day...yep, I have to figure out how to work that all out since the times overlap!  

*If you want to see previous updates just click under the "baby bump" tab under topics on the sidebar.  

MY WEEKLY MENU PLAN & GROCERY SHOPPING TRIP

Yesterday I went grocery shopping.  I had planned on going Saturday, but because Ruy was supposed to have his first soccer game of the season this morning, I decided to go last night.  The game ended up getting rained out but I was glad I went last night because it was pouring so hard and I would not have wanted to drag the kids out in that.  

Anyways...we went out last night and it was just me and the two "littles" since Ruy is gone for the weekend at his Dad's.  Grocery shopping is more fun when he's with me.  He's my big helper.  He likes to hold my list for me and cross of the items we've added to the cart and I think his favorite thing to do is to help me get all the fruits and veggies while we're at Kroger.  Liam & Alanna like to ride in the little car carts and even though these are a pain to push, I endure it because it's so much easier having them both buckled in.  This trip resulted in Alanna up in the front near me though because Liam would not stop bothering her! I keep laughing thinking about how crazy grocery shopping is going to be in a few weeks when I have Ruy walking next to me, these two strapped in one of these, and Jude in the Ergo.  I will really get the "you're crazy" looks then :) 

It was about 6:45PM when we got home.   I got the kids inside and then started my least favorite part of grocery shopping...bringing the groceries in!  Please tell me I'm not the only one who doesn't like bringing the groceries in.  Our driveway is on a hill and being so big pregnant I get so sore & out of breathe by the time I've made one trip to the van.  I was on my third trip from the house to the van when I just saw the kids wagon and had the brilliant idea of loading up all the groceries in the wagon and then just pulling that down the hill, putting it at the bottom of the porch stairs, and carrying them in from there!  It worked and it was SO much easier.  I wish I had thought of that months ago.  

And here's my menu plan for the week:

Saturday: *Ruy's 1st soccer game, Grocery Shopping & Meal Prep

*Update: Ruy's soccer game got canceled & I went grocery shopping last night.

B- Me:  Muffin In A Mug with Cream Cheese Frosting (S) Kids:  Whole Wheat Banana Muffins 

*I used the recipe from the book, but used all ground golden flaxseed.  Then added some chocolate chips.  I used 4 truvia.  I used a few tablespoons of cream cheese and a few tablespoons of greek yogurt with 2 truvia and a splash of vanilla for my cream cheese frosting.  Turned out really delicious and was very filling! 

L- Cici's for our Home-School Group Start Of The Year Party (Cheat)

D- Pretzel Dogs & Cauliflower Tator Tots

*I did not like either of these recipes.  The pretzel dog dough is a little time-consuming and I didn't like the flavor at all.  With 3 kids I need quick meals.  The tator tots were easy to make but I didn't like the taste of them either.  I've tried SO many different cauliflower recipes and other than the "Loaded Fotato Soup" in the THM book, I just haven't liked any of the recipes I've tried.  Neither Alanna or Liam liked either of these recipes either so they ended up eating Cheerios for dinner.  I normally never ever let them not eat what was given to them for dinner but I disliked it so much that I didn't eat it either (which I never do so I must have really not liked it)  I'm eating blue corn chips and sour cream with salsa right now as I type this. 

Sunday: *Church

B- Peanut Butter Overnight Oatmeal (Crossover from the peanut butter)

L- Mac & Cheese, Green Beans (S)

*My own mac&cheese recipe.  I'll try to post this later this week.

D- Turkey Pepperoni, String Cheese, Smoothies, Carrots & Ranch

*We always eat a big meal for lunch on Sundays so I'm going to start serving a "snack-style" lunch on Sunday nights to keep things simple.

Monday:  *Practice

B- Me: Pumpkin Muffins (I can't find the recipe that I have printed out.  I'll keep looking for it though so I can post a link) Kids: Whole Wheat Banana Muffins

L- Me:Chef Salad (ham, cheese, hard-boiled eggs, tomato, lettuce, ranch dressing) Smoothie  (S) Kids: PB & Jelly, Smoothies

D- Black Bean Soup & Blue Corn Chips (E)

Tuesday:

B- Scrambled Eggs with cheddar cheese, Shake (S)

L- Grilled Cheese & tomato Soup (Crossover...from the bread)

D- Crock Pot Fajitas

Wednesday: *1st Night of Awanas

B- Me: Trim Healthy Mama Pancakes Kids: Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes

L- Chicken Nuggets & homemade cinnamon apples (S)

D- Crock Pot Broccoli Soup (S)

Thursday *Soccer Practice

B- Overnight Oatmeal (E)

L- Leftover Broccoli Soup (S)

D- Crock Pot Lemon Chicken, Green Beans 

*I have to make a few changes to this recipe to make it on-plan with THM. 

Friday: *1st Night of Small Group

B- Ham & Cheese Omelets, cinnamon apples (S)

L- Turkey, Turkey Bacon, Tomato, Laughing Cow Cheese Paninis & yogurt with fruit (E)

D- Pizza & Salad (E)

Desserts:  Chocolate Zucchini Cake, Peanut Butter Chia Pudding, Pumpkin Cream Cake

Snacks: Air-popped Popcorn, Smoothies, Fruit, Nuts, String Cheese, Carrots & Ranch,  Protein Shakes, Yogurt & granola

Saturday Meal Prep*

*A few weeks ago, I started preparing some foods that we would need throughout the week to try to make things easier on me, especially with our breakfasts.  It makes a big mess in the kitchen when I make muffins or pancakes and then the kids are waiting (acting like they are starving to death while they cook) and are cranky and clingy.  Then I have a huge mess to clean up and school gets pushed back too late.  So I started doing Saturday Meal Prep and it's helped a lot.  I don't always get everything on my list done, but whatever I do get done makes a big difference.  Here's what was on my list for today and what I crossed off is what I actually gone done.  The rest I will try to finish up tomorrow.  

   

Pancakes for the Kids

THM Pancakes

Granola

Muffins (Double batch for the week)

Wash fruit, cut & package

Wash veggies, cut & package

Prepare pizza dough

Make overnight oats for Sunday

Homemade Chocolate Syrup (for kids) 

And here is what I bought at the grocery stores yesterday:

Sam's Club:

I spent $5 on the Ajax with is part of my $100 household budget (which started over yesterday) and then I spent $85 on food from my $125 weekly grocery budget.  

Kroger:

I spent $53 at Kroger.  

*So I spent the $85 from Sam's at $53 at Kroger which took me over my weekly budget by  $13 so I'm going to plan on spending $13 under my budget next weekend when I go shopping.  

 *$100 - $5 = $95 left for household items for the next 3 weeks.

Well that's it for this week's menu & shopping trip.

I hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend!