She does exist!

So, I think I have broken a new record.  This may be the longest I have ever gone without posting.  I think that means I may have lost any devoted reader I may have had.  Although - I think that may have happened well before my recent absence.  I fully acknowledge for the past few months my posts have been at best sporadic and when I do post they are usually Mommy-gushing and not really substantive.

BUT... I have a good excuse!

On June 16, we moved into our first house!!!!!!!!!!  If you recall, we started the home search last year but we were still fairly new to our area and we weren't sure were we wanted to live.  When we finally got it somewhat narrowed down, I was wayyy too pregnant to even consider the search so we decided to put it on hold until after the baby was born.  This January, we found an awesome realtor, great lender and hit the pavement or... grassy hills... (damn that NY-er in me).  We must have seen a dozen homes a month.  The home buying process was no picnic for us.  We put in a total of four offers.  Two were rejected, one we actually went under contract with, paid for the home inspection and everything only to discover a litany of hidden defects including MOLD which you know from our history was a BIG red flag.  But, the final house - it charmed us... its blue, has a big tree in the backyard and a walking trail beyond the trees... everything went smoothly from there.  When you know you know...

So, needless to say, this month has been crazy busy for us.  We packed and moved and are unpacking... the boys have loved the boxes.  Isaiah has invited everyone to his house and Wesley loves the freedom of having a playroom.   In the midst of it all, Wesley has gotten two new teeth - bringing our total to four.  He has started WALKING (!!!!) - arms raised, quick steps, usually straight to his big brother... and he has turned 11 months (!!!).  Isaiah has entered the awful "why?" phase... but "why?", but "why?", but "why?"... he is officially annoyed by EVERYTHING Wesley does ("stop walking to me", "stop looking at me", "stop drooling on Mommy") and he officially would rather spend time with his best friend "A" than us ("Oh, we are going to the park... will "A" be there?). 

Me? Well, I am basking in the glow of stability.  Since Richard and I have gotten together we have been pretty nomadic... we have moved a total of EIGHT... NINE (counting this last one) times in the 8 years that we have been together.  That includes a six month stint apart after he got a job in DC before I did and Isaiah and I stayed back in NY.  I married Richard when I was 24, been with him since I was 22, so our marriage/relationship has felt every growing pain we have.  We have moved from living off loans to earning our first pay check to getting our first promotions... Is it possible to grow up with your husband? (still growing...)  This is why I identify so much with the movie "Away We Go."  We have really been in search of home. We totally had that moment too - this past weekend - when the kids were asleep and it was just us cuddling on the couch and listening to music... this is it... this is home...

Our first thought? We are so grown up... haha. 

Our neighborhood is pretty cute.  Great schools, diverse, young families... retirees... So far everyone seems very nice.  There is a little brown boy Isaiah's age across the cul de sac.  He became fast friends with Isaiah.  Their meeting went something like...
Me: Hi M, this is Isaiah. 
M: Tag your it. (hits Isaiah). 
Off they gooo...

I like to call the neighbor to our left Owen Wilson because he reminds me SO much of Owen Wilson's character in Meet the Parents.  That man could widdle a gazebo out of a tree branch... he takes meticulous care of his property... I feel totally pressured to plant something... anything.  Towards the beginning of my cul de sac lives "Matthew McConaughey"... the shirt-less dad with blonde hair who jogs around the neighborhood with cute daughter in a jogging stroller as his worried wife looks own.  Total eye candy... hubby isn't too happy about that one, haha.  Not to far up the block is an older retiree who spends most of his days gazing at the vintage car in his garage - I forget the type of car - but my husband got a lucky peek on our second day in the house... eternal bachelor... I'd like to think my brother would be something like that had he saw old age.

I've also discovered something new about myself - apparently, I am pretty handy.  There are a few projects I wanted to do when we first moved in but we were so taped from closing and all the things I had to do to get the house move in ready (changing locks, carpet cleaning, alarm installation, etc...) I couldn't afford to hire anyone.  So, I did them myself! Project number one... mount the flat screen over fireplace - DONE.  I got a drill, stud finder, put on my fixing stuff dress and made it happen! (Disclaimer - hubby did the heavy lifting).  Project number two... towel rack in guest bath - DONE.  Project number three... assemble grill - DONE.  When I finally unpack that blasted camera cord I will upload pictures of my work.  I have to say - I found using a drill and all my tools quite empowering... I wonder what Freud would say about that.

Well that's all!  Now that my thoughts aren't on home searches, offers and real estate (oh my!), I should have way more to say... Ciao!