A long time overdue

There are many good reasons for it being so long since my last post:

   *On Saturday, February 9^th, we moved into our new house.

   *We unpacked the entire house, repainted and decorated the living room.

   *Hosted our first visitors from New York: Mom, Dad, and Sarah Payne. 

    *And I started a new job.

Needless to say, the last three weeks have gone by in a whirlwind. Not a moment has gone by that we haven’t been busy. And we are loving every minute!

Just before closing after the final walk-through.

To begin, we closed on the house on February 6^th. What an experience that was. When signing all the paperwork for a house, I didn’t expect to get a hand cramp, but sign away we did and it became official that we are homeowners. And just a few short days after moving in, our first, “Oh no” moment came when I realized I did something to the oven when I put it through the self-clean cycle. It just flat out wouldn’t heat-up. A problem? Not a chance. My handy hubby figured out the issue, and much to my relief we didn’t need to replace the entire oven, but replace the heating element. Simple fix. Phew!!

 

As we started to unpack and get a better look at the details of the home, we’ve realized that the previous homeowners were definitely not overachievers or A+ students. There are many little things that we laugh at that just were not finished to completion. For example, the ceiling in the master bedroom is painted a pastel blue (yes, I said the ceiling), but around one of the ceiling fans, the original ceiling color shines through in a ring around the fixture where they clearly didn’t paint. There are so many interesting little instances where it seems as though the previous owners just didn’t finish the job all the way. I have a feeling we’ll continue to find these little “almost-done” jobs and every time we will just have to laugh and know that there are people out there for whom perfection isn’t an option. Good enough is simply best.

Our new, very cozy sectional!

Overall though, it feels great to make the house our home. Matt and I are having fun picking out paint colors and shopping for decorations. He actually has a really great eye decorating. We are loving our new couch and the coziness of our own home. And finally, we settling into a routine.

After a whirlwind move-in and decorating week, the Paynes arrived on February 16 for a five-day trip. We so much enjoyed showing them around. It felt so great to welcome and spend time with family in our home.

After we picked them up from the airport, we quickly found out that none of them had been to a Chipotle before, so obviously we took them there for lunch. Denver’s own. You have to love a good burrito from Chipotle!! Also, during their visit, I actually had my first weekend as the Early Childhood Director at church. They were able to be part of the grand welcome reception held at Foothills. Matt and I have felt so welcomed by the community here and as sad as it was to leave our church family at home, we have been totally surrounded by a new family at Foothills. That is a specific answer to prayer as we were praying for a family away from home, and I think we’ve found just that. Even Mom Payne said that the church felt like Farmington.

Rocky Mountain National Park in February

While the Paynes were here we were able to drive the hour and a half to Estes Park, Colorado, home of Rocky Mountain National Park. I just can’t get over the fact that in such a short drive from our house, we can visit a National Park. So awesome! While we were there enjoying the beautiful Rockies, we saw herds of Elk. Just breathtaking to see so many all at once. Matt and I can’t wait to go back and explore on our snowshoes. We’ve heard the hike around Bear Lake is fabulous! Not only will we go back during the winter, but it has to be awe-inspiring at summertime, so I think we’ll go then too.

I even have a sign outside my office!

As for my job at Foothills, I couldn’t be happier or better suited to do this job at this time in my life. It is a much needed change of pace from teaching, and I love working part-time. I have time in my week to think about cooking, cleaning and doing laundry, all things that stressed me out before because my mind was consumed by all things school. Now, when I am home, I can just be home. Soon, Matt and I will be planning for Baby’s arrival, and I am so fortunate to be able to focus energy on that exciting time.

In fact, this week marks halfway of the pregnancy, so we really need to start thinking about all things baby. We will have our 20-week ultrasound this Thursday where we will NOT find out if it’s a boy or a girl. This week I also signed up for birthing classes at the hospital during the month of April so we can gain a little perspective on the big birth day, something I continue to put off thinking about.

Snow angels with Aunt Shea

Thinking about fun adventures, this weekend we got the chance to see family again when we drove to Breckenridge on I-70 through the mountains to visit Uncle Garry and Aunt Shea who were vacationing there. We spent most of the day Saturday touring the village, snowshoeing, eating good food, and enjoying great conversation with them. I am so glad we were able to spend time with them! And Breckenridge, wow! This is another place we’ll have to return to as we didn’t even scratch the surface of all the fun things there to experience!

Breckenridge snowshoeing path

Now, looking forward to this weekend, Matt is actually going with a large group of men from the church to Estes Park for a few days in the mountains. We’ve met some other people our age through a small group we’ve attended the last two weeks and many of the guys from the small group will be there. I pray that Matt has the chance to make great connections with them as they’re doing their guy thing. And although I’ll be at home, I won’t be there alone because my mom will be here for the weekend. I am so excited to spend time with her exploring AND painting (I hope she doesn’t mind me putting her to work).

All in all, I continue to be amazed at the ease of our transition. I am thankful for everyone who has continued to reach out to us, making us feel welcome. We miss everyone at home and look forward to May when we will be able to come home for a short time to see family and friends. It will be here before we know it!!