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Loaded post
I have a lot going on right now and think I need to put it out there.
As I've posted before, we put our house on the market. Keeping the house clean with Ethan is interesting. Any time my phone rings I hope and fear that it's a call about a showing. We've had two showings and received good feedback but no offers yet.
We've seen more than 10 houses over the past week. Some were just BAD. Some looked nice from the listings but were really bad in person. We liked a new build in Etters but it was going to be too far of a drive to see my clients 3 days a week.
We saw one today that is a great deal and a great house. We could grow into this house for as long as we'd need. At first the electric heat & high taxes were really the only big negatives (at least it's forced air but still electric has become so expensive). Our agent suggested having a heat pump installed and a propane tank to help cut down on the electricity expense. Then we found out that it is a short sale. Huge bummer. I need to do more research on this but it freaks me out that we could place our offer and find out 2-3 months down the road that our offer is NOT accepted and have to start all over again. AND there is another buyer submitting an offer. The house also needs work. The hardwood floors could use refinishing (they're not terrible but it would be easier to do this before we would move in, which ends up being an expense up front). New windows in the basement and first floor to help with energy efficiency. Possibly have more insulation put in. 2 of the bathrooms are dated. The kitchen is definitely livable but will need to be updated down the road. Other cosmetic work needs to be done which is all typical when you think of an older home and can be done little by little. The house is in our ideal area, size, layout, yard, storage, garages, etc (everything we wanted), and we haven't found anything else comparable in this price range. It's difficult to know if the positives outweigh the negatives. I'm terrified of buying a money pit. We're going back to see it again tomorrow, along with 2 other houses, and will hopefully know if we'll place an offer or not. We would absolutely get a thorough inspection.
I don't know how many of you know that I spent my teen years in foster care (to put the background very briefly...family issues). My foster mother has cancer. It has gone from her lungs to her brain. She took a turn for the worst on Easter, is back in the hospital, and doesn't really know what is going on around her. One of the saddest parts about it is that her son and his wife are due with their first child this summer. I'd of course appreciate your prayers for her and her family. My heart is just breaking for them.
We started ttc again. All of my PCOS symptoms returned so we never expected to be able to conceive on our own. I planned to nurse Ethan until he could tolerate another kind of milk or self weaned, which ever came first. I considered seeking alternative treatments to conceive once we were settled into a new house but honestly thought Ethan might be an only child. Well, guess what? Yes, I'm pregnant. I noticed that some of my symptoms weren't present over the past few weeks. I just had a feeling that I was pregnant so I tested today and was shocked to see those 2 pink lines 
I took another test to confirm and surprised Matt with a new shirt for Ethan that said Big Bro. I actually bought the shirt in Jan when I had a false positive hpt. How awesome to be able to feel happy about that shirt again. I took a pic of Ethan in it tonight and we emailed it to some family. I'm not sure exactly how far along I am. Likely 5-6 weeks so we aren't telling many people yet .... please don't mention this on FB, thanks! I still can't believe it. It's amazing.
I need to get to a nutritionist ASAP. I need to make sure I'm getting everything I need for Ethan and this new baby. I'm still dairy, soy, egg, wheat, peanut, and fish free for Ethan.
This awesome news comes with a whole other set of concerns for our house search. Will I continue working so my salary is included when considering our budget or will I stay at home? Will the majority of my salary go towards child care expenses if I continue working?
Most of this has transpired over the past 24 hours so I'm completely overwhelmed.
If you've gotten this far, thanks. Even with all of the stress, I am grateful that I have been so blessed. Ethan is the best decision we've ever made and I can't believe that I get to be a mother to another baby!!
Re: Loaded post
Even though I was aware of most of this (except the news about your foster mother, I'm so sorry and will pray for her!), holy heck that IS a lot of stuff going on once it's all typed out like this. You are definitely in my thoughts with all this house stuff and I hope it all works out for the best - good luck!!! And congrats again! I'm still shocked!!! But so, so happy for you guys. Huge hugs!
And um, where is my email??? I want to see the shirt too
Thanks, Charlene ... especially for reading all of it after I blabbed on the phone to you earlier.
Here he is. Just looking at this makes me miss him and he's right upstairs.
TTC since Jan 07. Dx with PCOS Jan 08
Let me say again just how excited I am for you and Matt, Christina! Such wonderful news. You're welcome to my summer maternity waredrobe when you need it.
You really do have a ton going on right now and I don't blame you for being stressed out about it all. I'll be thinking about you guys that the house and everything else falls into place as soon as possible.
I'm so sorry to hear about your foster mother. She'll be in my prayers.
Thanks for posting the picture! I was wondering where my email was too
So cute. He's such a happy little boy. Hope to see him again soon.
Wow, in so many ways. First of all, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!
Keeping the house clean is hard enough with Steve, kudos for you for doing it with Ethan. I know that I get hypercritical and see every speck of dirt and everything out of place when you are getting ready to show. When I think back at the places we have looked at I don't remember every detail so I have started giving myself some slack (and I am getting sick of it). Short sales can be tricky, we have friends who sold their townhouse and are living in a rental because they are still waiting on their short sale to go through.
Did Jen show you the tudor we looked at in Northern school district? I am in in love, Steve is eh about it. I can send you the listing if you want. It has an amazing kitchen.
I will be thinking of your foster mom and I will keep her in my prayers.
BTW Ethan is absolutely adorable!
Wow! Congratulations! I remember back to when you posted the video of you sharing your first BFP with your husband, and I cried because I was so happy for you after everything you had been through. Shed a few more tears when I read this tonight. It must feel amazing to have a surprise pregnancy without having to go through the treatments again. I hope you have a very healthy 9 months ahead of you! Ethan is absolutely adorable in his shirt (and always) sharing the news.
I am very sorry to hear about your foster mother. I will keep her and her family in my T&P. Please keep us updated.
I don't have any experience with the house stuff, but just thinking about the whole thing makes my head spin. I will pray that things will work out for you and that you'll have peace about the process knowing that things will work out as they are supposed to.
first off, congratulations christina! i am so happy you are expanding your family and that ethan will be a big brother!
phew, you do have a lot on your plate! i am so so sorry to hear about your foster mother. cancer is evil in so many ways. i will send lots of good thoughts in her and your direction.
selling and buying a house are frustrating and terrifying. we are in the same position regarding budget. we want to move, but we don't know if we should include my salary or not. i know when/if we have children that i would literally just be working to pay for day care..and is that really worth it? my best suggestion would be to budget like you will be staying home full time. that way if you do continue to work, you can sock the money away into savings or updates for the home...but you are prepared in case you decide to stay home. no surprises.
good luck with everything!!
Wow, that is a lot going on at once! First, big CONGRATS! What a wonderful blessing. Ethan is going to make a fabulous big brother. Will they be 23 months apart? Great spacing.
I'm sorry to hear about your foster mom. Like Allie said, cancer is just evil. Dh's mom battled brain cancer, too, and it really is a battle, ever day. Thoughts and prayers are with her and her family.
I'm sorry things with the househunting/buying are so stressful, too. And to add being pregnant on top of that...wow...i totally commend you. The right house is out there for you and your family. You may have to see 100 houses, but you'll find the one that suits you best and you can totally envision your two little ones chasing each other in the backyard.
Please keep us updated! And congrats again!
OMG...CONGRATULATIONS!!!! That is such exciting news and I bet Ethan will be a great big brother. I'm so so so happy for you.
I'm so sorry to hear about your foster mother. How sad! I will definitely keep her and her family in my thoughts and prayers.
I can see how you are stressed with everything going on!! Wow!! I remember how stressful house hunting was when we bought our townhouse and that was without a kid AND being pregnant. Kudos to you for dealing with all of this at once.
I can totally relate when it comes to working just for daycare. If I would have gone back full time with my parents, my salary would just cover daycare so that's why I decided to only do part time (like 8-10 hrs/week) and work my butt off with lia sophia to make extra money. I'm not gunna lie, it's tough surviving on just one salary and the little bit I bring in but we make it work. With the size of our house comes big expenses and HIGH taxes, it gets tight at times. I learned to cut way back on things that are not necessary and you will find that it all works out!!! It can be done!!!
Hang in there and CONGRATS again!!!!!!
Thank you all so much. Your support, thoughts, prayers are very much appreciated. I knew others here would be able to relate so I felt comfortable enough to get all of that out.
Denise, I'd love to see the listing. Are you still considering it?
Brandy, it sounds like you have a lot on your plate too. I didn't know your house sold! That's awesome! I think the last FB update that I read about your house was a bad offer? I hope you find one soon! I'm becoming very frustrated with searching already.
Lesli, that is a big concern of ours. The homes we looked at today were 2200-2500 sq ft and I worry about utilities and taxes with even that much space.
I could just cry right now. We have no idea what to do. The house that we're interested in (the one with the short sale) needs about 12k of work to make it more energy efficient and to have the hardwood floors redone before we would move in. Who knows what the inspection will bring up if we decide to move forward with it.
We saw two other houses today. One was crappy and overpriced. The other needs a new roof and all new flooring and again who knows what else.
Thanks again!
TTC since Jan 07. Dx with PCOS Jan 08
Oh my gosh!
First, congrats on your pregnancy! How wonderful to be expecting again and especially amazing that you were able to conceive without all the yucky treatments! So awesome! A little sad we won't be pregnant together again (No TTC plans for me for another year!), but only because it was amazing to share the journey with you! I'm so excited you'll get to experience that again. I hope the second time around is wonderful.
The house hunting sounds very overwhelming! Is the home with the short as liveable as it is? Could the floors/upgrades wait a few years? As you know, our home was built in the 40's and the hardwood floors had never been refinished. When we first moved in, I loved the look of the floors, but as they became "mine" I became much more critical. Although the scratches and wear really bothered me, people would still come into my home and comment on how nice the floors looked. It would have been easier to get our floors refinished before we moved in, but we didn't. We had them refinished about a year and a half ago, and while it was a pain to move all the furniture and "move out" for a few days, I barely remember it anymore. Definitely worth it! I do have the name of the guys that refinished our floors and I would highly recommend them. They were pretty inexpensive and did a great job. Also, one of my girlfriends didn't have the $ to do have her floors refinished professionally...so she did it herself. Not that I'm recommending that...I'm just saying, there are options! In terms of weather proofing, there are also cheap temporary things you can do until you can afford new windows. For the winter months, they sell that celefane like stuff that you put over your windows to create another layer of insulation. Not very pretty, but it works!
I know how much you have struggled with the whole work/SAHM thing. It's such a hard decision! One thing I have considered when we have another is to get a Nanny. My sister nannied through college and got her jobs off of Craigslist/ Care.com. We found our sitter from Care.com and I Loooooove her! If you're still considering working PT, that might be more affordable for 2 kids. Just an idea!
I hope the rest of your search goes well! Please call anytime to vent! I'm thinking of you.....
I forgot to comment on your foster mother. I'm so sorry to hear that she has cancer. In our family we say that we are plagued with the big "C" because eventually, it seems everyone in our family gets it (grandmother, grandfather, aunt, my step dad). She will be in my prayers.
AND...I love Ethan's shirt! Too cute!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!! I am so happy you are expecting again!! Ethan is going to be a great bib brother. Love his shirt!
I'm sorry to hear about your foster mother, my thougths and prayers will be with her during this difficult time. Keep us posted.
Good Luck with the selling of your house and finding another. Our property taxes are high as well - I know what you mean, I hope you find something you like and is suitable for your family. Your home is beautiful, you should have no trouble selling.
Sorry I'm so late!
Congratulations! That is super exciting news and I am so happy for you!!!! Wishing you a h&h 9 months!
Good luck with your house search and selling. I know it is so hard and there are so many decisions, but it will all work out in the end. I also understand your worries with buying a house, still working, and another baby. Mark and I have been TTC and I am very nervous about him not finding work, but if he does then I worry about affording childcare, etc... I keep reminding myself that God won't give us more than we can't handle!
Anyway, again, I am so happy for you, Matt and Ethan. Thinking of you!