Seattle Trip (Visiting The Jenkins) Part 2

After a full morning in the market we went down to the beach that I adore in Edmonds.   I have hundreds of shells that I collected on rainy mornings walking the beaches on my own with Jacob to help me.  I loved going back and seeing the beautiful vista that extends across the sound to Kingston.  I watched the sailboats go by and the ferry steam through my shots.  The Jenkins and Us just played and foraged and spend a few hours remembering how much we loved it there.  Here are the highlights of that trip:

On a separate day we went over into Paulsbough where there are antique shops, tons of Swedish heritage shops. It was fun to taste the favorite Swedish dishes and let the boys play with the fun memorabilia. Highlights:

One of my favorite days was spent out and about walking around downtown in Gig Harbor with Kevin & Steph. We ate dinner at a great restaurant that overlooked the water and here were a few images I captured.

Another day out we had to head home was an afternoon in Ballard where we watched the boats come in and out of the Locks. We were only there a short while and after having lunch at The Lock Spot cafe. They have great fish & chips and rick got a t-shirt to commemorate our visit.

1st Day Of 1st Grade For Jacob

I thought that summers were short as a kid. Let me tell you, it is much shorter as a parent. I cant believe that school is already in session! Jacob had a slow start this morning that signified the end of the sleeping in and lazy starts of summer. I woke him up at 7:20am and it took until 7:30 to lure him into his morning shower. Some oatmeal and a bagel were offered as his fuel for the morning, but his jitters tricked him into thinking he wasn't very hungry. We had his clothes ironed, him dressed and headed out the door at 8:25am to get him to school on time. Thank heavens we made it on time!!

What a nice thing to live just a minute down the road from the school. I am always late so it would be nice to not have that extra 5 minutes of driving time to make it worse. He looked adorable walking into school, without any fear. He rounded the door and I lost it. I bawled the whole way home and watched the clock all day. I really loved having him around this summer and hate that he is now in full day school. Ricky kept me busy and distracted all afternoon but it was weird to be without my little Jakie.

Rick did his fatherly duty and prepared him with a fathers blessing that was so sweet. I love watching him do things for and with Jacob that I know he will love to remember. All summer it was fishing, doing the yard work, going to get momma a soda and a million other things. The blessing was one more way Rick could be a part of Jacobs day while he was off learning. Rick blessed him with the ability to make new friends, to be kind, to focus, and to be unafraid of new things and new people. Jake listened intently and was glad to know that Heavenly Father had that kind of confidence in him. I will remind him each day of that blessing so that he can always live up to it.

I picked up Jacob at 3:20pm and met him at his class door.  Mrs Schwenn is the name of his first grade teacher and she was just adorable.  She was Rick and Cams & Katie's baby sitter when they were babies and she was even Katie's 1st grade teacher.  She loves the Shumways and was thrilled to have Jacob in her class.  Jacob loved her enthusiasm and was excited to have her as his teacher.  I think this will be a good relationship and pray that Jacob can continue to grow and learn each day.  I definitely think that he will have a nurturing environment to do it in her class.  A funny note:  Ever read Mrs. McBloom Clean Up Your Room??  It was written with her in mind.  The author of that kids book was a parent of one of her students!  I found out because I asked her if she had ever read that book and told her she reminded me of Mrs. McBloom.  What a funny thing.  I am happy to have Jake in such a great teachers class.  Good Luck Jakie!  Momma will be there to help, but I know you can do just great.

Making An Offer On A Home

We finally found a place that we love. There is a home for sale in Riverton that both Rick and I like and we can afford it (it is usually one or the other)! YAY. It is a short sale though, so it may take forever to close, but I think it is worth it because it would be move in ready!!
It is in a cute comunity in Riverton that has a pool, clubhouse, tennis courts, basketball courts and a playground. Lots to do with the kids. There are 3 bedrooms, 3 & 1/2 bathrooms, 2200 sq ft., it has lots of windows,a fireplace, a gorgeous kitchen, beautiful brown floors, high ceilings, a laundry room on the second floor (brilliant),a finished basement that I love and has a 2 car garage to boot!  My only misgiving is that it is attached to others that look exactly like it on the exterior.  I kinda wish it had more character outside, but we have to compromise somewhere.  I would rather have a great interior if I had to choose.   We offered on it last night and we have until tomorrow evening to hear back from the sellers. If they accept, we will have to wait to hear back from the bank and we don't know how long that could take. Wish us luck! I really hope we get it! Here are a few pics from their web site.  Update (2 days later):  They accepted!!  We are not having it sent to the bank and we will see what they say.

House Hunting

So, we have been here all of 3 weeks and I bet I have seen 40 homes. Nothing I am in love with yet!  Frankie (Our Real Estate Agent & basically an Aunt) has taken me to see lots of single family homes and I have like most of them for one reason or another, but nothing has made me feel the way I want to feel when I walk in and imagine our lives there.  I am worried it may take a long time to find what we want.   Part of our problem is I am not sure exactly what i want.  I know what I want it to feel like but how do I describe that?  How do I filter a home by how it makes me feel?  I know that we are set on a price range that offers us a mortgage that is easily met and we are looking for something we can easily afford to maintain.  Everything I have seen so far needs work and is at the higher end of the budget we set.   I have pretty much narrowed the region to Riverton & South Jordan though SJ offers me the feel and access i really want.  If I could find something that was amazing in Riverton I would be game, but I think I may be leaning toward SJ.  There is a really great little community called Day Break that offers adorable single family and attached homes that are in so many cute styles.  I really love a lot of their craftsman styles and cute colonial inspired row homes. I think if I could find one that is in our price range and one that offered me the feel I am looking for it would be a definite favorite area.  Not sure about the HOA's though.  Some seem high but if they were offering a lot in them, it would be worth it.  Wish me luck!

Miss You Dad!

July 24th marked the 2 year anniversary of Dad's passing. It is Pioneer Day here in UT, and a state holiday so everything was closed, people were celebrating and fireworks were going off all evening long. For us, it was a day to remember a remarkable man. I spent the day thinking about how much I loved my father in law. He was so kind to me. He was always so interested in anything I was doing, anything that I was interested in .. It seemed. I loved coming home and seeing him smile as little Jacob ran and played and told him about his day. I was sad to think about how he was never able to know Ricky, but sure that his love is strong for that little stinker too. I watched as Rick, Cam, Katie and Mom were a little softer to one another, all a little more aware of the raw emotion felt in the home. Jacob drew a picture for Grandpa and wrote a little note of love that we sent off on a balloon. Later that evening we headed over to the cemetery to visit Dad's grave and talk about him. It was so sweet to see Jacob leave grandpa a little lolly pop that he had thought to buy for him earlier in the day. Ricky and Jacob ran around the cemetery endlessly finding things to poke, hop off of and run to. We sat there all thinking about Dad for about an hour until the sun threatened to set. The ride home was one of intense longing for just another minute together to hear his laugh and feel his love. We miss you dad. I cant believe that it has been 2 whole years. You are not forgotten.  Today was our day to honor you but you are thought of and loved every day of the year. 

Its Great To Be Back Home In UT.

We are finally here! After much travel I am so glad to be somewhat settled back down. We are now living in my mother in laws basement which is not a permanent situation, but I am grateful for a place to land that is not a hotel. Mom offered up Ricks childhood bedroom and her basement as a place for us to get our bearings and get our plan together. We are so grateful for her generosity! 

We are planning to get a house but need to save for a few months while we look. We are thinking it will take about 2 months to look and get an offer accepted, but we will see how it goes. I cant wait to get a house! 9 years of living in an apartment will make you excited to see color on walls and make you excited to get a space that fits your preferences. We have gone back and forth about age and size and condition of a home we are interested in, but I think first on our list is to find something with 3 bedrooms in a nice area with parks and good schools. We are open to anything but given Ricks schedule, and my demands with the kids at home, I am thinking that turn key and no more than 5 years old is going to be the way to go. I am excited to see what we can get in our price range! We want something that is going to be a good value and we want a low mortgage so we can still pay off student loans quickly. I think that an attached Row home would be the way to go. Homes seem to be less when you go attached and the maintenance is no where near as much. I want to kind of get our feet wet with something that is great looking and possibly new. We have looked from Lehi to Bountiful when doing our searches online but the area that I like best seems to be Riverton & South Jordan. I love Sugar House & the U district areas but the homes are older with renovation needs and they are often way more expensive than we can afford. I don't want to get into a money pit with our first home!

Aside from the home search, we are probably going to have to start Jacob in the First Grade here in Provo unless we have a miracle and close within a month. Probably not though. If we don't, Jacob will attend Westridge Elementary School until we close. I cant see that going past the new year though.

Rick is back at work after a 2 week break to come to Alaska so he has much to do. He is really busy but the commute has got to be killing him! I hate driving in traffic but he is way worse. He is currently doing at least an hour North and then usually 1 & 1/2 hours home again. I think if we live in the SJ area we can cut that in 1/2. I am glad that Rick has really enjoyed his job thus far. It would be tragic to relocate and have him hate it. So far his boss says that he is very impressed with Rick and all that he is doing. There are lots of changes to be made and employees always resist change but I think Rick is the guy to get it done. Time will tell but I think this could be a long stay here in UT. Our plan is 5 years and then we will see what opportunities there are for Rick here. Rick loves his boss (Dan) and really enjoys the employees in his department. His assistant is fantastic (Betty) and he just seems happy. I have a feeling that there will be lots of opportunity for Rick anywhere he goes. He is a smarty pants:)

I think the best part of being back is being with family & friends that we left almost 5 years ago. hard to believe that we left in 06' for Seattle. We are happy to be back where the kids can play with Uncle Cam & Aunt Katie & Grandma. We sure miss all of my side of the family that we cannot be near. I wish we could all spend more time together. We are grateful to be near family once again though. The boys are in heaven with so many people to spoil them and give them attention. It is good to be back home in UT. I hope this is a stay that lasts many years.  Here are a few of the favorie scenes we have been to since home:

No More Payne Hill Apt. :( Homeless For A Few Days

It is official! the movers came Monday the 27th and carried everything we have ever owned out the door in about 1 hour. I guess it is safe to say that we are not wealthy, or pack rats if they can do it all in 1 hour. The movers were fast, curious, and careful (all that you can ask of a mover I guess). Despite being a moving day it went so smooth. I owe all credit to my friends that all pulled together to make it so easy for me. Kate watched my 2 kids, her 4 kids, Jenn's 3 kids and Jamie's 2 kids at Jenn's house while Jenn and Jamie came to help me clean. Did I mention that Jenn is pregnant?? I was so touched by how far everyone went out of their way to help. I have been truly, truly blessed by my friends everywhere I have lived. It is amazing how just a little service can make a sisterly bond. I really do feel that way about each of them. Thanks so much ladies! Everyone should have friends like you in their lives! I hope I have been that kind of friend to each of you.

After getting signed out of our rental (10th time in 9 years) i headed over to ce' Wilson where we have been for the last 2 nights. Kate and Caleb have been so wonderful and opened their home and lives to us for a few nights while we wait to fly out to Alaska. We played in the back yard, Kate watched the kids for a few hours while I got our accounts closed and did final check outs on the apartment. I don't know what I would have done without them! We have our last night here tonight and we will again be sad as we depart all that we have loved for the last 3 years, and head up to a hotel for the night before the flight. We are truly sad to we then are super excited to leave Pittsburgh but so excited for what awaits us in Alaska.

We get to spend 3 whole weeks with the Hutchins family. Then it is off to UT for real life. I guess we can call it real life, but living in Mom Shumway's basement for a bit is not quite real life yet. Well, whatever it is, I am excited to be close to friends we already know and love, with family and back in a great state we love.  Being in limbo stinks, but I am sure enjoying being with the Wilsons. We are sad that we will not be able to call them up anytime and come. We sure have been enjoying our time together. Playing outside has been the favorite activity, but mine has been just the little moments with friends we love and appreciate so much. Cant wait to return the favor one day. Maybe we can get a little vacation house together as a group?? What do you think Kate? I'd love it. Miss you all tons!

  See the kids all playing together at the Wilsons below and at the hotel while we waited to get out below that: