the house hunting trip

Not long after we got back from Hawaii we headed to Richmond for the house hunting trip.  It was Mother's day weekend to be exact and we knew the girls had to come along for the ride. 


I had so many emotions going on during that flight.  It was surreal watching Minnesota fade into the distance.  At this point we still didn't know if we wanted to live in Virginia.  The girls and I were the seal of approval and it was a lot of pressure.

My thoughts were bouncing all over the place during the flight. I was a ball of nervous energy, excitement and yes a little fear mixed in there too.


I remember praying...Lord your will be done.  I need YOU to make this decision for us.  We have no idea what we are doing.  Keep us from tripping up.  We don't want to follow the flesh, but want what's best for our family.  I had thoughts of the girls finding their future spouses here.  This decision could possibly affect the outcome of our family for generations.  This place that is so unfamiliar and foreign may one day become our new home. 

Is this baby yummy or what?  She was our welcoming committee to the area;)

 

We were so excited to see it for ourselves.  Honey had been here for the interview process, but it was our first time. 

This sign cracked me up.  Who knew??  Think we'll get influenced and sport tattoos soon?;)

We ended up going through approximately 40 houses in 4 days.  What started out as fun quickly became overwhelming.  All the houses started running together.  I took tons of pictures and notes, but not one house had everything we wanted. 


This is the house the girls wanted.  We all loved the exterior.  Very farmhouse like.  Loved the wrap around porch.  It was so pretty.  The girls wanted it because it had a pool and fire pit area in the backyard.  No matter what other houses we saw this is the one they kept harping on.  Honey and I didn't really care for the floorplan, and most importantly it didn't have a bathtub.  For me that's a deal breaker.  I'm a bath girl.

Our realtor Ross working hard;)  He's lived here his whole life and says y'all.  I'm going to have to get used to that.  We went to a dinner party with Honey's new coworkers too while we were there and noticed right away that the kids are trained super early to say yes ma'am and sir.  I don't know why that freaked me out a little, but it did.  Don't get me wrong I think manners are great, but it seems forced to me.  In the North it's used sarcastically, and I really don't like being called ma'am.  Hopefully I'll get used to it because they ALL seem to do it down there.  Will they accept me if I don't say it??  What if my kids don't catch on! 

I really loved the exterior of this house, but it was all chopped up on the inside...UGH!  Isn't it gorgeous though?

Except for a few brief hiccups the girls were troopers.  Every morning we got up early and did nothing but go through one house after another for days.  We even extended our trip because we had such a hard time making up our minds.  We would fall into bed at night wondering how on earth the day went so fast.  There was no time to do anything remotely fun, but despite all that I'm so glad that we took them with us.  I think it really helped them get excited about the city and grasp the idea of a move.

We did steal away for just a little bit to drive downtown.  I wanted to see where Honey would be working and get a glimpse of all the history surrounding the city.  There is so much to see and learn about, but of course we didn't have any time to do any of that.  I can tell it's going to be pretty cool.





This is the picture I posted when I asked for you guys to pray.  It's really close to where we finally decided on a house.  The realtor would be driving us around and he would say...behind those trees is a hospital and over there is a school etc...  Everything was hidden.  I had no idea where anything was so it felt like we were literally in the sticks!  For this farmgirl that grew up in wide open spaces with fields and land as far as the eye can see I felt slightly closed in and claustrophobic.  I sooo hope there are some barns and cows hidden somewhere too.  Yikes! 







Change is good, but it's also hard.  I made a cuff with a butterfly on it recently that says move on.  It's my reminder to focus on what's in front of me and not behind.  That is going to be the determining factor in making this transition.


I can't say we left Richmond with a solid yes answer in our hearts.  As we boarded the plane to come home we were more confused than ever.  Seeing it in person made it real...made it possible and that was scary.  I remember looking for a sign everywhere and with every person we ran into.  We went through a toll booth and I remember looking to see if the lady was friendly and made eye contact.  We were scrutinizing the littlest things.  Looking for an answer and I have to be honest it never really came while we were there.



We struggled after we got home.  Playing the pros and cons list in our minds over and over.  It was agonizing.  The move to MN was so easy.  Someone actually knocked on our door and made us an offer before we even listed our house!  We weren't happy at the time and the Twin Cities had so much to offer, but 7 years later with kids in school, and a failing economy it definitely complicates things.  So we wavered, prayed and waited and then finally made a decision.  It all came down to a hand vote and a tail wag.  The girls were in.  They were excited and it made us excited too, and as more time goes by and the move date approaches our fears are dissipating.  It's amazing how time has a way of making things more clear.  I'm sure it's going to be a very up and down ride, but for now we are up and that's such a good thing:)  

**I promise to show pics of the house, but you're going to have to wait until I see it again.  If I have to wait so do you;)

Have a blessed day.