weekend replay : while the hubby's away

Kyle went home on Saturday morning to be with his grandpa.  His grandparents have been moved into his parent's home and his grandfather is going downhill fast.  I'm glad that he is done with his rotations and just waiting for graduation so that he can spend as much time there as he can.  

So what did I do this weekend?  Friday night we went and saw Oblivion.  It was fantastic.  Kyle was a little disappointed in the ending but I loved the whole movie.  

Saturday, Kyle left and I relaxed on the couch.  I eventually left the apartment and hit up World Market for the deal they were having (buy1get1free Italian Soda) and happened to run across my favorite chinese candy a coworker brings me from her trips home.  Score!

Saturday night was the main event.  My bestie Hannah is a cop and worked some special security this past week... and was able to land us some GREAT tickets to the show in town.   A night at the Barnum and Bailey circus!!!  Four adult women went to the circus.  Surrounded by tiny kids and their parents, we had a blast!  It was both Hannah and I's first real circus experience.  While a bit hokey at times, it was so much fun!  We definitely got into the show and held our breaths a lot during the acrobatics!  I wish I had thought to take my good camera but I assumed it wouldn't be allowed.. I was wrong and had to just deal with the camera on my phone.  I did manage to get one great shot of the elephants!

Sunday was a pretty normal day.  Woke up early, went to church at 11 with my brother, and convinced him to fight downtown parking issues to go to Chipotle with me.  Louisville just got its first Chipotle about a month ago or so and I have been dying to go!  We had planned to end the day at the park, but the weather just didn't cooperate.  So instead I did a few chores and hit up the grocery.  

It was a pretty great weekend.  I miss Kyle but I handle him being gone pretty well.  I've gotten used to it after the various month long trips for his Air Force duties the past few years.  I'm so happy he is with his grandfather now.  A part of me felt like I was with them yesterday.  When his parents were in last weekend my mother-in-law mentioned reading his favorite Psalm to him the week before and told me it was Psalm 22.  Whadya know but our sermon yesterday was over the same Psalm.  Such a great chapter, I was glad to get to hear it at that time.  The chapter begins as many (all) of us have felt at some point in time or another, completely broken, crying out to God for help because sometimes it just feels like He is gone.  But it ends in such happy realization that He has heard our cries in suffering.  He is faithful to his people.  He has conquered it all.  

verse of the day: Psalm 22

¹ My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
    Why are you so far from saving me,
    so far from my cries of anguish?
² My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer,
    by night, but I find no rest.

³ Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One;
    you are the one Israel praises.
⁴ In you our ancestors put their trust;
    they trusted and you delivered them.
⁵ To you they cried out and were saved;
    in you they trusted and were not put to shame.

⁶ But I am a worm and not a man,
    scorned by everyone, despised by the people.
⁷ All who see me mock me;
    they hurl insults, shaking their heads.
⁸ “He trusts in the Lord,” they say,
    “let the Lord rescue him.
Let him deliver him,
    since he delights in him.”

⁹ Yet you brought me out of the womb;
    you made me trust in you, even at my mother’s breast.
¹⁰ From birth I was cast on you;
    from my mother’s womb you have been my God.

¹¹ Do not be far from me,
    for trouble is near
    and there is no one to help.

¹² Many bulls surround me;
    strong bulls of Bashan encircle me.
¹³ Roaring lions that tear their prey
    open their mouths wide against me.
¹⁴ I am poured out like water,
    and all my bones are out of joint.
My heart has turned to wax;
    it has melted within me.
¹⁵ My mouth is dried up like a potsherd,
    and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;
    you lay me in the dust of death.

¹⁶ Dogs surround me,
    a pack of villains encircles me;
    they pierce my hands and my feet.
¹⁷ All my bones are on display;
    people stare and gloat over me.
¹⁸ They divide my clothes among them
    and cast lots for my garment.

¹⁹ But you, Lord, do not be far from me.
    You are my strength; come quickly to help me.
²⁰ Deliver me from the sword,
    my precious life from the power of the dogs.
²¹ Rescue me from the mouth of the lions;
    save me from the horns of the wild oxen.

²² I will declare your name to my people;
    in the assembly I will praise you.
²³ You who fear the Lord, praise him!
    All you descendants of Jacob, honor him!
    Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
²⁴ For he has not despised or scorned
    the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him    

    but has listened to his cry for help.

²⁵ From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly;
    before those who fear you^[f] I will fulfill my vows.
²⁶ The poor will eat and be satisfied;
    those who seek the Lord will praise him—
    may your hearts live forever!

²⁷ All the ends of the earth
    will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
    will bow down before him,
²⁸ for dominion belongs to the Lord
    and he rules over the nations.

²⁹ All the rich of the earth will feast and worship;
    all who go down to the dust will kneel before him—
    those who cannot keep themselves alive.
³⁰ Posterity will serve him;
    future generations will be told about the Lord.
³¹ They will proclaim his righteousness,
    declaring to a people yet unborn:
    He has done it!

thankful thursday

This Thursday I am thankful for...

progress.  thanks to my mother-in-law, my bathrooms are spotless.  I had the push I needed to go ahead and box up the books from the bookcase, and I posted my cabinet for sale online.  (not that anyone has inquired about it).

a good report.  I went to the dentist last Friday.  First time in two years.  Its not that I'm one of those people that has always been afraid of the dentist... I just had a bad experience when trying out my first dentist in Louisville.  I went then, first time in a long time since I didn't have insurance, but wasn't too worried because I had never had a bad report at my hometown dentist.  Walked out with a recommendation to fill 9 cavities that didn't completely exist yet for $2K.  Thankfully my old local dentist assured me that was stupid.  But now I need wisdom teeth out... so I made the trip to the local dental school for a cleaning.  With only one problem tooth that I know is a problem, I walked out with a good report and surgery scheduled.  Too bad I'm leaving town and will have to go through the search again!

donuts.  I have become reacquainted with my old love recently.  I used to stop at the gas station and grab some Dunkin once a week as my Friday treat last year.  Then I started sleeping in and that practice ended a while back.  I went back last week and it was glorious.  And I bought a box of Entenmann's Softees from the grocery this week.  I have a problem.  And I'm not ashamed.

i assure you

I'm still alive over here.

I have been busy packing thanks to the in-laws.

I have been dealing with home buying issues.
...the inspection was Monday and its a little daunting... mostly because the main thing worrying us seems to have happened SINCE we put the offer down.

I have been meaning to write a post for a while now.

I have planned on doing a Project Downsize update...I've been relatively good with it!

I have started playing a new game with the guys in my life.  
...by game I mean computer game (League of Legends) and by guys I mean my husband, brother, and           brother's roommates.  I'm the cool sister.
 
I have been trying to enjoy my last little bit of time in Louisville.

I have had a really busy time at work.

I have been a little stressed out.

 

thankful thursday

This Thursday I am thankful for:

blog friend recipes.  This week I tried a new soup recipe my friend Amy posted about recently.  Turkey Sausage, Kale, and Tortellini Soup.  And it was DELICIOUS.  I tweaked it quite a bit... made it spicier.. added water so there would be more broth... improvised a little... but it was awesome.  I'm very thankful for the bountiful leftovers that I am currently enjoying.

signing the contract.  This was a little more complicated that anticipated.  We signed everything, and then found an error Monday evening on the amount we were financing (we would have been out an additional $2K)... so they had to cancel the contract.  And then it took 2 more days to get the new contract to us because they got busy with another account.  So basically we resigned everything 2 hours before the seller cancelled the deal.  Because they were annoyed with how long it was taking.  And boy, so was I.  But that part is over and inspections are scheduled for next week.

birthday weeks.  This week was my brother and I's birthdays (we are 3 years and 1 day apart).  We had our weekly church group meeting on my birthday... but that didn't stop the celebrations... They loved on me big time.  Carrot cake, Nord's Bakery cookies and donuts, cheesecake.  Those people know how to party, and about half of them just met me 2 months ago.  Thats love people.  How cute is that KY cookie?? My Russian friend told me I had to eat it all because I was leaving it.

This week I am linking up with

house hunting part 2

offer accepted

Wow.  That was fast.  We did our second look... and picked house #1 from this post yesterday.  Come to find out, it was in a different school district than we originally thought...its not in the crappy district, its zoned into one of the top 10 schools for the county!

After we finished looking, we went back to the realtor's office and decided on an offer.  Grabbed some lunch, and headed back to Louisville.  

An hour out of the city and our realtor called for a counter.  Another hour later, the seller accepted the offer!  So 2 hours out of Greenville, we had begun our path towards home ownership.

We are so excited!  The house is move-in-ready.  Its beautiful.  The neighborhood is adorable.  The seller told our realtor that the next door neighbors are a young couple with their first baby, and on the other side a 30 something woman with a dog.  Everyone looks out for everyone else.  And unlike the other house, this one has some room for us to grow.  We could buy a recliner if we want, have space for a cat tower, be able to put the litter box in the utility room instead of a spare bedroom.  We don't have to feel like our feet are in the shower when we are on the toilet... 

We can grow our lives a little without too much space to take care of.  I'm so extremely excited.  

Without further ado:  Pictures!

I can't believe I forgot to take my own picture of the outside....  Photo from realty site.

I also forgot to take a good picture of the awesome deck??

kitchen with new appliances

we have to buy the fridge, pantry on left skinny side and on the right

master bedroom (all the bedrooms (3 total) look basically like this...different window placement

through the door up in the bedroom photo is the master bath

spare bathroom, there is a tub shower with white tile walls, floor is same as master bath

utility room, window looking out to carport, (there's the laminate floor dad)

inside the awesome huge storage shed in the backyard, complete with electricity

So that, for the most part, is our future house!  (Assuming all goes well with everything that has to be done over the next month...)  Trying to be optimistic!

house hunting part 1

 The trip has been pretty good so far.  We took it slow and split the drive into 2 days which was fantastic.  It was a great start to Saturday getting to drive through the mountains in the morning.  Beautiful.  

The realtor had added one more house to our list that came on the market Friday night... flipped by a realtor.  It was gorgeous... but we had to accept that it was tiny.  Like we would MAYBE be able to put our Queen and Full beds into 2 of the rooms but no other furniture with them.  We need dressers.  

10 other houses later... with some characters thrown in... we have 2 clear winners.  In separate parts of town.

Which is the dilemma.  Because one is as perfect as you can get.  New stuff... great lot... laundry room, the only 2 car carport we saw.  Neighborhood is cute as a button.  But the overall location is just ok.  Nothing exciting about the part of town its in... schools aren't amazing.  Time to hospital?  Google maps says 20 minutes.  I hadn't even really wanted to look in this area because of the further proximity to the "happening" part of town.  But there really isn't anything wrong with the town either.  Its just not the location of the other.

Second house... Size is fine... No real dining room but the front room could become that.  Lot/yard is great.  Closets are big.  Kitchen has great potential for personal upgrades.  Older appliances but newer than what we have now.  Wood burning fireplace.  Only a laundry closet in the living room, no covered parking for even one car, driveway is gravel.  Master bath is TINY.  Neighborhood isn't as cute as any of the other houses we looked at.  So why are we looking at this one at all?  Its cheaper than the other, and the town it is in is notoriously popular because it has the BEST schools in the county.  House is well maintained, lots of good storage.  And it is closer to the "happening" part of town... e.i. shopping. We really do like it.  Google maps says 20 minutes to the hospital. 

The realtor is torn as well.  And what we were hoping wouldn't happen, happened while we were at dinner last night.  The 2nd house already has an offer on it.  Thankfully we get to see it again today and make a final decision.  We will go over these places with a fine tooth comb.  This is hard you all.  I'm a major ball of nerves.  

But I LOVE this city!!!

a weekend to find a home

Its here.  The day we are leaving to check out homes in our next city.  The camera bag is packed, the suitcase is packed.  We will leave once I get off work (perhaps a little bit early), and stop about 2/3 of the way there.  Because I really hate driving through the mountains at night.  During the day its fun, but what's the rush?  So we will stop, and then Saturday morning at about 1pm start trying to find our home.

We have a list of about 10 homes to check out this weekend... still not sure how long we are staying... if we figure out what we like pretty quick (with a backup plan in case it falls through), then we might head back to Louisville Sunday.... if not, or if we just want to explore and take it easy, we will be back on Monday.

So what do most of the homes we are looking at have in common?

hardwood floors... or more importantly... limited amounts of carpet.  Some carpet is ok... it really is... but we have 2 cats and have hated having an apartment with nothing but carpet.

cabinet space... or the room to add more.  Our kitchen is overflowing with gadgets and pans.  We want more room.  So for the most part the homes we are looking at either have similar space to what we have now...more room... or have the space to add more... its nice to have a kitchen designer/builder for a father.

the Ranch.  All of the homes we are looking at are of the Ranch style.  I like the idea of everything being on the same floor.  It simplifies things.  And thats how I want to try to make life in our new city... as simple as possible... for having a husband in Gen Surg residency of course...

3bed 2bath.  Because why would we want any smaller than that?  And why would I want to take care of anything bigger?

more space.  Our current apartment is a little over 1200sqf... everything on our list is on average 1500-1600. I want to spread out a little bit.

close.  To the hospital (within 15 minutes usually (at least our online favorites are)).  To the mall.  To anywhere I might want to frequent.... Sonic... Homegoods... Lowes...

established.  All of the homes on our list were built in the 60s and 70s.  I don't like the huge pop-up cheaply made homes that anything is anymore... and I like some trees.  Not the tiny 4 ft tall things that the builder put in to watch grow... and not in the woods... But some real trees in the yard to watch blossom and fall year round... even if it creates extra yard work for me.  Leaves=compost.  Better yet.. these older homes on our list have been updated.

the yard.  Most of the homes on the list are on 1/4 to 1/3 of an acre.  A manageable size for us.. (me).. with enough room to throw in some raised garden beds.

safe.  I used a crime map online to help decide the areas we wanted to look... and had the realtor drive around a couple I wasn't sure about.  And utilized Google street view to check out a few for myself.  Nothing will beat seeing it in person, but this has definitely helped weed out a few.

What I can't completely tell from the photos but hope to end up with.

light.  I want windows.  I want to have sunshine light my days.  I don't want to feel like I'm living in a dungeon.

open spaces.  What I love about our apartment and our parents' homes is that the kitchen opens up to the living area.  We can cook and still talk to our friends... we don't have to feel like we are slaving away alone while everyone enjoys themselves somewhere else... or feel crowded in by everyone standing in the kitchen.

laundry room.  I want a room for this if we can.  Or at least not have the machines behind a closet in a narrow hallway like we do now.  This might be asking too much but I can dream.

So wish us luck.  I've already read all of the horror stories from others about buying a home during residency.  But you aren't stopping us.  Maybe we are idiots... but we are also a medical couple that isn't in debt.  And that helps in our decision.  My husband has no student loans.  The only thing we are in debt for is a small monthly car payment.  He did the military route for med school... so at the end of these 5 years (also a big reason we are buying) we don't have to freak out about selling quickly.  Because our next location there will be either free housing on base or enough of a housing stipend (on top of pay) to cover an apartment. So we can take our time selling... or rent out our house.  We have thought about this a lot.  Maybe we are still naive but we have to learn our own lessons.  So please just wish us luck.  Say a prayer that we find what we are looking for this weekend and it all goes smoothly.  Be happy for us.

Because we are about to live here:

   And this is downtown...

thankful thursday

This Thursday I am thankful for:

image source

graduation presents.  This one is only indirectly for me... Kyle's family for his graduation present (early) made it possible for him to FINALLY get Lasik.  I've had to listen to him talk about it for years.  And it finally happened.  Like, he is playing a game with sunglasses on right this moment.  He needed it really bad... like his astigmatism was so bad he constantly had to touch his eyes to reposition his contacts to his eyes.  Not a good habit to deal with as a surgeon.  Not at all.  Thank you Kyle's family. 

image source

travel.  This is it.  This is the weekend we hop house to house in our future city and hope to find our home.  I don't know how I feel about this yet.  Am I just overwhelmed with the whole prospect, or am I actually excited about it, but the idea of being in the car for 7 hours is dampening it?  Not sure yet.  But either way... its here, and this is really Kyle's first chance to really see the city we prayed for...we were only there about 24 hours last time and he spent his whole time in the hospital for the interview.  So I am excited for him to see it, and to get to see even more for myself.  

image source

good news.  A good friend of mine got some great news for his future career in this country... and I am beyond excited for him and his family.  Sometimes dreams do come true... albeit a little late... but God's timing is perfect and good.  

What are you thankful for this week?

I'm linking up with 

weekend replay : yardsale

The weekend was intense.  My friend Julia let me participate in her yard sale this weekend.  (Part of my project downsize).  It was pretty successful!  I got rid of 4 pieces of patio furniture that I knew I wouldn't want to move with us (a bistro set and a rod iron plant stand).  Several knick knacks, a few jackets, and our comforter set (to be sold in consignment).  Some pretty good progress.  We only took 2 small boxes of stuff to Goodwill afterward!  While my friend did much better monetarily (for her adoption savings woot woot!), I was glad to have the extra almost $100 added to the "renovations" column of our budget and less crap to take with us in 2 months.  These pics are after the "early bird rush"  that occurred 45 minutes before we opened up shop... or you know... woke up.  But we couldn't be too mad, my friend made about 1/3 of her take in that little time frame... from one person.  These people were serious.

Thanks to my family who all helped price, box, transport and unload my share of the stuff.  After the yard sale and Goodwill run, my family all went to the park.  More specifically the park my brother has been doing his internship with to finish his college career.  It did not disappoint.  It is a brand new park in the east end of our city, the first part of a major project.  My brother is really proud of this place and it wasn't hard to see why.  They have done an amazing job there.  It was the perfect way to spend our first nice Spring day.  Unfortunately I was only able to take a few shots with my phone... I brought my camera out with me... but forgot to put the newly charged battery back in it.  :/

End the weekend with not only the men's, but also women's Cardinal basketball teams headed to the championship game... and it was a pretty awesome weekend.  I'm exhausted.. and not sure if I can handle staying up so late to watch the game tonight... Why on earth does it start at 9:23pm?  

Good luck tonight guys!

this is exciting

Taking a sick day from work today, but wanted to share this.  My realtor sent me this video.  While I have been really sad lately about leaving Louisville shortly, this gets me very excited for our future city. So cool.  I guess this is mostly for family so you can see what an awesome place we are going to, even though none of us had ever heard of it before the interview!  And it looks like there are some awesome festivals going on that we might get to enjoy in the summer. :)

http://www.greenvillehd.com/

weekend replay : easter

It was a good weekend.  And a hard one.  We had some fun with Kyle's family and relaxed some.

Friday was dinner with his sister and her husband, at his favorite Chinese restaurant.

Saturday was hard.  We went to Tennessee to see Kyle's grandfather.  He had a stroke a few months ago.  Kyle went and visited him right after it happened when we got back from an interview trip, but this was my first time seeing him.  I love that man, and was very nervous to see him.  While he is doing much better than the last time Kyle saw him (he can move his left hip a little and is speaking much clearer), he has changed a lot from the last time I saw him at Christmas.  Before the stroke.  The stroke that has shown that his cancer has returned.  The cancer we thought was confined to the kidney they removed.  This is one of the main reasons moving so far away is hard for us.  I'm glad we were able to visit this weekend, it was the first time his grandfather had been in his home since January, and was only for a few hours, but I think he really enjoyed getting to sit in his very old recliner and watch sports with his family.  It also makes me cherish that I was able to capture his 80th birthday celebration with his family and friends back at the end of summer.

Sunday was very long.  The morning started before 6am (I barely slept after 3:30) for the sunrise service out in a small country church.  A few of the Methodist churches in Kyle's home area switch up who hosts each year.  Starts at 6:30, lasts 30min-1hr, lots of old hymns and a short message, followed by a huge breakfast.  Go home, get fixed up, and return for Easter service.  Sunday school starts at 9:30, service from 10:30 to 11:30am.
Rushed home, packed, and headed to my grandmother's an hour away for an awesome lunch with my part of the family.  Drive 3 hours back to Louisville and start the laundry.  Arrive in time for the beginning of the 2nd half of the UofL v Duke game.  When we turned on the tv, they were tied, it was a great game...and I'm glad I missed the terrible leg break of one of the UofL players in the first half.  While Kyle isn't bothered by that stuff (thank goodness since he will see a lot of it), I am forever scarred from witnessing a classmate break his arm in gym during middle school.  Can. not. look.

It was a good weekend.  Delicious food.  Good time with family.  And UofL is headed to the Final Four.  I don't typically care about sports... but this is exciting.

And to top it all off, Game of Thrones returned.  If you have HBO... you should give it a shot.

Its Medical Monday ya'll.  Go link up!