A long time coming announcement

... sooo we bought a home!  And we move on Friday. I know, crazy, right?!  I apologize for the late blog announcement.  It actually happened relatively fast .. well the "looking" for houses process went fast.  (There's really only so many homes that are available in our budget in this area!)

After Jake was born Dan and I started talking and praying about what these next five years would look like.  Obviously, we don't actually know what they'll look like, but barring any major life changes, we started thinking about where we could see ourselves.  I think we are finally learning that we can move forward and make decisions, while still having an open hand regarding change.  Really, for the past 4 years living here in the suburbs of Chicago we have been so careful to make any commitment because we wanted to make sure we were open to going where the Lord wanted us.  Well, I think we finally started believing that right now this is where the Lord wants us and we can make decisions based on that truth, keeping in mind "In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." (Proverbs 16:9) And since our lease on our apartment was up and we knew we would want at least a 2 bedroom (preferably 3 for family visiting!) we were looking at some pretty pricey apartments.  So, we ventured into the housing market. 

Honestly, I didn't think that I would have "that moment" when looking for a home.  You know, that moment where you can picture yourself actually doing day to day life when you walk in the door.  Well, about two weeks into our search our realtor told us we were running out of options and I was starting to settle for the fact that I wouldn't find "the one."  I wasn't head over heels for our top 3 choices at the time, but they would definitely work for us.  However, it is SUCH a large purchase that I didn't want to settle.  It didn't need to be perfect- but I really wanted to be excited to wake up every day in that place.  Then, our home dropped in price and it came up on our "RedFin" radar.  The second we walked in the home I felt it.  I knew that we could see ourselves there.  After some negotiations and home inspections, it was ours :)

So, two months later here we are.  Moving in 3 days. Cramped in a one bedroom full of boxes.  Excited for Jake to have his own room.  Better yet, excited for Dan and I to have our own room (back).  We cannot believe it's been one and a half years since we moved from our place in Arlington Heights. Time has FLOWN by.  We feel beyond blessed to be where we are.  I'm excited to share pictures with you once we move in :)