When Erich and I decided to "test the waters" and put our house on the market in the late spring/early summer, we didn't exactly know what to expect. We weren't under any pressure to sell and move, we just knew that interest rates were low and now was as good a time as any to see what would happen. Well, we were a little shocked when we had an accepted offer before the for sale sign even went in the yard. The very first person to come through our home is the one who ended up buying it. Within 10 days we went from "no harm in trying, let's just see if there's any interest" to "holy cow we just sold our house and have nowhere to go". The next month was kind of a blur. There was the stress of endless paperwork, the anticipation of waiting to hear that our buyer's loan got approved (that's a story for another time), and the excitement of going through houses. After much searching, we stepped foot into a house that felt like home. We could picture raising our family there. It was... us. After the roller coaster ride of offers and counter offers and negotiating and "oh wait, did our buyer's loan get approved yet?" and "oh wait, you mean appliances aren't included?", etc, it all worked out. It was almost exactly 6 weeks from the day we put our house up for sale to the day we were sleeping under a new roof. We were overwhelmed during the entire whirlwind experience by how clearly God was showing himself to us. We felt His guidance, His provision, and His protection on our family. This was a major financial decision and looking back over our summer, we are amazed at all of the ways God provided for us. We know that our value is not in our "stuff" and that in the end, the size of our house, the quality of our countertops, and the height of our ceilings don't matter at all. But we are grateful for the home God has put us in and we will do our best to honor Him with it. Even after being here for a few months, Erich and I will still look at each other often and say, "Can you believe we're allowed to live here?".
There is a part of my heart that will always stay at 226 East 3rd. I met my future husband for the first time in that living room. I went from visiting my boyfriend's house to living in my home. It's where we brought our baby home from the hospital and it's the nursery where I rocked her night after night. It was the perfect house for Erich as a single man, the perfect house for us newlyweds, and the perfect house for our small family. Even though we knew it was time to go, that didn't make it easy to leave. But thankfully, after a week or so in the new house we felt right at home. We're still working out the kinks, unpacking the last boxes, and trying to decide where to hang the pictures, but make no mistake... it's home. And it's perfect.
Saying goodbye to 226...
and hello to 1810
Moving day! We were blessed to have the help of friends and family. Thanks guys!
Erich did a great job driving the huge moving truck. Here he is on his way to take all of our belongings to our new home (thankfully, only about 2 miles away)
While my mom and I were unpacking the kitchen Avery kept coming in and out to "help". A little while later we walked into the living room and found her lining everything up on the fireplace. She was very proud that she helped unpack!
the kitchen
our favorite part of the house... the finished basement
The first time I walked into Avery's new room I cried. The walls were painted the same color as her old nursery, so it was familiar, but it was also more than twice the size. Her room at the old house was truthfully more of a large closet than a bedroom. It worked great for our newborn baby, but there was definitely no space for her to do anything besides sleep in that room. We feel so blessed that our new house has room for us to grow our family and space for Avery to grow from a baby to a girl. She's still a little young, but with a bedroom big enough to house toys and with plenty of floor space, I look forward to the day she can play in her room and have a space of her own.
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