Meet Lola | Our Newest Addition

I used to wonder how people just quit blogging, but as the kids get older, it becomes clear -- there just isn't time!  Photography is busy, work is insane, and our personal life is even more crazy!

I figured I should 'come back' by introducing you to the newest member of our family...Lola!  The beginning of June we were asked if we wanted a yellow lab, born just the day before.  I had been looking for dogs almost nonstop for the past year, and this one just seemed to 'fit'.  Adam quickly agreed and we said yes, but decided not to tell the kids.  So on August 5th when she was 9 weeks old, we drove to Moville, Iowa and brought sweet Lola home!  

I will admit having a puppy has been a learning experience for me, we had a couple of crazy weeks, but things are going so well!  We couldn't be more happy with our decision!  She is the sweetest pup!    She doesn't do well on her leash yet and still doesn't really know her name, but she's so cute it doesn't even matter.  She loves playing fetch & snuggling and the kids couldn't love her more!

 

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It's a Jeep Thing

A couple months ago, we traded in our 2012 minivan with 100k miles for a 2014 Jeep Cherokee.  I'll admit, it's a little bittersweet, and totally unexpected that I came home with a Jeep instead of another minivan, but I would be lying if I said that driving a smaller SUV again hasn't been fun.  We started looking for another vehicle because the van was out of warranty and the engine had been unreliable.  I'm loving the white, but mainly that this car has just 25k miles on it {well 30 now} Not a ton of details shots since we've had it for a few months and as you can imagine, it's pretty 'lived in' with kids! ;)  By total coincidence, we now have two Jeeps.  Speaking of, I'll hopefully be updating you on our other Jeep soon. 

Our housing situation & a catch up of sorts...

My sister {Auntie Esha} returned from her vacation to Rome, Venice, & the Netherlands!  Now we just need to get her husband {Uncle Brad} home safely and we'll be happy!  {He's doing a rotation for school overseas until the end of the year}

I survived the busiest two months of my life, but am currently rocking an infection of sorts, so I look like I've been abused.  Jordyn has her 4 year well check today and both kids will get their annual flu shots.  The weather has been just fantastic this Fall {like consistently in the 70's--it even hit 80 on Monday!} but it's currently thunderstorming, so tonights session has to be rescheduled.  Last night Adam and I took a drive around the lake in the Jeep, just the of us, and it was so relaxing.  We except when I drove.  It was my first time driving a stick shift {manual} car since I was in high school, so I was a bit rusty, but I will say, it drives smooth {& I didn't kill it at all!} ;)  Adam and I are celebrating our Anniversary {a few weeks late} tomorrow night and I am so excited already!! :)  And lastly, a house update...

We strongly considered living at the lake and commuting back and forth for two years because we really don't mind the drive {1 hour each way} and really enjoy living at the lake.  Small things, like having the neighbor lady stop over yesterday because she hadn't seen much of us and wanted to make sure we were okay--plus she bought a box of animal cookies for the kids for Halloween that she wanted to give to them.  Or being able to call a guy to fix the breaks on our Jeep and he came out and got it and fixed it and left it out for us to grab that night {before we paid him for it} -- you don't find that in a larger city.  

But two things left us looking for a house in Ankeny.  1. We didn't feel like it was fair to keep driving our kids 175 miles on the highway every day {many days they're awake at 5:30 or 6a, sometimes 5!}and we're nervous for when the snow arrives.  So we felt like if we were going to continue the commute, we needed to switch daycare providers {which we really didn't want to do} and preschools {they don't even offer 2 yo or 2 yo preschool in our lake town}.  2. We really miss living in the Des Moines area.  We love the variety of children's activities that are offered from art classes to gymnastics to swimming to the zoo/science center.  And we miss all of the dining options.  Let's face it...you have no dinner options in a small town.

So we kept looking.  We looked at hundreds of houses online.  And a dozen or so in person.  We tried to make offers on 3 that ended up selling less than 24 hours after listing for over the asking price.  Eventually one came across again and we jumped on it.  I will say, it's a bit scary putting an offer in on a house that you've only looked at for 5 minutes, but we're just praying that this is the right next step for us.  It's less than 5 minutes away from daycare and my sisters house and about 1 mile from our old condo.  So, if all goes well {paperwork-wise} we will be moving into this house the middle of December.  Say a little prayer for us! ;)

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It's SOLD...

I'm an emotional basket case these days. Our life is in a constant state of crazy..  The top 3 things consuming us right now are dealing with the sale of the condo/moving/searching for a new house to buy, Jordyn not wanting to go to school, and having my van in the shop for over a week {two weeks ago it was in the shop for 3 days for the same issue}.  When my mind is going a million miles a minute, I find it's best to write, so here goes...

It's sold.  The boxes are gone.  We no longer own our condo in Ankeny.  We took a $17k hit on it. Seventeen thousand dollars. We ended up doing worse on it than we thought, so at this point, I speak for both of us when I say we're just happy to be out.  I will not miss the parking issues.  Or the 18 steps to get inside.  Or a detached {one stall!} garage.  Or dealing with neighbors being that close.  But it's still hard.  It's our first home.  It's where Adam and I lived when we dated, planning a wedding, decided to adopt a puppy, and brought our babies home.

I wanted nothing more than to spend out last evening there, gathered on the floor as a family around a take out pizza from a local joint sharing memories.  When we had roommates.  When I spent the night puking in the guest bath after a particularly rough evening at 'our place' that involved karaoke & Vodka/Redbulls.  When Adam got mad that we didn't have enough cupboard space and crumpled a cookie sheet like a piece of paper and threw it across the house.  When Jordyn learned to walk.  The kids playing with snow in front of the fireplace. When we played Cribbage almost nightly.  When I sat in the hall trying to make Jordyn 'cry it out'.  When I ate too many crab legs for the first time and thought perhaps I was having a baby & didn't know I was pregnant.  When Jordyn sat in the chair and sang her ABCs, and two years later sat in the same chair and recited the Pledge of Allegiance. When Adam and Mark practiced at the condo every Tuesday for an entire summer.  When the power went out and Adam and I spent the night drinking all the wine in the house and playing Monopoly by candlelight. When Cullyn climbed on the table, or fell off the couch, or permanent markered a mustache on his lip. You get the idea.

Sadly, it was rushed, like most everything in our life right now.  Jordyn and I picked up a pizza on our way home from dance at 6:45p.  The house was a mess of last minute items needing to be packed.  Adam sat on the couch eating his pizza while working on work and watching the cubs.  The kids were crying because they didn't want to eat pizza {Seriously?  What kids cry about that?!} and instead thought I should let them eat the taffy her dance teacher gave her.  And I was mad because the night wasn't how I visioned and therefore snapped at everyone and went to bed before the kids.  Happy last memory!

I want to say the first night in the lakehouse {as a temporary, permanent home---have I confused everyone yet?!} was better.  However, much like the night before, it was a shit show.  No cheers-ing to a new beginning while roasting marshmallows and watching the sun set.  We got to the lake around 6:30 and grabbed some stuff {the last from the condo} from the van {my MIL's since mines in the shop until next week!} and threw it in the door.  I unpacked the refrigerator items and got the kids some dinner while Adam went into his parents house to unload the last of the stuff from the condo.  I was rushing the kids to eat their dinner so we could go outside and make s'mores around a campfire while racing against the sun setting.  The sun won.  By the time Adam got home it was completely dark. Cullyn was sobbing about a leg ache and I was drinking a glass of wine & crying about how nothing goes our way.  Adam insisted on a fire anyways, so we went outside for s'mores.  Cullyn ate one bite, giving Adam the rest. Jordyn ate a plain marshmallow {not roasted} and then some chocolate.  I managed to finish mine.  Along with a bottle of wine. Don't you dare judge!  Afterwards we hoped into the Jeep in an attempt to put the kids to sleep.  It didn't work.  We came home and put the kids to bed, and then I put myself to bed. #RealLife

We started our 67 mi. commute {each way} today. 

As Frankie Ballard says, 'the bad times make the good times better', right?

On my mind...

Now that we're not selling {for now anyways.  We're throwing around the idea of listing it now that this all went down} I thought I would post this as it's a fairly significant blurp in our story of 2015...
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I'm writing this at 5a on July 12th.  I've been awake since 2a
This is one of those rambling posts, mainly for me, but to catch everyone up as well. 

On the 4th of July, Adam got a call from his cousin asking if we would be willing to rent our condo.  The lakehouse full of family, without hesitation, I smiled and said 'yep!'  Afterall, we have talked about moving out of the condo since before Jordyn was born, so it only seemed natural to agree and move forward with the process.  We gave them the code to the house and they looked through it.  They text afterwards saying they were interested.

After a little more thought and a discussion with Adam, we decided we would only consider renting our house if there was an intent to buy.  The market for condos in our town is low, so the thought of them renting for a few months {just long enough for us to get everything moved out and get settled somewhere else} and then moving somewhere else is something is just not worth putting my family {me?} though.

So we offered to sell to them for what we owe.  Backstory...Adam bought the condo as they were building them.  Went upside down in it when the housing market crashed & they put up tons more condo units in town.  We finally are in the positive again, so we feel like it would be fair to both to let them basically assume our loan {we could get to walk away from it and they would be starting with some equity} 

They walked through the house yesterday with Adam and verbally agreed to everything.  So Monday we begin the process of selling our condo. 

I know that this is the next step for us and that it's the best thing right now.  I also know that this news would have been much more joyful last year, when I hadn't yet embraced the condo.  Over the last year I realized how nice our condo is.  Granted it's not practical for a family of 4 {5? Murd!} but it really is a nice place.  I love the tall ceilings.  And that everything is on one level.  Plus we have huge closets!

I guess I'm just a bit overwhelmed with emotions right now.  I can't say that I'm blindsided, because I know this is a big life event, and I assumed I would be sad.  Afterall, this is the first home Adam and I ever lived in.  We decided to adopt Murdock at this condo.  Plus I brought both of my babies home from the hospital here.  They learned to walk on these floors. 

So bare with me.  I'm a little nervous to get my hopes up.  I little anxious of the new possibilities.  I lot overwhelmed with logistics - packing, moving, transferring everything {doctors, mail/bills, preschool/daycare/activities} Terrified to move back to a small town.  Excited for the opportunities for our children.  Sad to leave the house, the town, the city, our friends.  Wondering what this means for our jobs.  And totally unsure how much to push and how much to leave up to Him.

I'm sure many of you have questions.  Feel free to ask, although the truth is, it's likely I don't yet know the answer.  There are so many questions I still have...

Will I keep working at the hospital?  Should I find a job closer to the lake? 
Could Adam transfer to the location closer to our lakehouse {even for the winter}?
Do we start looking for another house now? 
Do we wait for a year, 3, 5 so we can pay more debt off?
Where do we want to relocate to?
Do we want the kids to go to a small school?
Should we try to find a new sitter near the lake {& lose the one we were so very much looking forward to starting in August?}
Is this the leap to staying home/pursuing photography full time that I've been praying for?
Can we transition our insurance, flex spending, investments, etc. right now?
How long can we handle the drive?  Will I have to change my work hours?
What city should we rent storage space in?
Can we keep driving 60+ miles for our favorite providers? {physicians, pediatrician, dentist, ophthalmologist, etc.}
Should we pull the kids from their preschool and find a different school to enroll in?
Don't forget to...cancel the gym membership, transfer the cable/internet/utilities, etc.
Do we let Jordyn start dance like she was enrolled in?  Is there even a dance studio near the lake?

Moving

I have to tell you guys, I've been almost begging Adam for the past year or so, to sell the condo & lakehouse, pack up, & relocate.  There is something about breaking free from the mundaneness of the only life we've ever known…exploring a new city, a warm city, maybe even a costal city {???} as a family of four {well 5 w/ Murdock}.  I know it seems like a cop out, afterall our lives will surely be busy no matter where we live, but I kind of feel like we'll want to make the move before the kids start school, so now is our time to move around and try something new.

While I'm still team break out of Iowa {as much as I love this state more each year & would seriously miss the change in seasons} I can't imagine how 2015, thus far, would have played out if we hadn't had family in the same state.  I mean, I know we would have figured it out, but my mom, sister, & mother in law have saved us countless times this year between the two week sitter transition, my work trip to Texas, Adam and my trip to Arizona and Adam's huge health scare, and days that our nanny has needed off.

I guess there isn't really a point to this post other than God works in mysterious ways and the older I get the more I learn that as much as I try, nothing is really on my time, but rather his time.  While I'm still praying we get to try out another city, there are just many things that need align for that to happen {jobs, schools, daycare, etc.} and I don't want to push it and risk regretting it. 

So for now, we'll wait it out and be thankful for close family and friends.  Because I'm very thankful we're not alone with a 2 year old, 3 year old, & a large dog, in an unknown city with no help.

Are You Done? {having kids that is}

From the day I delivered Jordyn, I was asked 'so, when will you guys try for your second?'
And then the second we shared that H2 was a boy, people I started asking 'so is this your last?'

So…here is my attempt to answer the infamous question, 'Will you guys be having more children?' 

I'm always nervous to answer this question.  It's like if our plans change I will be called a lier or something!

The short answer, we don't know.  Maybe?  Hopefully not!

There are just so many factors that play into the answer of this question.  Would we love more? Yes!  Are we so very blessed to have two healthy, happy children when so many others struggle to have any at all? Yes.  Are we deathly afraid of losing the 'man to man defense' as we like to call it? Yes!  Sometimes there just isn't enough of us to go around as it is, so adding another one, two?  Three?! to the mix is a little scary.  And of course we have the practical factor which is the cost of children {daycare, college funds, monthly experiences}.  And lets not forget that we live in a little condo and drive a small SUV {which would require the purchase of a larger home and a minivan/large SUV}

If we're being 100% honest right now, Adam is perfectly content with the two wonderful children we have now.  He feels like they complete our family.  And we both feel like we will be able to provide them with everything we want.  Mainly time, but assets {car, college, etc.} & experiences {yearly vacations, sports camps, etc.} as well.  But me?  I would like to wait a couple {maybe three} more years and have two {or three?!} more {close together like Jordyn & Cullyn}.

So for everything I just mentioned {& more} we have decided to love and enjoy the two little blessings we have right now and discuss our options again in a few years.  I'm certain God will lead us in the right directions when the time comes.  Who knows?  Adoption my even be in our future.

Update!

Here's an update on the 10 most consuming things going on in our life right now...and yes, they're alphabetical! :)
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The Babies
The babies are doing great...growing like weeds!  Cullyn turned 6 months on Saturday & Jordyn will be 2 on Wednesday.  Cullyn is still teething like crazy and starting to get everywhere {rolling/semi army crawling to get where he wants}.  We had J's Birthday Party yesterday afternoon.  Both kids have well checks on Wednesday.  Jordyn had a follow up appointment with the ENT last Friday where they confirmed she still has an ear infection in her right ear :(  So we have another follow up on Thursday to see if it's improving at all. Poor baby!

The Blog
I currently have 27 drafts started, but I struggle to find the time to finish them.  I try to take at least part of my lunch break to get a post together, unfortunately lunch breaks {when you get them} post babies are filled with appointments, responding to emails, updating my Photography Facebook page, writing a blog post, scheduling appointments, making things for daycare/birthday parties, etc.  Nevertheless, I love this blog & want to continue with it because it's fun and I love looking back and reading things about life that are so easy to forget.

The Body
Adam and I have started working out, we aren't seeing many results yet, but we both feel better, which is what matters most.  I know we're developing good habits & getting stronger which is what matters most.  I want to write a full post about this soon, but I'm really starting to like the whole gym thing.  I mean they have a sauna, a tanning bed, & a daycare...what's not to love?! :)

The Car
We're throwing around the idea of trading my car {small SUV--Santa Fe} in for a minivan.  I know, I know...90% of you are laughing your asses off...I'm okay with it.  In fact, I remember very vividly the time I laughed at my cousin and his wife when they announced the purchase of their minivan and even followed it up with a very dramatic {imagine that--me being dramatic!} 'I will N-E-V-E-R own a minivan!'  Well the truth is there are a lot of factors that play into it, but it just make the most sense for us to look further into the minivan option.--More to come!  PS…never say never!

The Dog
Ugh!  I swear...just when I say he's doing great he takes a turn!  I really don't know how much more Adam & I can handle.  Unfortunately {fortunately?!} we just love him so much.  He was our first baby!  So the latest...he has a 2 inch cut {?} in the tip of his tail {running the same direction as his tail}.  I'm not sure why, if an occurrence caused it, or if this means something more?  We noticed this after coming home to what looked like a murder in our house {specifically down the hallway, but definitely not limited to!}.  We're talking blood swooshes from the floor up to 5 feet high, down the halls, around the walls, on the doors...  We wrapped it {which lasted all of like 10 seconds}, cleaned the walls, and continue to deal with it daily.  I'll keep you posted.

The Holidays
I can't believe I just mentioned the 'h' word…how is it possible we're talking about the holidays again, already?!  At Jordyn's party yesterday, one of our pregnant friends {due at Christmas} said she only has 8 weeks left and it hit me…8 weeks from now the holidays will be over and we'll be prepping for another year, where does time go?!  We did the apple picking/pumpkin patch thing.  We're planning to take the kids to a trick or treat type of thing at the zoo on Thursday {still undecided about the real trick or treating thing this year}  We've already made our Thanksgiving plans for the year, the party invites exploded last week {I swear everything is on the first weekend of December--ugh I hate missing out!}, & I'm already planning our December {stay tuned for details!!} :)

The House {condo really}
A hate to even type this out because it's that depressing.  I should really do a whole post on it, but again, who wants to talk {or type} about depressing topics?!  The truth is, we hate our condo.  I mean there are things we like, the 14 foot ceilings, newness of it, etc. but having no yard, the 20 {cement} stairs to get to our front door, detached garage, etc. make be hate it.  I know, I should be blessed.  It's truly a first world problem, I get it.  Which is why I try not to complain.  Sadly, we're {very} upside down in it {Adam bought it brand new before our city build 9393908503984 more of the same units all over town } & now we're kind of stuck.  Unfortunately we don't have $20k laying around to dig ourselves out and get another house.  We have talked about renting it out for a while and living in the lake house full time for a year or two, but honestly the amount of money we would get to rent it {plus our gas back and forth everyday & extra wear and tear on our vehicles} wouldn't really put us ahead at all.  Another option is to sell it and live at the lake house for a while, but they are going for so low right now & there are so many units available that it would take forever and we would have to take a huge hit.  Plus, again, driving back at forth 60 miles {in an Iowa winter} each day is not favorable.  The other {more practical} option is to sell the lake house.  We don't really want to {since we love it there so much!} but really since we've moved down there we have hardly seen our lake friends.  I find us squeezing in time to go down there.  Everyone is just so busy.  If we really wanted to hang out with everyone, we could always plan it and stay with our in-laws.  So for now…we wait.  sigh  I've been praying about it a lot.  Hope God will lead us in the right direction.  I know we're just in a rut right now, but it's hard.  It's hard to see all of our friends will amazing dream homes and not be jealous.  It all takes time, and patience, right?

The J.O.B.
My job is crazy busy right now.  I got a new boss a couple of months ago, which really is better than I thought it was going to be.  I lucked out at got another great person.  She's very nice & not a micro manager {thank God}.  Our student numbers {& therefore my workload} have quadrupled since I started this position.  That along with our new computerized charting has made for a very busy couple of months for me.  The flexibility of this job is amazing {I really don't know how I could work without it}.  Unfortunately, I'm pretty much maxed out at my position, so I really should be applying for other jobs to further advance myself.  However that take time & energy, something I just don't have much of these days.
As for the husband's job…he's loving it.  He's finally working with a great group of people {for the most part}.  He's getting busier & better with his time management, so hopefully we'll start seeing that reflected in his commission checks! :)  He really is wonderful with people {his clients love him & he has the best customer service with each of his accounts so I know it's going to do great!}.  Unfortunately, as with most {all?} sales jobs, it takes time to build your accounts, so I know he's feeling stretched in a lot of directions most days.  I pray he finds a good balance soon.  Luckily we're both busy, so we both boot up our laptops to work after the kids go to bed at night.

The Marriage
We're getting ready to celebrate our 4th Wedding Anniversary {why is it that some days I feel like I've been married to this man for 034095839 years and the next second I cannot believe we've known each other for 6 1/2 years!} Where does the time go.  Considering how much change we're going through {have gone through in just 4 years} I feel like we're doing really good.  I'll admit, not everyday is bliss, but we really are blessed.  We have 2 homes, decent jobs, a loving pup, & two healthy kids.  I couldn't imagine going through life with anyone else by my side.  I feel really good that we get along so well even when the times are tough, it makes me really excited to be with him during the good times.  I know I don't say it enough, but I appreciate the husband and father that he is.  Juggling two kids under two and a sick dog is not easy, but he does it really well {each morning!} :)

The Photos
Photography has been booming.  I have about 13 family sessions that need edited and sent out!  I'm not as busy with client photos this year as I was last year, but we have so.much.going.on.all.of.the.time that I honestly don't know how I would find the time to do as many shoots as I did last year.  It's more important to me to 1. spend quality time with my family and 2. put out quality photos for my clients than it is to schedule a ton of sessions and half heartedly edit them. I really enjoy photography, but it isn't my livelihood {at this point anyways} so I'm doing what feels best for me and my family right now.  In the future, I would love to schedule 2 days a week and 2 weeks a month with photography clients, but right now that just isn't practical.

Okay…how is that for a 15 minute life recap?  I tried to talk about most things that people have been emailing and asking about.  I hope to put out some more quality {& photographic!} posts soon, but this is what you get for now!  :)

PS…sorry…no time to proofread.  please forgive me! ;)

Are You Going Back?

So this was obviously started before I went back to work, but got lost in all of the drafts!  {seriously, I have 37 different blog posts started right now!} 
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From the second we shared J was going to be a big sister, one of the first things people asked me was 'are you going back?'

I know they mostly asked it because we have two children in a year and a half, and therefore will be paying daycare for two for a long time!  {4 years to be exact, because J has an October birthday}

And as much as I would LOVE to be a stay at home {heck, even a work at home} mama, I knew the answer was yes.  My dream is to eventually do photography full time {sending the kids to daycare just 2 days a week} but at this point we are unable to make that leap without making some big changes.

And as horrible as it sounds, we just aren't willing to do that.

We love that our kids will have a lakehome to retreat to with friends {not just boating but sledding and camping and all fun outdoor things that kids should experience--like a fort and a tire swing and running through open grass}.  We love that we're able to take nice vacations {both with and without children}.  We love to do fun things that make awesome memories without having to plan and save for them.

So, at this point, I'll be thankful that I have a job that is flexible and allows me to come and go as it best fits my family.  I'm able to work just 4 days a week, some days from home, and not miss a single event my kids are in.  Yes, I miss things daily while they are at daycare, but thankfully, I'm able to pick them up by 3:30 each day and have a 3 day weekend with them every single weekend.  And on those three days we're together, we're able to go out and do fun things instead of sitting inside the condo going stir crazy.

It may not last forever, but for now I'll count my blessings and be thankful for what I do have.