we woke up to a winter wonderland this morning.
by 9 am, we were bundled up and ready for some fun in the snow!

we didn’t have quite enough snow to make a snowman, but we’ve gotten a few more inches this afternoon,  so i foresee one in our future.

ready for some cookies and warm milk!

…or is someone looking rather grown up lately?!

i can’t get over how long her hair is!

It’s been a crazy few weeks, but we’re all settled in our cozy new home and we couldn’t be more thrilled. The original plan was that we would move in to our new place on the 1st, the day after the renters moved out. My family was under the impression that they were ‘good renters’ who would be leaving the house in good condition. holy. mother. of. disgusting. That was not the case at all. My mom and I took at walk through the house and were  utterly speechless. seriously we had no words-just jaws dropped. Before even taking two steps in the door we were hit with the most horrific smell {think animal pee + cigarette smoke + general dirtiness}. And the stains, oh the stains. There were so many pee stains throughout the house, I really don’t know where one stain started and stopped. THEY WERE EVERYWHERE! And the real kicker…. they left the house full of their crap. couches, tables, old electronics, kitchen stuff, trash, you name it.

Needless to say, we had to change our plans and push back our move in date. Brian and my parents worked together to clear the house of their junk, remove the carpet {which allowed us to uncover wonderful hardwoods-hooray}, paint, and disinfect every square inch. Finley’s room was by far the worst in terms of smell. There were pee stains all over the walls, and nicotine crusted in the blinds. Thankfully, the smell is almost gone and she’s not commenting on it anymore. 

The transformation that took place in a week is just crazy. It’s like a completely different house. We are so thankful to my parents who have worked so hard to make this home a nice place for us. My dad gave up his vacation, and took another week off to get this house in order, inside and out. And my mom has been so helpful watching the girls, helping unpack and organize, doing our laundry for us {we are without a washer/dryer for a bit, and i had no idea how awful it would be}. Basically, they are awesome and we are EXTREMELY grateful.

And of course to my husband, too. He unloaded our moving truck and then left immediately to stay the week at our old place getting it ready for the people moving in this weekend. He hasn’t slept in two weeks, and i’ve never heard him so exhausted. We miss you babe, and I promise to let you sleep in all weekend {although i can’t say the same for Finley-she really misses her daddy}.

On Sunday night, I left the girls with my mom and took off for a baby shower. I was feeling so overwhelmed by the house full of stuff {and no husband around}, but most troublesome was the fact that none of us had beds for that night. On my way home, I got a call from my mom telling me that a bunch of family and friends had stopped by. People were unloading, unpacking, and most importantly someone had set up our beds {sheets, blankets and everything}! I just started crying, thanking God for all the people who love us so well. You know who you are, thank you. You have no idea how much it meant to us.

We’ve been settling in all week. I’m slowly making progress on the gazillion boxes we have. I was curious how finley would react the moving, the change of it all, waking up in a new room, etc. She’s done great! Both girls seem very happy here…we all are.

Here’s what we’re loving so far:
:: the location {great commute for Brian, close to family, close to a town with all the essentials}
:: the paved, flat, 6 mile trail that is across from our house
:: the layout of the house. the fact that the playroom is centrally located so no matter where i am, i’m near the girls
:: the big fenced in back yard
:: the large dining room {we finally have room to fit our entire dining set, plus a buffet, and extra storage thingy}

With all our focus being on renovating, and moving, I’ve hardly remembered that tomorrow is the big day that we find out if we’ll be welcoming a baby boy or girl. I still think it’s a boy. So does Finley, and she insists that we’ll call him doofy. Last night during our prayers she reminded me, “don’t forget to pray for doofy”. Could she have come up with a more hideous name? Ha, I love her.

We aren’t entirely sure, if this will be our last child. I would love more. But, 4 c-sections is risky and controversial. I joke that unless Brian gets snipped, we’ll probably have a 4th. Two out of our three have been ‘surprises’. Anywho, perhaps because this could be our last, a teensy weensy part of me has thought about not finding out the sex. Brian wants to, and I mostly do too, but we’ll see what happens over the next 24 hours…