Wednesday, September 19, 2012

home sweet home

Since the beginning of July we have been working nonstop trying to complete projects around the house. We started out with an FHA loan but then were able to switch to a conventional one hoping that meant the things that were flagged to be repaired in order for us to get our loan would then be overlooked...this was not the case. This has been the hardest, longest, and most challenging process I've ever experienced. The stuff we started out working on ended up not even being mentioned in the appraisal report so we put that on hold to begin painting the exterior. The hardest part was finding the time to get things done. When we finally got the appraisal report Joel was back in school so we only had nights and weekends to work. Having a baby created another obstacle to work around. One of us had to be caring for her or if we were lucky she'd take a short nap so that we both could frantically work before it got dark. As a result we left the house to come back to our friends', where we are temporarily staying feeling worn out, frustrated, and like there was no end in sight. 
Joel and I are aware of the gift we've been given, to be able to buy a home for half (if not more) of it's value, and in an area we thought it'd take years before we'd get to move to. We can tell the current owner is so ready to be done with all of this as well. He is still paying the bills, going over to turn lights on at night, and taking trash out so it appears as though someone lives there. I don't blame him. I too wish this could be over. Seeing our stuff in the house and completing projects is such a tease. I want so badly to just relax on our freshly painted porch at night. Lay on my couch and watch my tv that hasn't been turned on in three months...such stupid things, I know but when you leave your home every night to sleep somewhere else you begin to realize the kind of things that you take for granted. 
We realized we could not finish things by ourselves so a handful of our friends came over tonight to get it done. Many of them worked for six hours straight, painting trim along our roof and in places I wasn't about to go. I have never known people like this before. In the back of my mind I seriously doubted anyone would show and I began to break down (like I've been doing a lot lately). Why did they have to give up their week night with their family to come help us? They didn't. Thanks to them we got it done and the night before the final appraisal! 
I truly feel a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders. We could not have gotten all that work done by ourselves...we tried. I love our friends and now thanks to them we will someday soon be living within walking distance to them.

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