We feel so blessed to call Texas home. I really do feel like Heavenly Father has opened one door after another for us and here we are!
Landon had his job offer with Exxon clear back in October, but had to finish school ALL the way before he could start work. Graduation was in December and then he had a 1.5 online credit class to take that was only offered in the Spring. Though it would have been nice to receive an income sooner (it was a super easy class and he could have taken it while working if they would have let him); we enjoyed the extra time with our families before moving away! I thought of every sewing project my mom could help me with and made sure Capri got to spend time with Grandma Shirley, Grandpa Greg, & Great Grandma Garrett. We made visits to my Stuart Grandparents, had a Friend party, and spent time hanging around Landon's parents trying to be more helpful than in the way :) We miss these monkeys like crazy and I almost cry thinking about what we are missing. Kids grow up way too fast.
I actually came out by myself to house hunt. A lot of trust on Landon's part! We really wanted to get into a house which is difficult to do when you've been in graduate school for 2 years prior and have been spending money not earning. Between our tax return and relocation lump sum we figured out a way to do it all without borrowing money from family. To save a little extra money I came out by myself and Landon stayed home with Capri (and got paid to babysit by Exxon). I had been looking at houses for weeks online before coming and was prepared with my list, but the day before I got there and the day of, 6 out of the 10 houses on my list went off the market... what?! Two of the remaining went off the market after I looked at them, crazy. To make my week of house hunting story short (because I'm sure everyone has ups and downs with their search they could write a story about), I was feeling pretty discouraged with the selection and a little frustrated with my bran new real estate agent. I decided to drive around by myself near the new Exxon campus being built. I drove right into our current neighborhood and thought, "this is it." I searched my phone for any listings in that neighborhood, found our house, made an appointment to see it for the next morning before I left to the airport, liked it, and submitted an offer. I got a call the following Monday telling me someone else made an offer the same day and because they were putting more than 50% down, they were just going to go with the other offer. Why couldn't we counter-offer? Noooo. Wait?! That was the house!!
So we made plans to move to a hotel near downtown Houston, put our belongings in another storage unit and figure out housing stuff once we got there, bummer. A few weeks later we were loading the moving truck I got a phone call from my agent- "Do you still want that house? The remaining financing didn't go through with the other offer and they are willing to accept yours." YAY! We still ended up staying in a hotel for 30 days while we waiting for everything to process, but it all worked out. Living in a hotel for the first two weeks was fun, but I wouldn't recommend it for a month.
So here's our cute red brick house
There are plenty of projects, but nothing major that we can't live with until we get there... one at a time. I'll post pictures as we redo along the way, I only have a few on the computer right now. We are only 1.5 miles from the
new Exxon Campus. It's the biggest construction project in all of North America and will be done in about a year and a half. If the cranes weren't so tall you wouldn't even know there was something going on because it's all hidden by trees. Landon is currently commuting downtown which adds and extra 2.5 hours to his day, but we hope it will all be worth it in the end when he can walk or bike to work!
Landon's office downtown Houston on the 37th story is pretty cool for now
We are all settled in and stay busy (how could you not with Capri?!) The wallpaper is finally down in three bathrooms which was a nightmare I'll have to post about later. Our front yard has been sodded and like I said, one project at a time. Capri loves having space to play inside and in the backyard. There is a park and community pool at the end of our street we have been visiting regularly. I used to think "when we have our own house it will be so clean." It does get picked up and cleaned several times a day, but it's difficult to keep it that way. I've definitely had to relax and enjoy this phase of life. It really is so fun! I feel extremely lucky and blessed to be able to stay home with Capri. Even though we read books all day, go on outings, do sensory activities, and she is my shopping, cleaning, and cooking partner in crime- I wonder if I do enough to keep her stimulated and feed her eagerness to learn. I do know that no one could possibly love her as much as I do (okay, maybe Landon) and that's what really matters!
Sweet house warming gifts/ a little girl in the way of movers
Her own spaces to play/ A nursery that has cute potential with some paint, rug, & decor
Feeling loved with a package from family /the spot where she blows kisses down to the other parent and says "na night" before heading off to bed. It's part of her bedtime routine and is so cute that she does it on her own now.
We've already had lots of fun adventures here in Texas that we hope to post about and keep our family and friends in our daily lives. We have two extra bedrooms, if anyone wants to come stay I promise to make you breakfast in bed and warm your bath towel in the dryer. We do miss family terribly but feel so excited, blessed, and happy to be here in Texas!
