Settling In...

Well we're here! It's been a long couple of days but we are pretty much moved in. There are still about a hundred boxes in the garage but all the furniture is in, the kitchen is mostly unpacked and it's starting to sink in that is really our HOME! I still can't believe how gorgeous it is here, the view out every window looks like something that you'd see on a post card. The weather is really nice, no humidity (yeah!!) and it has been in the 60's-70's during the day and 40's at night - which means cozy warm pj's, fires in the fireplace and lots of warm blankets in bed. I LOVE it when it is cool at night. The new furniture we bought looks really nice in here and I can't wait till we start with all the improvement/remodeling projects we have planned. It's going to look amazing when we are finished and hopefully will be worth a lot more than we bought it for. There is so much potential here, it is so exciting. Kevin, my dad and I stayed up last night talking about all the ways we can improve the house. The lot, the view and the location are phenominal, we just need to get the house to be as awesome as well, which will be fairly easy to do with just a little work. The house is nice as it is but just needs to be updated (counter tops, paint, fixtures) and some strategic placement of more windows to bring in the view. Wood floors and new deck will also really make it nice. It's insane that $300K buys you a "fixer upper" out here, although I think when we are done with it, it will be worth a LOT more. I'm really happy and excited with the investment potential of this place. Besides that, it will be an amazing place to live!

Kobe is having a bit of a hard time with all the changes, he has been really clingy and whiny and wants to nurse all the time like he did when he was a baby. He seems to be a little better today and is actually walking around exploring and playing. I think it's just going to take him a while to adjust, he's been through so many changes the past few months, poor little guy! He is really starting to talk and sign a lot now too. He has been able to understand pretty much everything for a while now. You can ask him to do pretty much anything (put something away, go get something, ect.) and he'll do it. But all of the sudden he is finally starting to really use words himself. He's saying new words everyday but as of today he can say: mama, dada, grama (ama), grampa (gapa), nana, bye-bye, bath (he signs for this too - ALL the time, he loves baths!), back (like put something back), that (while pointing at something), dog, box (can you tell we've been moving?! lol) hi, hat, ball, milk and he still clucks his tongue when he wants something to eat. The signs he uses are: bath, bye, dog, swing, baby, eat, drink, more and milk. I haven't really worked with him that much on the signing, he seems to pick it up pretty quickly and it is adorable to watch him do it so I think I'll break out the sign language books and videos and teach him some more. He's got 8 teeth and working on his molars, he's also walking really well now and even does a half walk/ half run thing, it's so cute. He's a full fledged toddler now, but still likes to curl up in my arms to nurse and play with my hair, then he gets to be my baby again for a little while. :) I am so glad I am still nursing him, over the past week it has helped him deal with being sick, flying and adjusting to a new home SO much. I know I'll probably wean soon but I've really enjoyed still being able to offer him that comfort and nutrition when he's needed it lately.

Katie is really enjoying the new house, she decided while we were moving stuff in that she now wants the queen size guest bed so now I need to get her new bedding to match her room. I like her having the bigger bed, she is such a wild sleeper she needs the room to roll around and it makes it much easier to lay down with her to read bedtime stories. She has her first horseback riding lesson today and she is BEYOND elated. She is going to take weekly lessons until her summer horse camp starts at the end of the month. She is also going to a drama camp at the local theatre, it starts on Monday. I really want her to get out there and start meeting other kids and being active. She is super excited and has been really happy about being here. She loves playing outside with Lily (who has blown us all away by turning into an AMAZING dog!) and loves to climb boulders and play in the stream. I think this is going to be really great for her to grow up in such a natural, beautiful place.

Oh I almost forgot to mention, we just discovered that there is a huge brand new grocery store, a Jamba Juice, a Chili's, a Starbucks and whole brand new shopping strip less than 5 miles from our house!! How awesome is that?! We literally have the best of both worlds. All the beauty and serenity of the mountains and all the conveniences of the city without the traffic, pollution and crime. Everyone out here is really friendly also, it reminds me a lot of Texas. Oh and there is a little silver fox that comes and drinks from our stream everyday. :) I'm going to have to dig my camera out from one of the boxes and start taking pictures of all the beautiful wildlife in our backyard.