Homeless
Ok that is a super dramatic title for a not-so-dramatic situation.
I've been dying to start blogging again since I have lots of free time (being homeless does have it's perks--no cleaning!!). But our internet here is from the stone age and it takes about 15 minutes to load each picture. I suppose I could blog our cross-country adventure without pictures but honestly I know 99 percent of you come here to see photos of the Little Guy. So until we get a little better internet this will have to do.
We've been in Washington for 10 days. That doesn't seem like that long but it kind of seems like forever. We left "home" on July 20th. We traveled through 12 states and drove over 4000 miles. Major props to the almost 1 year old because he was amazing with a capital A!! We had some LONG days in the car and he was so fun and happy the whole way. He learned to wave early in the trip so he would wave to us often from the back seat.
We decided to press on from Butte, MT the last day and did a 12+ hour trip. We made it to Tacoma on Tuesday the second and were so thankful to be welcomed in to the home of our friends Chris, Ali and Emilja. It was amazing to be that far from "home" but still have a taste of it as soon as we arrived. We spent a couple of hours catching up and getting a quick tutorial from Ali about where to look for houses in the area.
Wednesday we got up bright and early (thanks to you know who) and started our search. I have to admit my attitude wasn't very good that day. I hated everything we saw. Houses didn't look like they did at home. Everything seemed too spread a part. I didn't like any of the backyards. Nothing looked like "home".
We checked into our TLF (Temporary Living Facility for those of you not TLA(three letter acronym) saavy) that evening and I checked my attitude as well. I prayed that God would give us the perfect house and me a better attitude.
For those not familiar with temporary housing I'll tell you a little bit about it. It's basically like staying in a 1 bedroom apartment that is fully furnished. We have a washer-dryer, small kitchen with basic cooking supplies and a small living room with a desk and the stone-age internet service. It's free for the first 10 days AND we get free breakfast. Score!!
On Tuesday we went to look at my "dream house". I'd come across this house at least 4 months ago on a website and fallen in love with it. One of my friends in the area checked it out for me and sent me pictures. I was sure it was perfect for us. We went to our appointment and as soon as I drove onto the street I just knew the house wasn't for us. I'm not sure why but I just didn't have the "this is our home" feeling.
I had been checking Craigslist all day and found an ad for a 2 bedroom home in the North Tacoma area. I knew from Ali's tutorial that it was in the perfect area. I have to be honest the word "hot tub" really got me looking at the ad because we weren't interested in living in a 2 bedroom home. But after reading it I became really excited about the potential. The owner emailed me some pictures and we left the "dream house" and drove to our appointment for the "hot tub" house.
As soon as we drove up I started to freak out a little bit. I loved it already. I wanted it already. 10 feet from the front door you look out and can see Puget Sound. The front has a huge porch. I was in love!!
We walked in and it kept getting better and better. It had everything I was looking for in a house. A fence. A porch. A Coat closet. Granite countertops. A utility sink in the laundry room. Hardwood floors. A built-in bookcase!! A view of the water from the upstairs bedrooms. Wait what? That wasn't on my list! But it sure was a nice bonus!!
I emailed the owner almost immediately after we left and told him we wanted the house. We signed the lease the next afternoon. Not only is it wonderful but it is 500 dollars less a month than what we would have been paying for the "dream house". It is also close enough to walk to the water, a huge park, coffee shops, restaurants, the market and only 2 miles from our friends! Storytime at the library here we come!!
The only downside to our house is not being able to move in for another couple of weeks. We're getting a little tired of the temporary and all three of us sharing a bedroom! But we are so thankful for the blessing of good friends and a new house! What an awesome way to see how God has provided for us!!
Bear will be joining us out here on the West Coast on Tuesday. We have more gracious friends who have been watching him in Charleston and will help us out here as well. It isn't often you move thousands of miles from home and have people taking care of you and supporting you the way we have. We are so so thankful!!
Once we move in you'll be flooded with updates, pictures of bison, mountain flowers, water views and Stafford galore. Until then I'll keep being thankful!!
I've been dying to start blogging again since I have lots of free time (being homeless does have it's perks--no cleaning!!). But our internet here is from the stone age and it takes about 15 minutes to load each picture. I suppose I could blog our cross-country adventure without pictures but honestly I know 99 percent of you come here to see photos of the Little Guy. So until we get a little better internet this will have to do.
We've been in Washington for 10 days. That doesn't seem like that long but it kind of seems like forever. We left "home" on July 20th. We traveled through 12 states and drove over 4000 miles. Major props to the almost 1 year old because he was amazing with a capital A!! We had some LONG days in the car and he was so fun and happy the whole way. He learned to wave early in the trip so he would wave to us often from the back seat.
We decided to press on from Butte, MT the last day and did a 12+ hour trip. We made it to Tacoma on Tuesday the second and were so thankful to be welcomed in to the home of our friends Chris, Ali and Emilja. It was amazing to be that far from "home" but still have a taste of it as soon as we arrived. We spent a couple of hours catching up and getting a quick tutorial from Ali about where to look for houses in the area.
Wednesday we got up bright and early (thanks to you know who) and started our search. I have to admit my attitude wasn't very good that day. I hated everything we saw. Houses didn't look like they did at home. Everything seemed too spread a part. I didn't like any of the backyards. Nothing looked like "home".
We checked into our TLF (Temporary Living Facility for those of you not TLA(three letter acronym) saavy) that evening and I checked my attitude as well. I prayed that God would give us the perfect house and me a better attitude.
For those not familiar with temporary housing I'll tell you a little bit about it. It's basically like staying in a 1 bedroom apartment that is fully furnished. We have a washer-dryer, small kitchen with basic cooking supplies and a small living room with a desk and the stone-age internet service. It's free for the first 10 days AND we get free breakfast. Score!!
On Tuesday we went to look at my "dream house". I'd come across this house at least 4 months ago on a website and fallen in love with it. One of my friends in the area checked it out for me and sent me pictures. I was sure it was perfect for us. We went to our appointment and as soon as I drove onto the street I just knew the house wasn't for us. I'm not sure why but I just didn't have the "this is our home" feeling.
I had been checking Craigslist all day and found an ad for a 2 bedroom home in the North Tacoma area. I knew from Ali's tutorial that it was in the perfect area. I have to be honest the word "hot tub" really got me looking at the ad because we weren't interested in living in a 2 bedroom home. But after reading it I became really excited about the potential. The owner emailed me some pictures and we left the "dream house" and drove to our appointment for the "hot tub" house.
As soon as we drove up I started to freak out a little bit. I loved it already. I wanted it already. 10 feet from the front door you look out and can see Puget Sound. The front has a huge porch. I was in love!!
We walked in and it kept getting better and better. It had everything I was looking for in a house. A fence. A porch. A Coat closet. Granite countertops. A utility sink in the laundry room. Hardwood floors. A built-in bookcase!! A view of the water from the upstairs bedrooms. Wait what? That wasn't on my list! But it sure was a nice bonus!!
I emailed the owner almost immediately after we left and told him we wanted the house. We signed the lease the next afternoon. Not only is it wonderful but it is 500 dollars less a month than what we would have been paying for the "dream house". It is also close enough to walk to the water, a huge park, coffee shops, restaurants, the market and only 2 miles from our friends! Storytime at the library here we come!!
The only downside to our house is not being able to move in for another couple of weeks. We're getting a little tired of the temporary and all three of us sharing a bedroom! But we are so thankful for the blessing of good friends and a new house! What an awesome way to see how God has provided for us!!
Bear will be joining us out here on the West Coast on Tuesday. We have more gracious friends who have been watching him in Charleston and will help us out here as well. It isn't often you move thousands of miles from home and have people taking care of you and supporting you the way we have. We are so so thankful!!
Once we move in you'll be flooded with updates, pictures of bison, mountain flowers, water views and Stafford galore. Until then I'll keep being thankful!!
Our North Tacoma Cottage
Um, gorgeous. Can we trade places?! That way we can both be closer to home. ; )
ReplyDeleteIt's beautiful! :)
ReplyDeleteSuper cute house!!
ReplyDeleteGreat news, Laura! We know the number is 3310 but what is the street name? Is someone living there now or are they repainting for you? Did you lease your old place in N. Charleston? Keep in touch!!! Miss you.
ReplyDelete