Christmas with the Amies

Some new friends. His train stool.

First glimpse of the train on Christmas morning. Big hit.

"Choo choo!"

Some new books.

I really like wrapping presents.

Tree

Owen had just as much fun decorating the tree.

He really liked the strands of beads.

And the glittery bulbs. He only broke one and pulled the hooks out of five or six... :/

Lights... I love this picture. It sums up his awe of all things Christmas.

Decorating.

Helping Daddy with the bulbs.

Decorating Frank.

House stuff.

So, I don't want to get too excited yet, but promising things are happening with the house.

About three weeks ago, my realtor called me out of the blue (we hadn't had anyone look at the apartment for at least a month). He wanted to let me know he wasn't giving up and eventually we would get our apartment sold. In that same phone conversation, he mentioned a house he just listed for someone that he thought we might like. He said it was extremely well cared for, reasonably priced, the right size for us and had a large lot.

I told him that I didn't want to look at any more houses until we had someone interested in our apartment, because we have technically lost two houses. The first in Warwood, where we had the contract, the close date, the inspection, appraisal, etc. I had even bought some new curtains. Then our buyer backed out. The second was not so involved. We made the offer, she accepted, and then changed her mind because she wasn't comfortable with the contingencies.

So, by complete coincidence, my realtor called again a few days later saying someone wanted to look at our apartment on Sunday. We said fine, if someone was looking at ours, we would look at a few as well. (We have looked at maybe 25 houses by now...)

Long story short, the first house we looked at that day, the house he had told me about, is, in a word, perfect. As soon as we got out of the car, Clint loved it, which is rather aggressive for Clint, as he is the mild mannered and reserved one of the two of us. It's a newer house, (built in 1969, which is about 50-60 years newer than houses I typically like) it's in North Park, where we have lived before (renting when we first got married), three bedrooms, two bathrooms, rec room/play room, remodled kitchen, two car garage, covered back porch, adjacent lot included in the purchase, beautiful refinished hardwood floors, lots of closet space, it's on a flat cul de sac with only two other houses, it has a large driveway, perfect for a basketball hoop in a few years... I think Clint was ready to sign that day. Of course, we were reserved, waiting to find out about our apartment.

Apparently, the couple looking at our apartment really liked what they saw, had spoken with the co-op president, and wanted to come back with their contractor to price a new kitchen. We were thrilled. It had been so long since anyone was interested, and this happens right out of the blue. So, they planned to come look at it again on Black Friday. The requested parking information, and the bylaws of the co-op association. They told my realtor they would get back to him soon. My realtor is convinced they are extremely serious. Which made me feel comfortable with the following.

Last Sunday, anticipating this couple making an offer on our house, and us wanting to make an offer on the North Park house, we drafted a contract to be submitted once we had an offer on the apartment. We wanted to be prepared, and catching us through the week can be tricky. Tuesday my realtor told me that someone had looked at the same house on Sunday and then were planning to go back Tuesday afternoon. We agreed we didn't want to take any risks, and were willing to lose the front end money over losing the house to someone else, this close to getting an offer on our apartment. I told my realtor to submit our offer, and then held my breath. The next day, he told me our offer was accepted. No counter offer or anything. He agreed to our terms, no questions asked. We have a close date at the end of January. I'm meeting with the bank people on Tuesday, have received preapproval and been provided a good faith estimate. Everything looks great.

Of course, we are still going crazy over whether or not these people are going to make an offer on our apartment. I think at this point, we will accept any offer within reason, as long as it covers our expenses of getting the new house (realtor fees, down payment, etc.). Like I said, my realtor is very confident, and he knows the seller pretty well. He said that if we needed to extend the close date, he feels confident that the seller would be comfortable with that. He feels the couple interested in our apartment is just taking their time (you mean people don't rush through buying a house?) and reviewing the bylaws and all that. My realtor said someone else contacted him about the apartment, someone moving to the area mid December (which is already very close).

We are still nervous as hell, but this all feels right. The house is literally perfect for us. The finance end of it looks good. I'm not going to worry yet.

Here's a couple of pictures from the realtor's website. Everyone cross your fingers and keep us in your prayers. We deserve a break!

The missing months, in pictures.

Polar bear vest.
Bubbles.

The Wares + bubbles.

Hiding behind Daddy.

My sister in law, Tricia.

Foot.

Watching the big kids play.

Brave.

The last warm day.

Big yawn.

Reading by himself in his room.

Giggle pants.

Hide and Seek with Daddy.

That's my phone charger.

Tickling the ivories.

I see you, Mama.

My favorite picture of him, ever.

He wanted his privacy.

Still my baby.

First Trick or Treat.

Jean jacket and my mom's siding.

Owen's girlfriend, Charlie.

The hubs.

Owey in the tub.

Good morning.

Pittsburgh Zoo

We finally made it to the Pittsburgh Zoo yesterday and it was a great success. The zoo is clean and beautiful, and it wasn't even that big a deal that it was 90+ degrees. I think I want to go back in a couple of weeks with my mom, since Daddy is going back to work next week. YEA!

The sea lions were awesome. We liked listening to them bark. The baby sea lion came to check out the baby Owen. He actually got more from the animals this time. He was pointing at them and yelling. He "got it."

The kangaroos there were slightly less entertaining than the Kangaroo Senior Portraits at Oglebay, but still cool.

Elephants. There is a baby hiding under one of the bigger ones. It was so cute. They were throwing dirt on themselves to cool off because it was so hot. This silverback gorilla (behind the dude in the orange shirt) was just hanging out staring back at the people staring at him. It was pretty awesome, although the gorilla looks ticked.After an outfit change because it was so hot, we had a carousel ride and decided to head home.

It was necessary to stop at Sarris Chocolate Factory on the way home for a milkshake. Owen finally figured out how to use a straw, and he loved Mama's chocolate and banana shake.

The highlight of the trip, was very obviously the polar bear. We were walking under a glass tunnel looking at the sharks, when we realized we were now under the polar bear exhibit. Clint and I were quietly praying that the polar bear, Owen's favorite thing in the world, would make an appearance in the water. After only a couple minutes, he jumped down in the water and started swimming above us. It was so amazing. Owen immediately recognized what it was and started yelling at him and pointing. I managed to get a pretty decent video. This was a few minutes after he came down into the water. Owen is yelling at him and talking almost the entire time. And if you will notice, he's also holding HIS polar bear. I am pretty sure he loved it.

And the trip was all the more awesome because we went up in my new car! :) Last week, I ended up getting a 2010 graphite-colored 4-door Civic. It had 21 miles on it when I bought it. Now it has 350. I love it love it love it.