Margot: 6 Months

Dear Margot,

Today you are six months old.  You have been with us for a half a year already!  I've learned that with you babies, the first year flies by at a truly alarming rate, and I wish time would slow down.  You are so precious to me, and this time is so fleeting.  I already dread the day when I can no longer carry you around the house on my hip, or rock you to sleep, or gaze lovingly down at you while you sleep in my arms.

But enough of the sappy stuff...

You are a marvel, little girl.  You just light up a room with your happiness.  You, my sweet one, are truly happy.

You like to be on the floor.  You are trying to crawl, but aren't quite there, yet.

You aren't quite sitting up by yourself yet, but we can prop you up so you can see the world.

You know, you aren't in a hurry to do much.  You don't yet have teeth (but those two on the bottom are this close), you're not sitting up or crawling, and you don't think too highly of solid foods.  As a matter of fact, you rarely finish a bottle.  You are just content to be in the moment.  You'll just grab whatever is nearby and put it in your mouth.

You're tongue is always sticking out.

And your brother is your favorite person in the wide world.  (He's not too sure of you yet, but I think you're growing on him.)

Everyone you meet just can't help but love you!  Your blue eyes are mesmerizing, your golden strawberry hair always a topic of conversation, and your smile contagious.  You're a beauty.  And you've added immense joy to our family.

Happy half-birthday, my sweet baby girl.

Love,
Mama

This is Happening

SO...for quite some time now, J and I have contemplated moving.  I wrote a post about it here.  Then we decided to work on the current home and stay put for a few years.  I wrote a post about it here.  Then we finished up some major projects and were happy with our space.  I wrote a post about it here.

Broken record much?

Well folks, it seems we have come full circle, because this can currently be seen in my front yard.

That "Coming Soon" sign will be replaced with one that says "For Sale" by the end of the week.

Forgive me if blogging suddenly took a back seat.

The never-ending debate about finding the perfect time to move seems to have come to its conclusion.  The housing market is making its way back.  Home prices and interest rates are on the rise, so we think maybe we should just get while the gettin' is good.  You know, Carpe Diem and all.

I convinced J to just come drive through a new neighborhood with me, and perhaps get out of the car to tour the model home.  And before I knew it, we were writing a check to hold a lot, a lot on which we plan to build the beautiful new home of our dreams.

Then we got home, and reality set in.  We crunched numbers.  Then we crunched some more.  Then we called in the Realtor.  And finally, we kept crunching.  We came to the conclusion that we would give this thing a whirl.

Then madness really set in.  Painting, power washing, and carpet cleaning are all happening in the next few days.  We spent every ounce of the weekend getting the house put together and show-ready.  I will continue to spend every moment of the next few days continuing on this mission (then, God help me, will spend every moment keeping it show-ready until it sells- please pray that happens quickly!).

Fingers crossed that all goes well, and that we will be settling into our forever home in the near future!