new. home.

So there it is....we are moving to Clover, South Carolina.  It's a little town in the Charlotte, North Carolina metro area.  So...that means that Ingrid (email me as soon as possible!) was the first to guess the closest to where we are moving.  She wins a $100 IKEA gift certificate!! 

THIS IS OUR HOUSE.

Yes...this really is our house.  We're moving to a piece of dirt.  It's so strange the life works, the way it moves, and the way it does something that is completely unexpected.  As many of you know, because you've been following our home search, we looked at a lot of homes.  You voted and gave us wonderful thoughts, advice, suggestions and so much more.  We appreciate it immensely! 

I went out to North Carolina pretty convinced that we would, by a miracle of some kind, be able to find my dream house (the 100 year old renovated home in a great neighborhood with fabulous schools).  Every old home we looked at was in a delapidated neighborhood with schools that were even worse.  Needless to say I was pretty disappointed to walk away from those homes.  I also knew that I didn't want my kids to go to schools that were ranking 1 and 2 out of 10 on test scores.  It was a difficult decision but one I knew I had to make for the future of my kids' education.

That decision left us with 5 homes...one of them was my absolute fave but was way too far out of our price range.  It goes without saying that the seller couldn't meet what we were able to pay.  Of the other two homes one went under contract the day before we decided that it was on our finals list and the third home was going to have a freeway built next to it.  Huge bummer.  I was feeling pretty discouraged at that point knowing we had less than 48 hours left to figure this house thing out.  We only had two homes left on our list.  We knew that one of them could work and the other one we had remembered was too small.  Neither of them felt like THE home when we had walked into them.  We were hoping on a second walk through one of them would feel like the one. 

I went out to North Carolina really believing that I would walk into a home and would just love the one that we needed to move into.  I'd hoped I would feel really good about at a home and all other homes would pale in comparison.  Was that too much to ask?

At that point on Saturday morning I hadn't felt really good about a house except about the home that was beyond what would could afford.  We went to the leftover two houses on our list.  I went into the first house and we talked and talked as we walked through it.  We discussed every detail of how we could fit into this home.  It was beautiful and open and I was almost talked into it...until we walked out in to the back yard.  Then I didn't like the house.  The yard was close to other neighbors and didn't have one single mature tree in the yard, no fence, no porch...nothing.  I also had it in my mind that I was moving from Utah where I couldn't get hardly any trees to grow in my yard to a yard that would have an enormous amount of gorgeous trees.  Big strike against that house.

We drove down the lane to a brand new house.  We walked around the lot and it was gorgeous!  There was a grove of trees behind the house the led into a green space area (we don't have those in Utah...they are places that they zone for leaving green and undeveloped...ever).  We LOVED the lot.  Although this had happened a number of times.  We would find a gorgeous lot only to walk into the house and have it be way too small or way too trashed.  Or vice versa...a gorgeous home on a lame lot.

We held our breath as we went into the brand new home.  It was beautiful and the details were so nice!  It wasn't big enough!  Huge bummer.  We went back outside and walked around, saw that the other lot was for sale and hoped it had the same builder.  We looked at one last home that our amazing realtor set up for us (she was quite the patient person taking us around on a whirlwind tour of homes in the area...Nicolette Wiggham.)  As we sat in the sunroom of the next home totally disappointed that yet again it was a house that was not big enough for our family we finally smiled.  We had just spoken with the builder of the brand new house.  He had said that he was planning to build on the other lot, didn't have a buyer for the property, and was just starting the plans.  We were so excited.  He had answered a lot of our questions.  We talked about the possibiliites and finally felt like we had found THE house...we just never walked through it.  We are so excited to be working with Matt Swyt of Alluring homes.  He's a custom builder who does beautiful work.  We can't wait to get the ball rolling with him.  We've aleady been talking about the plans for the house and were thrilled to have found a 1/2 an acre of yard for our kids that opens up into wild land (check out the view that we'll have from our future bathroom).  We finally found something that will work on all fronts. 

When we went to check out the schools for the kids and the church we'll be going to it just confirmed to us that Clover, SC is the place for our family. 

The school that the girls will go to has a class size of 20 or less, they get the option at lunch time to eat in the cafeteria (can you believe how awesome their cafeteria is?  mine didn't look like that when I was growing up!) or outside, the technology in the classroom was amazing, the principal knew every person and child that we passed in the hallway during our tour, the teachers are wonderful, and so much more!

Emmett's school has a gifted and talented program at the school (currently we drive him to a school 20 minutes away for his program), it has band, choir (that has won state for three years running), a science club, lego team, newspaper, and photography club.  They have art every week (they don't have art at all here in Utah) and music every week.  There are so many exciting things about this adventure.

The skies were dramatic and pretty while we were there and I couldn't stop taking  pictures of them.  It's incredibly green and just driving down the road is an experience in nature. 

We are going to miss Utah very much.  We have so many people here that mean so much to us and who have cared deeply about us.  To you, please know that we cherish and treasure the blessing that you are (and will hopefully continue to be even though miles will separate us...) to us.  We have been so blessed by your lives and by your hearts.

adventure. LIFE.

By Thursday I'll be announcing the winner of the where-am-I-moving-to-contest!!  I'll also be posting the house we've chosen and the exact location of where we'll be living!  Stay tuned!

exciting. LIFE.

Hey Everybody!  So sorry I missed posting yesterday.  We were meeting with the principals of the schools that our kids are going to go to, our builder for our new home, and catching our plane...which we ended up missing our connecting flight in Atlanta!  So we stayed late, last night in Atlanta....ugh...no clothes...no luggage...

So!  Being on a house hunting trip it was pretty hard to stay consistent in my workout.  We were up early and out late every day looking at houses.  It was a crazy six days!  I got to exercise a few of the days and then other days just fell into bed.  I'm not giving up though and neither should you. Tonight I'm going to go out and walk (I was up at 5:30am to catch my flight....although I could probably count all of the walking in airports I've done in the last two days as exercise! lol.) and I'm still leaving food on my plate and taking smaller portions. 

My tidbit for this week is DON'T GIVE UP.  If you've missed a few days...it doesn't matter!!!  Just get out there tonight and take a walk, eat less for dinner, pass on the dessert except for that little spoonful.  Remember!  You want to feel better.  You want to eat better.  You want to feel strong.  You want to be happier.  You can do this!

live. LIFE.

***remember to check in here in the comments and tell me how you did this week!***

laugh.

After a very hectic and long day for Tiffany and Sam we finally go to spend some down time together.  I had wanted to meet them for quite a while and we had so much fun when we got together even though we mainly just laughed and talked together.  Tiffany and Sam love to go to the Gateway and the planetarium.  Tiffany and Sam love to laugh.  I think they can have a great time together no matter what they do. 

funny. LIFE.

This is a new poll!

HOUSE #1

**WE JUST FOUND OUT THIS HOUSE HAS A FREEWAY GOING IN NEXT TO IT***

Hardwoods are in the entry, front room, and kitchen/eat in dining room of this house.  There is a really big family room on the main level.  Upstairs there is a big enough room that we could put all of the girls into and use the 4th bedroom for an art/playroom.  There are some big closets in this house and a ledge in the garage for storage.  The master suite bathroom is nice.  The kitchen is white and open.  The yard is big, it does have only one tree in the whole place.  We have no idea what these schools are like.  We're hoping to find out in the next couple of days.

HOUSE #2

***WE FOUND OUT TODAY THAT THIS HOUSE JUST WENT UNDER CONTRACT YESTERDAY WITH SOMEONE ELSE.***

This house is really big.  It's close to 3000 square feet.  It has all of the bedrooms upstairs, a really nice master suite, and big enough bedrooms for the kids so that we could still have an artroom/playroom.  The kitchen is nice and open and there are hardwoods on the entry level.  It has a 1/2 way finished basement (sheetrock and wiring) that has two rooms.  The yard is not huge but there is a creek running through the back of it that opens into a green/common area.  It has a cul de sac for the kids to ride their bikes.  It also has a big storage room on the back of the house that could store all kinds of stuff.

HOUSE #3 

(we adore this house.  it is out of our price range, though.  we're planning to talk to the owner with our real estate agent tomorrow.  we're planning that this house will be out of the running by tomorrow evening as much as we wish it could be the winner.  it is our favorite home.)

***THE SELLER ON THIS HOUSE CAN'T MEET OUR PRICE.***

Very open.  This house has really high ceilings and is very open.  It has a loft are with a sitting room between two rooms that would be perfect for reading and an art/playroom.  The master suite is huge and beautiful with all kinds of closet space.  This house has a lot of storage space.  There is a big screened in porch and a deck. The yard is a 1/2 an acre and there's a place on the driveway for a basketball hoop.  The kitchen has been painted so that it's really nice and light.  The garage is very big.  There is a garden out back and an herb garden by the kitchen door.  This house is move in ready.  Absolutely no work to move in or even after we move in.

House #4  

This house is pretty big.  It's very open and has a really big kitchen and lots of storage space.  The closets are big in every room.  The master bedroom is gorgeous, large, and has two extra large closets.  The master bath is beautiful and big, too.  There are two living areas.  There is a bedroom big enough for the girls to be in the same room and have the 4th bedroom as an art/playroom.  The backyard doesn't have any mature trees and doesn't have a very big patio.  The yard is pretty big and none of the neighbors are too close so there is some privacy even though it's in a subdivision.  It's on a cul de sac road.  One of the best elementary schools is within walking distance.  The best school district in the area.

 

 

 

HOUSE # 5

 

Brand new home on a pretty nice almost 1/2 acre lot.  Hardwoods go through the entry of this house.  The kitchen is open with a bar and has really nice cabinets.  The laundry is upstairs.  We would have to use all of the rooms upstairs as bedrooms.  There are two living areas downstairs and we'd need to use one of them as an art/playroom.  The backyard is beautiful with a forest on most of it.  This house would take some creativity to make it work for our family.  We'll be talking to the builder tomorrow to see about building a home with them with a little bit more space.;

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have been looking at houses like crazy for the last two days...yesterday on no sleep and no shower...ugh.  My dream home is to have a 100 year old house with updated plumbing and electrical, hardwood floors through out, and charm through the roof.  Unfortunately, everything we've looked at is in extremely run down neighborhoods with schools that barely rank in the nation.  Huge bummer for me...

What we're looking for in a house:  Great schools.  I would love hardwood floors through out.  Nice sized bedrooms.  Large yard and lots and lots of trees (we have NO trees in Utah...there's a hint for you...).  We would like for it to be ready to move in but are not completely against having to do some remodeling...mainly only paint and carpet.  Great schools.  The kids want a pool (but we'll settle for a community pool).  Plenty of living space and lots of storage (for those hand me down clothes and Christmas decor, etc.)  We would also like to have room for an art room.

These are some houses that may be in the running.  (After you vote feel free to leave us comments here on the blog to explain your choice in the poll if you want to...we are totally going to be checking this to see what you think!)  The first house is in the very best schools in the area.  The rest are in good schools.  The first house also has the lowest taxes.  The rest of them have pretty high taxes (which from what I understand of this area is a huge hint!)

Vote on your favorite!

HOUSE #1

This house is really big.  It's close to 3000 square feet.  It has all of the bedrooms upstairs, a really nice master suite, and big enough bedrooms for the kids so that we could still have an artroom/playroom.  The kitchen is nice and open and there are hardwoods on the entry level.  It has a 1/2 way finished basement (sheetrock and wiring) that has two rooms.  The yard is not huge but there is a creek running through the back of it that opens into a green/common area.  It has a cul de sac for the kids to ride their bikes.  It also has a big storage room on the back of the house that could store all kinds of stuff.

HOUSE #2

This house is on a corner lot to the entry of a subdivision.  It has a ginormous master suite that is gorgeous.  The house is on a postage stamp yard and there are not that many trees except for the professional landscaping.  There isn't a whole lot of storage but there is a 5th bedroom that we could use in a variety of different ways.  The floor plan is pretty open and it is on a culdesac for the kids to ride bikes.

HOUSE #3

This house has an amazing backyard.  The patio on the back is huge with 1/2 of it covered.  It has a great workshop/shed in the back and lots of beautiful shade trees.   It's a big yard.  The house is pretty big with a nice big kitchen.  They've done something funky with the garage and put down a commercial piece of carpet and use it for a family room and moved the washer and dryer out there.  They also made a bathroom right as you come in the garage door from the garage into the house...I mean if you open the door you'll see someone going pee in the bathroom.  Very strange set up.  We'd want to change the garage back into a garage and figure out something for that weird bathroom.  This house is in a really pretty neighborhood although we kind of like to not live in a subdivision.

HOUSE #4

A pretty busy street runs in front of this house.  It has a pretty yard with a wet season creek running through the back of it.  It also has a really big back porch.  This house is brand new.  It has quite a bit of storage space.  It's three bedrooms with a bonus room which we could use for all kinds of things.  The front yard has not been put in yet.

HOUSE #5

It doesn't look like it but this house has almost 4000 square feet!!  The yard is almost a 1/2 an acre and has a preserve in the backyard so the trees will always stay! yay!  We would have to do some big time work on this house.  The downstairs has blood read carpet and panelling.  We would want to sheetrock, paint, and redo the flooring.  The upstairs has a cute little sunroom off of the kitchen.  The kitchen is big and has lots of counter space.  There is storage space like crazy everywhere.  Upstairs would also need new paint and in places new flooring.  This is not in our favorite schools area but the schools are good.  This house is so big we could move in and remodel as we can (which we would start doing right away....).

HOUSE #6 

Very open.  This house has really high ceilings and is very open.  It has a loft are with a sitting room between two rooms that would be perfect for reading and an art/playroom.  The master suite is huge and beautiful with all kinds of closet space.  This house has a lot of storage space.  There is a big screened in porch and a deck. The yard is a 1/2 an acre and there's a place on the driveway for a basketball hoop.  The kitchen has been painted so that it's really nice and light.  The garage is very big.  There is a garden out back and an herb garden by the kitchen door.  This house is move in ready.  Absolutely no work to move in or even after we move in.

HOUSE #7

Great curb appeal. This house is really pretty from the outside.  It has a lot of hardwood flooring on the first level. It has a dining room, living room, family room, big mud/laundry  room.   Upstairs needs to have new carpeting.  There are only three bedrooms, but they could possible work.  The garage is huge and has some wonderful storage space.  It has a room in the basement that is totally a DIY project.  The kitchen is pretty big but could use some paint and new floor.  The backyard is big...over 1/2 an acre that opens up into green space.  It's gorgeous.  There's a deck on the back that is really nice.  The neighborhood is beautiful and the schools are okay.

So what do you think?  Make sure to go back to the top and vote for your favorite house!

the studio staff.

The other day we had our staff meeting and then went out to lunch together. On our way back from grabbing something to eat I caught a shot of each of the girls who work with me. They are around to help you out while I'm out of town...

Studio Manager: Jessica. Jessica just joined us and has been wonderful from the get-go! She is patient and very knowledgeable. She catches on quickly and she is a doer. I'm so excited to have her working with us. She keeps up a very optimistic and happy attitude.

Accounts Manager: Stefanie. Stef has been manager our records for a while now and I could not ask for someone who is more invested in the state of the studio. She is always thinking big ideas and long term vision. I appreciate her!

Associate Photographer and Second Photographer: Johanna. Johanna is so laid back and sweet and patient. She also works hard to get the image that she wants. There have been many times I've been very happy to see her doing whatever she needs to in order to get the shot. Plus she's just super fun to have around!

great. LIFE.

layover.

This is where we had our layover early, early, early this morning.

new. LIFE.

the prize.

So...I want everyone to be consistent...that's the real goal!  I knew I needed to have a prize that would be consistent so that you every time you saw it you would be reminded of what a great job you're doing of consistently getting off your booty. 

So here are the details for the contest.... 

TO WIN:  The person who is totally consistent at doing 20 minutes of walking 6 days a week, taking smaller portions, leaving some food on your plate, and posting every Monday here on the blog about you progress for one month.

THE PRIZE:  You get a subscription to your two favorite magazines!  (they come to your mailbox consistently every month...  )

This is totally doable and fun!  Stay with me!

fun. LIFE.

it's true.

We're moving.....We're pulling up stakes..... Into the great, wide open.....

Yes.

Really.

This week we go on our house hunting trip. We're getting on a jet plane tomorrow at midnight. I can't believe it.

The adventure in front of us is very exciting. My husband has been offered a new position in a new state and we're sooo looking forward to all of the new experiences and opportunities ahead of us. 

So...over the next week I'll be posting hints about where we're going. As my moving away gift to you, I'll be giving a $100 housewarming gift card to IKEA to the first person that guesses the town and state we're moving to (if you already know this information you are ineligible to play...)

adventure. LIFE.