Is today the day?

Well, we got home in time to have one offer presented to us. It was a much better offer than our realtor thought it would be (good news!), but still lower than we wanted (unfortunate)..... so the counter offer was given. The lady was waiting in the car, and the realtor was waiting on our front step. They were serious, and we seriously considered the offer. After we countered it took the buyers all of about 15 seconds to come in and accept. The one thing Chris and I didn't want was a possesion date of more than 30 days, or to wait for an inspection. We thought that these things would just postpone the actual day of moving forward. Well, her requested date of possesion was October 15 - only 5 weeks away, plus she had an inspection scheduled for tomorrow. TOMORROW! Great. So, once that was taken care of.... we celebrated with a beer! The buyer was actually interested in a few of our items to purchase on the side. She didn't buy much, but it was a good sign that she really wanted this place. Apparently she looked at over 30 homes over the weekend. She was living out of province and was starting a job in Edmonton soon. A good sign for us, and a great deal for her!
Well, we tried to sleep, but morning came soon, and the home inspector was due here at 11am. 10:30 he showed up and started outside. He was very careful not to miss anything, and wrote everything down. EVERYTHING. Chris had a really hard time with this guy walking around looking at our home, writing down little things that aren't perfect and could be different. He actually had to leave for a while it was so over-whelming! He ended up taking the boys to the park for a while, and I stayed here answering questions and trying my best to listen in to their conversation! After an hour or so, the buyer came by to see how things were going. She wanted to see what was wrong, etc. She was leaving on a flight back to her home province around 6pm. Well, the inspection continued and went on and on. Around 4:30 they finally decided to leave. They had heard enough. And I had had enough of people looking around our home. Just buy it or leave I thought. The buyer ended up having 2 issues about our home and asked for some money back. After calling Chris and talking it over, it was decided that we would counter that. It was done and accepted. What? Yes Accepted. We have officially sold our home.

Please understand we are the very most excited that 4 people could be. We are also very very overwhelmed! There are so many more things to be done, but the major item now has a tick beside it. I promise to write more tomorrow, let you know where I am looking to book a flight to, and give more detail as to what we plan to do in Central America. (I've been told that some people have the impression that we are going to sit on the beach until our $$ runs out, Not True! - But I'll explain later!)

For now, Thanks for reading, and we'll be in touch soon. The farewell Party will be soon, and we can't wait to see you all before we head out!

Ciao for Now!

Well, the next moring we were off at around 9am to head to Banff. The drive was so nice. Fresh air and beautiful mountains. Just what I wanted. We were there too early for check in, but just in time for lunch. St.James Gate, a regular stopping place for Chris and I. Callym ever remembered being there from the last time we were there with Isabel and my sister. Delisious food and a pint. Just the way to start a vacation..... Then we went for a stroll. Banff is under a lot of construction right now, it is going to look really nice when done. All the same shops..... and guess what, the candy store is still there (duh). The boys were so so good (many people actually commented on that, as well as them being beautiful - again duh!) So they were allowed 6 candies each. Callym had them all picked out within 4 steps into the shop, but continued to 'trade up' when he found something better to get. Oscar on the other hand needed to be convinced to pick something. We were there forever with him. I would see something I thought he would love and he would say no. After a long time, he found his 6 items. I found a few things too, so did Chris. Our bill was only 40$ so I think we did pretty well. It was still to early for our 4pm check in, so we headed to the hot springs. Ah, so nice and relaxing. Not the place for kids to run around and splash. Sadly they did get in a bit of trouble. Not their fault but ours. After around 30 minutes we were gone and now it was time for the RimRock. The drive up was nice. Situated on the side of the mountain, the views were very nice. The room was very nice too. We had a 25$ room credit, we would use this the next morning for breakfast! We hung out jumping on the beds for a while.... the boys got very good at jumping from one bed to the other. Now it was time for dinner. Oh but wait..... where was my wallet! Ah, the things girls do. Lose their wallet. I looked everywhere. Then I ran back to the hot springs. Thank goodness it was there. I think secretly Chris was wishing that I didn't ever carry a wallet. Dinner was fantastic. Very delish, but as you will see in the pictures.... the Lasagna that Callym and I shared was a little small. Good thing it was filling! We headed back to the hotel, and fell asleep fast. Actually, Chris and I stayed up later and watched the funniest guy on 'just for laughs'... a funny oversized guy talking about eating. SO FUNNY!

The next day we woke up before 9am.... a feat for a holiday. Oscar of course was up after we finished half of the room service breakfast. Yum, I even had a croisant. We started the day with a trip up




Sulfur Mountain on the gondola. This was a wicked wicked trip. The boys loved being on the top of the world. There was snow, and fresh air. The views were better than amazing. We were only there for a little over an hour, but well worth the 50$ ticket! We had a bit of lunch and walked around so more. There is only so much you can do in Banff when you aren't a big hiker or snow sporter. Anyways, we left and decided to come home and see how the open house went. Such a long drive. Many many rest stops were needed, but the boys slept from just outside of Banff to just before Red Deer. That is when we got the call for our awesome realtor Jason. We needed to get home by 730 because an offer was going to be presented to us. Wow, the best way to end our vacation was for this to happen. Actually, there may be 2 offer's for us to consider..... Hum, was this my secret 11;11 wish? Well, if we drove 130 the entire way, we would just make it! On our way home........................................

The weekend contines... #2

After the Zoo we headed to Gina, Paul and Sophia's house for the night. It was too too fantastic to see them. Gina is looking so great, and Sophia is growing like all kids do. She is walking around, talking.... She introduced me to all her little toys, and fed them all her gold-fish snacks. She is absolutly the most gorgeous little princess I have ever seen! I love her, and secretly hope she marries Oscar!

Gina made us the most fabulous dinner, belated birthday cake included! We had a great time hanging out and catching up. I love her so much. We have actually been friends since the age of about 2..... I think we met on Haloween? Correct me if I'm wrong.... Ah, Woodcroft. Paul worked late, a shame really, They are the greatest couple. They have a beautiful relationship and family. I hope all the best of the best for the three of them, and I will miss them so so much when we leave!

Our weekend Trip!

Well, I was right. Chris was sick on Friday. What a way to start our trip..... :) Anyways, Callym had a little time at Nursery School before we left, and while Chris and I finished cleaning for the Open House, and packing. We picked him up early, and he loved that! We left at exactly 11;11, a time in which we made our secret wishes.... Mine was to come home to 2 offers for our home. We'll see.

Anyways, the boys fell asleep between Red Deer and Calgary. That was nice. As soon as we got to Calgary, we headed straight to the Zoo, the weather was looking like it wasn't going to co-operate with an outdoor adventure, but it stayed nice enough. No rain, but our sweaters and jackets came in handy. The tiger had a new cub, and the boys loved that! We saw everything but Chris' favourite.... the Canadian Exibit. Sad, (not really!)




Tigers, Red Pandas, Butterflies, the Tropical Plant area (very interesting, it was all the plants we would see in the rainforest), Elephants, Monkeys, Gorillas, Snakes, Turtles, Bats, Lizards, Pigs, Hogs, Giraffes, Hippos (Callym was 2 feet away.... very cool!), Lions, Zebras, Ostrich, Wort Hogs, Meer Cat eating a swallow, Flamingos, Peacok, Parrots, Flowers, etc. Fantastic! We loved it so so much, and have too many picutres to prove it.

Part 2 Today.....

Ok, sometime between noon and 2pm the sky opened up and blew a big dirty fart on us. WHAT? Well, it did hail here for about 2.5 minutes, but that's not what I'm talking about.

I was in the middle of trying to find a reservation for our mountain trip. Yes, I think this is when it started.... We decided to start at the Calgary Zoo, stay over night with Gina, Paul and Sophia and head off to Banff. From there we would hang out for a bit and cruise to Jasper. See the sites, the mountains, the animals, the waterfalls, etc. Anything. Then stay in Jasper overnight and head home for Sunday. (Carol, Lyle and the boys weren't able to make it to Radium, there is not much to do without some buddies to hangout with...)

Well, Jasper is booked. The entire town of Jasper is completly booked - save for a 1 double bed bedroom with shared washroom???? WHAT??? OK, so a slight change of plans. I tried Banff, and the only 2 hotels that had rooms were - one that was 20 minutes out of Banff (No good) and the RimRock. RimRock is expensive. A little more than the Fairmont I think, (but they were booked so I didn't even get a quote). So, I made a reservation online with a company that was going to give us 15% off. Great, that means that the one night stay will only cost 300$. (It's OK mom. We'll be fine...) A little trouble with my credit card being verifed, so I had to call Visa and get that done. Done. So now I have a confirmation #. But why doesn't the hotel have our reservation? Ok, I wait 2 hours. Still no news. I call the booking company, and they explained to me that it would take at least 48 hours, maybe longer. She advised me to call on Monday to see if they had it. Well I told her that the reservation was for Saturday. Long quiet pause on the phone. Oh, she says, well... They should have it by tomorrow I hope. Yes thanks I hope so too. Good news is, the RimRock called back an hour later and said they recieved our reservation and everything is fine. www.rimrockresort.com Please ask for Melissa, she is fantastic!!! ( I do know, I spoke with her 5 times today)


So after this, I need to get us some groceries. Oscar is going bonkers from boredom, or b/c of Callym, not sure - so I took him with me. Chris was staying home to finish the last of the painting.... Have I said this before???? Shopping was long, but good. We come home with homemade pizza stuff and 'treats' for our trip and Chris is done the painting. He's on the phone. With someone. That's all I will say. This person doesn't understand what we are doing and why. This person thinks that they know better things for us to do. This person is kind of like a dream squasher. This person doesn't understand. It drives me crazy!!!

So at the moment, the feeling in our house is one of ..... oh what is the word. Have you ever had a 'brain fart'? It's kind of that feeling, when you're not sure what's going on. What everone is thinking, what you should be doing. You think you were about to do or say something, but now.... you aren't sure if you're standing or sitting. Confusion. And the kids are part of it, and picking up on it at the same time. We all need something, but I'm shaking my head in some sort of rythmic crazy head dance not knowing what to do....

Hope this entry makes sense, I can't really guarantee anything right now, especially my spelling.

The weekend comes early!

So, I've been told that I can see the future of sorts. For instance, I can see that Chris will be sick tomorrow. Oh my sweet husband.... and during our long weekend trip to the mountains! Of course we are leaving so that our realtor can have a fabulous open house weekend. One that brings many many offers for our lovely little home. Yes, we are off to the mountains... Banff or Radium is where we're headed. For sure a trip to the Calgary Zoo. Then? Not sure..... Will Carol, Lyle and the boys be able to meet us in Radium where we will camp. Yes, you heard me. Camp. Chris has a tent, and we have most of the 'equipment'. Should be fun? I hope they have showers, and toilets..........

and a massage therapyst! Or will we stay in Banff and blend into the crowded touristy hubub of crazyness? Maybe we will go somewhere else? As you may be able to tell, I do not have reservations yet.... Yikes!

Anyways, This could (and hopefully will be) our last trip to the Rocky Mountains for a long time. The weather is suppose to be nice. I want to soak in the hot springs. And shop at the.........
............CANDY STORE!
Maybe the boys will want something there too.

I just want to smell that fantastic air. See the tips of the highest mountain peaks kiss the sky! See the rainbow of colours in the trees. Be with my family. My family that has stayed with me through-out this crazy, stressfull ordeal of getting the house ready. Painting, and cleaning, and fixing, and packing and screaming, and yelling, and more painting! My husband who has worked his a** off the past 5 years to give us all that we have. My boys, oh my sweet boys who are such beautiful kids. I want to be with them all.

Oh yes, I also want to get the call. The call that says, we have an offer, and it's good!

Yes, everything IS good. It's fantastic. And it WILL only get better. Ah, I'm a twiddle with anticipation.......

Luck

Well, September 2nd came and went. It was a great day. Family to hang out with, and birthday wishes from around the globe! I am a very lucky person. I try to remember this all the time. I know that I am so very lucky to have Chris, and the boys, to have everyone in my family. I love all of my friends, and love what my life has become. It's fantastic to think that this is my life. Freedom, love and happiness. That is what I am full of. You never really know what you're going to get in life, and what will happen. And I believe in Karma, so what have I done to deserve all of this happiness? Really, this is a serious question.... I'm not sure, but I will keep doing my best as a person to have the 'luck' continue for my family and I.
Well, this is my first full day as a 30 year old. I don't feel older, and I don't think I look older. I'm ok with being 30. No mid life crisis happening here. Maybe it has something to do with this amazing adventure that we are getting ready for. Maybe I'm just lucky again. At any rate, it's the way it is. Anyways, just a little blabbering about how lucky I feel. A big huge thank you to everyone that I have ever known for helping my have the best life ever. I love you all.

Can hardly wait

I can hardly wait to finish painting the back hall, and laundry area. Then all that is left is the window wells, and some rocks. It seems like loads still, but it rilly isn't. Tamara is planning a small time away next weekend to the mountains for one final visit while Jay runs the Open House. We are still positive the house will sell this month, after all we didn't get stuck with disease for nothing. Though, I must admit, it would be great to finish all these tasks so that I can start spending an hour or two a day learning the copywriting with the course I bought. I am stoked to try it, and only need an opportunity to get some momentum. On that note, I'll segway to the ongoing hurricane season. Wow, it's getting pretty intense and covering more ground thjis year than any other it seems. In fact, all the countries we want to visit have been hit, or are in the path of the nxt two making news! Still... I would rather hit a shelter for a couple days and rebuild than have 7 month of cold weather. That's just me, and my wife, thankfully. Thank goodness we are allowed to make our own minds up and do things that aren't on the standard 'to do list'. We keep hoping. Life.