Your all caught up ...

So here we are.  Living in the small apartment, strengthening our marriage over the one very small bathroom.  We have found the house we will be moving to in Fayetteville hopefully in November (more posts on that in the future).  Travis is diligently studying and working hard this semester and next semester in order to graduate with his bachelors degree in May.  He plans on going to graduate school at NorthEastern State University in Talequah, OK, which will be an hour commute from the location of our new house in Fayetteville. Yay!! Mission accomplished!! I am crazy busy at work and with all the exciting extras.  I will be joining a medical mission trip to Ukraine in October with 8-10 other professionals who make it their mission to change lives of children in orphanages (many more posts on that in the future).

We LOVE it here in northwest Arkansas but we are SO excited to be moving to Fayetteville.  We LOVE it and we definitely feel like that is where we belong!  Not only is it football season, but more importantly it is Razorback football season which makes for a very happy husband ....

The weather is cooler and fall is fast approaching which is my absolute favorite time of year!! We are blessed beyond words, grateful and so excited for all that is coming up .....

Moving Day!!!

Adios empty sold house ......

Today is moving day!!!! .... I should take the opportunity to clarify the need for movers after we sold basically everything we owned.  It was the middle of July during the hottest summer on record for our area.  Several days in a row of 110 degrees and this day was no different.  Even though we were rid of a lot, we still had enough to make the move miserable in the heat.  Travis and I have moved several times together in the past, just the two of us, and are completely capable of getting the job done.  We have never used a moving company so, given the heat, I thought it would be a nice gesture to treat my husband to letting someone else do the tough stuff ... Ha!



We couldn't sleep the night before we were so excited!! The day we had waited for was finally here and we were officially moving on ..... Yay!! The movers were scheduled to arrive at the house at 9:00 am so we were up by 6:00 taking care of last minute stuff ... anxiously awaiting the truck to pull in the drive and haul us away.  The movers arrival time came and went.  It was approaching 10:00 and no word from them so I called to check on the situation.  And that was the moment happy moving day turned into horrible, horrible, we will never use a moving company again day!!!!! 

The short version of the very long story.  The movers were having issues with both the truck and the completion of the move that was supposed to be completed the previous day.  They would be there shortly and send extra help to expedite the move.  We continued to wait.  No movers after lunch.  Called again. Same story.  Be there shortly.  Called back at 5:00 that evening.  Finally on their way to our house with all the help they had and would have us completely moved within 3 hours ..... 7 grueling hours later we were finally moved. Not necessarily speaking or happy but moved.  I better eat my Wheaties between now and when we move into the house because I have been warned that there will never again be movers.  Ugh!!



Home Sweet Home

Here it is.  Home. 700 sq. ft. one bedroom, one bathroom apartment home.  We successfully and happily down sized from living in a spacious home with plenty of bathrooms to choose from to this tiny apartment with one whole bathroom.  Just one.   

I need to take some action pics of actual life lived in the apartment ... stay tuned for that :)

Where will we be going?

Called the movers to make sure they were available and could be booked for the day we were planning on moving ... didn't want to wait too long to get that scheduled ... and naturally he asked "what is the location of the property we will be moving you to?"  ..... hum, let me get back to you about that ....

We don't have a lot of stuff anymore and we are not sure about where we will be buying our next home.. We have an idea but nothing for sure.  I suggested the local extended stay hotel ... I mean you get laundry service twice per week! We took a tour, which was really just open the door to the hotel room, take a peak an that was it.  According to Travis it is not necessarily safe and we may need a bit more room for the two of us, the dog and the cat.  Ok, more creative thinking.  Luckily the apartment we lived in years ago will have us back for a short term lease, so we signed on for a 3 month lease and scheduled the move in day.  Called the movers to confirm that yes, in fact, we DO have a location to move to.  YAY!! ...

downsizing ...

Some backstory ... We purchased our first home (the one we just sold) as a broke down bank foreclosure. It had been on the market for over two years, completely neglected and in serious need of a lot of TLC.  The bank was ready to give it away and lucky for us we were able to move into a 3000 sq. ft. home for what felt like a steal.  Very slowly, over the course of the three years we lived there, updated it, made it our own and somehow found a use for or some furniture for most of the rooms.  Way too much room for the two of us ... but a lot of fun "fixing up" our place. 

So fast forward to real life time ... we have just sold the home that contains way too much room and way too much stuff for just the two of us.  Time to work out the game plan and re-group.  We know we are moving to Fayetteville and we know we are down sizing to a smaller home.  Dont know when we will be in the next house and dont know what we will need.  Aw ... Craigslist it is then! 

And so it was .... most of all the furniture in my home opened up and sold on craigslist.  Now to schedule the movers for what little stuff we have left ..... and figure out where we will be going ....

SOLD!!

Just like every other Sunday morning before this one ... wake up early, clean the house, don't have time to clean yourself, pack up the dog, throw all the extra clutter in the back of the car, hop in and head out to find a place to patiently wait for the phone call that you can have your house back. Not at all prepared to answer the phone to hear ... offer.  What? An offer? Seriously?  He was really looking to buy a house and not just check out our paint colors or how we used the extra space downstairs?

After a long 10 months of prayer and emotional breakdowns ... just like that ... it sold.  We left the closing table with only one place on the mind ... the only place to go.  We had to rescue dear St. Joseph ....

Placed him safely in the back of the car and headed out to celebrate over dinner and glass of wine ... at which point we realized .... we have no place to live ... YIKES!!

7 months and counting .. what to do, what to do ...

We did everything we were supposed to do  ... everything HGTV says to do ...  in order to beat the odds and get sold.  Purged all the non-essential items into storage and lived in what felt like an untouchable doll house or movie set that absolutely could not be touched or cluttered.  My car was my cluttered closet. Great.  On the market for over 7 months, realtor suggesting consider leasing, overwhelming "what ifs" running through my head like an old fashioned movie reel .... along came my sweet friend Holly and her fabulous knowledge of and recommendation for prayer to the appropriate patron saint. A practice very dear to those in the catholic faith .... and new to my husband and I.  We are not catholic but we are open minded and maybe one day we should be.  Holly sent me to educate myself about St. Joseph, the patron saint of carpentry.  We learned all about the story of St. Joseph and the well known practice of burying a statue of St. Joseph strategically on the property to be sold.  Apparently believers do this all the time and we had no idea.  Of course we wasted no time setting out to purchase our very own St. Joseph and learning the prayer we were to use in our own burial that afternoon. 

St. Joseph is supposed to be buried upside down facing the house directly under the "for sale" sign, a very specific prayer recited and a whole lotta faith.  After you sell your home you are to dig him up and give him a place of honor in your new home.  So, yes, we had our very own ceremony in the front yard with neighbors watching out their windows and drivers slowing down to observe the craziness in the Cunningham's front yard as I read the prayer and Travis assisted St. Joseph head first into his new location of utmost importance.

Dont leave your undies on the floor ....

It really wasn't that crazy or stressful to have the house on the market.  Our realtor is fabulous!  It is problematic however to have your home ready to "show" at all times.  When you least expect it and at the worst possible time someone will want to meander through your home ... with no real intention of purchasing it of course.  So ...  you, your husband, the dog and all remnants of the dog must pack up and head out for a certain period of time.  Of course you leave your home in the best condition it has ever been in ... meticulously wiping base boards, door knobs and replacing home fragrances or even baking fresh cookies just to have the "lookers" use your bathroom and purchase the home across the street.  No, I wasn't bitter with them at all. 

It's really not that bad to handle this on the weekend because you are still a little bit encouraged that maybe  ... just maybe ... this is it.  And you are perfectly willing to hang out at the coffee shop with the husband and the dog until you get the go ahead to return to your humble abode.  It is an entirely different scenario during the middle of a busy week ... any week for us ... to live in and maintain the house in perfect condition. It really is not possible and you do find yourself on the verge of giving up as you fly out the door late for work completely oblivious to the fact that you left your undies on the floor and some stranger would be perusing through your bedroom later that day.  Eventually you get used to it and you give it your best polish before rushing out the door ... but at the very least ... it is one spouse's duty to remind the other .... don't leave your undies on the floor. 

Change of plans....

So the short version of the long story that has seemed to consume the past year of our lives .... selling and moving on.  Travis and I bought our first home in Rogers, where we LOVED living very close to the lake and my favorite boat dock cafe.  Perfect place to escape for a relaxing dinner with friends and family.  Little did we know life was moving to Fayetteville (and beyond) and we would be too ... sooner or later. 

The day came that Travis decided we needed to change everything ... great. One day after work he breaks the news to me ..... "I know I have been planning on grad school in Fayetteville, but I've done a lot of thinking bla bla bla ... I'm going to grad school in Oklahoma."  WHAT?!?!

So after a few days to process, absorb and make a new plan ... the house went on the market and so began the next 10 months of trying to sell a home. Ugh!!  

Hello Blog World ...

Well hello blog world! It's about time Travis and I join and share with friends and family in the blogging community. We have lots of things going on and coming up in the near future and this seems like a great way to stay connected with friends and family ... stay tuned for all the goings on in our little world ...