More Beach Pictures

Might as well post a few more beach pictures while I'm procrastinating and have a few minutes....

Jackson & Daddy


Playing in the sand


With Aunt JoJo

Back to Reality!

After a great week at Ocean City, we are back home once again! We had a wonderful vacation but it is always nice to come back to home sweet home and be in a normal routine again. Jackson loved his time at the beach (we were a little worried when on the 1st day, he refused to put his feet in the sand). He was so good for us, even though he is currently in the midst of getting 6, yes 6, teeth. I loved relaxing on the beach and playing games almost every night with the family. Back to reality and busy life now though...yesterday we got home after a 6 hour trip (including stopping for lunch and terrible traffic), checked our messages and realized we had to go back to the mall because I had preordered Harry Potter for Jon and we only had a few hours left in order to get it 40% off. We also had a message from the movie rental place saying that we had a free rental since we haven't been there for awhile, which we also only had a few hours left to get. So, we went to the mall, then Jon dropped Jack & I off back at home and he went to pick out a movie (Stranger than Fiction with Will Ferrell....it was pretty good), and to pick our dog up at the vet where he had spent the week. Today we had Sunday School and church and then came home to straighten up for an Open House from 1-4. We were told it went well, so hopefully we'll hear an offer soon! We were sad to have to miss small group tonight....airplane rides and a BBQ!

Anyway, we have a ton of pictures from the beach, but here are just a couple since our computer is being so slow tonight....

Cleaning, Packing, Cooking...

Here's the promised picture of the new place....the hedge in front will be one of the first things to go!

It's been a busy few days, trying to clean the house so the Open House can happen on Sunday, packing for the 3 of us for the beach, and cooking my meals for the beach, all while Jackson is getting more teeth and being very Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. Ocean City, here we come! We can't wait for this week of fun & relaxation! Not much to update on, just wanted to post a picture of the house & one of Jack (I've been feeling guilty that I haven't posted his pic lately, because I know that's why many of you read this!) It's a very random one, because I haven't taken many pictures lately but that will all change this week I'm sure.

*I just got a new cell phone #....I am with Verizon now, and am sharing minutes with family to save some money each month. I will only be using my cell phone after 9 PM and on weekends from now on, unless you are with Verizon too - then calls are free, so let me know! Thanks!

On The Market

Our townhouse is officially "on the market!" We are hoping it sells very quickly...it's already a stress trying to keep it neat enough in case someone wants to stop by and take the tour. Our vacation is next week so hopefully lots of people come through while we are gone and make great offers! Here's a picture for those of you who have never had the chance to visit us at our 1st home...and if you click here, you can see some more. We have loved living here; it was the perfect place for our family for 3 years, but we're so excited to make the move to a bigger place with a yard. The inspection last week went well...nothing huge that we weren't expecting. I did take some pictures so I can start planning paint colors, etc. for the inside - I'll have some great before & after pics eventually! I'll post a picture of the outside of the new place hopefully this week before we leave.

Please pray for this family...I have never met them, but they are college friends of one of my cousins, and for those of us living here in Lancaster county, they are local so you may have heard of them...they just lost their precious 2 year old girl after a long battle with cancer. The funeral was this morning...I can't even imagine.

SOLD!

Definitely time for an update, and there's actually something exciting to write about...we just bought a house! It has all happened so fast, it's hard to believe. We weren't even seriously looking to move yet. I had seen a house advertised that I thought was so cute, but the price was not so cute! I kept checking once in awhile and the price dropped twice, and then we decided to go look at it. Jon's uncle Fred is a realtor, which has been a HUGE blessing, because we know we can trust him! Anyway Fred took us to look at the house and we liked it right away. The next week we went back with Jon's parents and we all liked it....J & I even more than the first time. So we decided to make an offer...and then got a counteroffer...and then made a counter-counteroffer, which they accepted! We are so excited yet feeling slightly nervous & overwhelmed with everything that needs to take place in the next 2 months (settlement is August 31).
Anyway, the house....it's on Ridge Road, for those of you who live around here...the Ridge Rd off of Groff, not the other Ridge Rd or the Ridge Rd headed to Hershey (or Ridge Run, Ridgeview, Ridgeview N, etc, etc....roads tend to be a little crazily named around here). It's a Cape Cod with a little over 1/2 acre. The yard will be a ton of work....there's ivy everywhere instead of grass and fences galore (someone who lived there once used to breed dogs). The inside is nice but not my taste...lots of wallpaper and repainting that needs to be done. I'm anxious to get in and start and hoping we get a chance to do that before we actually move in. Inspection is this Thursday....should be interesting....pray everything goes well! Our townhouse should be on the market hopefully by the end of the week!
In other news, not a lot going on. Jack has had a pretty bad cold for the past several days but has been a sweetie through it. I have a terrible sore throat...might be feeling a little better today...hope its not strep. I'm trying not to go to the doctor's for a strep test because I really don't feel like paying the copay. If it lasts much longer I'll have to though.
Sorry no pictures for this post! I'll try to take some of the new house on Thursday!
***HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KARLA! Another year that I remember your b-day but forget to send a card :) Love ya!

The Latest Fashion Craze

For some reason, Jack has decided that he loves to wear swimmy diapers on his head. Everytime he finds one, he has to wear it and will cry if I try to take it off. He wore one to church last night; luckily I was able to distract him and pull it off before he went into the nursery. Not only does he like to wear one, but if he happens to find more than one, he wants them both on his head. Needless to say, he has had some pretty high swimmy diaper tower hats! It's nice....the little things that can make him happy!

Not much is going on today...just trying to clean the house and get ready for some overnight guests on Friday. Cedarville's HeartSong is coming to the area (to our church actually) for an alumni thing, and we are hosting 2 of the guys here after the concert. Not totally sure where they will both sleep yet, but we'll figure it out! Speaking of cleaning, I FINALLY have a successful bathroom cleaning story. Ever since we moved into this house, our bathtub has been stained and I can never seem to get it clean enough - I have wasted money on so many different cleaning products that have not worked! Yesterday I made a concoction that actually worked (with some elbow grease and lots of scrubbing, that is!) I was so proud of my bathtub!! This concoction will be much less expensive than other cleaning supplies and doesn't smell strong either! The secret recipe? Baking soda & powdered dishwasher detergent. Try it!

Pool Party for One

We bought Jackson his first little pool last night and set it up today. When he woke up from his 4 hour nap (with a little prodding) he had so much fun "swimming." We knew he would like it because he had so much fun swimming in Owen's pool last week! This little pool is the perfect size for our deck, since we have no yard. And during Jack's naps on hot days....I'm sure I can sit indian-style or something! (Funny picture, I know...he kept making the weirdest faces...and if you haven't noticed already, the pasty white skin definitely comes from mama!)

We bought the pool at Toys R Us last night after a yummy Chinese dinner with friends. I absolutely love going to Toys R Us and it's probably good that we have a small house, because some of the toys are so cool! I'm secretly hoping that if we have a girl someday, she will really want a play kitchen!

We also went to Pottery Barn outlet where I found some great deals! 2 matching twin size duvet covers for Jackson's room someday. I was so excited, because we shop the clearance section, and there's hardly ever 2 of anything there. I also got a shower curtain for sometime in the future, since I still like the one we have now and this one is more for a kid's bathroom. Anyway, though, Pottery Barn stuff at Walmart sale prices, gotta love it! Now I am continually checking eBay for the shams to match the duvets.

Not much else to write about, just wanted to post the latest picture of my little guy! (And a shout-out to my brother, who finally left me a comment! :) )