The 1360

A look back at our house in Olathe that we sold over the summer before making the move to Phoenix.  This was the second home we purchased and, honestly, we all thought we'd live there longer than we did!  

We put on a new storm door and painted the front door when we moved in (a Behr paint but I don't know the exact color--believe me I wish I did!)  I want to paint our new front door but our HOA here is crazy-strict so I don't know if I'll ever jump through all the hoops or get a fun color approved.

To the right is a sitting room and the left is a formal dining room.  The previous owners had made many nice updates including the flooring, kitchen upgrades and master bath.  

The basement...no basements in our area now but I actually don't miss it as much as I thought I would.  We've found a place for everything in our new place even without a basement.

Upstairs bedrooms

I do miss all the storage in our master bath and all the tile work.  Tiled bathrooms like this don't seem to be very common around here.

The realtor pics didn't document one of my favorite things about the house, the barn doors from the master bedroom to the bathroom, so I had to add my own pic that I snapped right before we moved out.  

The new house did not have very many pics posted in the real estate listing and some were strange pictures.  I relied on video that Matt took when he walked the house.  The first time I saw the house in person was when we moved in!  Crazy to think about!

The stair case with the book nook is one of my favorite things about the house!

We have since painted the whole house and kitchen cabinets!

This random pic was very strategic on their part.  This is a tiny snippet of a huge, awkward, terrible wall of rock.  The next project is to have it removed and reconfigured.  They were smart not to post the whole wall!  #hindsight

We want to be able to remember our Olathe house but also are so thankful for how God continues to provide on our new journey!  This move was not foreseen at all by us, but we know we are right where we need to be!

Previous post about the 1360 here.

Our Day of Fun!

While Matt was away in Houston attending the NCAA Final Four games with some of his friends, the kids and I set out to have the best day of fun.  And it truly was!  The kids love to get out and about and do things and I'm so glad!

First stop, KC Donut! (Reese's painful smile-stage.)

We had some old bread so we headed off to feed the ducks at a little lake.  (I'm not sure if this is allowed so we tried to play it cool...)

Next up, a bowling date!  This place has the bumper lanes that go up and down automatically and they always set them to go down when it's my turn.  Dear Bowling Alley, I need bumpers too!!

Then, the scariest bike ride adventure ever.  Let's just say with a pregnant belly, I cannot keep up with these two on their bikes and they just aren't steady enough to get too far ahead of me without it being like 17 near-death experiences on our 3-block-journey to the park.

We have gotten much better since then as we've implemented the "you must stop and wait for the group and then walk your bike across every intersection" rule.  Phew.

We sent our pics to Matt so he could keep up with our fun and he sent pics of what he was up to.

Open-practices where fans could watch.

The Adidas party (MNU is an Adidas sponsored school so they get the invite to the party they throw at the Final Four each year) was held in the club level of the Houston Astros stadium.

The game...couldn't even tell you who played or won at this point.  I know it was NOT who my bracket predicted.

I really like that we don't have to be tied to the house but can get out and do things even when Matt's not around.  I know we will definitely have to dial it back a little as we adjust to having THREE kids...but I'm hoping we will always be able to get out of the house when we feel like it.  Only time will tell, I suppose.  Until then, Cade, Reese and I will enjoy our outings the three of us! 

Tricks and Treats of 2015

It's December?!  What?!?  The blogging struggle is real for me lately.  (Obviously.)  But my love for reading posts from the past pushes me on to keep blogging...even if it's very, very untimely. 

The kids had the ultimate Halloween party at Ms. Dora's this year.  She takes them to various workplaces of the parents (mostly schools, most that Ms. Dora has had students from for years and years) and they sing songs and trick or treat through the offices.  It was the cutest thing ever!  I was so proud of my Darth Vader and Rapunzel.  (Notice that nearly every boy there was Darth Vader). 

 

Rapunzel's losing her wig a bit here.  The secretaries, principals, and counselors were so sweet to give all the kids candy as they came around to their desks.  Ms. Dora has quite the traditions established at the nearby schools and I'm thankful that I teach at one of them!

Was it not the best thing ever that Halloween was on a Saturday?!  We hosted a "trunk" for our church Trunk or Treat.  Minimal effort went into our design, but we got 3rd place!  Yay!

The church had carnival games and inflatables inside.

And various characters to meet!

For Halloween night we headed over to the Heine's and trick or treated some in their neighborhood (they give out FULL size candy bars over there!!) and watched the Royals game. 

It was SO fun watching the kids trick or treat.  I know I find myself saying this all the time now, but they are just at such perfect ages!  They bring excitement to everything but with both being potty-trained and mobile and such we get around so easily.  These are the days!

 

So that was our fun-filled Halloween.  A month later...