I've Been Keeping a Big Secret (NO, IT'S NOT TWINS)

I've been hinting like a cryptic ass about "big decisions" and "issues" and whatnot for months and months now. Sorry about that. We had to keep secrets for a variety of reasons, and I still can't tell you all the reasons it was so complicated for us, but I can tell you the biggest things.

It all began when Jeremy got his new job. I mentioned it very briefly back then, but to say it put a few wrinkles in our life as we knew it was an understatement of epic proportions. Old job was a few miles from our house in Lansing, and new job is an hour away. However, it is also one hour closer to back home than we are now -- essentially, his new job is exactly in between where we currently live and where we want to live. This was actually one of the big factors in us deciding he should take the job; it meant that one day we might be able to move back home, something we have been dreaming of. 

Now that Jeremy doesn't work five minutes from our house, I still need to commute to work, none of our medical needs can be met (did I ever mention new insurance doesn't cover any doctors in Lansing? Yeah, HILARIOUS, right?), we live in a rental home that I HATE, and we only have FOUR friends in this whole city, so we really didn't see many reasons to stay living here. However, that left us with a few options that all had pros and cons: 

1. We could move to the city where he works. No, no, a thousand times, NO. There are a lot of cities in Michigan I can think of that I wouldn't be excited to move to, but this is the only one to which I would NEVER move. And no, it's not Detroit, so don't be mean. 

2. We could move to some random city on the outskirts of the city where Jeremy works that is still kind of close to work, and also closer to back home. We considered this one for a long time, but it definitely didn't seem right. The only upside would be a shorter commute, and the downsides would be we know no one there, we know nothing about the area, I would have the same (45 minute) commute to work, and we would still be far enough away from family that we probably wouldn't see them any more than we already do. Plus, with all these downsides, it would make it really hard for us to want to buy a house there, and we are NOT renting anymore. NO.

3. Try to move home or close to it. With this scenario, we would be within spitting distance of both of our families, plus Jeremy's extended family, in an area we really love and feel comfortable buying a home, BUT Jeremy would still be commuting as much as he is now. I would not be able to keep my job, but would likely be able to work in the branch of the college in the area.

There were actually a whole lot more issues all tied up in this, many of which it would not be wise to discuss on the ol' blog here, but our main issue was deciding where we wanted to be in the long run and if all the other factors in our life could match up with that. 

I think you know where this is going. We decided to move home. And we ARE.

WE ARE BUYING A HOUSE! It took me a long time to be able to say it, and I still feel like I am going to jinx something, because it's not done until we close, and that is FREAKING ME OUT, but we are supposedly closing in about a week.

I KNOW, right? 

When we put the offer on the house, I wanted to tell everyone. When the offer got accepted, I wanted to tell everyone. When we went and signed all the paperwork with the mortgage company, when we had the home inspection, when the appraisal came back --  I wanted to tell everyone. Since we are now so close to closing, I decided to stop being so superstitious and finally tell everyone! 

Here it is. It's a tiny little bungalow that has strangely been painted Christmas colors, but it has better layout of living space, a better yard, a better neighborhood, better schools, and closer proximity to family than where we are now. We're a short drive from the beach and close to all the places we loved growing up. And it's going to be OURS.

I have a lot to say about it (lucky you). Coming up: house hunting, making an offer, the "wrinkle" in our best-laid plans, and the details of what makes this house great and what we plan to change. 

We're so excited to finally be homeowners.