House work!

Hi Friends!
Things have been crazy busy over the past month and we have taken up ANOTHER residence - this time at Home Depot. My goodness we're there a lot, although I don't think we went yesterday which would be a first since we got into the house. I could be wrong about that though. The employees know us and are waiting for us to bring us pictures of what we've been doing to the house.

So what have we been doing? Painting. LOTS and LOTS of painting.
Thankfully we started with white walls, so it was super easy to cover.
We have almost the entire downstairs painted - I just need to paint the hallway (my job for today) and the kitchen and then the ceilings. So by almost, I mean we have like half of the walls done. Oh and we need to paint the doors too.

We've changed out all the downstairs door knobs so they look pretty & not brass.
Most of the walls are grey.
1 wall is textured that my AMAZING husband spent a LOT of hard work doing.
We've picked out the kitchen color.
I built our extra kitchen storage (it was rather difficult).
We've rearranged the living room.
We've acquired a fun brightly colored canvas painting and a really pretty mirror that goes with the safari theme in our master thanks to Katie & Jon.
We've balanced the pool (finally).
Had to get the AC fixed.
Anthony made the outlets in the master bathroom work again.
AND We've spent a lot of time at Home Depot.

But things are coming along and I can see the downstairs coming together slowly but surely.
Now to figure out what we want to do with the accent wall & locate an affordable sectional...

love until later,
S

Where Have We Been?!

Hi Bloggy & Bloggy Friends!
It's been awhile now, hasn't it? Well, we sure do have some good & exciting news!

We are NOW officially OFFICIALLY homeowners of the most wonderful house we ever could imagine (after a LOT of house drama - you can read about some of it by clicking on the "house hunting" tab at the top of the page)!

BUT - first we went on vacation to Bass Lake and it was glorious and wondering and I'm STILL recovering from injuries sustained on the trip - haha! Yes - I hurt myself. No this isn't a surprise. My boss informed me my first day back that I am accident prone... I think everyone would agree with that. :)

While at Bass Lake, I managed to smack my knee pretty hard on the intertube. And for someone who isn't supposed to smack her knees ever, it felt like I shattered my knee cap. I didn't. But it was painful. This was on day 2 or 3 of the trip. The trip was 10 days long. We've been back for almost a week. I still have a bruise. I also jumped out of a boat, landed on my ankle wrong and ended up spraining it. I've been walking on it, so it's still not healed. This was the same day as the intertube incident. I then insisted on learning to wake board.

And then we moved. We moved all our stuff into our first home and I have never been more exhausted and my body has not hurt so much (at least not in a LONG time). It's a good hurt and a good exhaustion because we're being productive and VERY active. We haven't stopped moving. Wake up, unpack, put things away, go to work, come home, work on the house, figure out dinner, eat, work on the house, go to sleep. Repeat. It's a ton of work, but it's good. We have a LONG way to go, lots of empty bedrooms, lots of empty space, but it's going to be good & we can't wait to see how God is going to use our home for His work!

We will post pictures when things are a bit settled down - some from vacation (maybe even a video) and some of the house...when it's a little more in order. :)



AND - my awesome in-laws moved to AZ today! Woot!

xoxo
S

Drama. Drama. Drama.

The bad news: we will not be closing on our house today and we will not be moving into our house on Wednesday. I feel defeated. I want to go home and curl up with new jammies and cookies. I want to cry. Oh wait, I already did that. My disappointment and tears are selfish though. They are present because things aren't going according to my plan.

There is good news though. We should be able to close in the next week or so and move ib shortly afterwards. Woohoo!

There is a reason for all of this, but right now I am looking forward to this being the only house we will ever buy. There has just been way to much drama and it has been way too much of a roller coaster. I am thankful for all of it, but now I'm just tired.

Saturday Shenanigans, Sunday Funday & All Its Crazy!

It's Sunday (although almost not) & my has it been crazy as we get ready to move in a few short days. This is way bigger than I think I ever expected, mainly because I don't think I expected us to be here so quickly.  Due to words said to me in my past, owning a house just never seemed like a possibility, but I am so blown away, blessed and amazed by God's provision through our entire lives, our relationship, our marriage and just everything, we will move in to our very first house before we were anticipating even starting to look. I think I have reached the denial portion of this moving into a house thing.

A month ago, I was totally accepting of the moving into a house thing. A month ago I started packing. And now, we are 1 day away from signing papers, 2 days away from receiving keys and 3 days away from moving in and I am sitting here going, there's so much to do, but we can't really be moving into a HOUSE can we? The moving thing seems normal - the house thing seems surreal. But here we are, days away from moving into our first house - the apartment in complete shambles, the bunnies a little more curious and a little more on edge because we destroyed their home with boxes they aren't allowed to play with. I bet that's how it is with kids too. Yes. Yes. I just compared our bunnies to the likeness of children. They're toddler attitudes are at least similar. The moving ability is extremely easier than that of a toddler (at least I assume because I have no real experience with that one yet and hopefully when the time comes, we won't have to move with toddlers).  Anyways...

Saturday we had our final walk through. I had no idea what to expect. Well, we pretty much walked through the house. I guess that's why they call it a "walk through". Then we spent a long time talking with the tenants, D and AM. They are seriously SO sweet. They are supposed to move out the 31st so we can move in the 1st - and even though they are having issues with the property they are moving into - they have assured us that they will be out on the 31st, even if it means staying in a hotel for a night and they are taking care of all of the cleaning for us (which I don't think is required of them as they are renters in the house), but it's great knowing that they have removed 2 hornets/wasps nests for us, sprayed for bugs, had the gardener come out, the pool guy come out, and are getting the carpets professionally cleaned for us and personally cleaning the the rest of the house. I really don't feel like that should be their responsibility as renters, but AM said that she is so excited for us and very happy that we are the ones getting the house and not an investor or another family. She even brought up which room would be best for a nursery...even though that is not happening for at least a few more years.

A also told me on Saturday that we are being gifted a pool guy for a couple months while we get into the swing of things, which is awesome - one more thing we don't have to worry about while we get used to living in and owning a house (Thanks!!).

We've ordered address announcements which should be here in the next few weeks - hopefully we ordered enough.

And did I mention the apartment is a disaster? Because it is. But Pocket is determined to climb on top of the boxes so that adds to the cuteness and entertainment around here these days. I may have already mentioned that in an earlier post, but it really is entertaining.

Today we spent mostly packing, then decided to roam around Costco, The Room Store, and Home Depot. Walked out of HD into a monsoon which was wonderful- I like to pretend we live somewhere tropical when that happens. Went to church which had an awesome and convicting message on living a life of faith daily, not just when it's convenient and then In N Out for dinner because I didn't throw the crock pot meal in the crock pot. Genius. right here. Thank you.

And lastly on this random rambling bloggy post - have I mentioned the wonderfulness of freezer meals? Totally have to utilize this and get into the habit of it before we start having munchkins. It's fantastic. I spent a couple hours on two different days preparing meals that could be frozen for up to 3 months and either tossed into a crock pot or into the oven. It has seriously been amazing! I think this was the first time that A went out of town that I actually ate a legit meal instead of some store bought freezer meal or Ramen noodles and it has kept the cost down on the restaraunts on the couple weeks before our move. I LOVE it. It's healthier, there are left overs which are great for lunches, elevensies, or midnight snack/meal.  (FYI that's probably the only LOTR reference you will get out of me - mainly because I think that's the only part I was awake for in 2 of the movies and I haven't tried the 3rd one yet, gotta actually see the entire first 2).

SO that's all that's happened. I feel like this was a very informational post. Hopefully I will be able to post a recipe or something soon. I keep forgetting to take pictures.

 Loves to you all my family and friends and random internet people who come across this!
-S

Oh - did I mention we sign tomorrow, get the keys Tuesday or Wednesday and move in on Wednesday? Cause that's what's going on. I can't wait.

And we have some paint colors picked out.

Seriously?

I had something better (and possibly wittier) written, but then the power went out and didn't save anything so now you get this. My apologies. Why are there SO many blackouts/power outages in Arizona? I think I've experienced more outages here than my entire 22ish years in SoCal.

Anyways, I have accomplished two things today.
1) Cleaned the bathroom more thoroughly than I think I have ever cleaned anything on account of move-out day is coming and I was so disgusted by the cleanliness (or lack there of) of this apartment when we moved in, that I figured I'd help out the next renter.
2) I have completely destroyed the bedroom as a result of cleaning/packing the bathroom. So that's fun.


Other stuff:

• I was supposed to hear back from my manager on Monday - so I will be calling him in a little bit to see what the next step is as far as training goes and give him the dates of our vacation days. 
• I really want garlicky scrambled eggs. I packed the frying pan. The pasta pot thing is not packed. This will happen. 
•  Do you know how hard it is to NOT eat frozen cookie dough? The fact that I haven't yet is a miracle and an incredible act of God.
• Pocket is STILL trying to get on top of the boxes. She refuses to believe this is an impossibility
• There are 3 things that could hinder us from getting the keys on Wednesday. Wednesday is the ONLY day we can move. Prayers are appreciated.
• I've started Christmas shopping. This is ridiculous. But I think I will avoid the holiday shopping madness that cause me to not feel well - I may have a small anxiety issue with crowds. 

AND THE MOST IMPORTANT NEWS OF ALL:

Our good friends, Trevor and Stacey, welcomed their handsome SON into the world on July 22! He was born at 11:53 AM, weighing 6 lbs 15 ounces and measuring 19 inches long! And let me tell you, he is the absolute cutest thing on the planet!

Anthony was able to meet him when he was on a business trip in CA earlier this week. I cannot wait until it's my turn to meet him! Congratulations again to you, Trev and Stacey! You guys did a good job :)

Older brother - if you read this, call me because I haven't been able to get a hold of you any other way and I would like to talk to you because I miss you and I love you and I miss you.

Dear Anyone Who May Visit in the Next Week and Those Evil Evil Boxes

Dear anyone who may visit in the next week,
I'm apologizing in advance for when you enter into our home and discover a mini-house (an apartment really) in shambles - completely destroyed by an epic disaster. I trust that, given the circumstances, you wouldn't have done any better. On the bright side - it has kept me from being anti-social as I want to be as far away from it as possible...forever....FOREVER. So, if you do feel the sudden urge to drop by, maybe we should go grab coffee or something instead. Take a nice long walk in this beautiful Arizona summer heat - oh wait, that was the boxes talking. I have every intention of being out of boxes ASAP. I don't do boxes. I hate boxes. I may even loathe them. They give me a special kind of anxiety. A very, boxy boxed-in kind of anxiety - like I can't breathe because they are just growing larger and larger.

Ok - that was a little overly dramatic. They don't give me anxiety to that level. But they make me want to run away. Maybe that was their plan all along. Multiply when I'm not looking so they can eat our things and drive us away. Well boxes, you won't win. We're bigger than you, well maybe not me, but I know people bigger than you. Plus, we have more man-power than you. I knew it was a bad idea letting you pop in for a quick dinner. Well boxes, you can take over the apartment, but you can't have our house. You're not allowed. Nope - not allowed. Access denied. Once you have returned all the items you have stolen from us, we're kicking you out. Sending you back to where you came from. Well, I don't think we can turn you back into a tree - but we're sending you away none-the-less. I will give you 3 days to spit out all your treasures that have been entrusted to us and then you're out.

Tough love. Someone's gotta do it.

Sincerely,
Sara

Things I've learned with Packing

Here's a randomly compiled list of things I've learned through the packing/moving process (this time) because our neighbors are being ridiculously loud and the police haven't shown up yet to break it up. Yes, I'm that person. It's 1:00AM go be loud somewhere else.

• AMAZING snack combination: Keebler Fudge Stripe cookies and Sour Cream & Onion Pringles. Layer them. Eat them. Enjoy it. It's amazing. 
• I'm actually pretty good at packing. The whole apartment is almost done.
• I hate the end of packing - all the random stuff - totally gives me anxiety. 
• My OCD tendencies are thrust into turbo mode when I'm feeling overwhelmed. Not only have I packed most of the house, but I've organized the hangers, over labeled all the boxes we bought (not the ones we are borrowing), made lists of lots of things - daily to do list, things to leave unpacked, things to purchase, things I would like for the house, I've done 18 zillion loads of laundry.
• I love our bunnies. They are good company. 
• Our bunnies love the boxes in the apartment. Pocket keeps trying to figure out how to get on top of them. It's not gonna happen, but she's determined to keep trying. 
• Pushing Daisies is not a terrible tv series once you get over the cheesey-ness. 
• Watching Pushing Daises is NOT conducive to packing.
• Watching iCarly is. 
• Unless you're tired, then it just serves as a distraction.
• Freezer meals are the best idea ever. 
• I'm most productive with a real dead line and not one I tell myself is real, but really has no consequences. 
• This is the LONGEST week ever. 
• Apple Juice and Starbucks (not together) are life savers. 
• I think I packed up all the caffeinated tea. 
• Nevermind, I think I packed up ALL the tea - even the tea that will help me sleep
• Packing leaves my body in the same condition the following day as if I had done a session of Insanity. I'm not sure what that means. 

We're Moving!!

     In a number of days (more than a week, less than two - can't calculate the exact number with my post-packing mush excuse of a brain), we will be moving to here:

 

We are both very excited - it's a stressed excitement, but excitement none-the-less. BUT - before you can move, you have to pack and that means our apartment looks like this:

And that we look like a combination of this:

oh hey! This one actually is us!

And I am currently sporting the "moving grunge" look. It's quite flattering - no makeup, no hair product, slouchy clothes... and if it's not flattering, it's comfortable and I reserve the right to be comfortable - and no photos will be taken.


I counted the number of boxes we have packed/almost packed today. The number is 71. 8 boxes are not finished and remain open in our kitchen waiting for the last few items to be put away. And I just want to run around the house screaming because I don't do commotion well - and while it's not noise, I'm counting the clutter as commotion and it's making me crazy. I even broke down and bought a Starbucks today (I haven't had coffee in months...like lots of months...I think 6 months, but don't quote me on that).

So that's where we are at now! I'm excited to be in our first house (though NOT our first home). I'm excited to paint the kitchen yellow and for being able to host shindigs at our house and have people come because we'll have the space; instead of volunteering my in-laws house like we did in California. I'm excited to have pool parties and fondue parties and game nights and I'm excited for all the space our bunnies will have!

And through it all, we are praising God for His faithfulness. While we only looked for a few weekends, there was a lot of unknowns in this house and God has been merciful and gracious in allowing us to have this house and in showing us His blessings when we are faithful to Him. There is no way we could have gotten this house without Him, all of our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents, our friends and lots and lots of prayer.

Thank you Jesus for our first home, we can't wait to live in it!

-:- The Colellos -:-

Read this

This woman and two of her kids were in Theater 9 when the Aurora, Colorado shooting happened; please read this.

http://aminiatureclaypot.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/so-you-still-think-god-is-a-merciful-god/

Random Ramblings for Jason

Our good friend, Jason, left this note on my facebook a few minutes ago:

"So, your last blog was a week ago and the last 2 were from Insanity. Am I to believe that the Insanity/House combo has driven you 2 to the funny farm? Hope all is going well. Praying for you guys."

So here's a blog about nothing in particular - but we're still here. We're still alive - woohoo! I have not been great about being consistent with Insanity. I'm ok with this. It's mainly to get me active again since the billion degree weather keeps me from going on walks at the lake now and so I consequently do nothing. On the days where my schedule isn't crazy I do it (so I've done it like 3 times). I'm still sore, so I guess that's good.

We ARE moving in a couple weeks! I'll post a picture when the chaos dies down.  And, if you know me, moving means that I am currently stressed out, overwhelmed, emotional and in a constant state of just wanting to go to bed and sleep all day. There's a lot left to do - we have no one on board (as of yet) to help move because we have to move on a weekday. It'll all work out - I just hate the chaos of moving, but I'm happy that this will be the last move in a long time.

We have paint options picked out for the main rooms and the kitchen! :) I'm excited - I'm getting my yellow kitchen because my Hubster Lovester is fantastic!

I have officially watched all 5 seasons of Daria. I don't know what this says about me. Please don't judge me.

I'm also experimenting with "freezer meals". Have a number of recipes to post - this will probably happen after the move.

It was 109 degrees today and I didn't think it was that bad.


Oh? Did I mention I got a job at MAC?

So here's to chaos and emotions and a permanent place to live! WoohoO!! Thank you Jesus!!
Sara