Julia's Dance Rehersal

We ended up missing Julia's dance recital because of our trip to San Francisco. However, she had a rehearsal a few days before that we were able to attend. I'm sure it wasn't the same, but it was pretty close. In fact, they ran through the number twice, so we may have seen more than if we would have attended the recital. She was very excited about getting to wear makeup with her dancing outfit.

Julia has been going to class every Wednesday after school with her friends and classmates Emma, Evie, and Avery. Emma and Evie's mom takes them home after school and then to class. Julia really likes dance, so it's possible she'll continue longer than just this session.  She's obviously growing up and maturing, since she had no problem being on stage with the rest of her group.  She said she was a little nervous, and you could tell she was, but overall she did great.

Grandpa and grandma took her to the actual recital. We made sure to get it on DVD and to have a bouquet of flowers waiting for her after the show.

Little Competitor

Stacey took Jonathan to the park the other day. Another kid showed up on his bike. Jonathan's new friend followed him around for a little bit while Jonathan rode his scooter.  After while of sizing each other up, both boys gave each other the look equivalent to revving your engine at a stop light.  The paced gradually quickened until it was "race on".  When the race began Jonathan put his head down and "dropped the hammer".  Apparently, his burst of speed was quite impressive, leaving the larger kid in the dust. The other boy's grandpa wanted to know how old Jonathan was.

I heard all about the race against the "kid with the yellow bike" when I got home. Jonathan was very proud that he won. It's really funny to hear things like this and to watch him around the house with Julia. He hates losing, and loves racing.  When the kids chase each other around the house, he gets this look on his face and clenches his teeth, until he is able to wrap his arms around his sister and take her to the floor. He's definitely got a competitive, strong-willed streak.  That will be great going forward, as long as we can channel it in a positive way.

Julia's Notes

Thank you for moving to a new house
Can we watch Looney Tunes?



What Julia wrote at school using the words "give" and "little"
Julia's to-do list at grandpa and grandma's: Take a walk, go in the hot tub, watch Frozen, make Easter baskets

Party Planner

Julia decided that for my birthday she was going to throw me a party. She called grandma on the phone, in secret, to discuss the details of the celebration while I was at work.

One my birthday Stacey and I went to a movie while the kids decorated, set up, and made/wrapped my presents.  When we arrived Julia kept things moving, as if we had a schedule to maintain in order to get through the cake, presents, and pictures. The kids assisted with opening their drawings that they had wrapped.

It was a big party.  So much so that Jonathan and Julia fell asleep in the car on the way home. We all think Julia had just as much fun throwing a party for me as having one herself.

First Race

My parents took the kids the weekend we closed and moved into our new house. My Dad had a race on Sunday, and when they arrived Julia decided she wanted to run the half-mile version.  It wasn't planned. For those close to the situation it's obvious from the pictures, since she is wearing her pajamas! My parents registered Julia and she ran the entire distance by herself. She's definitely trying more and more things as she grows in confidence and independence.

Once Jonathan saw his sister participating he wanted a piece of the action too.  My Mom and he planned on walking it together, but his competitive side kicked in. Check out the concentration on his face. Since the half-mile race was held before the main race, there was a crowd watching. When Jonathan turned the corner and saw grandpa at the finish line, he took off sprinting to the roar of the crowd.  He was the star of the show.

Julia had the idea to make signs to cheer grandpa on. Because of the running and sign making, grandpa and both kids got their own article in the local paper. It was really cool to see both kids participating in an event like this, especially considering their history with shyness and medical issues.

House Closing Today

Today we closed on our new house!  We had the final walk through at 9 and then signed papers for a little over an hour after that.  I ran over to vacuum the house before the carpet cleaners arrived. In the afternoon we were able to unload two trailers before having to stop for dinner.

Three neighbors stopped by and introduced themselves.  There are block barbeques and a street email list/Facebook page.  Those sort of things are what we expected and partly why we moved here. Sounds like there are a lot of children on our street, so the kids are going to love that.  

I'm pretty tired from moving things, but we almost have the basement completely moved out.  Tomorrow morning we'll finish up that level - if you don't count the couches.  We'll leave the heavy things for a later date.  We have a lot of furniture, but we actually don't have a lot of "stuff".  We may be able to live out of the new place by Sunday night.  We aren't in a rush though, the renters don't move in to our old place until May 10th.

I was able to take some pictures before we moved things in.  I know many of you have been curious to see some.  The house is beautiful, yet it isn't as photogenic as in person.  It might be the angles. With everything out we've really noticed some wear, so we're already talking about painting the place. We'll probably stick to a similar color throughout, but with a nice, fresh, coat and a little more shine.

Compared to our old house, the place feels like we have breathing room, both inside and out.

Renters Found

Today we signed a two year lease with Jan and Phil.  It's pretty amazing how fast everything happened.  We posted the ad on a few sites and within six days we had a verbal agreement to sign a lease. We didn't even post a sign outside the house - it was all done via the interwebs.

I started getting emails and calls within an hour of posting the house online. The next day we showed it to three parties.  Over the six days we averaged about two a day looking at the house, in addition to fielding probably over 30 phone calls and or emails.  The interest was so great that we actually talked about raising the price.

The people that are renting our house actually found it through the classified ads at work.  Their daughter works here and sent the link to them.  Jan and Phil are about the same age as my Dad, so no kids but also no pets...just the two of them.  Jan used to work at Focus for over twenty years.  This is exactly the demographic I had envisioned when we started thinking about renting our house.  Technically you can't make decisions based on this, but it happens on the down low all the time.  In all honesty, they were the only ones that actually completed and turned in an application, so that's reason enough.  Jan arrived with her own copy already filled out, complete with social security numbers, copies of driver's licenses, and bank statements.  Sold.

We have plenty of time to get the place cleaned up before they move in.  No repainting necessary, just cleaning.  We'll tackle that later after we've moved everything to the new place.  We'll see how this new ventures goes.  I hope it's not that difficult, because it allows us to use other people's money to pay for our next place.  I can always sell the house later if it doesn't work out, but then I'm using my money.  The kids don't care, as long as they get the trampoline they were promised!

Pictures of the Week

Jonathan was being a "stinker" one night and not going to bed. He kept coming downstairs until he got in trouble.  After we put him back to bed one last time we thought we heard him again while talking in the kitchen, but he never came downstairs.  After talking for a while we headed upstairs and found him sleeping on a stair.  It's almost like he came out to hear us talking, but not far enough to where we would see him.

Julia had a Donuts for Dad event at school on Friday.  I took a little time off from work and had a donut in her classroom with her.  The kids had made books for us by first typing on the computer and then drawing/coloring pictures above the text.  All of the pages were bound together in a booklet for us to keep.  The kids all read their book in front of the entire class and group of Dads, except Julia.  She was the only one too shy to do it.  When her name was called she initiated her death grip and wouldn't go to the front of the class.  Mrs Miller had to read it for her.  Each kid had written something specific that they like to do.  Julia said she likes going to IHOP with me to get pancakes.  She also really likes it when I throw her in the air, even though it's "a little scary".

I took this picture of Jonathan the other day before he hopped on his new bike. I call it "Mormon in Training".  He insists on wearing his dress shirt and tie, even if we're just around the house.  The helmet he wears is so funny because it's so big on him.  It kind of makes him look like a mushroom or a character from Super Mario Bros.  Either way it's pretty cute.

A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words

Julia fell off her bike after hitting a patch of ice and hurt her arm. I think she hyper-extended it, but regardless of what was hurt, we made her a little sling to make it feel better.  Her arm got its own pillow at night too. After a day or two of this I made her take the sling off and about 5 minutes later she was practically doing back handsprings and pushups.  It was a miraculous recovery. She needed the extra attention on medical matters anyway, so we didn't mind.
 
Here's proof she can spell her name with veggie straws. She only likes the sweet potato sticks. 

The pictures I like best are her memoirs.  The other day she wasn't feeling good and wrote us this note.  The frowning face is pretty cute.  Due to her packed schedule these days as a big kindergartener, she had to make a "note to self" so she wouldn't forget about Spring Break. The school doors are a good visual reminder too.

Debt Free For Two Weeks

Dave Ramsey would be proud, or so I hear.  I've actually never heard any of his material.  Today we paid off our first house and are completely debt free.  We also drive cars that are 17 and 20 years old.  It's something we'll enjoy for a few days, because in two weeks we'll be moving to a new house. It's still pretty hard to believe considering the tens of thousands we've spent on Jonathan's medical bills and that I took a full year off of work.

This isn't something we've done on our own though.  I still drive the same car my parents let me use in high school.  I didn't leave college with any school debt, thanks to my parents and the Air Force. Grandma Heinz helped along the way. Even a little here and there for lunch or dinner by numerous people all contributed to the cause. Of course, let's not forget Divine Intervention, putting us in the right place at the right time when I got out of the Air Force in Hawaii as well as providing great jobs with benefits since that time. Stacey has also worked "her hands to the bone" to keep her job and tend to the kids while young.

On the other hand, we've spent money but not on things I would consider consumer goods or depreciating assets.  Most of our money spent has been put into our largest asset, this house. I guess that explains why not many people are able to do what we've done.  It takes a group effort and all things going your way - in addition to making good decisions.