life changes

So I wasn't 100% honest in my last blog post. I talked about our last 3 months and what was going on but I left out a big chunk of what had really been going on: We're moving. To a house. In Murray. {Which is where we're from and is where both our families are}
The reason I didn't want to disclose it earlier was because I kind of wanted to dedicate a whole blog post to it AND it wasn't entirely official yet. As of tomorrow{February 27} it will be keys in hand, papers signed, official. Finally. There were some bumps in the road with the inspection report and stuff so I didn't want to post until I knew for sure that this house was the one.

Let's chat a minute about the last 4 years..

Aside from our Tennessee pest control adventure in the summer of 2011, Tyler and I have lived in the same ward boundaries and same area of Provo since we got married. We moved into a studio apartment right next to some gorgeous apartments in 2010 and then in 2011 we moved into said gorgeous apartments.
We have loved living here so so much.
It is home.
It is our comfort zone.
It is familiar and it is where we became a family.
I have pretty much lived in Provo since 2008 and although I've been telling myself I am ready to get out, now that it's time I am not so sure.

Let's reminisce..

here are some links to different posts I've done through the years about where we've lived.

Our studio apartment to say it was humble is an understatement. 

Life in 400 sq. feet  don't get in a "my first apartment was smaller than yours" war because I will win.
Good riddance leaving behind our first apartment together with barely a second thought.
Hello Huntington Apartments! Finally moving into our dream apartment! Haha. I say dream apartment because it really is a dream compared to our studio.

Is this real life?

3ish months ago we thought we would still be living here in our Provo apartment for the next 1+ years until we could feel financially comfortable enough for a down payment and all that comes with buying your first home. But an unusual opportunity has presented itself and we are taking it!

So here's the deal{described the best I can}: My older brother {Orson} owns a home in Sandy with roommates. About 4 months ago he started feeling like he needed a change of lifestyle to fit his needs better during the week. He works as an accountant for Siegfried and Jensen and needs his sleep during the business days. His nocturnal roomies however,(who are also his good friends) don't value sleep as much as he does during the week. My brother would love to have a home to retire to during the week that he can actually get some sleep at, then during the weekend he can enjoy partying/doing some yard work that he enjoys at his Sandy home. So he proposed a unique situation to us where he would buy a second home and we would rent from him while he lived with us part time. The rent/utilities etc. would be the same as they are here in our apartment so it hardly took any convincing for us to say yes!! Tyler works in Riverton so living in Murray will cut his commute in half! =D Plus we're closer to family and the gas we'll save from always driving to and from Murray for family/friend things will be amazing!
Then we found this home and it fit our needs perfectly! 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms. He will have the 2 bedrooms downstairs and we will have the 3 upstairs!
I will share some but not all pics from the listing because I'll want to share more once we're settled into it and have given the home our own personal touch!

From Google maps

And they're leaving the swing set and the little play house! I can't wait to see Halli's reaction when she sees it.

There's a window seat where Halli can sit waiting for Daddy to get home from work =)

 That door leads out into the backyard. (My brother is going to replace the countertops)

Our master bathroom

basement

My brother says this can be Halli's play area. score!

The basement is brand new and it looks gooood. So much room! 

We love that there is a lot of storage, a spacious basement laundry room, and that the garage has a dual entry. So my brother can go straight downstairs without feeling like he's bugging us. 

Our official move date is March 14th.

Our family/friends here in Provo/Utah Valley are all like oh we're so happy for you with forced smiles and 

then our family/friends in Murray/Salt Lake Valley are all like hooray welcome back!!!! Haha.

While I am extremely excited to experience house living, more space, a garage, closer to parents/friends and a new adventure, but I am also so sad to say goodbye to what has become our home. 

We have made SO many friends here in our apartment complex. It is nice to feel like most everyone knows us and to just feel confident. I don't know how to describe it but i'm sure most of you who have lived somewhere for a long time know what I mean. Our ward is the best and we both have great callings. I can't imagine having any other ward. Our new ward will have big shoes to fill!

One thing I am also super bummed about is leaving our pediatrician/OB/family doctor! My OB is a family practitioner so she does pediatrics as well as obstetrics/gynecology which means we've been with her for almost 4 years!
Her name is Heather Harrison and I cannot recommend her enough!!

I made this to go with some chocolates I got them in a gift basket. (My name is Ann but I had asked them at the beginning to call me Annie so they call me both)

I debated staying with them even though it would be quite a drive...but then I thought about emergency situations like what happened with Hayden's eye: I called and they had me come in immediately which happened to be 4:30 right before they closed. But If I lived 40 mins away...I couldn't just "come in." I would have to plan ahead, deal with traffic and I just think it wouldn't work out well.

so..

Now I need your pediatrician recommendations!!!!

{for the Salt Lake valley}

Wish us luck on this next adventure of ours! I kinda can't imagine not living in our cozy apartment...but life happens outside of your comfort zone! Cheers to change!