Home is wherever I'm with you.

If you've been wondering about the radio silence around here for the past few weeks, allow me to explain: we bought a house!

For all a lot of March we hung around Winston kind of mentally checked out, thinking we would be on to a bigger city in a state far, far away (or not so far, depending), but, as usual, God had better plans for us. So five days after our Match Day results divulged that we would be spending the next three years right here, we had worked through the numbers and said a lot of prayers and consulted our feelings for their response... and we went house hunting. For two days.

And then we put in an offer and waited.

So April and May became a blur of loan paperwork, utility transferring, conferring with our then-landlord about move-out details, and an insanely organized packing spree (thanks to Steve, our resident move expert), and I didn't have the time or the energy to write. Plus, we were waiting on things like inspections and appraisals just to find out if our loan would even go through.

But last Thursday (which also happened to be my SIL Emily's birthday--a very good sign) we left the kids with Christie (thanks Christie!) and drove out to Kernersville to sign the papers for our FIRST HOUSE!

And an hour later we were back on the freeway giddily calling our parents as I clutched a set of shiny new house keys.

And I couldn't help but be charmed and girlishly excited when I saw that sweet blue bow tied to our mailbox!

We have our own little tree! And shrubberies! A garage! A garbage disposal (glory be)! Three bathrooms. And so much light, all day long. Oh my word. We love it. We are even doing dishes much more frequently, and today I was so thrilled to be doing laundry UPSTAIRS and INSIDE the house that I did an extra load just because.

After we signed the papers Steve picked up Chipotle for us and I grabbed a packed dinner for the kids to eat on the slab out back. Steve had to run a quick and unexpected errand (selling stuff from the old place before moving day) so I served the kids their meal and some sparkling grape juice (we "cheers"'ed each others cups a lot, and Charlie later christened the carpet inside by spilling some delightfully purple juice right out of the bottle, with which he had secretly absconded). Then they played in the grass while we waited for Daddy to return so we could all unlock the front door for the first time together.

Gracie didn't mind, because I taught her about the joys of rolling sideways down a hill. :)

I snapped a picture of baby #3 (15 weeks here--uh oh!) in the sliding glass door while the littles played behind me.

And then Steve came back and we went around the front together, where he unlocked the door and--oh I just love him--carried me over the threshold! Melt me, right? He is adorable and the best, and I love love love that I just bought a house with him. I know it isn't typical to find a 30 year mortgage romantic (we literally laughed at the lawyer's office when we looked at the payoff date), but I have to admit, I love anything that ties us together a little tighter and says one more time: you're the one for me, forever.

We stepped inside and let the kids run free through the empty house and while we admired the fridge (which is fancy and has buttons and is bigger than any one I've ever had, and has an ice maker that you can LOCK--genius) and all the other random things you admire as a first-timer, and then ate burritos on the bare kitchen floor while our babies bumped noisily around upstairs playing in the closets or thundering up and down the hallway like a herd of tiny, bipedal elephants.

It is a great house.

My favorite part is the light, which is divine and makes me so happy. Our last place was so very dark, and it made me really sad. I love every window and bright spot in this house, and there are so many!

Gracie's favorite part is her closet, which she likes to sit in with her toys and play, and which has its own light switch. She chose that room specifically because of its closet, and would not be swayed.

Charlie's favorite part is the garage door, which he can't pronounce but loves to watch. His eyes go wide and his little mouth drops open into an O of awe and delight. He talks about it most of the day, and pretends other things (a trap door on his play car, the toaster oven) are garage doors, too. :)