Thursday, July 28, 2011

gansta from my head to my shooz


I can't help but notice that it seems everyone around me is buying a house. I'm only 23 years old and a lot (I'll try to avoid the word most) of my friends, my same age, are all announcing the exciting news they're going to be home owners! I wont even deny that I am instantly a tad bit, extremely jealous. Haha. Right now, renting, basically throwing away thousands of dollars each month really really sucks lamebeans. And I dream and drool over the day Matt and I will be able to renovate our own home. I am such a sucker for landscaping, interior design, really...anything HGTV related. So I'm sincerely and totally excited for my friends!

But at the same time it really makes me wonder and evaluate where I am in my life, where Matt and I are. And I have to admit...it makes me feel exponentially less mature and responsible then them.

Let me explain.
Right now we have a awkward 3 story townhome (you know the tall and skinny kind) and even though it's pretty dang small and only 2 bedrooms, it still feels way too big. Also, we're in a neighborhood full of retirees. Which is wonderful because watching old people walk around with their ski-polls and walkers is kind of charming in it's own way, not to mention everyone is super friendly...but...we might feel a little bit out of place. Also, we have Sawyer. And as much as I'd like to deny, he does have some control over the easiness of our travel plans. Even simple trips down to Disney Land require much thought as to where to put the little soybean. Of course there are tons of options of where to put him but after putting him in the "Disney Land Kennel Club"...don't be fooled.


It only looks like a smaller version of Disney Land...on the outside.


Believe you me, we will not be doing that cruel and unusual punishment again. Ok, so I love Disney Land too much to completely dis it's Kennel. It's just that when you put a dog in any kennel period...it's going to be awful and sad and heart breaking! I love my puppy too much.
So even though we wouldn't give Sawyer up for anything, he's already a huge commitment.
Also, there's the fact we have no idea where in the world (is Carmen SanDiego...yeah, did you guys ever play that game? Awesome.) we want to live long term. Basically since we've been married we've moved every 6 months. Until now. And we actually probably would move if we had a 6 month contract but it's 12 months so we're forced to stay, kinda like hostages. Yeah, maybe we're weird. But we just want to find a town that we love. One that's suitable for family, fun, vacation, every day living...basically we're looking for the perfect place. And that's only a little bit sarcastic because I'm sure anyone over the age of X (I don't want to offend anyone) reading this and thinking, "Oh, those little whipper-snappers! Don't they know that doesn't exist!"
Yes.
Although Matt and I may be a bit naive, and we tend to do things more complicated the first time around, we realize life includes compromises. We have a list of our top important musts and we just haven't found those yet.

So, after having mentally (and now bloggingly...that words a bit awkward) made that list I thought...if I don't feel ready now I wonder what the experts would say being ready to buy a home is. I honestly thought we'd be far off the list, but surprisingly only about 2 of them didn't fit us.
See if you can guess.

1. See if you have too much debt. A lender is going to want to see this first thing.
2. Determine your net worth to make sure your "A" aint broke. Meaning, make sure your expenses aren't greater than the money your bringing in.
3. Check your credit score. We should all know why this is important due to those amazing "free credit score.com" commercials. Such a catchy jingle!...always gets stuck in my head.

So far those questions are just to make sure you can afford a house, let alone if your ready. So let me get onto those...

4. Steady and reliable income. If you can't hold a job, you probably can't hold a house either.
5. Be in control of your money, have a budget, blah blah blah. Know where your money is going!
6. Excluding the bank loan, have enough saved up for closing costs, down payment and moving costs. Because even though Matt and I have moved so so so way too many times we're always surprised by how far off we plan for moving costs....gas station treats add up!
7. If you've passed so far, and you can indeed pay for a house, make sure you can pay for a house while paying for all the other expenses that come with owning a home. Taxes, insurance, maintenance, repairs, homeowners association fees, water and sewage and garbage services are just a few to name.
8. Does your life insurance cover the mortgage and other expenses if one of you dies................that is a very sad depressing thought. Life insurance. Isn't being an adult so much fun??
9. If the list above didn't give you a head ache then congratulations!! The people over at this random website think your ready!!

Pretty much Matt and I want to skip out on the whole mortgage scene and go gangsta style. We want to show up on someones doorstep, Oprah Winfrey style, with a suitcase of money and buy their house with cold, hard, gloriously stinky cash. And then all we'll need is matching sweat suits, like these lovely people...
Add some some gold chains and we'll be set!
Hahaha! Ok. I kid. Let me be serious.

I was a little comforted to know that the failings we had were small and not 1-8. I think when it comes time to buying a home, Matt and I will know. We'll be ready. Until then we get to enjoy renting and all the joys of not getting to paint the walls, or hang nails in them (even though we do anyway), or basically do anything to improve the area...even though there's so much potential and I'm pretty sure the landlord would love what we'd do with the place.
Thus is life.
...gangsta style =)

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer

Basically summer-time-blogging and I just don't get along. Frankly, and I will be frank, I'd much rather be outside riding my bike, lounging at the pool, getting sunburned feet at the beach and so many other fantastically lazy activities. Can you have a lazy activity?...maybe...yes!

Let me sum up our summer (so far) for you.

1. We went to San Francisco. Yes. With the soybean. We like our pets to be well rounded. *Sarcasm*

2. Mom and Stefen came to visit! We showed them all the wonders of SB and they fell in love.

3. Matt and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary. Woot! Go us!

4. We went to Utah! Gosh, we missed my family.

5. Stefen moved out to California with us. He'll be here until the end of Aug.

6. I got a job! And I'm thrilled that I get to work from home and have such flexible hours!

7. (most of) My family came to visit us in California! Which of course meant Disney Land. Which of course meant churro's. Mmmm, delish.

8. Jesse's 1 year death anniversary. Miss you brother!

9. The North Carolina Bartlett's came to visit! Oh, how I love my adorable nieces!

10. We went back to Utah again for Matt's brother's wedding. Congratulations Zack and Jen!!

So far this summer has been, what I would call, a success! Meaning we're alive! We're happy! We're healthy! We've also grown a lot too. Something Matt and I have discussed is that we always want to be progressing and looking for ways we can improve and do better. And after typing that, it totally sounds like a bummer lame thing to do, but really it's been amazing!

We made a goal to read a chapter in The Book of Mormon every night no matter what. And now we're already into Alma. I don't know how many times I've read the BOM, but as always this goal has changed me. I love the Book of Mormon! It is such a blessing to have the words of the prophets of old and to be able to discuss the stories and messages with Matt. I really just can't say enough about what a miracle it is we have this record.

That being said we've had a lot of negative influences in our lives and sometimes it's hard to stay happy and optimistic and not let others get you down. A goal I made was to not spend so much time being bugged by others. Ha! So much easier said than done. However, the other night my inspired husband looked at me and said so simply, "Let's just be nice to everyone. And if they're still mean...we'll be even nicer! Because no harm can come from being nice." Wow. Is my hubby a genius or what?!? A light flipped on inside my heart when he said that.

And that's all!
It's so much simpler to just be nice to everyone instead of have all these other guidelines to follow like: If they're nice to you, be nice back. If their mean, ignore it. Don't judge. And so on. But if you throw all that away and say regardless of who it is, the situation, circumstances, etc and just be NICE.
Well!!...my life just got so much more simple.

What have you learned this summer?

Monday, July 11, 2011

who woulda thunk

Fat free, sugar free pudding by Jell-O is surprisingly delicious! I'm so thrilled!

Unfortunately Matt and I have been trying to eat healthier. And yes, I say unfortunate because there's something about summer that makes you want to just lounge by the pool and eat popsicles and ice cream sandwiches all day. And like always it was 11:00PM and our sweet tooth was calling so we head to the grocery store...it's the polite thing to do.

I had been craving pudding for a while and was skeptical of the fat free, sugar free kind but I decided to be brave and grabbed a box anyway. With some Gushers as well, of course, just in case the pudding ended up being a huge flop. And yes, I said Gushers. Because why do you have to stop enjoying their deliciousness just because your not a zitty middle school student with braces and home packed lunches from your mom, anymore? Exactly.

So off we went with our box of pudding and Gushers and let me tell you the chocolate flavor is scrumptious! It literally tastes like cake batter. I've had about 2 cups of it already and I don't even feel guilty!...well, except for the 3 packs of gushers I had with it...at least I tried =)