We bought a house

In planning for the arrival of the newest Oakes (we're having a girl!), we've been trying to figure out our house situation. We talked to a contractor and discovered that the expansion project we had in mind was going to be expensive. And, we'd have to move out during the project. Thinking we'd casually look at the market to see what other options we had, we pulled a classic Oakes: we saw a house two blocks away and decided to put an offer on it.

This whole process started about a month ago. The day after seeing the house, we told the realtor that we'd make an offer. Matt started the process of putting things together. Then we found out that when we refinanced two years ago, the mortgage company listed it as a foreclosure - killing our chances of getting financing. Matt went into lawyer mode and spent a few long, stressful weeks working to get the foreclosure removed. Just when the mortgage company admitted it was, in fact, a mistake, and said they'd fix it, the house I decided I now desperately wanted went under contract.

I was upset, but figured it wasn't meant to be. But, a few days later, we got a call from our agent that the contract had fallen through and the house was back on the market. Of course, the mortgage company still hadn't fixed our credit report. After more calls and waiting, we found out this past Tuesday that the issue had been fixed.

We put together our offer and put it in on Thursday morning. Later that day we heard back from the seller with a counter-offer. We then countered again, and found out yesterday morning that he accepted! So, we have a new house!

Here's a photo of it:

If you're familiar with Takoma Park, you've probably seen the house - it's on the corner of Columbia and Sycamore behind the Co-op. The house has 6 (!) bedrooms - 4 upstairs and 2 on the main floor. We'll turn the two on the main floor into an office for me (a real office - with space!) and a den/playroom. The kitchen, dining room, living room is an open-concept space. The old garage, which is on the side of the house, is a large laundry room that we'll turn into a guest bedroom.

The basement has been turned into a rental property with its own entry. It's a one bedroom with kitchen, full bath, and laundry. We're thinking we'll try to find a grad student to fill it. And, now we have a potential for college savings!

One of the best features of the house is the HUGE 2-car garage with loft space in the backyard:

We've told the kids that when winter comes, they can get roller skates and skate in the garage. Finn's super excited because we're going to get him a basketball hoop to put on the right side of the garage.

We close May 22nd. Now we're making lists of what needs to be done to sell our current house and figuring out moving. We're not sure when the actual move will happen, but we'll figure that out in the next few days.

The big game

Finnegan has recently discovered a love for basketball. He started taking an afterschool clinic last fall, and is now pretty much obsessed with the game. He has a hoop in his room and practices just about every chance he gets. Along with this love, has come a love for the Washington Wizards. He and his best friend Gabe have decided that they love the team and, especially, John Wall. They both have Wall jerseys that they wear often.

On Monday night Matt and Gabe's father, Pete, took the boys to a Wizards game. It's actually a bit fortunate that the team is so terrible - tickets are less expensive and easier to get. The boys had a good time, despite the fact that the team lost in the last few seconds. But, the highlight was after the game.

As they were leaving, someone who had been sitting in the box seats and had tickets to a player meet and greet offered them their tickets to meet John Wall. Both boys had the chance to meet Wall and get their jerseys signed. Finn was pretty excited. As they were leaving, they got lost and ended up in a room with a bunch of the Detroit players, so the boys got to see them as well.

All in all, it was a pretty successful evening.

Finn watches John Wall sign his jersey.

+1

It's been awhile since I've posted. But, I promise I have a good reason! I've been exhausted and slightly sick for the past few months. Why? We discovered shortly after Thanksgiving that I'm pregnant. Yup. Pregnant. Surprised? So were (are) we.

I'm now 17 weeks, due Aug. 10. I have just entered that awkward stage where my clothes don't fit me anymore, but I'm not big enough for maternity wear yet. After working so hard to lose weight this summer and fall, it's been a hard adjustment to not fit into the clothes I worked so hard to get into. I have terrible heartburn and am tired, but otherwise am feeling pretty good. And, yes, we're going to find out the sex.

The kids know. We told them just before Christmas. They're adjusting to the idea, but it didn't go over all that well at first. Merete cried. I think she's scared of the changes that are coming. Finn's been pretty excited that he's won't be the youngest anymore. But, now they're helping with the baby name process (Finn's choice for a boy is Rocker) and getting more excited about having a sibling.

We're beginning the process of calling contractors to rework the house. Right now we're thinking of redoing the second floor to make it into three bedrooms, but we're open to other ideas/suggestions. And, we've begun the process of shopping for another car that we'll all fit into. It looks like we might have to be a minivan family.

Here's a recent photo of the newest Oakes, taken last week. The head is at the bottom, you can see a leg on the left side:

Post Thanksgiving Fun

After a quiet Thanksgiving (during which Matt and I were just getting over stomach flu), the kids have been keeping each other busy. They have built a robot named Zig Zag, complete with an inside "keyboard."

Building Zig Zag.

Notice the zig zag on the front.

The keyboard is the string of letters on the side.

Finn shows off the backside.

 Then Merete tried to teach Finnegan finger weaving. Shortly after I took these photos Finn decided that he "needed to be 6 to learn how" and gave up, much to Merete's frustration.

Then they both got the camera and starting taking photos. Here's a small sampling. I didn't include all 37 of them, since I don't think you want to see fuzzy photos of random household objects.

I love Finn's face here.

How Finn sees the world.

I think Tasha is trying to figure out what Merete is doing.

Finn is really taking a photo of Matt's bike. Matt's an added bonus.

Merete gets Matt's camera smile.

Merete's recent art project.

Merete captures a close up of me.

This isn't from today, but I found it on Merete's camera. It's so totally Finn.

My sweet boy

This morning Merete and Finn were discussing Christmas. They were talking about what they were going to ask for. I mentioned that they needed to start thinking about what they wanted to get each other. Finn got a glow in his eyes and told me, "I know exactly what I want to get Merete!" He then whispered: "An American Girl doll!" When I told him that was a great idea, but may be a bit expensive, he got very serious and told me: "I can ask Santa to get it for me and I'll give it to Merete."

Green belt, soccer, and singing

Merete with her new belt.

Last week Merete had a karate belt exam. She is now officially a green belt. Merete reports: "I'm 6th grade green belt. It's the 4th level."

I think it means she can now officially beat up Matt.

Finn showing off his soccer medals.

Meanwhile, Finn is busy with soccer. He will finish up his soccer season with a final scrimmage this weekend. Finn reports: "I am very good at soccer. I'm great at looking at the goal" (that means when he gets the ball he is good at facing the goal he's scoring on). And, "I'm great at scoring." Can you tell that Finn is rather impressed with his soccer abilities?











Finn is also discovering the wonders of kindergarten: school lunch (which he thinks are wonderful), recess, gym and free choice center. He's really into numbers and math. His teacher reports that he is a nice kid and "everybody wants to play with him." Every day he gets off the bus glowing because he sat with Max, a 2nd grader. Here's a recent song he's learned:

In case you can't quite make out the words: "Happy birthday to me,I'm a 103, I live in the sea,  I eat little fishies, and a big one ate me." He sang it non-stop for 3 days. Ah, the life of a kindergartner.

I did it!

This semester I am teaching a writing course on extremes. My students had to come up with an extreme project. I figured that I should do it, too. So, today I jumped (okay, more like fell) out of a plane!

After my jump.

 It was an amazing, surreal experience. I went through Skydive Orange in Orange, VA, which is about 2 hours south of DC. I did a tandem jump, which was part of the extreme part for me - the whole giving up control, putting my life in someone else's hands, and, quite frankly, being attached to someone I don't know. My instructor, Mario, was great.

My parents are in town, so my dad went with me. It made it easier to have someone else there. I think he had fun, too.

Dad and me pre-jump.

We jumped from 13,000 feet. The hardest part was the seconds before we exited the plane. My heart was racing. When we left the plane, it felt completely surreal. It was loud, and cold. I remember thinking I wish Mario would pull the parachute because it was so loud. Once the chute came out, though, it was immediately quiet and just beautiful. I got to steer the parachute a bit. The landing was odd - to see the ground come up that fast surprised me. I was bracing for a hard fall, but we landed on our feet.

Mom, Finn, and Merete watch the plane.

My good luck hugs.

The kids and Matt came along and watched. Finn reports: "When you came down, you looked like that you were not scared. And, you were in a plane. And, you jumped out of a plane."

Merete took lots of photos and watched. She was rather quiet. When I asked her if she thought it was weird, she told me she thought I was joking at first when I said I was going to do it, but then was surprised when she found out I wasn't.

Flying in the Sky!

It still feels pretty surreal. I'm so glad I did it. I don't feel the need to become a regular sky diver, but if anyone wants a jumping partner, I'd go again!