the last two months.

We've lived in our new home for just shy of two months, and there isn't a whole lot we don't love about it.  Was it love at first sight?  Well, this is what we saw as we approached the front door:

Pretty 😍-worthy, if you ask me.

We have twice as much house as we've ever had before, so it feels like we live in a mansion.  We also have stairs for the first time since having children who are mobile, and while we don't need to worry about Theo around stairs anymore, the travels of Miss I-Refuse-To-Play-In-One-Spot required the purchase of a baby gate.

We have a picturesque front yard (see above) with a big ole porch for sitting, and a big enough backyard for a garden and a running space for Theo.  Speaking of garden, I'm already more successful as a gardener in two months here than in 5+ years of attempts in Phoenix.  (It helps that my dad, Master Gardener Extraordinaire, lives around the corner to help me when I need.)

And the kitchen, holy carp, the kitchen.  It is massive and amazing and I can't believe it's mine.  I'm crazy excited to give it a few sexy upgrades over the coming years, but for now it is perfect and I'm having a lot of fun working in here.

(Also, for the sake of keepin' it real: I cleaned and tidied the kitchen as much as I wanted for the purpose of taking this picture.  It is never this tidy.  It took me a stupid long time to realize that kitchens that are actually used are never 'gram-worthy.  I'm onto you, influencers!)

It's the beginning of September, which finally means cooling temperatures and autumn just around the corner.  It's been a long decade of waiting for this again - full of infuriatingly hot days, desperate longing, and endless complaining.  But no more!!  Instead of depressed, I become giddy thinking about sweaters and hot chocolate to comfortably indulge in, Halloween specials, and baking baking baking.  (I've already done an insane amount of baking so far and made quite the dent in my frozen butter supply!) We've safely said goodbye to 90-degree days for at least another eight months, which is the exact opposite of where we've come from.  Good effin' riddance!



Just about everything these past several weeks has been perfect, save for one thing that happened last month.  Jon was laid off from his job, and though it has been stressful since that time, we have felt cautiously optimistic all the same.

(I've also felt like setting Jon's ex-boss's house on fire, but those feelings have passed.  I've now moved on to wanting to send him an exploding envelope full of glitter.  You know, taking the high road and all that.)

Regarding the whole ordeal, I mostly have been thinking about how this all would be going if we still lived in Arizona.  I'd already be at my peak complaining time because of the unrelenting heat, and given how things went with that house, we would probably also have something else to repair.  It's just nice to know that with our move here, the recurring problems of (1) the house breaking down on us and (2) my complete inability to cope with desert-living are gone and can't make unexpected life changes even harder to deal with.

We are happy here, and we are happy with what we have.  And happy to be rid of that idiot boss.  Good effin' riddance.