Pueblo Friends

The day after school ended we met up with some of our friends from Pueblo (the Heim's and the Francis') at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs.  The kids were so excited to see each other and picked up right where they had left off 7 months prior.  Such good friends and good people, we had a great afternoon together.  We are blessed to have such wonderful friends in our lives even if we live 2 hours away and don't see each other that often.

First Snowfall

This fall has been unusually chilly with the first snowfall earlier than I can ever remember for Pueblo.  On the way home from taking the kids to school the sun was shining on the newly snow covered Wet Mountains off in the distance in such a way that I'd never seen them before.  Typically I can't see the mountains this clearly so I quickly ran home and grabbed my camera and headed down the highway to find a spot where I could snap a few pictures.  Alayna thought I was crazy taking pictures still in my pj's and hanging out the window on a cold morning.  Hey...why not!  I'm gonna miss this view.

Offer

This past week has been a whirlwind of emotions!  But let's start from the very beginning.  We had a showing on Monday evening, which happened to be the day before Charlie started his new job in Denver.  We got Fazoli's for dinner at the drive-thru and then took it to the park for a picnic.  We unloaded the food and the dog from the car and got settled at the picnic table.  We served the kids first then served ourselves, said a prayer and started eating.  Half way through the meal I said, "Where's Genie?".  WE HAD LEFT HER IN THE CAR!!  It had to have been a good 15 min. if not more.  Luckily it wasn't a hot evening and she seemed to be just fine.  The funny thing is though, once I said that, Kenzie was like, "oh yeah, I wondered that too but I just thought you wanted to leave her in the car so I didn't say anything."  Poor fourth and forgotten child!!

The next morning we all said our good-byes to Charlie as he headed up north to meet with his new boss and learn his new duties.  Dallin gave Char a big long hug before heading off to school, it was really sweet.  He also offered a prayer in the car that was really heartfelt, asking that our house could sell fast so that our family could be together.

While we were enjoying our picnic dinner two nights before and completely neglecting our child, a couple was looking at our house and apparently fell in love with it enough to give us an offer!! Wednesday afternoon our realtor called to tell me the good (and bad) news.  The good news was we had an offer...the bad news was it was a pretty low offer; $30,000 lower than the asking price!  Of course I immediately called Charlie to tell him the news.  At first we were really ticked!  How could they give us such a low-ball offer?  We were almost insulted.  We decided to counter their offer dropping $10,000 off the asking price.  They then countered that offer and went up only $5,000 from their original offer...still $25,000 less than asking price.  Really?  They only came up $5,000 when we were going down $10,000 and we'd already dropped the price previously?

We had a lot to think about.  What we thought we could walk away with on the home was now shrinking considerably and reality was starting to set in.  Perhaps we really needed to swallow our pride and get rid of any personal attachments we had to our house and see it for what it is.  I had to continually remind myself that our house is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.  Did we want to hold off and hope for another higher offer to come along?  All the while our family is torn apart?  Did we really want to squabble over a few thousand dollars that we never had to begin with?  But at the same time knowing that what we got out of this house greatly determines our future home in which we plan to live in for a long time.

After thinking it through and meeting with our realtor, we determined that it would be better to compromise than lose the buyer not knowing when another buyer might come along.  So we came up with a number that we decided we could live with and that the buyers could live with.  The papers have all been signed and things are set in motion to close on October 31!

I feel so overwhelmed by the amount of support and prayers that have been said in our behalf.  My testimony in the power of prayer has grown immensely.  I thought that it didn't really matter if one person prayed or 100 people prayed, God would still go through with his plan for you.  And while that might be true in some cases, I have learned how much I NEED prayer.  God will do what God will do, but knowing that friends and family are including me and my family in their prayers has lifted my spirits, given me hope, and an abundance of strength.  It was truly amazing to me, everyone that I talked to would tell me they are praying for us, or they added our family to the prayer rolls in the temple, or we included you guys in our fast.  I also have felt great support from my siblings.  They have ALL called me (or texted) to check in on me and give me their support.

Selling our house in 3 months in this market in this area is nothing short of a miracle.  Most homes in our area take at least 150 days to sell!  I know that this is all happening for a reason and that Heavenly Father is mindful of our family.  I have felt his loving comfort many times as I have stressed out about keeping things cleaned or making the best decisions.  He's reminded me of his presence and that everything will all work out.  And so far it has!  It's always scary to assume everything will go as planned from here on out because you just never know, but whatever happens will be what's right for us.  And I'm thankful for that knowledge.

Here We Sit...

...like flies on a toilet seat....

Here we are still stuck in limbo as the house hasn't sold yet and Charlie's current job is coming to a close and the new one starts.  His first day at the new job is September 10.  I'm glad he's been here as long as he has...earlier they were talking mid August...but it's still not late enough!  The house hasn't sold which means I'm stuck in Pueblo being a single mom.

When you start feeling sorry for yourself, what do you do?  Count your blessing!!

1. I'm thankful for all the prayers from family and friends.  I KNOW that you are praying for us and it has truly lifted my spirits, given me hope, and made this whole process easier. THANK YOU!

2. I'm thankful for my truly wonderful, inspired, hardworking, loyal husband.  This past year has been really rough for him and I'm so thankful for his courage to make this change and to seek the Lord's guidance in his life.  I'm lucky to have such an awesome husband.

3. I'm thankful for my children.  I had an experience yesterday where they taught me a lot about slowing down, being patient, listening, and being open to new ideas.  My way is not the only way, nor is it always the best way....humility!

4. I'm thankful for the time I've lived here in Pueblo.  I'm sad to be leaving but excited at the new opportunities ahead of us.  I have made some really good friends here and I have loved being a homeowner for the first time.  Two of my children were born here, while the other two have grown up here, and I have some really fond memories here.  Pueblo will always be a happy memory for me.

5. I'm thankful for our health.  Despite the added stress in our lives, we have remained relatively healthy and for that I'm very thankful!  Aside from the pink eye breakout (which is FINALLY gone), we are all doing great!

6. Lastly, I'm thankful for faith, hope, and my testimony.  I'm thankful that I went through a similar experience 4 years ago when we moved to Pueblo and we had to wait to get into our house.  I learned that I can do hard things, but I also learned that I can handle this situation better than I did last time.  I know that when God is at the lead, everything will work out.  I know that I can make it through, it will be hard, but I know I can do this!  I'm thankful for the peace that comes from Holy Ghost.  I know that Heavenly Father is aware of me and my needs and he's sending an added measure of support in my behalf and because of that I'll get through whatever life throws at me.

I know this house will sell...it will!  I'm still hoping we'll get an offer before the 10th...I could happen you never know!  We have a showing on Saturday which I'm really excited about since we haven't had a showing in over 2 weeks.  Yes, I'm getting my hopes up that this is the one.  I'm just thinking optimistically and positively here!

Regardless...these things take time and I'm tyring to prepare for the upcoming challenge.

Pratt Family Scrimmage

Charlie rounded up all the soccer shoes we own and regardless if they fit you or not, each player got to wear a pair.  They then divided into teams, Dallin & Kenzie VS Dad & Lulu, Chewy played for both teams.  The scrimmage went just about like I thought it would.  Lots of running, cheering, crying, and sweat.  And of course, it's not a real game unless someone gets hurt.  Charlie was the lucky one this time.  He received a nice direct kick to the ankle.  Go team Pratt!!

When you are two it's hard to understand you can't have the ball the whole time!
"DALLIN TOOK THE BALL!"

GO CHEWY!

I never noticed before but look at her tongue!  Just like her daddy!

Go Team Pratt!!

Our little cheerleader ;)

Random

I wonder how many times I can get away with using the title "Random".  Oh well, it's my blog so I guess I can do whatever I want, he-he!

Anyhow, Lulu was having a hay day playing with the hose yesterday.  It's amazing how running water can produce limitless entertainment for a 2yr old.  She was trying really hard to fill her pocket up with water...so cute!

Genie has been such an awesome baby!  But she also likes to cry and sometimes she cries a lot.  This particular day she cried most of the morning.  I didn't know what more I could do for her, so she just cried.

It's nice that Dallin is old enough to take a decent picture for us.  We have had an emotional summer, to say the least.  Lots of stress and worry over the job, the house, the new transition.  I'm just glad we have each other for support and strength.  I couldn't ask for a better eternal companion. 

And as the sun sets on this beautiful Colorado sky, I can't help but think of all my many blessings.  As much as I feel trapped in limbo right now, I still have so much to be thankful for.  God has blessed me so abundantly with a beautiful life.  I'm a lucky girl.

Water Babies

Lulu really wanted to fill up the "tiny pool" and play.  So I stuck both of them in there to see how they'd do together.  Juju typically loves to play in the water but today she was done after about 10 minutes.  But she looks so darn cute in her swimsuit I just had to take lots of pictures!  Sorry...iPhone pictures again.

I've been reading hair styling blogs lately to get new ideas.  Here's one that I tried, I think it looks
cute and actually she slept in it that night and it looked great the next day too!

Back To School

Good-bye summer.  It seems just like two days ago I was posting an entry on what to do this summer!  Geez, I knew it would go by fast but seriously this summer FLEW by!  And now here we are starting 1st and 2nd grades.  Kenzie and Dallin are attending Pueblo School for Arts and Science (PSAS).  Kenzie's teacher is Mrs. Phillips and Dallin has Ms Cesar (Sesser is how you pronounce it).  We are excited for a new and hopefully successful year.

While the kids were at school, Alayna insisted on wearing her Halloween shirt (in the middle of August) with one arm in and one arm out.  Some battles aren't worth fighting!

 

3v3 Soccer Season

Dallin's 3v3 soccer team made it to the tournament round and ended up placing 2nd in the championship game.  It was fun to watch the boys play.

Water Fun

We met up with some friends to play in the fountains downtown.  It was an especially hot day, perfect for water fun.  Lulu wanted nothing to do with the splashing water but Dal and Kenz went right in.  It was a great afternoon of fun.

Kenzie, Dallin, Madi, Livi, Ali, and Bri

It's Official

Today we made it official.  We met with the realtor and now we have a bonafide FOR SALE sign out front.  I've been frantically cleaning and getting the house ready for the past week...whew.  It's been A LOT OF WORK!!!  I remember how badly I wanted this house and it seemed like we were never going to get it.  Now just 4 years later I feel like I'm abandoning it...this beautiful little sanctuary of peace that we've called home.  If you know anyone whose in the market for a lovely home on Petalina Ct. send them my way.  I'm going to miss this place.