Just wanting to drop a note to all the faithful blog checkers to say we're still alive and well:) but our computer still isn't cooperating...

Crapy computer. Rrg.

Yes, our computer is a piece of dung (to avoid profanity) to say the least. I think if we have any money to spare at the end of building our house, we will be looking into getting a mac. Anything more reliable than our junker will be fantastic! So, I'm currently on a friends computer, as I'm watching her son and atalie today and tomorow. Thus, I'm able to blog again. What a relief! While I'm here I should really update you all in our buying/building decisions. In current events we have decided to purchase a lot in Canal Flats and build our own home. It will be the same lot and house plan you may have already seen in one of my previous posts (the little red house with lots of windows, and the big empty grassy lot... ring any bells??). We have kev's bike up for sale and today will be the first day it is appearing in the Autotrader BC & Calgary. Hopefully the calls start flooding in!!! Pray pray pray!!!!! Once it sells and Kev has shed some tears, we will be able to put a downpayment on our mortgage and begin the building process. It's a long road ahead though - let me explain that - it is a detailed lengthy process which will be crammed into a short amount of time (august is our optimistic deadline). We're also hoping to work some miracles in the tax department when filing this year. We have learned that if we want to avoid large fees and possible interest, we must claim the $ we made on our condo in Kelowna... which means we will be using our savings to pay the crumby government. Oh well. That's what we had it saved for - the "just incase" we had to pay. But in the optimistic side once again, we are hoping to reclaim some gst from a first home purchase, along with the usual 'small' refund. This may lessen our amount owing in the end. Maybe. Anyways, we are excited and nervous about the whole thing, trusting that God will provide each step of the way (and perhaps our parents as well:)). The idea of living in canal flats does not excite a person but the end result of owning a new home does, and hopefully a good return when selling in the future. In other news Atalie's first birthday is soon approaching. March 26th to be exact. We'll be driving to Coaldale for a quick weekend away to celebrate with family and friends next weekend. Then the following weekend is Kevins birthday... who is turning 30:) Then my family will be coming to visit us for Easter the weekend after that! Much excitement:) :) I am 16 weeks along today. I'll be going for an ultrasound in a couple more weeks, which is about when Atalie gets her 12month shots & checkup. Lots of doctor visits around here! Good thing they're free!! (yes, i think of all you in the usa). Okay well I smell stinky diapers and must be back to my babysitting duties here. Thanks for checkin in!

Never mind. Down again. Last time was a fluke. Dangit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It works!

This is so odd. I've been trying and trying to get my blog working for a couple weeks now, and all of a sudden it pops back up as normal. ??? Yeah!!! Thanks for the note natasha - so odd that as soon I published your comment it snapped back. Good on ya! I'll be posting again soon;)

Cutie Pie

Saturday morning and this pook had us up at 7am sharp. No waiting around or sleeping in here.

A new "old" idea!

Okay so I realize this house thing may be getting old to anyone other than ourselves... however I feel we are finally gaining some headway here. With some help from Kevin's boss we have had a significant realization on our situation. It seems that a builders mortgage may be possible afterall(!) Now, before you read further I'm going to emphasize "MAY be possible", as we haven't finalized any details with the bank yet. I have had a few conversations with our bank, some lengthy and some short, leading me to believe that the chances are in our favour. We know right away that we won't be approved for much, but we may be approved for exactly what we need to build a rather cute little house on a lot in an area which is beginning to boom. We were on our way to look at an average size lot with a mobile home on it, located in Canal Flats (about 40min. South of Invermere and 40min. North of Cranbrook, on hwy.93/95). The mobile itself is quite old but in somewhat decent condition. We thought it was liveable, until we brought Kev's boss out to have a look with us. He had doubts about the roof (lots of leaks and caves in the ceiling) and proceded to tell us that for the same price and a larger lot, he could hook us up with a larger house package with Nelson Homes. The only difference is the huge amount of work & sacrifice (mostly on kev's part, read on to find out why) which comes with building your own house. It does seem exciting though! Now, onto the sacrifice, which leads us to WHY this may all suddenly be possible: 1st) Kevin has decided to sell his bike. No, not the downhill bike. The motorbike. The 2007 Yamaha V-twin 1100 bike. The one he had been eyeing for quite some time, dreaming about for years, and finally purchasing with pride and joy 5 months ago when we were blessed with a financial opportunity to get rid of our debt and indulge in one nice thing. We purchased it knowing full well it was not a practical purchase, but also sensing at the time that living on one income and having a growing family, we may not get a chance like this again. We had hopes of leaving the kiddies with the Grandparents and doing a bike trip every summer, as something special to do together for many years to come (some people do florida, we do roadtrips). So despite everyones lack of sympathy, I do feel for Kev and his momentarily crushed dream as he says goodbye to his pride and joy... but I try to remind him that when we sell the house there will be another opportunity to re-live the dream:) AND that he will get a brand spankin new house out of the deal(!), which is likely to double in value over the next couple years! That is a blessing which also does not come along very often and should be grabbed if at all possible. So we are both excited at this possibility, inspite of the sacrifices. 2nd) Being a carpenter with 4years of experience, Kevin will be soley responsible for this house being built. It will be evenings and weekends nonstop until it is done, b/c as you all know by now, there is a bundle due to arrive August 30th and he/she will not wait for the house to be done. We're hoping to have it complete by then b/c we plan to rent a teeny-tiny suite in Canal Flats so that our rent is not so large while paying a new mortgage. Kevin's friend/work buddy is also planning to build a house very soon and they have agreed to help one another until completion. If this goes through we will need all the help we can get. Anybody know how to swing a hammer? Any plumbers? Drywallers? I would gladly get in there and help (seriously - for those who don't know me) but being pregnant and having one child already, I may be a little "unable" at the time. But heck, I can give moral support, if that counts(?). So the reason this suddenly becomes possible financially, is b/c we didn't realize that the first stage of building would be so inexpensive. With Kev selling his bike we may have enough to cover the required amount to qualify for a builders mortgage. It's a little difficult to explain if you're unfamiliar with it so I may come back to this in another post, once we've been to the bank to work out all the details. Okay, so that's about all I have to say. It's alot, I know. So here's a few pictures to rest your weary eyes: The LOT: http://rockymtnrealty.com/index.php?action=listingview&listingID=708 (click on the smaller pics below the larger one to get a better idea of the lots - it is quite flat but pics really don't do justice to the surrounding mountains) The HOUSE: http://www.nelson-homes.com/index.php?page_id=view_home&housename=springfield&vh_low_sqft=1&vh_high_sqft=20000&house_collection=leisure (scroll way down to see the pic. the only thing we haven't budgeted for that you'll see here is the partial wrap-around deck. that's a future purchase/build)