Selling the House

We are pleased to announce that we are 50% finished with the sale of our house. We got an offer last week and accepted. We are now going through the home inspections, etc. Unfortunately, getting to this point has led us on a crash collision with Murphy's Law. we've had some "fun" with an unexpected problem with our septic tank, but we got everything fixed and replaced. We just now need to repair the entire backyard that we spent all of last summer and fall getting prepared. Oh well, we are at least happy that everything is taken care of and seems to be back in working order.

Last weekend was our annual St. Patrick's Day Road Race. Tim and I ran this together, as we have done for the last several years. we had a great time and rewarded ourselves with a huge Chipotle burrito afterwards. I have some pictures that I will post when I get them.

Timmy is doing great. he is already wearing size 3T clothing because he is so tall! He is practically making speeches now and seems to enjoy every moment of life. He really enjoys sitting down to do crafts and coloring, or play with play dough. His attention span with these tasks is pretty long for a little boy. Most of the time Tim and I get bored before he does! This is a nice trait though, because it means we can always find a quiet task for him to do when we need him to settle down. WE are able to take him with us almost anywhere, to include nicer restaurants. He doesn't make a peep as long as he has some crayons or stickers.

HUGE NEWS! We are really excited to announce the arrival of my new niece, Wren Cedella Barkley. Brian and Karle finally met their long-awaited daughter a few weeks ago. We are happy to announce that both Mom and baby are doing great. We have seen lots of pictures and she is absolutely perfect. Way to go Brian and Karle! I guess it is a little surreal seeing my brother holding his baby girl in his arms, much the same way that it seemed like a dream to hold Timmy in our arms the first time. We are so happy for them as they start this chapter of their lives. Brian is taking classes, working full time and now juggling parenthood. I am not sure when he gets a chance to sleep, but he's doing a great job!

The month of April will be a busy one for us! We are going to California to celebrate the wedding of Rick (Tim's brother) and Rachel (beautiful bride). I will also be going to San Antonio to pick out a house to live in while I am attending Baylor. Given my lack of decision-making capability while shopping, this should prove to be quite an adventure. This goes double considering the fact that Tim (my voice of reason and decision) will not be there. I have five days to make a decision. While I am there I also need to finalize some tasks with getting our au pair ready to join our home. I talk to Cansu almost daily via e-mail. I am excited to get to know here a lot better and hear about life in Turkey. The more I get to know her, the more I am getting excited about her arrival. She seems like such a sweet person and such a great fit for our family. I have never participated in a cultural exchange type program before, so this will be a new adventure for me as well! From everyone I have talked to who has ever hosted an au pair, the experience has been great.