Tanksgiving.

When I woke up on Thanksgiving I couldn't stop thinking about last year. Rod went surfing, we went to the beach, and then had a great meal with new friends and an ocean view. Some tears were shed for my former life, and then I remembered the best thing about living in Utah - our families. This year we spent our first Thanksgiving with Rod's side of the family. Between Ster and Cheryl being on the East Coast and us being in Hawaii last year, it was our first Thanksgiving together! We had fantastic food (Cheryl is ah-mahzing) and had a great time. We also had a fatty nap (Rod's favorite thing in the world) in preparation for our midnight shopping. 

That night we went out to my parent's house to sleep over. Brock, Court, Rod, and I headed out in hopes of finding a cheap flatscreen TV. We went to Walmart first because the deals started at 10. We got there late and there was already some crazy stuff going down. People pushing and shoving for children's toys. We couldn't see any TVs, and we knew the real deal was at Target, so we decided to abandon our Walmart pursuits and head over there. 

When we got there the line looked like this:

And the store wasn't opening for an hour! 

We were pretty sure that we would not be getting a screaming deal on a TV, but we decided to stick it out anyway. It wasn't too cold and we were having fun talking to the people around us (you really start to bond standing in line together). 

As midnight approached, some not so sneaky people were trying to get into the line. My brothers (half joking/half dead seriously) started telling these line-cutters to go to the end of the line. Apparently that made the 40 something moms behind us upset. They started telling us that we were terrible people and that we should try having some Thanksgiving spirit. I ignored them and told my brothers to stay out of it. These ladies would not stop heckling us! When the first lucky customer came out with her TV, the meanie mom (as we will now refer to her) started telling the guys that they weren't gentlemen because they didn't rush over to help her! That's when I told her to shut up. I lost it. She was a bully!

We finally got inside the store and thought we could escape her bullying once and for all. 10 seconds later she found us and started chasing us with her cart. She was literally ramming Rod's ankles with her cart! She then says to us: "I bet you guys aren't even married!" We informed her that we were and she replied "well that's too bad your husband doesn't own a razor!" Whaaaaat? We were so annoyed and confused.  She then said "I hope you don't have kids!" We said we didn't and she said "Well I have 5!" Rod said he was sorry for her kids ha ha. She was crazy. Her friend then ran up to us crying and said "You have no idea what she is going through!" That does not give her the right to bully us! Then just when we were on our way home she shouts across the entire store "Don't beat your wife when you get the in car!" We didn't even turn around. I have never been so livid in my life. The whole way home I couldn't even figure out what just happend. We were all shocked. Not to mention we went home empty handed. Moral of the story: Black Friday is evil. I'm so over it and I will NEVER go again. No deal is worth that! 

Besides all of that we had a great long weekend. We saw movies, played games with family, and hung out with friends. As we speak, we are listening to Christmas music (A Very She & Him Christmas is my favorite this year) and Rod is setting up our Christmas tree! 

He's pretty darls. . . Even when he's frustrated. 

House Hunters

The time has come - we are ready to buy a house!

We've been perusing online for about 6 months to see what's out there. We've watched hundreds (literally) of episodes of "House Hunters," taking mental notes about what to look for, what gives a house value, and what our priorities are. In August, we started driving to a different area every weekend to get a feel for where we might like to lay down roots. In September, we started going out with our realtor (Tanya's Uncle) to look at houses.

The Good: it's a great time to buy, interest rates are rock bottom (supposedly even lower than during the great depression), and there are a ton of houses out there for a really good deal.

The Bad: because it's a great time to buy, it's so competitive! It seems like every house we are interested in already has multiple offers on it. Almost everything out there is a short sale, and many of them are not in great condition. Short-sale sellers aren't as motivated as they would be if it were a regular sale, and it can take a REALLY long time to go through.

Our Wish List: a master suite with large bathroom, lots of windows, a nice yard, a feeling of space (not being too cramped around neighbors), views, wood floors (these are hard to come by), 2 stories, room to put a dance studio in the basement, a gas fireplace, a porch, room to grow. We may not get all of these things, but there are some things we won't compromise on.

We have narrowed our search a lot and now know that we really like the Suncrest area of Draper (up on the mountain), Herriman, and Riverton. The first house we put an offer on was in Suncrest. It was a modest home with amazing mountain and valley views, but needed a lot of work. We were immediately outbid. We put an offer on a 2nd home in Suncrest, and it is at the bank right now. We also put an offer on an amazing home in Herriman this week, but we don't think we will get it. It's pretty much our dream home but it had at least 7 offers on it when we put one in!

We could be homeowners in a month, or it may take another 6. Whatever happens is meant to be. In the meantime, it's pretty much a big, crazy game of gambling and waiting!

No pictures yet - it's too soon - but we'll update if anything happens. Wish us luck!

My Only Offer

We went to the Mates of State Concert last night. It was our first time seeing them - loved it! Their music is fun and I love that they are a couple. . so cute. Small venue made it even better! Cheers to a great night with friends.

5 Years

This month marks the 5 year anniversary of my Mom surviving breast cancer. They say once you reach 5 years you are "cured," so it is a pretty remarkable milestone. I love my mom and I am so glad she was a fighter. We threw her a little party to celebrate. Congrats mommy!

In other news, Rod and I are having a lot of fun shopping for houses. We don't know exactly how soon we will buy. Could be soon, could be in 6 months. All I know is that it makes me really excited! We were planning on waiting a little longer, but the interest rates are just ridiculous right now. Even if we don't have any furniture, we'll have have a cute little house (and hopefully a cute little dog!)

We both love our jobs. It's so nice to make money doing what we love. I recently (slightly against my will) started coaching the girl's basketball team. The girls are sweet, so I've ended up liking it more than I thought I would.

Today's snow made it feel like Christmas. I have to admit I'm a little excited. I want to start Christmas shopping - especially at the new stores that opened so close to us. I refuse to wait in line to give a store money though, so we won't be visiting H&M for a little while.