Happy Easter

I need to go to bed, but it's been a good day - filled with family and messages of our savior. Here are a few random pictures from the day.
Easy bunny cake. Just make two round cakes, cut like so, and decorate as you wish!
Hunting for eggs...And looking mischievous.	My brother's REAL bunny, "Snowbell". Very cute.

Table Rock

Wouldn't it be nice if spouses did exactly what we wanted them to? I always envisioned a husband who had a passion for the outdoors (with the exception of camping); I think Eric's indifferent to the outdoors. I love the idea of being "outdoorsy". In college I took better advantage of my surroundings - rock climbing, caving, sand dunes, hiking, exploring (waterfalls, national parks, etc.). Now it seems there's never enough time, or, that's the excuse we use. And when we finally do have some spare time, then the challenge is convincing the hubster to join. Last weekend, I decided that Eric and I would go on a hike - whether he wanted to or not. Eric doesn't see the point in hiking, aside from wanting to cause yourself pain. You would think most spouses would at least enjoy sharing some quality time with their BFF. :( After 6 and a half years, I admit, I am pretty boring. I eventually talked him into it. I wish I could tell you he enjoyed every minute of it, but I'm not entirely sure. Admittedly, unless your favorite color is brown, it's not the best time of year for hiking, but it was definitely nice to be out in the fresh air and sunshine, with exercise as the added bonus. Plus, it was good to spend time with my sweet, albeit reluctant, husband. I love him for coming. (Biking and rollerblading are next)

Famous...

Gotta love that angle! Don't mind my closed eyes & double chin.

We've finally made it to the big time! Saturday edition of the Idaho Statesman baby. :) Eric and I were interviewed for the "Builder's Showcase", which means we just bragged a lot about our experience buying a Ted Mason home. Luckily, we've been bragging about Ted Mason and co. all along so it was pretty easy. As a thank you for doing the interview, our builder is catering a meal (from our favorite restaurant) for us and 6 of our friends! How cool is that?

Everyday

We're finally getting settled in, and life is good. Here are a few random bits from the past week. A big fat mess of chords on my desk.
TRYING to get organized. It still needs some work, but it's getting there. It's funny because I was so excited about having an extra room for my office, but in the end, I actually set up in our loft area because it's got a nice, solid built-in desk with plenty of outlets and plenty of quiet.
This Voip video phone was actually a gift from the big boss. It's pretty darn cool, but the video part only works with other people who have video phones...so you all should get one! :) Come on, it's the wave of the future, right? My favorite part, however, is that we don't have to pay for a phone line because it's all through the internet. (VoIP="Voice-Over-Internet Protocol")
The view from our bedroom. I'm excited to see what these trees look like in a few weeks, but I'll miss the snow on the mountains.
I told you I'd get some color in that bathroom! :) And the last picture is from our date night Friday. Eric and I have a new agreement that, rather than argue over where we want to eat out, we're going to take turns making the decision. This week I chose Mai Thai, and it was so yummy. I got the pineapple fried rice with chicken & shrimp, and Eric got the drunken fried rice with steak. Both very different but both were delicious.

Dream Lender

Have I mentioned that we have the coolest lender? I just have to do a post dedicated to her because she's fabulous.

Proof of her awesomeness:

1. She has a lot of experience and is extremely knowledgable
   
   
2. She's very patient and will tell you all you need to know about the loan process (which is especially nice for first-time home buyers)
   
   
3. She drives almost the exact same car as us (she must be a smart woman)
   
   
4. She says it how it is.
   
   
5. She has a great sense of humor.
   
   
6. Since closing on our house, she's sent us, not 1, but 2 gift cards. A $40 gift card for Goodwood and a $10 gas card.

Eric and I both would recommend her in a heartbeat. So if any of you are in the market for a new home, let us know, and we'll give you all of her contact info. (And thank you Mom, for recommending her to us)

We've been fortunate to have so much help and advice from family over the past few months. My brother let us crash at his house, Eric's parents have been very generous in helping us get on our feet, my bros helped us move, Jason was our "entertainment" advisor, Sheri and Robbie were my decorating advisors, and so much more. Our family recommended a window blind company that's going to save us about 50% (blinds and installation will cost about as much as the blinds alone at Home Depot). Everything has just been soooo smooth.

We can't thank you all enough!

Our new pad (mostly furnished)

Master Bedroom. Eric has a love/hate relationship with that light (he hits his head on it daily). We should probably raise it before he takes a bat to it. We'll eventually get something on the walls above our bed. My favorite part, however, is not in the photo. There's a big bay window to the East where we can see snow-capped mountains and mature trees. We also have a little balcony.
Who would have thought that I would have wallpaper in my house? And I absolutely love it!
Ok, so I'm boring ("vanilla"). My mother-in-law would probably even tell you so. What can I say, I love my beiges, blacks and whites. BUT, I am trying to break out of my shell a bit and throw in an accent color here and there. Ok, so our master bath has a white shower curtain, off-white rug and tan towels that match the walls, but I have big plans for red roses or some such brightly colored plant on the sink. I will say, however, that I love our hookless shower curtain! And it comes with a liner that snaps in! Genius. :) And we're digging the high ceilings.
We sold our old couches so we could get these perdy little things. We had a few hesitations about how kid-friendly they would be. Apparently, we should have followed those intuitions. About 3 days after purchasing them, Eric dropped a blue pen right in the middle of the cushion leaving a nice mark. Before buying them, I was thinking to myself, leather's easy to clean right? The only things that might pose a problem are pens and permanent markers and I won't let our kids near the couches with them. I just forgot to enforce those rules with my husband. Luckily, after trying alcohol, purell, hairspray, and finally, nail polish remover, the mark is almost completely gone! Phew.
This house is so fun, and we feel really fortunate to be here. Eric wants me to add that the wallpapered bathroom looks much better in person. He thinks the picture looks "hideous." And he also wants me to add that the entire house is energy efficient! I didn't include any pictures of the office or the library/loft area because they're still a bit messy. And, for those of you planning to visit, we're currently accepting donations for the guest bedroom. :)

Obsession confessions

Moving is a funny thing; it has a way of revealing some of our obsessive quirks. For the record though, Eric totally has more than I do.
You know how some people collect stamps? Eric collects vitamins and meds. It seems like every time we go shopping he has to buy 2 things (whether we need them or not): 1. medication of some form and 2. (not pictured) cleaning supplies. He doesn't necessarily like to clean, but he loves to buy cleaning supplies.	I am obsessed with the THOUGHT of being clean and organized. It doesn't always work out that way, but I like to think that I have potential. Unfortunately, I think what I have is the opposite of potential. I start off ok (like here in our garage), but I assure you it will get worse.
Accessories. I have an addiction to home accessories. Eric teases me relentlessly over this one. I love flowers, plants, vases, art work, pillows, throws, vintage classic books, etc. It's a good thing I'm a minimalist or else we would have a problem on our hands.	Eric loves pens. I forgot, that's another item that always manages to creep into our grocery cart regardless of the lifelong supply we have at home. Eric could be the poster boy for BIC. It's funny because, despite our endless supply, he still gets all riled up whenever I try to use one of HIS pens. And if you're curious which ones are his, they're the yucky ones with the chewed caps.

All is well

It's unbelievable how smoothly this whole home buying process has gone for us. We haven't had to deal with any of the headaches that you always hear about with crazy builders/lenders/realtors/appraisals. In fact, we've been really happy with everyone we've worked with. By the way, if any of you need a great lender, let us know.

We just got our appraisal back, and everything was perfect! And they just put in the grass in our front yard! And more trees! I really love this little house. Eric and I both cannot wait to move in. In fact, we're in the process of trying to move up our closing date right now. It could be as soon as next Wed.!

Here's my first finished project for our new home (for my office...I can't believe I'm actually going to have an office!) - a framed 2010 calendar (20 x 20").

Come visit us! :)

Lately...

A few random moments from the past couple months...
My brother, Cortland, with 16 y/o daughter Cami & 10 y/o daughter Faith. Just a Sunday at home. Believe it or not, this wasn't staged! Although, they did have to freeze their "natural pose" while I ran to get my camera.
"And here we have Idaho..."	Eric, squeezing comfortably into Women's snow pants.
Ice Festival - McCall, Idaho
Note the space between their bums and the sled.
Future ladies man. Poor Braden. This was right after he crashed HARD but was being very brave.
The biggest cinnamon roll EVER. From the Pancake House in McCall. That's almost a whole cube of butter! And an icing moat.	And these last 2 pix are for Amy & Gregor...
We finally got to use our Chandler's gift card last night! And thank goodness b/c that place was spendy! But nice, and the food was delicious. You know it's a fancy restaurant when the WAITRESS gives you a long-stemmed rose after the meal. We were celebrating 2 things - Valentine's and (near) homeownership. Our closing date is March 5. We can't wait. I haven't gotten much sleep in the past few days.