House Hunting: Step Two

We started house hunting almost three weeks ago, even though we really don't need to buy until the summer. We figured that we'd get a head start to see what is out there, check out the market, and get a feel for what kind of house we wanted to buy. Well, all of our questions were answered quickly, and we fell in love with a house last week (see earlier post).

So, Tuesday night at 8:30pm we ended up making an offer. We waited all day Wednesday and Thursday and heard nothing. I was a stress case. Our offer expired at 8:30pm on Friday. So, Friday at work, just after lunch I checked my email, and there it was -- the counter offer!

We were expecting a counter offer, in fact we had previously decided that we would be willing to pay up to $10k over their asking price if it got into a counter offer situation. So we were *pleasantly* shocked when this happened:

• Asking price was $399,000
• We offered $389,000
• They countered with -- accepting our offer with them taking the fountain on the front porch with them when they move.

Sure, take the fountain; you can have it! So, we accepted their offer on Friday night, and now we have the long weekend to soak it all in. Tuesday we should get the phone call to sign the papers to get escrow started.

Crazy! It has all happened so fast. We are still keeping our fingers crossed - who knows what can happen between now and Tuesday. I'll post more pics once everything is solid.

~Calioc

Short 'n Sassy

When I was a kid I let my hair grow long but I always pulled it up into a ponytail; afterall, I was a tomboy. Pictured Left: Me in kindergarten. Right: 4th grade soccer picture.

By the time I got to 6th grade I was sick of people only complementing me when my hair was up. I never really did anything with my hair when it was down, so I decided (with youthful wisdom) to cut my hair short - very short. I don't have a scanned photo, but I pretty much looked like a 12 year boy from 6th grade until I graduated from high school!
I kept my hair like this all through middle school, high school, and most of college. Every once-in-awhile I would grow my hair out, but I always ended up going short again.

The picture above is of me (February 2006) just a few months before meeting my husband.
When I met my husband in 2006 my hair was short, but as soon as a wedding was in our future I decided to grow my hair out again. I always pictured myself getting married with long curly hair. So, I grew my hair out longer than it has ever been. The funny thing is I ended up wearing it up for the wedding anyway!

Pictured Left: Me with my curls at the rehearsal
Pictured Right: My wedding day up-do

So, now we have have been married for just over 5 months (and I haven't had my hair cut since before the wedding); the other night my husband tells me that he likes my hair better short. Wow! I've been told all my life that men prefer long hair. My mom, my friends, and even my mother-in-law have all told me that men like long hair. So, I asked around and it seems to me that a man wants his wife to keep her hair the way it was when he first met her; they want it the way it was when they fell in love! So, short, long, straight, wavy, red, brown, whatever - your man does have a preference that is specific to you!
Before the chop (1/24/09):

After the chop (1/24/09):

So, I did it - "the post wedding chop". My husband loves it and I love it! It is short, fun, sassy, and a little funky. I can wear it simple and sleek for work, or wild and sassy for a night out. Now I just have to decide if I want to color it or add highlights!

~Calioc

The Knot, The Nest, The Egg...

I'm sure there are many couples out there that get married and don't have to listen to their families bug them about kids constantly. We are NOT one of those couples. I'm 35 and Mr. Calioc is 33, so according to our families we need to start now. I want to enjoy at least one year of marriage without pregnancy; seriously, we were only together for 2 1/2 years before getting married. At first it was a fairly constant struggle trying to explain my pov; my husband didn't care either way -- we could start now or wait a year. But, both of our families kept bugging us to start now, until...

We live in a nice, but very small, condo in Irvine with a downstairs neighbor that smokes. Every time I walk up the steps I smell his smoke, every time he does laundry I smell his smoke, and whenever we run the AC I smell his smoke. Mr. Calioc smells it too, and so does our cat.

So, Mr. Calioc did some research on pregnancy and 2nd hand smoke; he also did research on ways to prevent the smoke from getting into our condo. Here is what he learned:

• Legally, there is nothing we can do because we live in condos and not apartments.
• We can replace our filter, but that will only make it smell better, it doesn't actually remove any of the harmful smoke.
• We can buy an "air purification" system, but it is generally believed by "experts" that these purifications systems only make the air smell better and only get rid of larger particles that cause allergies, but not small smoke particles.


• I am technically a "high risk" pregnancy because of my age, and therefore I need to be more careful (though I am very healthy, so age is not so much an issue).


• Second hand smoke can directly effect the fetus and has been linked to birth defects and low birth weight.

So, what do we do? We move! Yes, we have pushed up our timeline to buy a house. The plan is to start looking this May so we can buy before the end of summer. I can go off the pill as soon as we go into escrow, or maybe even sooner. I (knock on wood) don't expect to get prego right away (I was a runner for many years with lots of low weight related female issues), so we need some time to try. Our "ideal" time to get prego is August because I am a teacher and it would be great to take my leave during the end of the school year and have all summer to get used to being a mommy.

Okay, sorry so long. This is a topic that will come up again!

~ Calioc

New Year's Resolutions

This is a personal thing I am doing, but I'd love to see what other newlyweds are planning for their resolution(s). I know that "experts" say it is better to have one resolution to focus on, but I'm not going to listen to their advice. I've been successful at resolutions in the past; my secret? Writing them down on post-it notes and sticking the notes on my bathroom mirror so I have to stare at it every morning. If you do it for 21 days it can become a habit. Good luck to all that are making resolutions this year; now here are mine.

1. I am going to start running/jogging again. My initial goal is twice a week, and hopefully I can increase that over time.
2. I'm giving up all food and drinks in which I do not understand the ingredients -- if I can't make it, I won't eat/drink it.

The rest of these are more goals than they are resolutions, and some of them I set well before the new year came upon us, but I thought it might do me some good to write them down as well.

3. We are going to buy house by the end of summer.
4. We are going to start (trying for) a family as soon as that house is in escrow.
5. I am going to finish my master's program and project (even if it kills me!)
6. I am going to update my blog on a regular basis.

Okay, that's it for now. I'm sure I will think of more later and add them. So, what's your new years resolution(s)?

~ Calioc