"The Dream"

I have had the conversation a million different ways and probably tell it differently every time.

Why did we sell our house? What exactly is 'the dream'?

Might as well document it and get it officially out there. 

Before I start, I would like to assure you that I recognize that the following is not a spiritual dream. Although there have been spiritual moments in it, Jon and I both know that we did not need a new house, nor do we need this dream to happen. So in case you were doubting our perspective on things, we are the first to say that this is fun and exciting dream for us. A special treat.

Anyway, being married to someone means agreeing on where to live and what kind of living situation you want to put yourself and your family in. We were living the typical Roseville suburbia life at our old house. And when we moved in I seriously thought we might just end up living there, like ...forever? We had plenty of bedrooms, a house we liked, and a great neighborhood with sweet neighbors. We were feeling fortunate and happy to be there. But every once in a while when I would make a comment about how much I loved our house, Jon would scrunch his eyebrows and look out the window and say, "You know, I like it... but what if we had a little more yard? What if we had land?" I can't even remember how I used to respond to that, other than looking out the window with him, followed by a shrug and walking away. He's always been more of a country boy than me (seriously, the guy fantasizes about owning a riding lawnmower) and I just couldn't picture what the country life would look like for us. I had no desire for it.

In Dec of 2010 we were on a long drive and I was asking Jon what he thought our next big house project would be. We realized we'd gotten to the point where on our list (we'd always had a list of projects to improve the house) we only had big projects left. Big money projects like a master bathroom remodel. Jon said that he didn't feel like putting that kind of money & effort into the house if we weren't planning to live there long-term. I had to face the fact that although I was content to be in our house forever, Jon wasn't. So we daydreamed a bit about his country desires.

A month later I was taking a meal to friend who lives in Loomis. As I arrived I realized it only took me 12 minutes to get there - but I felt like I was in the middle of nowhere. I stood on her porch for a while before ringing the doorbell and looked out on the open space and something shifted in me. THIS is what Jon was talking about. This peaceful backdrop, this natural beauty... And I wanted it too! I did. I drove home freaking out about the possibility of it and so excited to talk to Jon about Loomis. I am giggling while I write this because growing up I thought Loomis was a dorky one-horse town. And Penryn? Penryn? Who lived there? The funny thing is that we got married in Loomis, near the Penryn border, and Jon told me he wanted to live in that area. I literally laughed him off because I figured, not being from here, he didn't realize how ridiculous that statement was. Hardy har har, joke's on me.

Official details on "The Dream"

-In Loomis/lower Newcastle/Penryn area

-Bonus points if its in the areas right around Franklin Elementary or Placer Elementary

-Minimum 1 acre of land, maybe in the range of 1-3 acres

-Small or medium size house (1500 - 2000sq ft), with 3 or more bedrooms

-Can be dumpy or need fixing-up, as long as we feel confident about the potential

-Land that is flat-ish; flat enough to "kick a soccer ball around on a Saturday" (Jon)

-Serious bonus points if it has nice views (Carly)

-Bonus points if it has a barn or outbuilding on property 

So there it is. In our first conversation about the dream we were thinking we would do it about 5 years from now. Then we got to talking and doing some research with trustworthy people and we realized that now is a really great time, financially speaking, to buy a house and lock in a low interest rate. Because my generous grandma had sold us the Roseville house at a super low price, we were just a little bit upside down and could manage the sell. The dream could happen now! Yay!

Selling and moving out of our old house was surprisingly non-emotional. But it was butt-kicking hard work!!!!!!!! Packing and moving with 3 little kids is insane. And needing to suddenly clean up the house to be able to show it, while taking care of 3 young kids is also insane. While praying about the decision last February I felt a very firm answer from God saying "Yes." That was all the confidence & assurance I needed to go for it, and that also sustained me through the stress of the sell and move. I leave you with a picture of my van, with our dirty dishes thrown in a laundry basket because I didn't have time to wash them before a viewing. Plus A's seat. The kids are buckled in the back of the van, trapped there while I ran back in to do some crazy sprint-cleaning. SO glad that is over!