house hunt

We drove to Cincinnati over Memorial Day weekend with two goals: to get acquainted with the city we'd soon be calling home, and to secure a place to live once we got there. The first objective would be easy enough to accomplish, but the second was a little stressful.

Ever since we knew we'd be relocating to Cincinnati, we'd been researching neighborhoods and suburbs and casually searching for rental homes in those areas. But about a week before our scheduled trip we buckled down and got more serious, narrowing our neighborhood focus and contacting agents whose homes we were interested in seeing. Most of our search centered on the northeast suburbs, but after a tip from a former co-worker, Blake started searching in an area just east of downtown that offered excellent schools and a much shorter commute.

Because it turned out to be such a coveted area, though, there weren't many options in our price range. We found a few, though, that we thought might work, contacted the agents, and then held our breath with the hope that they wouldn't be snatched up before had a chance to see them in person.

But our hearts stopped when we stumbled across this one:

Twice our current square footage (plus an unfinished basement) for about $300 less than both what we currently pay and the high end of our budget; all of the amenities we were hoping for, including an enormous yard; ideally located right next to the best park in town and across the street from the YMCA; and absolutely dripping with charm and character. We knew we couldn't get our hopes up, but it was really hard not to when the agent contacted us a few hours later to schedule a time to show it to us the following weekend when we were in town. Deep down, though, I had a hunch that this was The One, and I proceeded to mentally arrange our furniture in its rooms.

The week proceeding our trip was a roller coaster, with homes dropping from our shortlist almost as fast as we could add them. But this little parsonage (it's owned by the church whose property it sits on) stayed steady. By the day we left we had three places scheduled to see. We had been hoping for more, so as to make sure this trip was successful, but only one needed to work out, so we kept the faith.

The first place we saw was a dud, but we went in suspecting that it would be. The second place was amazing in many ways, and it was ours for the taking, but its more remote location and higher price tag kept us hopeful for the next day when we were scheduled to see the parsonage. In the meantime, we drove around, both the township and into downtown, stopped to play at the park, and started to fall in love with hilly and tree-filled Cincinnati.

Sunday was the day. After attending church (in what ultimately turned out to not be our future ward), we headed back to the parsonage. We were a little early for our appointment, so we parked the car at the house, then walked the five minutes to the park. As we walked the trails around the playground and sports fields, I got a little tingly, both at the prospect of getting to live in that charming little house and nervous at the thought that maybe it wasn't meant to be.

But when we met the landlord and she walked us inside, I knew at once that this was it. The inside was everything I imagined it would be. It was beautiful, and I wanted nothing more than to get to live there. Before we knew it, we were beginning the process of getting the lease drawn up, and by the end of the day it was ours (or, well, it will be come July).

(Pictures below taken from the Zillow listing.)

 Front room

 

 Stairs

 French doors off the living room into a small bonus room (playroom!)

 Dining room

 Kitchen, with access to the basement

 Eat in kitchen and access to the backyard

Quirky little bathroom

 Master bedroom

 Second bedroom

 Third bedroom

Backyard

More backyard

I was afraid, as we drove into Cincinnati, that I wouldn't like it there, but the part of town we'll be living in is everything I wanted it to be -- and more, since we also get to live in the most charming house ever built. I'm still going to miss Brooklyn terribly, but I'm getting even more excited to get settled into this new home.

a new chapter

After nearly eight years of living here, the Brooklyn chapter of our story is coming to an end. As difficult as it’s been sometimes to live here, Brooklyn has been very good to us, and we are going to miss it terribly. We’ll be relocating to Cincinnati in July, and are looking forward to a new adventure.

he's here!

 Welcoming

Daniel Forrest Anderson 

who arrived

Thursday, May 8, 2014

at 3:43 am

(a few hours before his scheduled induction and a few moments after arriving at the hospital).

He measured in at

7 lbs 13 oz

and 19 inches.

Everyone is healthy, home, and happy he is here.

mamma mia, here we go again

Peek-a-BOO!

Yes, it's true: Baby #4 is coming.

To put the minds of the curious at ease, I'll go ahead and answer a few of the more frequently asked questions.

When are you due?
The official date is May 15th, but because of my track record, I'm mentally preparing myself for sometime in April.

Do you know the gender?
It's still early, so no, not yet. 

How have you been feeling? 
At any given moment, I feel simultaneously thrilled and terrified. Most of the time, though, I actually just feel pretty gross, but that's the way this game is played. I can't decide if this time around is actually worse or if it's just the fact that my life is more demanding now that I already have three other needy children to care for. Either way, my doctor took enough pity on me to put me on Zofran for the first time ever. It hasn't been a miracle cure, but it has allowed me to function, albeit minimally, at the times when I desperately need to be able to function (nutty after school hours, I'm lookin' at you!). Unfortunately, it doesn't help at all with the bone-crushing fatigue, and most days I'm operating on less than empty.

My body is apparently primed for this. I feel like I'm already showing, even though I'm probably actually not. But just the same, for comfort's sake I dug out my maternity pants last week and, even though they're still a little big, I have not regretted it.

Does this mean you're finally going to move to a bigger place?
No, not immediately. Rents in the area have skyrocketed in the last couple of years, and we really can't afford to upgrade locally. When we move, it'll have to be out of New York City. But it's not quite time for that. And so we are trying to get creative, by which I mean, we have no idea how this is going to work. I honestly thought that Matthew was going to be my last Brooklyn baby, but apparently not. Luckily we've got time to figure things out. And, I keep trying to remind myself, if we're supposed to still be here, we'll make another little person fit somehow.

Are the boys excited?
Yes! We told them the news a few weeks ago after we heard a heartbeat at my first prenatal appointment, and they are thrilled. The new baby is frequently included in their prayers, and they wish springtime was closer than it is. After we told them, I braced myself for the world to know as well (you would, too, if the first words out of Garrett's mouth were "I can't wait to tell my teachers!"), but, so far as I'm aware, they've kept the rumor spreading to a minimum.

baby natalie

Yesterday was an epic day, not only because it was 12/12/12, but because my sister, Katie, delivered her first baby. (Her daughter's stubbornly breech positioning and consequent requirement for a Caesarian delivery is to thank for her awesome birthday.)

My newest niece, Natalie Ellen Greenland, was born at 7:46 am, weighed 7 pounds even and measured 19 1/2 inches long. She has dark hair and, judging by her adorable little face, features that make her look remarkably like a Nay baby.

Congratulations, Katie and Dave! She looks perfect and we cannot wait to meet her!

reasons to be happy

1. There's a free concert in Prospect Park tonight.

2. Blake and I are going.

3. But the boys (all three of them) are not because

4. We hired a babysitter.

Which can mean only one thing:

5. Blake and I are [finally] going on a [long overdue] date!

Even Matthew's happy:



What's that? You want an encore? Well, okay.



(If that giggle doesn't make you grin, I don't know what will.)

expecting

Official due date: May 22, 2012

Likely due date (taking prior experiences into consideration): A little more than 2 weeks before that.

Fun fact: I saw on a recent news report that some survey found that May 22 was the least popular birthday (which somehow seems to even further reduce the odds of this baby arriving on schedule).

Even more fun fact: My sister-in-law is due one day before me. Hooray for cousins!

a weekend to beat all

On Friday my sister, Katie, was proposed to. She called me the next morning to give me all the happy details. "It looks like we'll have the same anniversary!" was how she broke the news. And sure enough, now that Blake and I have been married for nearly six years, the BYU academic calendar has come full circle. Katie and David (that lucky boy) will be married on April 23rd (the day after they both walk for graduation) in the Salt Lake temple. I am, of course, absolutely thrilled for her -- for them both. I haven't met Dave yet, but I hear nothing but wonderful things about him and how he and Katie are a perfect match for each other.

(Seriously, don't they even look like they belong together?!)

On Saturday morning at 9:43, my brother Riley and his wife, Chelsea, welcomed their baby girl, Chloe Ellen, into the world. She weighed 7 lbs 4 oz and measured 20 inches long (the exact stats as her dad!). Judging by the pictures I've seen, she is adorable, although we're all at a loss in determining where the heck that full head of dark hair came from! Equally adorable is how much her father is in awe of his new daughter (the first granddaughter in the family!...finally. It was high time someone had a girl). "She's so stinking cute!" Riley says. And of course he is absolutely right.


And on Sunday I celebrated my 29th birthday. I wish I could say it was as thrilling as the family news of the two days prior were, but it really wasn't. Mostly it was just a normal Sunday filled with normal Sunday challenges. Blake was away the whole day busy being the bishop, and I came down with a head cold. The boys did both take afternoon naps (of course, trip-home-from-church meltdowns had to happen first), and I made myself a delicious quiche for my traditional birthday dinner. I also received some lovely (and much needed) phone calls from family and friends throughout the day, and those did the trick to cheer me up and make me feel less lonely. Also, there was episode 3 of Downton Abbey to watch after I put the boys to bed, which I'd been looking forward to watching all week.

To make up for the fact that he'd be in meetings all day Sunday, Blake worked hard Saturday night to work in some celebrating. He brought home a chocolate ice cream cake and a beautiful bouquet of tulips (he knew I needed a bit of spring on my kitchen table) and then made me his famous eggs benedict for dinner. The celebrating will continue next Saturday when I get to cash in on my birthday gift of an evening out with Blake to see Mary Poppins on Broadway (thank you, Broadway Week and 2-for-1 tickets). This will be my first Broadway show (I know -- it's about time, right?), and I'm really excited. And, rumor has it, Mary Poppins flies!

winner, winner, chicken dinner

But enough potty talk. Let's pick some chalkboard mat winners, shall we?

I consulted the Powers That Be over at Random.org, and they agreed that the winner of the big chalkboard mat is MommyJ and that DesMama won the small chalkboard mat.

Congratulations, both of you! Send me your mailing addresses and I'll get these puppies sent off to their new homes.

peter, peter pumpkin eater

I'm an aunt again! Tyler and Amanda welcomed their second son, Peter David, late Saturday night. He weighed 7 lbs 6 oz, measured 19 1/2 inches, and makes the most adorable pouty face (see below). From the pictures I've seen, he looks a lot like his big brother, Henry. And Garrett is spot on when tells me over and over as we browse the photos, "Oh, he's cute." We are all so excited to meet (in the hopefully not too distant future) our newest nephew and cousin!

processing the possibilities

When we lived in Muncie, my mom got a new Cuisinart food processor. Her old one still worked, and she gave it to us. At the time, my kitchen skills were still in their early infancy, and consequently I didn't love the Cuisinart as much as I could have. When it came time to pack up and move to Brooklyn (and to an apartment with less storage space), we had to limit what we could take with us, and the Cuisinart, sadly, did not make the cut. It is a loss that I still regret, current lack of shelf or counter space notwithstanding.

Fast forward a few years to a couple of weeks ago. I notice after washing it that our blender has a large crack in the glass jar. It's not a clean break yet, but it will be before too much longer, and will therefore soon need to be replaced.

Suddenly worlds collide inside my brain, as they sometimes do just before dreams come true, and I am hit with a brilliant idea. By participating in a health and wellness program through Blake's employer, I had recently earned a gift certificate to my choice of several hundred major retailers. Until this moment I was having trouble making up my mind as to how I wanted to spend it, but now the debate was over.

I could replace the blender and weasel a food processor into the bargain. And so I did. Please welcome the newest addition to my kitchen:


Some people like to call it the SmartPower Duet Blender/Food Processor. I like to call it an early birthday present to myself.

We took it for a test drive the other night with a batch of chocolate milkshakes, and I've picked up the ingredients to whip up some hummus. But the possibilities beyond this are endless, really. The simple fact that I will now be able to grate cheese in the blink of an eye is enough to make the muscles in my hands do a happy dance. Oh, and two words: baby food. After browsing through the recipe booklet it came with, I'm itching to try some of their suggestions, especially the Creamy Cantaloupe Soup. (I'm also itching for the warmer weather it would be best consumed in. January, I'm looking at you.)

I realize that a 2-in-1 appliance will likely not last as long as its stand-alone counterparts, but it's a step in the right direction and it fits in my kitchen, an aspect which requires especial consideration here in Brooklyn. Also, that motor is a powerful thing of beauty just begging me to push its buttons. Which now begs the question:

What are your favorite blender or food processor-requiring recipes? Do share.

called to serve

I've been itching to share this since we watched him open the letter via Skype a few days ago, but I thought this was an appropriate thing to post on the Sabbath, so I waited.

On Thursday, my youngest brother, Scott, received his mission call.

He has been assigned to labor for two years in the Illinois Peoria Mission, where he will share the gospel in the English language. He reports to the MTC on March 31st.

I probably don't need to tell you that we are all unspeakably excited for him.

Here he is, reading through his mission material, as we saw him on Skype. I think he's pretty happy.

The Midwest rocks, Scott. The people there are among the best I've ever known. You will love them, and they will love you.