As if the last calendar year hasn’t been exciting enough with Beckett’s arrival…WE’RE MOVING! Don’t get too worked up, we’ll still be in the Chattanooga area. 🙂 This is such bittersweet news.
Lots has changed—jobs, career paths, adding a baby (who also has some rather pricey medical needs), our property taxes have more than doubled in two years (yikes!!! Ask me about this if you’re ever buying a new construction.), and some more that I won’t bore you with. What hasn’t changed though, is our commitment to paying off debt and saving. So, moving out of our “forever home” we go!
God revealed His plan very clearly. Couldn’t deny it. So, we put our house up on the market in THREE DAYS…with an infant. I started working one day a week at Children’s Hospital at Erlanger’s Kennedy Outpatient Center’s Neonatal Developmental Clinic (always a mouthful!). Jimmy scored a new job in another health system in a position that’s going to give him more ICU experience. And what else…so much has changed, but I think that’s it, ha! 🙂
Less than five days after listing our home, we got two offers that entered into a bidding war and landed us in contract for full asking price and our closing costs covered. WHAT?! Praise God! By the end of that week, we had two more offers, I received letters on social media from buyers begging for us to consider their offers, and the gentlemen who lost in the bidding war visited me at my home genuinely thanking us for even considering his offer (my heart hasn’t sunk that hard in a long time! Ugh! We had to do what was best for our family though.).
A few days after going under contract with buyers for our current house, we went under contract to buy a finished new construction! We feel so blessed that we’re simply downsizing, not downgrading. Our new home is a bit further out from the city, but that means the property taxes are nearly SEVEN TIMES LESS! We’ve always wanted to be in a more rural setting anyways, and this house is just minutes away from the Cherokee National Forest! Score!
We’ll be doing simultaneous closings on March 26th, only about six weeks after going under contract! So, we’ve running around like mad trying to keep up with all the moving parts of selling and buying a home, packing, working new jobs, and doing it all with a needy infant! (P.S. I don’t advise selling a home while you occupy it with an infant. Leaving for showings and what not is a NIGHTMARE!)
After receiving several EXCELLENT offers, finding a brand-new home, and seeing how our new jobs fell into place, there’s no doubt this is what we should be doing. I’m human though. I’ve spent a lot of time sobbing over this whole ordeal, and I feel sick to my stomach every time I drive up to our house and go inside. When I look around this home, I remember the excitement of decorating it and making it ours. This is where we brought Beckett home to. I envisioned so much more life happening in this home. But, I’m trying to be faithful to follow God’s lead and be happy that He’s made His plan so clear. What matters is that what I have left is my relationship with God and my little family. There is still lots of excitement ahead!
If you could keep our family in your prayers as we transition and get settled in, we’d appreciate it! We’re excited to go ahead and move already so we can find out what else God has in store for us!
Just a couple of our favorite photos and memories in this home:
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- Anticipating Beckett James!
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- Getting our keys in 2016
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- Bringing Beckett home in September 2018!
So thankful that we were able to get our home photographed by Drew Beach so that we can remember it forever and show Beckett one day where he was brought home to.
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- We LOVED the fireplace and built-in mantle in this home. So unique and cozy!
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- One of the rooms I’m going to miss the most!
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- We loved how the wood on the bar wall complements the fireplace and mantle in the living room. Such a unique look!
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- Master bedroom
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- Master bathroom
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- Beckett’s room for the first six months of his life AKA our master closet! Best decision EVER!
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- Beckett’s nursery. Unfortunately, he never spent a night in the nursery we designed for him (cue tears!). Thankful that we have these pictures to show him and try to recreate it in our new home.
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- This guest room has served our family and friends so well. We’ll miss having an oversized room for pack ‘n plays and air mattresses, ha! 🙂
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- Guest bathroom
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- What’s left of my office! I sold the desk and had already packed up the rest.
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- You can see the trail Tilly & Tessa ran over and over chasing the neighbor’s dog that they let run loose (face palm). Won’t miss that.
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- Can’t really see it here, but we really enjoyed having a view of Signal Mountain and Missionary Ridge.
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- This porch is one of my favorite things about this home. So many memories!
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- Tilly & Tessa’s house 😉
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- Best space for a home gym. I had already started selling items before the picture was taken. I LOVED this space!
