In August 2006, Troy and I bought our current home. We were so excited. We loved the floor plan, had plenty of space for two people and it was a convenient location for Troy's job and my school. We got a good deal on the house. We quickly made friends in Tucson and we lived our lives with ups and downs.
Fast forward four years, we still love our floor plan. It still has plenty of room for our family of three and it is still a convenient location. However, the value of the house has gone down about $100,000. We obviously aren't the only ones with this issue
We have talked about moving away. We have talked about just walking away because we can never financially recover. We have talked about trying to do a short sale. We like to talk about moving somewhere else. South side is no ideal location for a growing family. We talk about Utah and Colorado and play with the idea of going to Europe; hopefully to Finland but we are also open to other countries.
However, when we really started to seriously discuss moving away, I realized how much I loved my home. This is our real first home. We have established amazing friendships with other "South Siders" (as well as people up North). I chose the paint colors with care. I decorated the nursery of my first born here. Troy paced back and forth in these hallways when Saku refused to sleep unless he was being bounced. Troy planted beautiful grass on the backyard that has become a piece of heaven for Saku. I have one yellow rose bush that keeps surviving the AZ heat. The idea of moving away from Tucson and leaving my friends is scary. This is the first place where Troy and I have found friendship who truly share our lives with us.
Today Saku and I were sitting on the back patio. I was reading the most recent "Newsweek" issue while Saku played with his trucks. Every five minutes or so a F-16 would fly over our house. While this can be annoying since they are loud, my little boy is in heaven when he can point to these planes. So he would climb on my lap and we would both point at them as they roared above us. I was so content.
We talked about our house issue with Troy's brother Trent and his wife Regina and she made a comment that "paradise is where your home is". I do not love Tucson. I will never love the heat. But today as I enjoyed the backyard with Saku, I really felt that life couldn't be better except if Troy would have been with us. I hope we will not be in Tucson for too many years, but as of now, I will try to view my home and its surroundings as a paradise.
3 comments:
Phil and I still get a little nostalgic when we go to/through Tucson. It was our "first" home together even if that was a small 400 sq. foot apartment. We loved it there. We have talked about how we still haven't made the good friends at our current location as we did down there.
I liked my house in Tucson... but the grass is definitely greener in Gilbert.... just sayin' :) DON'T miss the South Side at ALL!
I found your blog off of mile posts and read your comment about baby weight and wanted to offer my support. Our second child (also a girl, after first having a son) is almost 8 months old and I am back to my pre pregnancy weight. You know that it will come back off and you have a super positive attitude that will help you get there!
As for your home - it will always be where your family is. We recently moved across the country and although it was a little stressful, having my family around me makes it all worthwhile!
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