Visitors!

This past month has been a little empty and lonely with C on the east coast for the past four weeks. It has been quite a challenge to coordinate with him, get all our documents signed, send our personal information to various necessary parties and otherwise wade through the red tape that is purchasing a house.

FORTUNATELY I was far from lonely this weekend! My awesome parents jumped on a plane early Friday morning in TX and came to CA for the weekend in order to visit and to take a look at our property in escrow. Straight off the airplane on Friday, quick stop to the apartment to drop off suitcases, then back in the car to meet our realtor at the house! Dad being Dad wanted to see EVERYTHING. This included shimmying up the hallway closet to the attic door (without a ladder, naturally) to take a look at the underside of the roof, and climbing up on the empty trash cans to take pictures of the roof from the outside.

I was incredibly nervous before their visit. It's overwhelming to be a first-time home buyer. I know that C and I are uniquely situated and am confident that we are making the right financial decision to buy property. I was concerned, however, that this older house was going to be more trouble than it's worth. The house was built in the 20's and has undergone a series of additions and renovations. Though we're already in escrow, I was fully prepared to cancel the whole deal if Dad and Mom had reservations about the house or found huge problems with the roof or foundation.

Good news, though - the house is structurally sound. As an older house, it has many minor issues that need to be monitored or addressed, but nothing that is a major deal-breaker! Also, we're getting the sellers to cover some of the minor fixes, including the installation of smoke detectors and building a weather-protected cover for the water heater at the back of the house. As of this weekend we are full-steam ahead! Just waiting to hear from the loan underwriters, then we should be able to close!

Besides the house visit, I had a great time with my parents in town - the last time they visited I had JUST moved out here and didn't really know where to take them. This time we ran around in Santa Monica on the Promenade, took a stroll down Rodeo Drive, hung out with friends in Redondo Beach, and my folks even made it down to Long Beach on Monday while I was at work. We rounded out the trip yesterday with a few hours at the Getty museum, where my parents took more pictures of the building's exterior and gardens than they did of the artwork inside. The weekend was so busy and flew by so quickly. I was sad to see them go back home, but happy that I was able to show off California more than I did last time.

It's hard to believe that two full years have almost passed since C and I, only married for three months, came out to California for the first time. Two years filled with making new friends, C's rotating jobs, my school adventures, occasional trips home, and PERFECT weather! Two years in which we have experienced our first earthquake (and second, and third) and have learned how to accept the ridiculous gas prices and occasionally horrendous traffic. Two years in the same tiny apartment, which we are now preparing to leave.

More news on the house as we get closer to closing!

K