Jude Landry Store

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Let me catch you up to speed.

Two weeks ago, we listed our house for $99,900 in the hopes of going through with a short sale. Our short sale negotiator is in contact with the lender and it seems like they're at least willing to move forward with this option fairly quickly. We have yet to get an offer, though. How does a house lose $40,000 (or more) in 4 years?

Monday, Jude and I drove to Birmingham to see FLEET FOXES live at the Historic Alabama Theatre. Yes, in our minivan. They were uh-mazing. 3-4 guys singing harmony at any given time - just beautiful. It was making me all nostalgic, reminiscing about our quick trips to Houston or Chicago to see great music and rushing back for work in the morning, minus the whole kids part... But, we sat next to a middle-aged couple (50ish) from around the area that go to concerts on almost a weekly basis - they totally gave us hope. We were running late, so we only got to eat at a quick chain restaurant (Moe's Southwest Grill, which reminded me of Bloomington...) and we drove back after the show. Big thanks to Gigi, who came for the weekend to watch the girls while we were gone!

On Thursday, I got my implant. Well, the beginnings of it, anyway. I met with the oral surgeon who sliced up my gum to put in a little screw. After this heals, and a few more appointments, the dentist will put on a replacement tooth. I've always had a missing molar on the bottom that never grew in and soon that'll be filled in. I've never been under the "laughing" gas before and I totally get why people do drugs. I do. I felt like I had just been given a massage and accidentally fell asleep on the table instead of getting dressed like the masseuse asked me to. The oral surgeon politely asked me, "Who's here with you today?"  and because I thought he was trying to check how under the influence I was, I responded with, "Just you." He laughed and asked, "Is anyone here to drive you back?" And because I'm so smooth, "No. Are you going to drive me home...?" Yeah, I liked the laughing gas.

Also on Thursday night, we went to our weekly Dave Ramsey class that our church is hosting. I know that some may be a little skeptical or hesitant of popular money saving/making strategies or philosophies out there. But I assure you, the practical, old-school view that Dave is reminding us about has already started to pay off. Literally pay off. No more student loans! Only that beautiful minivan that drives us to amazing concerts... that's it. (We're not even acknowledging the house at this point...). It makes me so thankful for our parents' examples of living frugally, giving, and saving because I know we'd be so much worse off. But the practical application of saving up for something over the course of 12 months, filling out a budget every month, and allocating extra money to areas you most need it has really been great for us. We finally feel like we're telling our money what to do instead of being surprised by expenses as they happen.

On Friday, I took the girls to a pumpkin patch with our group of friends. Hayrides, tire swings, corn kernel sandboxes, trackers, and picnic lunches. I haven't looked at the photos yet, but they'll be on their way soon.

And now you're up to speed.

3 comments:

Lisa said...

My jaw hit the floor when I read about your listing price. I am so, so sorry. It's a nice house!! Nicer than ours!

Kaitlin @ More Like Mary said...

Alisha-hittin' on the dentist! Now I know which part had Laura laughing!

The Brown's said...

how is your tooth? that sounds like the most painful thing i could ever imagine ever enduring! like a screw was screwed into your jawbone to hold a TOOTH?! (i'm thinking a chick-let and gorilla glue)