Shokufeh is... home

Good day!

It's been a great day, I would say.

First of all, I shed tears of joy at reading of the birth of not one, but two (or really, three) friends' baby boys! Mojan and Eric, friends from our days in Chicago, now living in Israel, have become parents for the first time. Two days before Mojan's own birthday. And Freckle Face Girl, whose blog I've been reading for several years (and she mine) has just welcomed her second child to the world. Such excitement. FFG has named her son Jordan. Mojan has not yet announced her son's name, but he is born in the land of the River Jordan. Coincidence? Probably.

Today's weather was great. So we busted out the tricycle (and the beloved helmet) and went for a walk. With an apartment at the other end. We liked it a lot and were giving it great consideration. But, also during the walk, we passed another nice place. After some time at the red swing, we called the realtor. He came and showed the place to us during halftime of the game he was watching. And we really liked it. And it met all of my criteria shared yesterday. We're going for it!

Actually, our first house we saw today was one that I wanted to see more for sentimental reasons. It was the house we lived in until I turned eight. So lots of first memories, good memories. I was happily shocked to find it on Craigslist the other day. Part of me thought it would be neat to live in it again, as it was my favorite of the houses we've lived in. Part of me thought it would be weird for Sam - that we're setting out on our own from my parents, yet living in a house that they used to live in. The great thing was that it was decided for me. It was nice to see the architectural features and the layout, but it's been poorly maintained. So it wasn't even up for consideration. I enjoyed seeing glimpses into my past, but at the same time felt like what I was seeing wasn't intruding on my good memories. I know that sounds a little weird.

And just as I started typing this, my mom called to say she'd bought a tv. I think this is the mongo digital flat screen tv she's been talking about buying. I think we're about to stop rocking the bunny ears. Yes, we are one of the three families in the US to not have cable. Yet! Good thing our intended new place is just a few blocks away.