Finding our future home: Sharing My Heart

The past week was been filled with a lot of hard deicisions filled with uncertainty. And felt like my inactivity on the blog has been related to my head full of heavy weight decisions and unsure if this would be okay to share on here. But the blog is apart of my heart so here we go. We been on the search for our "new home" which hasn't been at all like I had imagined in my head. I had always thought when I was younger we would just drive up to this quaint little white house with the picket fence and green shutters, walk in and buy it and we would then call it home and que the 'happily ever after' sans house renovation. This whole process was so much more involved than I could have ever anticipate from contacting city planners, mortgage brokers, realtors, contractors and inspectors meanwhile praying about it. "Is this it?" I never thought it would be so hard, confusing and difficult and had hoped for "signs". Verlon and I jokingly were sitting on the floor with our cat 'Boo' saying if she licks her paw it means yes, tail means no. She did neither.

Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. ~Psalm 55:22

There's two sides to buying and selling a home but a very similar story on both sides a family who needs the funds. In an uncertain economy buying a home is scary. I have been frightened and what may come but so excited and ready to start our lives together in our home - wherever it may be. I feel ultimately that it isn't my decision but I'm leaving it up to God and the universe. I like to think the homes we have gone through and felt weren't the right fit or offers that fell through was just the universes way of saying "this isn't it".

I absolutely love the snow and during last weeks blizzard weekend, we got the news that the offer we put through on a house was accepted by two incredibly sweet people with big hearts. We had been exchanging letters throughout our offer/counter offer situation. And had learned about the sellers and we so excited to purchase from them given the character of people who owned the home. We kind of went with the idea, that there is a lot of love in this house and good people lived here - so this home will do the same for us. Much to our dismay we also found out this week the home had some major damages in the walls and I just caved with tears. When we found out the extent of the damages my heart broke for the sellers and for us. We started picturing our lives in this home. I was deciding where I would hang our future wedding photos and family photos. How one day, the office might look a little bit more like a nursery. A studio area for photography. The back yard with green grass where we would share memories with our family and friends. And a new home that we would make our own - our forever home.

We're currently in this odd limbo state now after notifying the sellers and I truly feel for them as I'm sure the inspection report isn't what they wanted to hear. I finally feel though with all of this, that if it is meant to be - it will be. And if it isn't I know that I could live anywhere with the man of my dreams, who has been so incredibly patient with my out bursts of emotion, stress and nervousness. I don't know what I would do without him. This whole process just solidified for me that a house is just a shelter, it only becomes a home when the ones you love are with you. My home is anywhere he is. Throughout this exhausting sometimes discouraging process, it has brought Verlon and I so incredibly close together which gives me great confidence that we can take on anything together. And we can live anywhere as long as we are together. I'm so excited to marry this man.

Verlon's photograph from the snow storm

Katelyn & Andrew • Langley Engagement Photographer

Katelyn and Andrew met at their church and have known each other since they were teenagers. It all started when they went for a walk at Crescent Beach and now will get getting married this spring at the Kirkland House in Delta. Both are very involved in their church and youth groups - faith has a very important role in their relationship.

Katelyn wasn't feeling well and wasn't thinking to leave the house that day. Andrew using his charm convinced her to come out with him. Andrew went to go and pick her up and hid her ring under the seat in the car and off to crescent beach they went like on their first date. They had their first kiss there and it would be there that Andrew would tell her that he waited a long time for this, to spend the rest of his life with her, and then asked  "marry me" and Katelyn yelped out "Yes".