Why I might miss my mileage goal...

Yup, we're almost as happy as the kids are about this one. We've been on the fence, then quietly looking, then going "well crap, interest rates are so low they are giving it away, and prices are downright cheap.. let's do this thing" with the whole house buying thing. Course I work in the industry so I know about these things, and know that you know - really, seriously, I put my damn money where my mouth is (and a LOT of money) - this is the best time to buy a house, ever. Or at least, you know since I've been around.

Really though, we found a lot of stuff. Then we kept coming back to the one that got us started, on a whim, by a certain person known as "Mom", owned by some good folks that my wife knows. Some good folks who had to move out of town and put the home they loved up for sale, and did the whole finger crossing thing. We found a lot, sure, but you know, in the end it came down to the fact that we really dig the house, the location (cul-de-sac, you got it, I'm old and boring now), the trees.. oh man the trees, the price, and most of all the good karma. I could go on and on, but man, it's a good feeling.

Speaking of good feelings, you know, kids are the best. Their outlook is something that I wish I could bottle up, then release in some of those times when us adults forget what it's like to have that optimism, that joy. It's not the stuff, the rat race, any of that.. they just dig being kids, having fun, smiling, and whatever it is that Mom and Dad tell them to dig. It really helps that I have three of the most adorable children on the planet, I'd imagine..
That was take.. 354 I think. The chubby guy in the center seemed to think it was play time, not serious business. I tell ya, he's still grounded! Anyway, it makes me really, really, really happy to think that in a month, finally we can have a place, a nice place that's ours. A place where these three can start to grow up, can feel secure, and can build some good memories in. It's something I never thought would happen a couple of years ago, morbidly obese, single with a pile of bad debts and even worse habits. Amazing what you can clean up in a couple years with a little hard work. Makes me really hopeful of what it will bring the day next month, after that pile of paperwork, when we can take our key and make this our home:

Course this whole thing isn't all roses and puppies, lemme tell you. Tomorrow morning my alarm is going to be set for 6am - on a Sunday! - so I can hop on my bike and head to the mart of wal, where someone tells me those Nintendo Wii's will be arriving promptly at 8am - first come, first serve. I played football, I betcha I can bust out some moves to get my kids a Wii, if nothing else, I betcha I'm the only crazy bastard waiting in line, at 7am, at Wal-Mart, for a video game system. On a bike.

Good times, I tell ya, good times.