Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Recent Events

October 2008: Started looking for a job.

December 2008: Graduated from college.

January 2009: Started subbing.

January - May 2009: Scoured the internet for ESL jobs in Iowa.

March - April 2009: Applied for ESL jobs around Des Moines and Iowa City.

May 4, 2009: Got a call to interview at West in IC. Was shocked to get this interview and no others since I have more elementary experience.

May 8, 2009: Interviewed at West with 4 fantastic teachers/administrators. Wore my fabulous interview suit thanks to mom and dad. Slouched. Wondered, "Why did I just say that?" as I answered questions. Was told the hiring process should be wrapped up by next week. Told friends and family, "If I am offered this job, it's all God working."

May 14, 2009: Missed a call from the West administrator while subbing. Called her back and told her all the times my kids would be out of the room. Called her afterschool. Called Dexter. Called my dad to learn about what one does when one is offered a fancy grown-up job. Convinced myself that she might just have a follow-up questions or be polite enough to tell me the position had been filled. Felt like puking.

May 15, 2009: Missed a call from the same West administrator while subbing in the same classroom. Breathed deeply and prayed I'd figure out what she wanted before the weekend. Called her back. Was offered the job. Tried not to pee my pants or seem to excited. Asked for the weekend to give her a final answer.

May 15-18, 2009: Prayed like a maniac.

May 18, 2009: Accepted the job. Thought, "Maybe we should move over there."

May 18-June 8, 2009: Thought about moving. Weighed rent vs. buy. Thought, "There is no way we would get approved for a mortgage."

June 9, 2009: Realized most leases begin in less than 2 months and decided to act. Went to the bank to find out about mortgage possibilities. Almost started laughing when banker told us we were preapproved. Noticed banker seemed much more at ease after finding this out. Celebrated by taking Fitz to Dairy Queen. (We celebrate EVERYTHING with DQ this summer. Things like, "It's nice out," or "Yay, we're not at work anymore.") Drove around westside IC and looked at homes from the car window. Picked up fliers for homes and threw them in the backseat when we realized how much they were. Called about an FSBO condo. Saw it that day. It was beautiful, but didn't have a good place for puppy potties.

June 14, 2009: Got a tip about an almost-on-the-market condo! Thanks, SV!

June 15, 2009: Saw the condo. Wasn't big on the light pergo floors or the white painted cabinets. Wasn't big on it being much more expensive than others in the neighborhood. Realized it was actually a bargain since it was uncommonly large for the neighborhood. Thought, "What do we do?!"

June 16, 2009: Decided we needed a realtor.

June 18, 2009: Met realtor. Chose homes to see.

June 18-22, 2009: Nearly hyperventilated in anticipation of seeing houses. Saw them. Some were easily rejected. Was faced with the decision: like-it/cheaper/smaller vs. like-it/expensiver/bigger. Made an offer on Bigger. Spent the evening upstairs where our phones get reception waiting for a call. Realized at 9:45 that we'd missed a call at 8:30. Nearly hyperventilated again.

June 23, 2009: Received counter offer. Was irritated. Calmed down. Made counter-counter offer. Received and accepted counter-counter-counter offer.

June 23, 2009 - Present: Doubted decision. Didn't matter since acceptance was legally binding! Regained faith in decision. Repeat. Thought, "Something must be done about those white cabinets!" Thought, "Our lovely walkout basement will be so empty!" Thought, "DISHWASHER!" Thought, "My rug will look nice on the light pergo." Started pondering how to decorate in all my (mental) freetime.

Tomorrow: Inspection and radon test.

3 comments:

Amy said...

Congratulations on being a grown-up and doing all kinds of great things! I hope that the inspection goes well.

Anne said...

Awesome post. :)

MrsRohlf said...

loved this one! congrats! :)