My BIG To Do List

1. Try to ignore the STRONG nesting instincts I'm having (which is funny...because right now, I can't do anything about them, and every other time I've been pregnant, I haven't had nesting desires as strong as this pregnancy...while I can't do much about it)
2. Find a house to move into.
3. Pack up this house and move into other house.
4. Have this done by Feb 28ish, because our landlords want to put this house on the market.
5. Unpack. At least minimally.
6. Get ready for wee little baby coming sometime in early April.

Right now, everything is hinging on item #2. And even though I'm not the biggest planner, I do like to envision my future and have a basic plan as to what to expect. But I can't plan much beyond item #2 because I have no idea where or when we will be working on items 3, 4, and 5. Do we start packing things up so as to plan for a temporary move...somewhere to live while we have this baby and I get through those few months of post-partum blahs (or blues)? (I remember enough to have recommended to Rob that we try not to make any major life decisions right before or after I have this baby.) Or do we just start packing things up for a more permanent move?

I just dunno.

We have looked all around town for a house since the end of November, never feeling quite right about any of them. Although there was one house I actually felt like I could have lived there, but...it's at the top of our range and there are enough oddities about the house that we wouldn't want to pay that much for something that isn't amazing. We've looked at houses that would push our affordability limit and houses that are fixer-uppers (but still...not at the price they are listed at!). And we've looked at houses that we could live in for a few years and potentially use as an investment home. We even put an offer on a great house and property. But it was turned down, and we both felt quite relieved (that was one that would have made us house-poor). We felt relieved because we still have a bunch of student loans that we need to pay off and one big reason why we haven't felt too comfortable with the idea of buying a house is the idea of getting into more debt.

Sometimes I wish I could be like Rip Van Winkle and go on a hike in the mountains, sleep for about 6 months (instead of 20 years), and come back to life in another house and already past the hormonal post partum time.

But such is life. To roll with the punches. To have faith that things will work out and not fear. To not be afraid to ask for help (that's probably what I need right now...). The other day I posted on Facebook...when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. When you get more lemons, sometimes you need to have a good cry before you can make the lemonade again. That's how this house hunting experience has felt like. But, oddly, I also feel like it's preparing me for the future.