It was all going so smoothly...

There we were sailing along on the countdown to moving into the new house, trusting our mortgage advisor that we would closed and in our new house on or around the 20th of December.  Then we got the heartstopping EMAIL that they could no longer finance our mortgage and needed permission to send all of our information to another mortgage company that could finance us. We received this EMAIL on the 20th of November, 30 days prior to closing, and 2 days before the Thanksgiving holiday. Did I mention that we received this news in an EMAIL! REALLY? You can't call us and tell us the problem and why you need to move our mortgage?

We followed all of the original advisors advice to increase our credit score while the house was being built and in the end this advice proved to be the deal breaker. If you call yourself a morgage advisor and credit repair specialist than you probably want to know the best way for people to qualify for a mortgage and repair their credit. The whole problem basically boils down to 2 credit score points that wouldn't have been a problem had the 'mortgage advisor' stopped pulling our credit constantly to see where we were at. (3 times in one month) Apparently, we have come to find out that you can have your credit pulled 2 times in one month and it will not effect your score. There are also 'hard pulls' and 'soft pulls' depending on why the company pulling the credit wants the information. Additionally, and this is the kicker, if you pay your credit card bill in full each month you actually get less credit than if you leave a balance on your card. Now common sense would tell me that a company would want to see that you borrow no more than you can afford to pay off each month, but apparently I am wrong and the credit card companies have a hand in this and want your interest and will then give you the highest score. That coupled with using no more than 20% of your available credit in any given month give you the best possible chance of increasing your credit. I guess if nothing else I have learned loads about credit and credit scores.  That is me trying to look at the bright side.

So Dave and I are left holding our breath until December 20th when all the paperwork is signed and we have the keys in our hands. Our new mortgage advisor seems to understand how we are feeling and the trust issues we now have and seems willing to put our minds at ease.

Roll on December 20th!!!

Another busy weekend

Sometimes I feel like I go to work for a rest:) It's 5 weeks and counting until we move into our new house. We close on the 20th of December and then have 11 days until our lease is up at our current house that we rent. So for the last couple of weekends I have been cleaning out closets and drawers and packing boxes and setting aside things to go to the Goodwill.  And that is on top of all the other chores that need to be done to get us all ready for the next week, like laundry and grocery shopping and cleaning. It's a vicious circle really, but I wouldn't change a thing.  4 more busy weekends of this and then it will be unpacking everything! Talk about a vicious circle:)

Everyday I am so thankful that I have been given the opportunity to be a mom and a wife to my gorgeous boys. I try not to take any moments for granted, even the hard times, like when my 15 year old is giving me lip or my 3 year old is throwing a fit.

I just wish it was easier for Dave and I to add to our family. I don't know right now how we are going to afford the adoption. $30000 is so much money. It would be much easier for us to save this money if I keep working full-time. On the other hand, I think of all the time that I am missing out on while I am at work and Aidan is at 'school' and Riley is at school. I worry that I could be a much better mom if I was at home with them. I guess I am just fortunate that I am usually done working by 3 and that Dave has been working from home so he is here when Riley gets off the bus in the afternoon and when he gets on the bus in the morning. That definitely eases my burden. And when we hopefully get the adoption underway and our little girl home then I will stay home all the time with my kids. I can't wait for that!  Now I just have to hope that they agree to extend the adoption tax credit and make it refundable because that will help us so much!

First Time Blogger

I have never written a blog before. When I was thinking of creating a blog, I felt like I had so much to say, but when it comes to sitting here and writing it all down, I am finding it difficult. Perhaps it will become easier as I get more used to it.

Our family is standing at the beginning of an extrememly exciting new year. We are about a month away from closing on our new-build house. Picking out the colors and designs of the house has been so much fun and surprisingly easy for Dave and I to agree on:)

 

 

 

New home in progress

We chose to build a larger house to have plenty of room for our two boys, Aidan and Riley, and anyone else who may come along.

At the moment Dave and I are both struggling to figure out the next step in our journey to complete our family. The choice between embryo adoption and SN Chinese adoption is proving to be very difficult. There are pros and cons to both options and we are just using this time until the beginning of the new year when we are in our new home to educate ourselves and choose the best avenue for our family.

I read an article last week about the corruption in the Chinese adoption system that has really scared me no end. I understand that it is a very small number of older children that seem to be involved. There are so many people that we will have to trust to do the right thing and guide us to the child that was meant to be ours. We will be making a lot of sacrifices financially and emotionally along the way and we just have to trust that our agency, our government, the Chinese government, our child's orphanage or foster parents and all the other many people that will be involved in our adoption. The trust bit is the hardest.