Sorry Daddy-o

My dad called me the other day, it was so sweet of him to think of me. While we don’t talk much, it’s just so nice to hear his voice and know that I’m still his little girl. Lately, the first words out of his mouth are “so when are you moving back” Lately I’ve been responding “hopefully next December, and if not then May of 2009″

We have been in Las Cruces now for 2 1/2 years while hubby works on getting his Ph.D. Both of our families live in Utah, so we are quite the lone wolfs down here, but we have really enjoyed it and grown closer to each other, and as a family. We head back about twice a year to go and visit, and it keeps us feeling connected and in touch with things. I have been looking forward to returning to be close to family once Hans gets done, but on the other hand…I’m having a lot of fun doing our own thing.

My dad has inherited/yet to inherit(not that we’re hoping for that anytime soon) the 5 acres that he and my mom live on. Where they live in Utah County is highly populated and still growing. I think their land is one of the last available in the area. People are constantly asking him when he is going to sell and develop the land. He keeps turning them down saying he is saving the land for his kids to build their homes on. Apparently land right now is going for $220K, so it’s no cheap ordeal. He says he will give us the land for free if we will build our house there so he can see his grandkids (and us too of course)

(My daddy-o, out in the pool with some of his grandkids)

This past week I was waiting for my car to get washed, and I was browsing through a “Homes for Sale” catalog. It was so much fun! I started getting grand visions of what my future home will be like. As I was thumbing through the pages, there were so many different homes with so many different features, I thought “There is no way I would be able to build a home after we graduate that has all the features I would want/need for the rest of my life.” First of all I am just now treading in the waters of interior design, and discovering the things I like/don’t like, and that is an adventure in and of itself. Second of all, I know my family size will be changing, and also the needs of my family will be changing. So what might work for me now, might not work for me in 5 or even 10 years.

So while I miss my family and the association that we share, another part of me still wants the adventure of growing into our future home. I want to go through the different stages of “starter home” to “dream home”. I want to be able to pay off our dream home in full. To do that we need to start at the bottom. Find a house that meets our needs, and when we have served our purpose there, move on, sell the house- use all that money as a down payment to the house behind door #2…the in betweener.

I don’t know where we will end up after Hans graduates, but it might still be a while before I return to my roots and “settle down” I’m not saying we won’t move closer to home, but I’m also not saying we will. Which is a little surprising to me, but then again not so much. I’ve had so many opportunities for growth since we’ve moved here, and I know that I will grow wherever I am. I guess that’s just part of life- growth and change, but I enjoy it, even when it hurts sometimes because I’m missing out on all the family events.

So I’m sorry daddy-o, I thought I would let you know now that I might not take you up on the offer to build a house right away, but then again…I just might, and that’s part of the adventure which I am looking forward to.

For now, I’m happy here in my little apartment, supporting my hubby as he goes to school, and STILL waiting for this baby boy to come, and that is enough. :)