What does it all mean?

Hello Friends,

In an attempt to increase my lameness (currently at an 8), I have to admit that I feel like that freaky crying dude from that double rainbow YouTube video.

Seriously people...meditate on this.

As I'm sure a lot of you know, these days it's probably easier to get on an airplane with a sharp object than it is to get approved for a mortgage.

Getting the bank/agents/inspectors etc. everything they need is seriously such a nightmare.  Ivan Drago then shows up, punches you in the head until you have brain damage, and then tells you that that they needed it all yesterday.

Then, when they have it (as soon as you can humanly get it back to them), you basically just wait around waiting for someone to tell you that it was that coffee purchase back in 2009 that will prevent you from actually getting approved.

Oh yeah, and the house down in Larkspur is manufactured which only adds about 25 more requirements that cost money you weren't planning on needing.

Then there are these other biggies.

• The original house that we wanted in Elizabeth is still not even under contract meaning they haven't agreed to a sales price or conditions let alone trying to get the loan portion completed.  

• The second house (which mysteriously sold for less than we offered, and yes, I'm considering filleting another agent) would have probably been close to an hour drive to and from work everyday.  Without snow.

• We closed on the 22nd.  If that would have been pushed back even a couple days there is a good chance that it would have been cancelled at the last second because of a pending financial change.

And then this.

We refinanced about a year ago.  At the time it was just to try and save a little money, and to be honest, who wants to leave free money on the table?

With the refinance, we first tried to get a FHA loan.  After months of trying to get that pushed through it ended up dying because an appraisal came in literally $1000 too low.

To say I was livid is an understatement.  I think I blacked out for about 3 days and was looking for someone to fight (luckily, Anna kept me indoors during this time and ignored me).

When the FHA fell through we ended up regrouping and refinancing with a conventional loan which was a relief due to the money we had already spent trying to get the FHA pushed through, and because we still ended up being able to lower our payment a little bit.

Fast forward to today.

The new loan that we have for the house down in Larkspur is a FHA.  Turns out you're not allowed to have 2 FHA loans at any given time (I think because it has to be considered your primary residence).

Meaning

Wait for it

If that refinance didn't get cancelled there is literally no chance that we could have moved.

Did I mention that not only are we moving, but pretty much moving to our dream house?

It's so stinking cozy (small), but here's the kicker.

Over 75% of our views are surrounded by 250 acres of forest.  Not just forest, but forest that will never be sub-divided or developed.

Sold

At the closing table the sellers let us know that they were forced to be late for work often due to them being unable to get out of the driveway due to local wildlife.  Deer, turkeys, and yeah, bears.

Sold

You Colorado people may know the landmark on I-25 driving south right before Monument called Monkey Mountain.  That would be the view off our front deck.

Sold

The sellers (who I went to High School which I didn't know until closing) are moving about a half mile down the road.  Turns out they love the city and neighborhood so much they're sticking around.

Sold

So yeah, I'm not smoking doobey and blubbering about a potential triple rainbow, but can you say EERIE?

19 months....2 weeks...and a closing!

First things first....today we officially bought our 2nd home making us owners of not 1 but 2 houses.  Everything is coming together and we couldn't be more excited to move into our new house this weekend.  We have a renter, house keys to our new house, family and friends signed up to help us paint and move, and loads and loads of excitement.  Stay tuned for our new blog title and updates on the house!

Yesterday Rilyn turned 19 months and Ryder turned 2 weeks.

We won't have any new stats on Rilyn until she is 2 since she won't have another check-up until then.  She is still growing like a weed and I have pulled out her 3T clothes.  Depending on the pants and pajamas she needs 2T or 3T as those just fit her funny and we have a hard time finding pants that do fit her well.  I'm finding myself super frustrated with the sizing of kids' clothing as all 2T summer shirts were too short and too tight on the arms, but as I pulled out 3T stuff mostly in fall/winter the sleeves seemed super long and I think they will look huge on her.  Maybe she just has a weird body shape, but finding clothes that fit her is really getting hard.

She is understanding a lot more and talking tons too.  Her new thing is saying, "huh?" every time you say something to her even though she hears you the first time.  Tyler and I are getting pretty annoyed by it and have stopped repeating ourselves.  She still loves animals, her baby brother, and playing monster (I think thanks to the Decker grandparents).

She is still our wild child and is usually getting in trouble.  For example, today as I was doing dishes, she was walking around the house cleaning the dogs, herself, and all the furniture with a little scrub brush...no biggie right??  Well, little did I realize she was dunking that scrub brush in the toilet the whole time so her, Trixie, and our living room furniture was not just damp but pretty soaked in the toilet water.  She got a shower and Trixie will probably get one soon.

But she is doing great with Ryder and really loves him so much.  She kisses and holds him all the time and loves to change his diaper.  Plus, it's really nice because she always fetches and puts away all the diaper changing supplies for me.  We just love being around her so much.

Ryder at 2 weeks - 8 lbs 8 ounces and 21 1/4 inches long.

He is still a pretty calm baby and just loves to be held.  He nurses every 2 hours (sometimes 3).  Night is still a little bit of a struggle because he has been having some reflux at that time, I guess because he is laying down more.  He also spits up tons including some projectile vomiting.  It doesn't seem to bother him tons and he is gaining weight so other than some nursing positions and probiotics we are going to wait and see if it gets better soon.  If he seems to be in pain we will definitely look into other options for it.

Yesterday at his check-up his doctor did notice some fluid in his scrotum, which could be a sign of a hernia.  So, next week we have to go back if the fluid isn't gone and get an ultrasound done.  Worst case scenario - it's a hernia which will require surgery, next worst case scenario - the fluid is still there without a hernia and they have to drain it, best case scenario - by next week the fluid has found it's way out on it's own and we don't even have to go back in.  Please pray with me that he doesn't have to have surgery or such an invasive procedure to get rid of the fluid!

We are loving snuggling with him and enjoying this short time with an infant!

Wish us luck this weekend and thanks in advance to everyone that has and is going to help us.  We are truly blessed to have such amazing family and friends.  I'm off to the new house tomorrow to clean...YEA!!!

she really likes beeping his nose...poor guy

she was touching him saying, "baby" just in case we forgot!

Ryder's 1st Bath

Tonight Ryder got his first bath.  He LOVED it.  I am convinced since he was born in the water he will be a water boy.

Rilyn and I took a bath almost every night for at least the first 3 months.  1) It was winter time so nothing was better than a warm bath 2) It was one of the few times she wasn't fussy 3) WIth just one kid we had all the time in the world to soak in the tub.

I'm not sure how much time or energy I will have for taking a bath with Ryder, but hopefully we fit them in quite often.

His usual right eye open and left eye closed look

he was so relaxed he couldn't stop yawning

clean and cozy

What's in a name?

Hello Friends,

I've heard your snickering and nay-saying all the way over here.  That's right, I've heard it over the ambulances and drive by shootings that decorate our Aurora air.

I feel forced to put my retort in writing.

I completely understand some of you questioning why I'd choose to name our newest Ryder.  I'll even go as far to admit that your reasoning is not unsound.

What you don't understand is that to be perfectly honest, you just don't get it.

This post is dedicated to all you nay-sayers.  I have something to say back to you.

You say Rilyn and Ryder sound to similar.

NAY

Even though I've already called Rilyn Ryder, and Ryder Rilyn 12 times, do you think I had any choice in the matter?

Have you met Rilyn?

What do you think would have happened if we named Ryder something sensitive like Ethan (No Offense Ethan)?

I'll tell you exactly what would have happened.

Rilyn would have walked all over him.

Believe me, I've already played the scenario out in my head when I come home from work and Rilyn has him in drag.  That scenario does not end well for the planet.

Would a dude named Ryder ever let his big sister (no matter how strong she is) ever put make-up on him?

Would a dude named Ryder ever willingly join the Thespian club?

Would a dude named Ryder ever hop over a puddle of mud when he could part the puddle of mud with his mind?

H E Double Hockey Sticks no.

Consider that point dispelled.

You say now we're stuck having to do a Ry sounding name for any future Decker.

NAY

Do you think I should have not named him something so manly just to avoid this tiny little issue.

Let me fill you in on a few things that have happened since Ryder has joined us.

As I was unpacking our birth bag I noticed a tiny piece of paper.  As I unwrapped the piece of paper it looked like 2 separate sets of lips had kissed the piece of paper.  I could tell this because there were bright red lip marks on the paper that smelled like bubble gum.  Written on the piece of paper was the name and number of both the midwife and nurse.

People, both of these lovely ladies are married!

On the car ride home every car we passed literally was blown off of the road with tsunami like winds (although in even freakier fashion, no car was damaged in the slightest and no injuries were reported).

True story.

I've had a parade of angry parents at my door complaining of panties literally disintegrating into thin air.  Doesn't matter if they're of legal age or 100.  For some reason, Ryder melts panties (in a gentlemanly fashion).

Besides, there's really one of two ways to go with this.  We either completely boom roast our third and name it something very common, like Frank, or we just have to come up with another awesome name.

Do I need to reference the Arya post?

Consider that point dispelled.

What else do you have to say?  I welcome further nay-saying in the comments.

1 Week Old

Today Ryder is 1 week old.  Time is of course flying by and we are loving having a newborn around.  Yesterday we had him weighed and he was  7 lbs 12 ounces, which is great because he was down to 7 lbs 7 ounces on his 2 day appointment.  The little dude was not at all interested in eating and just wanted to sleep.  But that has changed!

The week has gone very smoothly thanks to family and friends and of course Tyler who has taken over every aspect of the house, Rilyn, and dogs so I can recover and focus on Ryder.  Not to mention doing everything with the new house.  What a stud I am married too.  Tyler and Rilyn have had lots of fun together!  She has helped him make tons of meals and can't seem to get enough cooking in.

I am savoring having a newborn even more so because I know how fast time flies and I just want to snuggle him as much as possible before he is Rilyn's age and doesn't want snuggles anymore.  So far he is a super easy baby and sleeps most of the time.  He fusses when he is hungry and then usually goes right back to sleep.

He eats about every 2 - 3 hours and I have had to wake him up a couple times during the day if he has gone longer.  I wouldn't wake him at night obviously but at night he eats every 2 hours and definitely has more of an appetite. He is sleeping with us and I know he wakes up more because he is laying next to me and that reminds him he might be hungry.  Even though I am up a little more with us co-sleeping for me it beats getting up and feeding him.  Plus, I love snuggling so close to him for so long!

Rilyn is doing awesome and has had a few moments of "new baby behavior" but is still sleeping well (knock on wood) and has been nothing but sweet to Ryder.  She kisses him 100 times a day, helps me wipe his bottom every diaper change, and makes sure he never leaves his socks on.  She is talking more and more every day and is also getting sillier every day.  She sure likes to make people laugh.

Being a mom of 2 is just as amazing as I thought it would be if not more amazing.  Ryder just brings so much love to our home and I'm so grateful that I get to be his mommy!

Oh and just for comparison here is Rilyn at 1 week old

Mornings....

I have this to look forward to every morning!  I couldn't be happier!

Ryder Caleb Decker

Ryder joined us last night at 10:26 PM after about 5 minutes of pushing and 5 hours of active labor.  We are all doing great and are so happy we got to have an amazing water birth!  He is 8lbs 19 1/2 inches long and has a good set of lungs.

Rilyn was pretty excited to meet him this morning and likes to give him loves.  The dogs are also very concerned and keep watch right by the bed.

A big thanks to Kristin and Tasha for coming to the birth center and Stacey for hanging with Rilyn the last 2 days!  We love you girls!

Kristin at the birth center

Trying to move the boy down so we can get the show on the road

Tasha made it just in time 

Our midwife Sara - who we LOVE

Our new nurse Melissa - who we also LOVE