Under Contract

Last summer I heard about a century ride (100 miles on a bike) here in Texas that I immediately decided I needed to participate in sometime. It’s called the “Hotter Than Hell Hundred.” Yesterday I went running at about 11:00 a.m. on a path running through the center of Dallas. I now have a greater appreciation for the name of that race! It’s not just a great slogan for a free t-shirt.

We are doing well in Dallas. The girls have recovered some sleep. The bachelor pad is livable. We have started exploring, especially activities related to water. And, most of all, it is great to be together again! The girls relish every moment with their Dad. Whenever he comes in they run to tackle him, beg him to tell them “Kate and Jane stories”, or show him their new tricks. Yesterday we had a fun day doing only things we wanted to do. We exercised, we swam, we read, we watched a movie, and we even spent some time doing nothing. Josh stopped in his tracks at one point and said, “This is the first weekend I haven’t been looking for a car or looking for a house since I came to Dallas.” I think we are all ready to get back to some semblance of a normal life.

The biggest news of the week is that we have a house under contract! 11450 Tenison Ln (yes, it’s a shame it isn’t Tennyson), Frisco, TX. The closing date is August 18^th, two days before Kate starts school. The inspection is done. We still have a million hurdles to jump, but we are starting to get really excited. I have tried to stay emotionally removed during the whole house hunting process. After the inspection, however, we met one of the next door neighbors and I couldn’t help but get a little excited. We attended the ward today. The girls went right into their classes and were happy the whole time. The adult lessons were great and we met a lot of nice people. I think we are going to like it here.

Kate is swimming like a little fish now. She goes all over the pool, can grab onto the wall, and loves to dive and get rings. Her stroke is evolving from a doggy paddle to freestyle. We are still somewhere in between. Her imagination is in full swing, which is helping out a lot in our itty bitty living space. The other day as we were driving she said, “I think when my hair gets long I’ll hook it on one of the clouds and fly through the sky.”

Jane is back to her cute self. We just plain wore her out over the last few weeks. She loves playing polly pockets in her secret hide out, riding her skuut , and reading stories. I am still amazed at how well she expresses herself. It is fun to have a window into her mind through her running commentary on life. We were in a restaurant the other day and behind us was a couple on a date. I was trying to get her to stop looking over the edge of the booth when she turned around, looked at me inquiringly and asked, “How did they go just the mommy and daddy?” What a novel idea that parents could have a life outside of their children. J

All is well here just as long as our air conditioner keeps working.