Balance? Really?

 

Being a parent is, like, constantly feeling like a failure, at least for me. Especially when you work, too. There’s no such thing as balance. It’s just spinning plates all the time until they fall and then picking up and starting over again. It’s enough to drive you to madness.

 

I feel like my kids (and most kids) lack common sense. It makes it hard for me to identify with them or even have patience with them. It was Sterling’s birthday last weekend and watching the kids didn’t really inspire joy but fear. These kids are going to be taking care of us? Yikes.

The party was a success other than that. We went to Eudemonia in Indian Hills. It’s a parkour gym. We were safe about it and only invited Sterling’s classmates. Talk about chaos, though. I have no skill set when it comes to managing small children. The whole no-common-sense thing.

True story: when I was three, I’d walk to the store down the street to a store and buy cookies. Alone. Three

I hold my breath whenever my kids walk down the stairs.

I think that’s where part of my balance is put to the test. I have so much going on with work and still have to hold the hands of my kids constantly. It makes it nearly impossible and totally insufferable. On Bridger’s chore list, I had to add: put on socks. On Sterling’s: put on pants.

I know people say to enjoy this time of their lives and that it’ll go by fast and blah, blah, blah, but I’m having trouble wrapping my head around that. First, it’s only very occasionally enjoyable. Second, it’s going by very slowly.

Bridger told me he wished he was an orphan the other day. I was driving him to his 40-minute-away baseball practice that I drive to twice a week. An orphan. Don’t threaten me with a good time. I pulled over and had him get out of the car. I turned the car around and then rolled down my window and asked if he still felt the same way; he timidly reentered the car. He was nicer after that. Not my finest moment, I will admit. I blame my mother who did this to me on numerous occasions.

Maybe I’m just grumpy? I don’t know. I think I need something to be excited about. I’m excited to visit my mom in South Carolina and check out that 4-plex. But I don’t think the 4-plex is going to end up working out. Hopefully, we can look at other investment opportunities while I’m there. And I’m super excited about the cruise, but man, that’s a year away. Did you all make it through the storm okay? We did. Our chickens did too. They only laid one egg a day for a bit, and now, no eggs. I see roast chicken in our future.

If you’re in a tight spot financially and can’t pay your mortgage or if you just feel like cashing out, this is a great time to sell. Inventory probably hit its bottom (all-time low in the history of recording) in February and interest rates have started creeping up, making affordability more of a challenge for some.

 

If you’re buying a house, just be super careful. If you have to put in gap coverage (pay more than the appraised value), understand how it works and that you will likely be underwater for a while. You should also plan on being in the new house for a long time; it probably won’t appreciate as quickly as houses have been.

This is uncharted waters.

Also, if you’re buying a house in a rural area, you must have a realistic timeline for your appraiser to get out and take a look. Many appraisers don’t want to go to rural areas, and more often than not, there aren’t any close to rural areas. Get those dates for an appraisal secured and confirmed ASAP. Twice now, I’ve had buyers nearly lose out on a house due to the appraiser forcing a later closing date.

I’m still patiently waiting on the news about the development deal I could get, which would be a solid win for me, my career, and my clients, my family. Could I possibly truly find balance after all?

Nah.

I have a new listing in Will-o-wisp in Bailey that will be active next weekend. It’s a 3/3, 1600 square feet, lovely house. It backs to the Will-o-wisp trails, so the lot may not actually be huge, but it feels it.

I sold my land listing, and it’s under contract, which is great. Not so great is that the father of my client passed away, and since my client lives out of state, he had no idea that his dad’s house got a pretty unawesome burst pipe during this last storm. Luckily, my neighbor came to the rescue (again) and fixed it with a quickness. Everything fell into place beautifully, and I was happy to help.

I closed on the off-market Evergreen house, and those clients want to buy another house in Evergreen for when they’re in town. *frantically looking*

And last but not least, my Fairplay deal is moving along very well at the moment. *knock on wood* It was rocky there for a second.

Alrighty, that’s it for this week’s fun and excitement, and by that, I mean bewilderment and frustration. (I do love my kids very much, and I’m happy I have them. I just never knew that something that inspired so much joy could equally inspire so much difficulty; kudos to all the parents out there).

Be happy, find balance when and where you can see you here next week!