our first thanksgiving

December 3, 2013January 15, 2014 Rachel Atwell3 Comments

(I’m in the middle of organizing things we’re taking in our car and taking pictures off the wall… I can’t believe we’re moving tomorrow! ahh!)

At first I was a little intimidated by the idea of a Thanksgiving meal on our own here in Hampstead. But after a little bit of planning and pinning, it really wasn’t that bad and actually kind of fun. With the exception of the 20 minutes we skyped with my family, it was by far the most quiet holiday I’ve ever experienced. But there was something special about cooking, reading, and listening to music with G. It was the kind of quality time we don’t very often find ourselves with.

Our menu consisted of turkey tenderloin {a little less intimidating than a whole turkey} and lots of carbs. I don’t think I’ve ever cooked this much for two people – and are whole table was covered. I also used our blue and white china for the first time!

Oh and I made my first pie! {with store bought pie crust…shhh…}

We also decided to start a new tradition that night. I asked Gary to pick out a movie for us to watch, one that we could watch every year on Thanksgiving {or at least the Thanksgivings we spend on our own}. The only rules were it had to be a holiday movie and it had to be kid friendly. He chose The Polar Express which somehow neither of us had seen all the way through. A movie and hot chocolate on the stove with homemade whip cream – perfect end to a good day.

Thanksgiving 2013 – you were sweet and memorable.

How was your Thanksgiving?

Atwell Adventures

happy thanksgiving eve

November 27, 2013 Rachel Atwell2 Comments

Happy Thanksgiving Eve, friends!

We’ll be celebrating our first married thanksgiving in Hampstead tomorrow! When G first mentioned the idea of staying here instead of traveling to see family, I was a little skeptical but open to the idea. Now I’m really excited to spend this holiday with just the two of us. It’s fun to create memories and traditions and I’m thinking tomorrow will be full of both {eh-hem… any tips for making an apple pie?:)}.

We’ll also be finishing up our “be thankful” banner we’ve been adding to this month. While rather elementary in looks, to be reminded of all that we have has been a good practice for me and hopefully for G too.

How are you celebrating?

Atwell Adventures

searching for a new place when you’re long distance

November 20, 2013January 15, 2014 Rachel Atwell6 Comments

We found a new home! Imagine me doing a little dance a la Leslie Knope…

But before the dancing began, there were many prayers and hours of online searching that had to happen. More than ever I was thankful to be at home during the day so I search for our options.

To start off the search, I messaged a few friends that live in the area and asked for recommendations. The responses gave me a better idea of the area, what places to avoid, and what to expect for cost of living.

The next step was searching on Trulia. Trulia allows you to specify if you’re looking to rent or buy {renting for us}, and also lets you filter with things like minimum/maximum price, bedrooms, bathrooms, etc. While I tried to be open and look at alot of different things in the beginning, we eventually narrowed down our search to what we really wanted – a 2Bed, 2Bath space.

After about a two weeks of serious searching, we scheduled some appointments and made our way down to the Augusta area to see some of the places! We only stayed for about 24 hours but were able to visit 8 properties {1 townhome, 3 apartments and 4 condos} during that time.

Two of the most helpful things for us during our search were our camera and a spreadsheet I created and printed before hand. The camera was great because although you can usually find photos online, sometimes the way those pictures are taken can make the space seem bigger than it really is. The spreadsheet was helpful, because it allowed me to ask all of the things we needed to know about the property without having to take notes {my columns were for the listing name, square footage, beds, baths, on-site maintenance, lawn care, open floorplan, closet space, neighborhood, patio/porch, Washer/Dryer, gym, pool, miles for G’s commute, and monthly rent}.

After visiting the properties, there were some definite no’s, some that were a little bit of a stretch for us, and one that we really liked. We gave ourselves just a little over a week and decided to go ahead and follow up with the one we really liked, and thankfully it was still available!

So now the fun part begins: securing our moving plans!

Which probably will fall just TWO weeks from today!