Meg, Andy, and Baby: Different Rules for Babies

As most of you probably know, Andy and I moved into an apartment when we moved to Shreveport. We sold our lovely house in College Station and made the smart decision to downsize (financially) during our time in Shreveport. We did quite a bit of looking at apartments and found a very large three bedroom, at a nice complex, in a good area. We are up to our gills in stuff, but the apartment is 100% fine. Guess what...I hate it.

This is probably not news to any of you. If you have talked to me since I moved into the apartment last June, I have most likely expressed my displeasure. The neighbors above us have two pre-teenage kids and one 3-4 year old. I believe that the game they play all evening every evening is called "Elephant Stampede". Occasionally they mix it up and play Wii gymnastics or indoor, full-contact, basketball. Then we have the next-door neighbor. She is a single mother with two teenage girls and one boy that is probably 11 or so. As any of you who have siblings can remember, the shouting matches that those three get into are spectacular; the language gets particularly colorful when mom is not home. Thankfully, when they are not fighting, they are generous enough to help me keep up with the current top 100 R&B and rap songs, by turning it up loud enough that I can enjoy it too. I would hate to lose my street cred.

Beyond the neighbors, I miss the freedom of having a house. I miss the yard and I miss the feeling of being separate from the rest of the world when I walk in my own front door. Knowing that I have been unhappy at Island Park, Andy, the level-headed and deliberate one in this relationship, has become a broken record of soothing comments such as, "We will get a house next time we get transferred", "It isn't for much longer", "They have to go to bed soon" and "Please don't bang on the ceiling with a broom. That guy and I leave as the same time".

When Andy receives a transfer letter, the company packs, moves, and unpacks us, but we are on our own for in town moving. The thought of packing and moving everything ourselves was so overwhelming that we were determined to stick it out despite the herd of water buffalo upstairs. So, in the apartment Andy and I have stayed. Which is the smart and rational decision of two adults. Then we found out that we are pregnant.....

Turns out that the mere idea of this baby has turned us completely upside down and we have thrown out all of those well reasoned arguments. Here are some pictures of the new rental house. It is a 3/2 in the South Highland area of Shreveport. One month and we move in. We are very excited about all the space!!!