Update on the house:
Yesterday I told y’all we were waiting to hear back on our offer for that house — the one we both just knew could be our “forever if God allows it” home. And last night we got the call that our offer didn’t make the cut. Someone else came in ready to buy immediately, while ours was contingent on selling our current place first. It made total sense for the sellers, but that didn’t soften the blow. I swear it felt like my chest dropped straight through the floor.
It wasn’t just a house to us. We saw our whole life there. The memories we’d make. The space the kids would grow up in. The routines, the holidays, the quiet mornings, the loud afternoons. I could picture us pulling into that driveway like it was already ours. And losing it… it’s weird, because you can’t “lose” something you never had, but you can absolutely grieve the version of life you imagined. And that’s what this feels like — grieving the “what could’ve been,” not the house itself.
But instead of staying stuck in that heartbreak, my husband and I sat down last night and went all in on pushing forward. We pulled up every listing we could find and started fresh. For hours. Literally sitting side-by-side comparing houses like we were studying for finals. We wrote down every home that caught our eye — all fifteen of them — and then we listed out all our dream features to keep ourselves grounded and intentional. Land. Layout. Big windows. Room sizes. Distance to town. The vibe of the community. Even the little details like wanting a counter cooktop, a jacuzzi tub, a big mudroom, a pantry that doesn’t feel like a closet pretending to be useful. Everything made the list.
Then we started ranking them. One by one. And honestly? Watching that list narrow itself from fifteen possibilities to three strong contenders made me feel hopeful again. We weren’t just scrolling Zillow with heartbreak brain — we were actually building a plan.
We dug into everything: crime rates, school districts, sex offender registries, what the neighborhoods looked like during the day and at night, how far the nearest grocery store was, whether the roads flood, what the commute feels like, future resale value — all the boring-but-grown vibes that somehow matter way more once you’ve pictured your kids living somewhere.
Now we’ve got our top three and we’re going to check them out with clear eyes and open hands. It might not be the dream home we thought we lost, but maybe losing that one was just nudging us toward the one that’s meant for us. I’m choosing to believe that.
We’re still showing up. Still dreaming. Still doing the work. Still trusting that the right door will open when it’s supposed to. And until then, we’re gonna keep pushing, keep planning, and keep moving toward the life we know we’re building — one step, one list, one house at a time.
Sara’s Hotmess Reset:
On top of all the house chaos, I’ve also been pouring a ton of energy into Sara’s Hotmess Reset. If I’m being real, working on my shop has been one of the only things keeping my brain from spiraling while we’re in this weird in-between season. I’ve been adding new products to my Etsy nonstop — tweaking designs, uploading listings, fixing photos, writing descriptions, trying to get everything to look clean and legit. Every time I hit “publish” on a new item, it’s like I’m planting another little seed for the future I’m trying to build.
I’m trying to treat this season like prep time — the grind before the glow-up. If I can keep building momentum now, keep showing up for my shop, keep learning what works and what doesn’t, then by the time we’re in our next home (whichever one is meant for us), Sara’s Hotmess Reset is gonna be ready to take off in a real way.
For now, I’m just stacking small wins. New products. New followers. New ideas. New confidence. It’s all part of the journey, and I’m pushing it forward one upload and one post at a time.
Just in Case You Ever Wanted to Contribute:
If you’ve been following our journey and ever feel inclined to support us, I do have a PayPal for donations. Never expected, never required, but always appreciated as we keep pushing toward our home and growing Sara’s Hotmess Reset.
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