Fashionable uniquely function-able?

Last night as hubby and I cuddled on the couch watching tv together alone. Yes, it was a rare moment. The kids were supposed to be in their beds allowing Mr. Sandman to sing them a lullaby but I don't think they have been formally introduced to him yet, either that or they don't get along because bedtime can be tortureous in our house. But that's a different post all together. For the sake of the story I will be honest and tell you that the kids were upstairs running and playing way past bedtime but both hubby and I pretended not to hear them because neither one of us wanted to move from our cozy cuddling place...awwwwww. So as I am sitting there I looked around the room and realized that there are very few pieces in the family room I love. There is the rug which I spent more than hubby wanted on, but I love it. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy on the inside. And there's the ottoman that hasn't found the perfect place in our home. The point is, my home has the decorating touch of a tired mom with lots of kids! I think it's time for a change. My hubby wanted to know what sparked this desire for change, who can he blame for the money I now feel the need to spend to create that feeling of hmmmmmm, when I walk through the door. I told him he could thank Tam over at Get it Girl Style. I have been spending free time drooling on her blog. She finds the most unique things and puts them together so beautifully. I am feeling inspired. I'm going to create an idea board for the dining area. It's time for the Artis house to mone from function alone to fashionably uniquely function-able...is that even a design category?

Dream or idea?

We've all had a dream about something that seems like it would be a good idea, but every now and then we get those dreams that make us sit straight up in the bed and wonder if God is giving us a glimpse of our  possible future, if only we make the right decisions...you know one of those dreams where you make one simple decision that changes the rest of your life for the better, or maybe sometimes for the worse, but then you just never know because it was just a dream, right?

For the love of milk

Leah with the full pouty face:
Mommy why can't I just go to H.S. Elementary school.

Me in serious know it all mommy mode:
Well sweetie, we live down the street from your school. Your school is so nice and It's a new school. The teachers are very sweet and your friends are at your school.
You can't leave your friends and teacher. They would miss you and feel very sad.
(feeling proud because I had provided her with a great mom-logical answer. Of course I had given her enough information to help her realize that her school was the right school for her)

Leah: Awww man, but H.S. Elem has strawberry milk!

Parental Brainwashing Gone Wrong...Somewhere

So you read the title...Don't give me the evil eye!  If you're a parent at some point and time you have participated in parental brainwashing too.  Its a part of being a parent.  We all do it.  Its the only way you would get your kids to share some your views.  Ok, let me be clear...

Swap Mamas

While blog hopping today, I stumbled upon a website that has the potential to give moms everywhere that "ahhhh" moment. Swap Mamas! For awhile now I have been swapping clothing and toys with friends that have children that are a size larger or smaller than my little ones. Not only is it the green thing to do but its also the most economical thing to do.

A mommy must-have!

Once I became a stay-at-home mom, I became obsessed with feeding my kids the healthiest and most nutritious foods I could get my hands on. One of the great things about not working outside the home is that I have the time to cook and prepare tasty REAL foods for my family. I'm not saying that we don't ever eat out but it is rare that you will find me in a McDonald's drive thru. Kids meals are a thing of the past for my kids. One positive result of this is my kids are much smaller than their classmates. One result which sometimes doesn't feel so positive is the fact that they are exploding with energy. No sluggish kids or teens reside in the Artis household.
So a few months ago my brother-in-law introduced me to the many many benefits of carrot juice. I was amazed at the things carrot juice does for the body. We've all heard about how great carrots are for your eyes, but no one ever told me about Vitamin E, and Vitamin A, which is great for healthy bones and muscles. And there are studies being done right now to research the benefits of drinking carrot juice to prevent cancer. So needless to say, I was convinced that all my little ones needed carrot juice. The big question was how to get it into them. Thats when I found the Jack Lalane Juicer. It has been wonderful. Not only am I able to throw 3-5 carrots in a cup of juice for them but I usually mix it with a couple of apples, mangos. spinach, or any other fresh fruit or veggie I have in the house...except celery. Mixing celery in guarantees that no little ones will drink it. I have taken a liking to preparing fresh orange juice or apple juice for weekend breakfasts also. The juicer runs about $99 at Target but I found an open box deal with everything in it for $70. It has been worth every penny. Even the ever so picky hubby has begun drinking fresh fruit and veggie juice...well if I fix it for him. Oh, and before I go, I do hear you moms asking about cleanup because the last thing any busy mom needs is another huge mess. Well relax, clean up is simple. The juicer comes apart very easily and all parts are dishwasher safe. I usually just hand wash my really quickly and lay it out on a dish towel to dry. And if you are really interested in some the great benefits to drinking carrot juice visit www.living-foods.com.

New Holiday Tradition

Every year as the calendar inches closer and closer to Christmas I get more and more stressed. I love shopping as much as any other lady, but Christmas shopping is what I refer to as "Forced Shopping." Who likes to be forced to shop, certainly not me. Secret Santa or name exchanges are the worse...that usually means I am going to have to find something to buy for someone I wouldn't normally shop for because I wouldn't know what to buy them even if I had the striking to shop for them. Anyway, this year I decided I was not participating. I refused to get caught up in buying a bunch of crap that people probably didn't want anyway cause if they did want it they would have purchased it for themselves. Just before deciding to refuse to participate I took a poll in our household. Not one of the Artis 6 could name more than 2 gifts they have received in the past couple of years besides clothing and shoes. Once the results were in I decided instead of buying christmas crap we would take a family vacation. Surprisingly enough every child could remember most family vacations we have taken. As I listened to them recount our adventures their little faces brightened up and huge grins appeared as their minds took them back to wonderful memories of fun and frolic and stress free parents. That did it for me. We quickly decided to spend the Christmas and New Year holidays in Florida. What's better than 70 degree weather when its snowing at your house? We are a family of people who are extremely attached to extended family so we invited everyone and tried to convince as many family members as possible to go.
Christmas day we gave each child one small gift, ate breakfast together, laughed, played, and watched movies while waiting on the crew of family members to arrive. Early the next morning, we left snow and darkness and headed for FL in a huge 15 passenger van...I need to make a side note here to say that normally we hop on the train to go to FL. Its a wonderful option for folks with more than 3 kids. Not only is it affordable but the kids can walk around and eat snacks that you pack from home while someone else does all the driving. Its great! Unfortunately, because this wasn't a trip planned well in advance, train tickets were sold out. So we drove. We rented a huge 6 bedroom vacation home for a mere $750 for 8 days....thats cheaper that one night would have cost all of us. Once there we did Busch Gardens Tampa this year and shopped and slept and partied and watched TV and guess what I have heard NO complaints about not getting tons of Christmas gifts. As a matter of fact I am listened to the kids complain about leaving FL too early. So it goes without saying that I have officially been delivered from "Forced Shopping." From now on we will travel during Christmas. As a matter of fact I'm thinking a cruise next year..with the cruise I won't have to cook, clean, or plan tons of things for the kids to do because someone else has already thought of all that for me....maybe the Bahamas or Mexico or Turks and Caicos...you should join us.

No Big "BUTs" this year

Its that time of the year. My babies are in year round schools, which means they have completed the first quarter. All parents know what that means......Parent/Teacher Conferences!!! This may or may not mean anything to you. It all depends on who and what your child is like as a student. I have little ones that fall into every category. I have the quiet as a mouse during school hours Leah Peah Deah....Miss Leah Peah Deah always does well academically and never gives the teacher an ounce of trouble. I always sign the conference forms the minute she brings them home. I'm anxious to meet with her teacher because I know there are only gonna be sweet words said about her and then some years, I even have teachers who want to know how to get her to speak more in class.....Then I have my precious middle son. I always put his conferences off to the last day. I carefully prepare myself before visiting the teacher. Its not that he's a bad child or a bad student but he hasn't quite grasped the concept that school really isn't a social event. Just last week he accused his teacher of not giving him enough time to talk with all the kids in his class. Well, I have spent the past few days in parent/teacher conferences.....and as always Leah's teacher had more than enough wonderful things to say about her personality and progress academically. But today was Ike's conference. Now remember, I said he's not a bad kid. His teachers always start the conferences off with telling me how much they love him, and he's such a joy to have, and he brings an element of happiness and fun to the class, and how adorable he is, and how he gives them that huge smile while staring at you with those big brown eyes, and he smothers them in compliments daily...(yes, my 6 year old son is a huge flirt with older women)....So I was breathing and waiting, waiting for the big BUT, and guess what?!? There was no huge BUT!!!! He's on target academically, although he hates doing his reading, and writing, and his teacher doesn't give him enough social time, and oh yeah, he does have to sit at the table alone so that he doesn't feel the need to question his peers about what they are doing, and where they are going after school, and what did their mom cook for dinner last night, and did their dad have to work today, and she did say that he organized a "slapping contest" during recess last week to see who could slap the hardest, and a play fighting contest for the boys to see who is the best warrior, and don't worry there was no hitting or punching involved in the fight only real kicking and air swords,(he loss both contests, ending them in huge crocodile tears as he layed in the floor, rolling and being dramatic) and don't worry he happily explained to the teacher that his friends should not be punished because it was all for fun, they were just playing, and did she say he has been doing flips in the cafeteria? Yes, I think she did .....but other than that he's doing great. Thank God for the first year of no big "BUTs"! We're off to a great start!

Little Kid's Word of the day

Today's word: deogurant - dee-o-gu-rant
meaning: cold deodorant
used in a sentence: Drew: "Yes, I put daddy's deogurant in the refrigerator"
Mommy: with a puzzled look....."Why?"
Drew: in a matter of fact tone....."So his underpits don't get hot!"
Mommy: "Ok. Sounds good to me. If you like it, I love it"

I know, It's been forever

It's been forever since I shared on my blog and of course being the wonderful always prepared mommy that I am, I have the reason prepared, quite simply I've been extremely busy doing double duty as a mommy and tutor, (for the life of me I can't understand why my kids teachers keep giving ME so much homework! Don't they know all that paperwork is multiplied times 6 in my house!) back to my list of excuses for neglecting my blog......an all knowing wife (I've been doing a pretty good job of keeping up with hubby's shoes, sock, etc. Any good wife has learned that at some point hubby's is going to begin asking you where are the things that only he wears) a full-time student, overworked cook, And housekeeper. The list could go on and on but all moms have the same list and right now who cares to hear the violins playing to my woe is me list....there are much more important issues at hand like the whole reason I am able able to blog with ease this morning while waiting for child #2 to hop on the bus. This is my first post from my handy dandy iPad! It's wonderful. It's a busy mom's answer to the prayer for help with organizing the lives of the pupils of AU (that's short for Artis University). In an attempt to install family pride and a sense of "I descend from greatness" in our children, my hubby created AU. It's where they learn come from and how to be the best them. The hope is just maybe they won't grow up and realize that we were "feeling" our way through this whole parenting thing. Just maybe they won't find out that we don't have a clue of what to do next, we've been experimenting on them the whole time. It's been awhile since he gave them a lesson. Actually I had forgotten all about AU until my niece came over yesterday singing the official AU anthem. Anyway, this post is about my shiny new iPad not hubby's ingenious AU idea. (the whole iPad thing was his idea too). Wait a minute, is it 7:52? Dang, #2 missed the bus. I gonna have to finish this later. That gives me a great idea. Can one of you creative app folks create an app that allows me to yell out to my iPad what I want it to do? Then I need a iPad holder designed for my truck, you know one of those things like the state troopers have to hold those laptops huge enough for me to read from 2 cars over. Well I gotta go. #2 has to be at school in 4 minutes and we live almost 5 minutes away....and the hectic-ness begins.

"Women, Food, and God"....AGAIN

Hello everyone.....you know its never good when I start a blog post with hello. It's my way of shyly coming forth to say.....I messed up. I was doing so good. I was reading "Women, Food, and God" by Geneen Roth, and it was really impacting me and touching me and forcing me to think about things in a way I hadn't and I was blogging and sharing my thoughts and revelations with you guys and then, summer school punched me, my birthday tried to revive my spirits but back pain came right back into my life and ripped through my days like a horrible storm, and I found myself in the same situation I always do. Instead of feeling and dealing with the stress and emotions of too many assignments in French class in summer school, and embracing and celebrating another year of life the way I promised myself I would, and then dealing with the pain that comes with having major back surgery 2 months ago......I ate. And boy did I really eat. Everytime I felt back pain I reached for something rich and sweet and I stuffed my face and I smiled and for a few moments it seemed that everything else disappeared. I could feel this warm gush of familiar comfort moving through every inch of my body as I bit into those delicious chocolate walnut brownies. It felt so much better than thinking about all the other stuff and wondering why the dogg-on surgery didn't take away my back pain. I'm not ready to accept or come to grips with the possibility that at 34 I may have a chronic debilitating disease that threatens to change every aspect of my life. I never intended to be a physical burden to my husband. He married a happy, healthy, slightly chunky, but beautiful woman 10 years ago who was able to get up and down without his help. Things aren't going the way I planned. But food seems to fix it all, until yesterday I went to put on the dress he thinks I look so beautiful in, and it wouldn't zip! The waist band was riding up across my boobs. So, this morning I picked the book back up and I am starting from the beginning. I fell off the wagon but I am determined not to stay off. I will overcome this love/hate addiction I have going on with food.......well, here goes nothing, AGAIN!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Happy Birthday to Me! Happy Birthday to Me!

"Women, Food, and God"......Loving the skin I'm in

Its day five of reading "Women, Food, and God" by Geneen Roth and the strangest thing happened today. As I was brushing my teeth this morning, I happened to glance up at the mirror and I found the most beautiful brown eyes looking back at me. It shocked me for a moment. I had to look closer and upon closer inspection I discovered that those beautiful brown eyes belonged to me. They are the same beautiful brown eyes that intently watch and pay attention to every detail of the lives of the Artis 6 so that I am able to detect any hint of danger. They are the same eyes that lovingly look deep into the eyes of my wonderful husband every night as I tell him how much I love him. They are the same beautiful brown eyes that pay attention to every detail of our home, always inspecting it to make sure its comfortable for my family, the same beautiful eyes that watch my children play and achieve, and enjoy life. They are the same beautiful brown eyes that I passed on to a few of my sons and daughters that I love so much. Its been high school since I realized that my eyes or anything else on me is beautiful. Its been a while since I noticed how wonderful I am. I am a great writer. I am creative. I am an "out of the box" thinker. I'm a problem solver and a great leader. I can plan a great organized event on a shoe-string budget. I am able to stay calm in intense situations and think clearly. I'm a great multi-tasker. I'm smart as a whip. I'm caring without being mushy and smothering. I'm an awesome wife.....just ask Papa Bear Ike.....he knows how lucky he is to have me. I don't argue and cause alot of tension in our home. I pride myself on creating a loving and comfortable home environment. There are so many wonderful things about me that I ignore everyday as I beat me up for being overweight. Yes, of course I need to lose the weight, for health reasons and other stuff too, but what I have been missing is the fact that I lost me in my obsession to lose the weight. Losing weight has been the focal point of my days, months, and past 14 years. I have decided that yes I'm going to work on losing the weight but it won't be what my mind revolves around and obsesses about. I will enjoy my food without over-indulging. I will live life as I lose weight. I will see the beauty in each day and realize that I don't get these days with my family back. Once a day is done, its gone.......I don't want to come to the end of my life and realize that I wasted so much time refusing to enjoy life because I was obsession over being overweight. I promise to take each day one day at a time and I promise to live each day.

Courtney, Food, and God

I finally have my book in hand. For a day or so, I talked myself around getting the book. I was in denial. I was desperately trying to convince myself that I am not an emotional eater. Yeah, I know after all of that stuff I said the other day, I still returned to thinking that maybe, just maybe I was eating to live......like my body really requires double chocolate cupcakes, ruffles and french onion dip, doritos, with diet coke on the side to function. It took me nearly having a mental breakdown while I struggled to function through the chaos of a day with 6 kids, and 1 husband all talking to me at the same time, all needing something different but at the same time without turning to food to realize that just maybe I'm an emotional eating. So, bright and early this morning I drove to Barnes and Noble and picked up "Women, Food, and God." The author Geneen Roth is really on to something. I walked into Barnes and Noble to find a wonderful display of several of her books. I found myself torn between which books to purchase. I think I need them all! Since I only had a few dollars on my Barnes and Noble gift card, I had to choose. If only you could have seen me standing in front of the Geneen Roth display counting up whats left on my gift cards while the voices of little ones circled around my head, "Mommy, can I get this book, what about a puzzle, can you do this, can I go over there, do you like this shape, do you like this???......" Nothing at that moment seemed as important and getting the tools to help me get free. I've made a list in no particular order. I'm circulating this list out to friends and family members because my birthday is only a week away and we all know that I don't need anymore junk to fill my house that I will eventually end up blogging about b/c I will have to clean it, remove it, or the kids will break it. What I really want for my birthday is to be able to control my eating and lose this extra weight that I have been dragging around with me for the past 14 or so years. Its actually scary to think that I may be on the verge of getting free. There is self control around the corner for me. I can't wait, I think this just might be my year.

1. " Women Food and God:
   An Unexpected Path to Almost Everything
2. 
   

Breaking Free from Emotional Eating

3. Appetites — On the Search for True Nourishment

4. Feeding the Hungry Heart

5. When You Eat at the Refrigerator, Pull Up a Chair

6. Why Weight? A Guide to Ending Compulsive Eating

7. The Craggy Hole in My Heart and the Cat Who Fixed It

"Women, Food, and God"...hmmmm

I'm not a faithful Oprah follower but last night I found myself glued to the television, DVR remote in hand, quickly zipping past every commercial. From the moment I found out that she would be revealing the cure for the fat lady blues, I vowed to watch it. For 3 days my mind wondered and guessed at what this miracle cure could be. I not so intentionally waited til late in the evening to watch it. The not so intentional part I will explain in tomorrow's post, there's never a dull moment with the Artis 6. But anyway, I thought of what foods she could reveal, or what pill, or form of exercise she had found. I was not prepared for what she revealed. I expected quick fixes, that would melt away tens of pounds in minutes, what I got was a harsh reality jolt.
Oprah's big answer which is based upon a book,"Women, Food, and God" by Geneen Roth is to go within and heal my pain......what?!?!? What addict wants to hear that? No food addict or any other addict wants to hear that you must realize that you are using food or your drug of choice to push down emotions that you are afraid to feel, only to realize that you're self medicating after feeling the pain anyway. I sat in shock as I listened to Oprah talk about how she had spent a lifetime trying to make other people happy. The fear of feeling other people's disappointment in her had driven her to eat, and eat, and eat. She confessed to using food to numb herself. I listened to woman after woman confess to hating themselves because they were fat, and they were fat because they were eating when they weren't hungry, and they were eating when they weren't hungry because they were feeling something else, maybe loneliness, or heartache, or the pain of losing loved ones, or feeling like where is my life going, what am I doing, does my life really revolve around baking cookies, and washing clothing, and building my husband up? Don't get me wrong, each woman is happy to have the blessing of family and friends, and the things we as women do to build up and nurture family and friends are labors of love that we willingly do to see our loved ones happy. Why are we eating/numbing ourselves into lala land, slowly killing our physical, emotional, and spiritual selves? Constantly eating is a way of punishing ourselves for the hurt we feel. Oprah said that one of her friends once told her that her overweight self is an invitation to her best life. At first I didn't understand what she meant, but by the end of the show I clearly understood. As I sit here clicking and tapping away as this keyboard I feel my overweight self inviting me to finally take a good look at those things which I have been avoiding. At what point will I see that I am punishing me and robbing me of the joys of being emotionally free, and physically light? What is it that I am afraid to feel? Is it the pain of seeing dreams unrealized, or the fear of chasing them down? Is it the young Courtney from years past who felt like she was never quite accepted by her peers or is that young Courtney from years past alot closer to being me today than I care to admit to? What causes me to be so shy around others, afraid to say what I really think and feel, all too willing to keep my thoughts to myself and voice them later when no one is around, b/c at that point there is no one around to challenge, disagree, or criticize what I think or feel. I always agree with me. I feel like I'm a good writer and I still sit and stare at a post for hours or sometimes days before posting for fear of what someone will think of what I've written........ What causes me to shun the physical contact of people and prefer to be with just me, keeping friends and family members at a comfortable distance.....in a place where I can easily unplug them at a moments notice? Right now I don't know the answers to this questions and just thinking about them makes me crave a big ole slice of molten chocolate cake, but Oprah invited me, and anyone else who watched the show to join her on a 2 month journey and find the answers that will heal our pains. I think I just might take her up on this offer. Its about time that I turn and face the crowd and stop allowing the fear of feelings paralyze me........whew. So I'm off to purchase the book.............

Shame on Me!

Shame, shame, shame on me! Its been forever since I've written on or even visited my own blog! I broke the first rule to having a successful blog with faithful followers.....oh, well today is another day and a chance to start over. Life has been CRAZY to say the least. Let's see if I can give everyone a quick update in a couple of sentences.....as you all know by now, only because I say it in every single post, I'm in school full-time. As if wife-ing and mother-ing 6 happily wild children doesn't include enough tasks to complete a lifetime, I decided I had to complete college so, I'm still working on this degree that has taken me 15 years on and off to do. I will be done in Dec!!!!! I'm throwing a huge party and then I'm jumping right back in and completing my Masters. So homework has consumed all of my computer time, in addition to that I had major back surgery in March....ugh is all I can say about that, Ike went from lovin' school, to hating school and back to lovin' school, but he still kinda hates reading, My Leah Pea Deah has developed into an awesome little reader. We have her reading books 2-3 grade levels above her grade and she doesn't even know it. She just keeps asking for more books. Daddy's precious Say Say is still working to discover more ways to manipulate and woo her daddy. She has my husband wrapped around her little finger. I can't complain though, because I always prayed that my girls would be Daddy's girls. There is nothing more wonderful than the bond that a father and daughter share. I should know because I have the world's most awesome daddy. Miss Sister-Girl is quickly approaching teen-ism and I see it in her demeanor everyday. I'm not so sure I'm ready for this just yet because Mr. Ty is using up all the patience I have for teen-ism. I have reached my limit on teen #1. Don't get me wrong he's a great kid but there is some sort of confusion that takes over your child's mind and body when they become a teen. Make up your mind already.....he doesn't know whether he thinks he knows everything and doesn't need parents or if he wants to return to being Momma's baby. Who knows I just go with the flow. Drew pushed a bead up his nose that stayed there for 3 days before the hubby and I even realized anything was stuck up there. The constant drip of mucus and subtle complaining of mild nose pain prompted me to dig a little further and find a clear hair bead hidden beyond all the mucus, but of course by day 3 its way to far for me to retrieve so we had to cough up $100 bucks to get the ENT to retrieve it, and did I happen to mention that this $100 bucks had to be coughed up a day before we closed on our new home. And for those of you wondering, we chose the beautiful new home in a small town located a little further from my husband's job, but the small town charm has been delightful and the schools are awesome, which is the main reason Ike went from hating school back to lovin' school again. So for the past week I have been attempting to unpack our lives that is tucked away in a million boxes and bins stored in our new garage. Of course I labeled and numbered every box and even created a sheet that gives me detailed information of the contents that each box contains but, that whole system fell apart the last 2 days before moving so I still have 1/2 a million boxes that are neither labeled or numbered......I tried! So overall I can say life has been wonderful, and now that I have a short break before the next semester starts, I solemnly vow to happily blog everyday......yeah right, even you don't believe that, but I'm gonna aim for every other day, and in between I'm gonna visit all of your blogs.

Personality Test

My Personality

Neuroticism	54
Extraversion	31
Openness to Experience	41
Agreeableness	23
Conscientiousness	61

You very rarely feel depressed and are usually in a good frame of mind, however you feel strong cravings and urges that you have difficulty resisting. You tend to prefer short-term pleasures and rewards over long-term consequences. People generally perceive you as distant and reserved, and you do not usually reach out to others. You prefer dealing with either people or things rather than ideas. You regard intellectual exercises as a waste of your time. You are willing to take credit for good things that you do but you don't often talk yourself up much, however you are not affected strongly by human suffering, priding yourself on making objective judgments based on reason. You are more concerned with truth and impartial justice than with mercy. You are well-organized and like to live according to routines and schedules. Often you will keep lists and make plans.

Earrings

We have snow!!!!

I love the snow.......until it keeps the kids out of school.

What do you think?

Decisions, decisions, decisions.....It seems that life as an adult is a huge string of decisions that have the potential to not only impact your life but the lives of others around you. My hubby and I are at one of those critical points where we must make an important decision. So we are getting ready to purchase another house and I am at a place where I just don't know which direction to go. As you can image, as a family of 8, we have always put size at the top of our list when it comes to "must-haves" in a home. And with the previous homes that we purchased, we chose the house that we fell in love with. The first house was great, we just out-grew the cute 3 bedroom starter home after baby 4 arrived. The second house was nothing short of a night-mare. I've always tried to find the biggest house that we could afford, with as many up-grades that we could afford, even if it meant living in the middle of no where. But now I just don't know. I'm beginning to wonder do I want to live in the middle of nowhere? To be honest I always hated living next to nothing and the schools aren't that great either. So here's the problem.....Do we choose a great 3400 sq. ft. home with granite, hardwoods, fresh paint, and new carpet, 15 min. from everything with no traffic, and mediocre schools, average area and property value. Or do we go with the slightly older 3000 sq. ft. home with counters that I kinda dislike, in need of new carpet, existing hardwoods ok, but bathrooms need updating, structure and layout are great but really needs paint, backyard is beautiful, neighborhood and area of town are great, great schools, and close to everything, and did I mention even with the market crashing, houses in this area still sell pretty well? What's more important to you? How do you choose? HELP!!!! comment please Do you prefer to have a larger home with more upgrades in an area you just kinda like or do you prefer the home that needs a little work in an area of town that you love?