The New HAR.com

www.HAR.com is the ultimate resource for Houston house-hunters. Andy and I have been using it since we found out about the move, and we love searching with the maps, master-planned community finder, and more. For the past week or so, there has been a countdown on the HAR website, touting the new release of the "new & improved" site. Well, today was the day. I know this is so dorky, but I am so excited about it because they've added all kinds of new info. Just what I need: more stuff to research. Of course, the properties are all the same, but it's fun to have a little mix-up.

More Sub-Zero Temps...and it's 70 in Houston!

This weather is such a drag. I know that I may be cursing the heat and humidity in Houston eventually, but I'd take it over the snow, ice and negative wind chills we are having here in Chicago. It's so hard to get out of the house with Henry in weather like this. Yesterday afternoon I had finally had enough, so we bundled up and headed to open gym at Gymboree. Gymboree was definitely a great investment for this winter! I like the class, but it's the open gym that is really money. When we got back, however, I could barely park my car behind our house. Two large ice mounds had formed in the alley, and when I tried to turn to park, the car kept sliding. I finally managed to park, but on the way around the backside of the car to get Henry out of his carseat, I totally wiped out on the ice. Thank goodness I didn't have Henry in my arms! So, I guess that's a pro for Houston: warm weather -no ice involved!

No News is Bad News

I should have known better than to get all excited for a potential announcement. Both meetings on Thursday proved fruitless. We did learn that they are taking volunteers to go to Houston, which we may just do, if the move is inevitable. The next step is for Andy to discuss the volunteer option with his boss next week. We are thinking that volunteering would be better than being forced to go at a later date because we would (potentially) have more control over the situation. At this point, we just want some answers.

"Uh, yeah, Peter...did you get the memo?"

Andy did get the memo today. But, it was an esoteric, poorly written piece of acronym-laden mumbo-jumbo. The good news? It's prompted a conference call with Andy's boss and group tomorrow morning. (Or, for those in the industry-know, a "tele con.") So, we are really hoping we get some information tomorrow. The memo was global, so we shouldn't read into it too much, but the one part that really stood out to me was the line that they "hope everyone will have their plans set by the end of June." I really hope we know what's going on before then. June?! Because of the wide audience of the memo, I am really hoping that the idea was to spell out a sort of worst case scenario. After all, some people will be finding out they no longer have a job. (Andy's been assured that his job is fine.) I hope I will have some news tomorrow, and I really hope it's more than "We'll tell you in June!"

It's in the Stars

Here was my horoscope yesterday:

Changes in both location and outlook are probably on your agenda. More information about those (and their effect on your relationship and residential situation) is pending.

Hmm....

The Week Ahead

The rumors have really been swirling around Andy's office, so it's really looking like this is the week that we'll be getting some more information about our move. I really hope this is the case because I've already let myself get excited, so I will be disappointed if we learn nothing. The rumors are looking a bit more reliable, however, because the BP America big whig, Bob Malone, is scheduled to be in Chicago later this week. This is a good sign because he usually shows up after a big announcement. I must say there was a sense of excitement and relief around our house this weekend. I just hope that those feelings don't prove to be premature!

Could it be?

According to Andy, there have been some murmurings about the office of an impending announcement with relocation details. He seems to think that Monday, Feb. 11th is the day. We'll have to wait and see. It would be nice to have a bit of direction with this whole thing. Like I've said in other posts, the emotional roller coaster is the frustrating part. We are trying to have a good attitude and be adventurous, but it is hard to maintain that feeling when there are no answers. Last night, Andy and I were talking about the move, once again. We still feel that the ideal situation would be to move in September. We would really like to have one more Chicago summer, while avoiding the worst of the Houston heat. Plus, that timing would give Andy the chance to finish his MBA at DePaul with no worries of needing to transfer a final class from a university in Texas. We'll see what happens. They could tell us we need to be there in 60 days! Yikes!