Wedding Blog
So it’s been a few weeks since I’ve posted. I know I’ve left readers hanging on how I eventually found my bridal glow—just in time to walk down the aisle, I might add. And I started Part One of the Pre-Wedding Week Frenzy Recaps. I promise everything is coming soon—including the highly anticipated recaps (well, at least I am highly anticipating them!!).
The reason for my absence? Well, we been moving. And right now I am surrounded by a lot of this:
And this:
And this:
Since Mr. Peep got a new job in March, we’ve been patiently (or not so patiently, in my case) waiting to find the right moment to move. Not only that, but discussions circled around where to move, and if right now is the right time to buy.
When you finally get married, folks often assume that the next step is to buy a place, and since we are no spring chickens, a good number of our friends are already happy homeowners.
I wish I could say that we bought a fabulous place that fit all of our criteria. But after some practical financial and life discussions, we’ve put this major life decision back on the shelf for the next few years.
I can’t tell you how envious I am of newlyweds that get to buy a place and make a perfect home right out of the gate. But I realized that I was living on the ’should do’ list bandwagon. The list that says you go to college (check), find a guy (check), get married (check), buy a house ( ), have babies ( ), and live happily ever after…
While I am 100% certain that we will get their some day, our happily ever after includes renting the perfect apartment and living in our favorite city. This decision is going to allow us to remain standing on our feet and even more financially secure in the future.
The best part—I am finally getting the chance to unpack our wedding presents. And even more importantly, I’ve got Mr. Peeps and our two animals, so our new apartment already feels like home.
Anyone else out there putting some major life decisions on hold? Or, is anyone else throwing the checklist of life out the window?
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Share this post: Movin’ On Down the Checklist of Life
Good to see you Peep! I am anxiously awaiting your recaps. Really. The checklist of life went out the window a long time ago. It’s more important to do what is right for you.
have fun unpacking! We’re years away from buy ing our own place, and completely unstable about our location after a couple years. No pressure! Enjoy your new apartment…I’m sure it’s perfect for you two!
Mr Frenchie and I are also putting purchasing a place on the back burner, you’re so not alone 
Oh, Miss Peep, I SO know how you feel. We live in ultra expensive Hawaii and got married in March. We just moved into a new place that we LOVE last month, but I do hate it when people congratulate us on our purchase and we have to tell them that we’re still renting. 
I feel the same, though - so happy about our new place where I can be content with my new hubby and our new kittens (as long as I remind myself that we’re not trying to keep up with anyone else’s timeline or list), and that someday, we WILL have a home of our own.
I SOOOOOO want to buy a house. But that requires figuring out where you want to live for the next 3-5 years, and we haven’t quite figured that one out yet. Glad to hear you’re happy with the new place!!
I think most people who live in the city don’t end up buying, they rent forever. Rent control + ridiculous prices means renting is actually great. Mr. GB and I talk about wishing we had stayed renters. Stupid broken appliances we have to fix on our own!
at the moment we’re putting the engagement on hold just until we’re situated in the same state and have stable jobs. it’s tough watching everyone else marry off but i know it’ll be right when it’s our turn. hopefully soon!
@tea: Oh Tea I hope it’s soon!!! You have to become a Bee!!!
I love to hear your not following the list of life strictly. My hubby and I got our house when we were engaged which was not the best time to buy, but then we got married and I decided to go back to school no baby thoughts anytime soon. So I also feel that I am not living by the list and I love it!!
i almost didn’t read this post because everyone we know keeps asking when are you going to: buy a house, have a baby. . . etc. And we’re still renting because it’s right for us. I guess when I got all those home-y presents and got married, I felt ready to be in a home. . . A place of my own that wouldn’t be temporary (and that I would stop storing stuff in my Mom’s house for when I’m in ‘my own’ home) I know you can make a home out of an apartment and we have, but still. . . it’s difficult and I so very much want to buy a house, but it’s not the right time for us. Still it sometimes seems like we’re slowing down on the checklist of life as you put it. Thanks for a great post, Peep Toe!!
No need to jump into the real estate game before you’re ready! It’s a HUGE commitment, and not just financially! Lots of maintenance, makes it really tough to move if you need to (for a job or something), etc. We’re getting married next June, but have already decided to wait for at least another year before buying. Maybe longer, since neither of us are 100% sure about job stability and if we’re going to stay in the same spot!
Glad to hear you like the new place!
I’m glad to hear of another newlywed who has moved — to another apartment. Just like you, buying a house right now, as awesome as that would be, just is not right for us for where we are in life, especially financially. But we moved into an apartment that we love, that feels more like home in this first week of living than our old apartment of four years ever felt. The new place is much cheaper, so we can save up and hopefully buy a house in a few years. It’s hard watching all our friends around us buying house and getting married, and we’re just getting married…and that’s it. But it’s what’s right for us, and that’s the important thing.
Renting in SF is a fair trade for buying any day!!! Plus, when the earthquake comes, you don’t have to worry about rebuilding. I’m just saying.
I think it’s good that you guys didn’t buy a house just because it felt like the right thing to do. If you wait, you’ll be able to afford something even better than what you’d be able to get now! The Dude and I bought a house back in October. There’s something to be said for renting and its lack of responsibility.
Oh I threw the list out a long time ago. I’m engaged right now, graduating from grad school in Dec, and getting married in March. My fiance is wonderful and supporting me throughout my master’s program. Once we get married, he’ll go back to school and finish his bachelor’s degree. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get a good job and support him close to entirely. We want kids in the next few years, but I’m not sure how’s that’s going to work and I have no idea where in the heck a house is going to fit in, but I have faith that it will work out someway somehow! I say make yourself happy and if that doesn’t match what you’ve been told, don’t worry about it!
We’ve bought a house recently, but almost a year after we were married. We say it’s a great first house, but not our forever house…houses are still way too expensive!
We rent, too, and I’m so glad we didn’t buy this house (it was an option from the owner). No property taxes, homeowners insurance, need to repair things… one day when we find the right place and decide where we want to be, we’ll buy. It’s nothing to rush into!
I’m always a little jealous of people who are able to buy a house right away after marriage. Because I’m in grad school, we’ll have to wait a couple of years before we’re in a position to purchase something. We are trying to do some redecorating of our apartment, though, just to change things up a bit.
This is a great post, Peep! We are in the same boat. We’ll be renting for a while… and no babies in sight! 
We even have the same stack of boxes in our dining room. Mr. Taffy wants to keep them all for our next move, but meanwhile they are driving me nuts!!!
Buying a house is not anywhere in our foreseeable future. At the moment we’re completely broke, to the point that we’re living with my husband’s parents. It actually works out well, they’re really easy to live with and we have a bunch of space to ourselves, but it’s definitely embarrassing to say.
Congrats on moving! We are putting some major life decisions on hold right now. We do have a home of our own, but we’d like a have a bigger home before a baby HS comes along. Both of those are being postponed until at least a couple of years AFTER the wedding in March.
I know what you mean - not only that, but there is no way, after all this decision making, that I can make a conscientious decision about a house at this moment.
I’m still suffering from sticker shock that occurs during wedding planning and I cannot MAKE myself sign a document saying I owe 6 figures for anything right now.
I know what you feel about moving! Two months after our wedding, we have moved across the country and are currently surrounded by boxes and a lot of broken stuff (inept packers but the government should reimburse us for it).
Good for you about waiting to buy a house. It is a good idea when you want to just like having kids. No one should do it just because they ’should’ do it.
This is one of my favorite posts of all time. I’d like to burn the list of “expected next steps” (a.k.a. checklist of life) for women and couples today! Is that taking it a little too far?! I keep having to remind myself we all have our own timeline in life. We should make the decisions that best suit us, and try not to worry about what we “should” be doing. It’s hard though…we put so much pressure on ourselves. My best friend and MOH just told me she’s “old” and needs to get married asap. She’s 28. Ahhhh.
Congrats on the new place!! I’m all too jealous of your new digs in amazing SF!
Awww moving stinks sometimes, right? I just moved last week and I am still not unpacked. It is terrible!
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Mrs. Peep Toe, San Francisco
Age and Occupation: 29, Policy Analyst
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 36, Olive Oil Production Manager
Engagement Date: December 16, 2007
Wedding Date: May, 2009
Blogging Since: November 26, 2008
Venue: Hotel Vitale
About Me: I am a west coast lady who loves the San Francisco Bay Area. I love living with Mr. Peep and our animals: Huck the Dog and Ferris the Cat. I work to save the environment in San Francisco, while Mr. Peep makes ridiculously delicious Olive Oil. On any day you can find me reading the latest book I have gotten my hands on, eating Swedish Fish, and perusing wedding blogs! We are both champagne drinking foodies on a Bud Light budget. We are planning an eco-chic, intimate, and interfaith San Francisco City wedding.
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