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[penned-cbarbosa]

Outfit for: House Hunting

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"That makes sense to me," Celeste chuckled. "Are you in the mood for anything in particular?" She glanced at her notes and was glad that Thomas was on board with them starting the conversation while they were in the car. While she doubted there was anything all that private to discuss, it was still nice to get the conversation going while things were very fresh in their minds in addition to the notes taken.

"Mhm, she did! None of the houses were bad to me." From there though, she quieted and listened to her husband share his thoughts. She nodded, agreeing with him on the second one as he made his points. "I'm on the same page with you. Although I did love the walk-in closet and the bay windows in the last house. But it would be my first one to eliminate too."

She jotted down numbers to each page of notes for the houses, next to her nicknamed description she'd given them--similar to the HGTV show House Hunters. Celeste drew an 'X' over house #5 and then flipped to her notes on the second house as she listened to Thomas share his thoughts on it. While giving a small pout, she admitted, "That was the house I was on the fence about. It has tons of natural light. Like in the kitchen?" She made a chef's kiss gesture and then went on, "And I love the windows and the walk-in there too, as well as the yard space. And the balcony and front porch. There's a lot I like about it, obviously. But you've got good points. Plus as beautiful as the backyard is, it's not really kid-friendly and isn't landscaped for us to change that without redoing it entirely. If the girls were closer to Frankie's age and we were looking, it might have ended up being one of my top two.

"The other one I was ready to eliminate after the last one was the third house. It was nice but... it just didn't feel like a home to me. Not for us. And the fifth bedroom is in a separate guest house-cottage-thing? It would give anyone who'd stay there privacy but..." She scrunched her nose while trying to gather her thoughts. "I don't know. I feel like if someone were coming to stay with us, it would all be under one roof. I wrote down a few things I liked about it but it wasn't enough to make me want us to go for it as our new home. The first house and the fourth one are my top two. I wanna know your top two though."

Thomas laughed and nodded. “Right? I didn’t expect to get so hungry either. But I guess it’s because we have been out and about all day, driving around and having to use energy to really pay attention to each home we looked at.” He was so glad Celeste had already eliminated a couple in her head. It would help them narrow it down to the one they ultimately wanted to put in an offer for and also have a good backup that wouldn’t feel like they were settling on.

“We can discuss it now! Before I put down any of them, I think our realtor did a great job finding these for us. She really understands our needs,” he said and glanced at Celeste when they got to a red light. “That being said, my first elimination would be that last house we saw. The biggest issue for me is that it is almost as narrow as our current home. And that is one of the big things we wanted to avoid. It’s a lovely home, but I don’t think it’s for us. It’s also the smallest one we saw today.”

“I think I would also eliminate the second one. There was a lot I liked about it, like the abundance of natural light. But that storage space isn’t needed for us. It also takes away living space. We also want a place where we can entertain. The living room in that one was walled off and too separated from the kitchen compared to others we looked at. What do you think? I hope I haven’t just shot down ones you loved!”

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Celeste had been fired up when it came time for her and Thomas to go look at some homes. She'd put a notepad in her purse and took it out whenever there was something she wanted to note, positive or negative at each of the houses they'd gone to look at. While she was sure to miss the townhouse, she and Thomas both knew that their family was going to outgrow it sooner rather than later. On top of having the girls settled in a new home, Celeste wanted them to have a place that could accommodate them having guests - be it for one-day celebrations or if her in-laws came for a visit.

In addition to more space and bedrooms, Celeste's wish list items aligned with her husband's. They had been shown some diverse properties that checked a lot, if not all of the boxes. Now it was going to come down to discussing which home she and Thomas were going to pursue for bidding on. "Good idea, babe! Plus I didn't expect house hunting to make me hungry." She chuckled a little while reaching inside of her purse and then pulling out the notepad, fiddling with it between her fingers, "I definitely have it narrowed down to two or three. But two of them have an edge over the third one for me." Looking through her notes, she asked, "Did you wanna wait until we get to lunch to discuss or can we start with you telling me which two you've eliminated already?"

House Hunting || Thomeste

@penned-cbarbosa

House hunting. That was a big item on the agenda before the girls started daycare. He wanted them to feel settled, and it had been clear for several months that they needed a bigger place. Their current home was one he lived in when it was just him, and occasionally Frankie. It was the place he moved to after the divorce. After Jordan demanded the house they lived in together - which he subsequently sold. It was too small for his and Celeste’s growing girls. And so the search began.

The realtor set up viewings at five properties that would be big enough for them and were in their budget. Thomas was excited and had an idea of what he wanted. Open space, larger bedrooms, a large kitchen, and space for the kids to play. Some of the properties were better than others, and Thomas took plenty of pictures of what he wanted to remember. He also took notes from each one so he could remember what he liked and didn’t. After seeing the fifth and final house, he turned to Celeste in the car. “We should go grab lunch while we go over our notes! I’m sure your parents wouldn’t mind a little extra time with the girls. They did say they had the whole day available for them,” he said. “In my head, I think I’ve narrowed it down to... two or three of those homes. What about you?”

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Celeste: Oh please! I /was/ with you until you called yourself old lol.

Celeste: Yes! Time's gonna fly and I will most definitely be in touch with your parents so that all of us are planning and coordinating together. I'm excited to get to chat with them some more.

August: Yes! You're on my side with that! Not that it matters now that I'm old haha

August: Less than two months away! I'm so excited! My parents said that if you need any help with anything to let them know.

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Celeste: See, that's just dumb to me. It seems like Feb. 28 or March 1 would be acceptable when you're a Leap Baby.

Celeste: 100%! I couldn't be happier for you 2 having this and I'm excited for you both! June is going to be here before we know it.

August: It was a pain in the ass when I turned 21 because they wouldn't let me into a bar until it was March 1. It makes sense but was still a bummer.

August: I know that and we love you for it. We are so excited for the wedding cruise! It feels very /us/ and also is a great way to everything in one location.

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Celeste: It's happening. But I'm keeping it low since the girls are playing pretty quietly right now lol. But hey none of that 'I'm the worst' talk, ok? You're having a wedding and while I'm no Aldrich on the wedding pro front, I remember all the planning for mine and your dad's wedding. And I've gone with enough brides and grooms to shops to say trust me, you're completely normal. I've got your back!

Frankie: lol do it. Okay don't twist my arm! lmao I have no idea. I'm the worst. And you know how indecisive I am so you're probably right. Mom! This is why I need you lol

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"Thank you," Celeste grinned when Rodrigo complimented her. "But look at you! Seriously you look incredible. You and Jade both look like you could step right into a speakeasy or something and draw everyone's eye on the dance floor." Shay went shy when Rodrigo said 'hello' to her and reached out for her. Celeste chuckled good naturedly and picked Shay up so she was closer to eye level with Rodrigo. "Shay, you know tío Rodrigo, sweetie!" She kissed her daughter's cheek and asked her, "Do you want to go dance with tío?"

She waited patiently as Shay's big blue eys stared at Rodrigo before a smile broke out on her face and the toddler quickly leaned away from her mommy with both arms outstretched to Rodrigo. With a bit of a laugh, Celeste said, "I guess she really wants to dance!"

"Celeste!" Rodrigo was so happy to see his good friend there. He had no doubt she'd make it with her family but it was always so nice to see her. "Thank you! And you are stunning as always." He leaned in for the hug and brightened up at her congratulations. He chuckled at her interaction with Shay and it melted into a soft smile. "Oh, she's so cute. Hey, Shay." He waved at the little one. "Are you having fun?" Rodrigo held out his arms to her. "do you think she'll come to me?" he asked Celeste, feeling very eager to hold a baby these last couple of days.

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Celeste: Good! And you are one of the rare few Leap Babies out there so it's fun getting to celebrate you and playing into that as well.

Celeste: You know we'll do all we can for you 2. And we're really looking forward to celebrating with you both and your love for each other. A wedding cruise is such a fabulous idea for you and Frankie!

August: I loved it! Every minute! It was the exact party I wished I had as a kid, so it was ridiculously fun that they leaned into the fact that I'm a Leap Year baby.

August: Me, too! That's good to know. You and Thomas have already been so helpful with everything. I really hope so. The best part will be the fact that we're surrounded by all of our family and friends this time around.

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That's fantastic. It feels like people are getting married year-round at about the same rate but it's nice that Spring weddings still rein supreme. Spring and Fall feel like such great times to get married, although Summertime in SF really is beautiful too. That's when my husband and I got married. And I hope you're able to get signed! You really do have an amazing voice.

Honestly, wonderful! Spring weddings bring in a lot of money for me, which is great. I am also working toward sending in some demos again, trying to get a record deal. Even an indie label would be incredible.

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Celeste: Now I wanna listen to Tina Turner. And you should 100% be trying on gowns! It's going to give you a better idea of what you'll want. Do you already know where you want to go look or do you want me to get a few places listed out for us to check out?

Frankie: You're the best! I know I keep saying I want to just look but I don't think I'll be able to help myself lmao

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Celeste: For you, my dear? I could be ❤️😘 are you really just wanting to look or do you want to try some things on?

Frankie: hey, mom. Are you available for dress window shopping this weekend?

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Celeste: I'm so glad you had a good time! And that you loved the surprise party! Frankie def gets all the credit and kudos for that😊

Celeste: I'm just excited that it's happening! Don't worry, this is actually great timing. Funny enough I've been in a little writer's block slump so having something else important to focus on will be fantastic. You 2 are going to have a beautiful second wedding!

Celeste: I'm glad you're happy, and that's the best part of all of this rn. Hey, how was your bday??

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"You look so sharp! My goodness!" Celeste beamed, giving Rodrigo's lapel a friendly tug. "Congratulatioooons!" she practically sang, leaning in to give him a one-armed hug while being mindful of her make-up, as well as Shay, who was tugging at her other hand, trying to pull free from her. "I'm so happy for y--Shay, sweetie!" But Celeste chuckled and looked down at her daughter. "You're gonna pull Mommy's arm out, what is it? Do you want to dance?"

Shay nodded, looking from her mother to Rodrigo, and then burying her face in her mother's leg with a shy smile.

I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!!! I'm feeling pretty good! got my fresh cut, got my tux this morning, I suffered a tad bit but it was worth it! it's so strange being off from work right now but I'm pretty excited. lol I bet Thomas has info for you. And Seb too! When I get that footage, we'll watch together!

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Outfit for: Jadrigo's wedding

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YOU'RE GETTING MARRIED THIS WEEK!! How are you feeling? Did you get to sleep off your hangover or were you suffering a little? And I want to know what happened in the D&B parking lot so if you get footage, forward that to your girl!

Now that my hangover is over, whoever has footage of me dancing the Lambada with Xavier needs to show me so I can someday show my kids that my hips don't lie. Also, sorry Fletcher. And sorry Xavier. And sorry to the Dave and Busters Parking lot that had to witness whatever chaos ensued. I don't remember any of it but I know there's footage somewhere! I was blasted. Also, I have a pocket full of carrot sticks and three peanuts in my shoe. Anyone? Can anyone explain this to me!?

Also, my work week has ended! I AM GETTING MARRIED THIS WEEK!

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Celeste: I'm glad you're happy, and that's the best part of all of this rn. Hey, how was your bday??

August: They've definitely been shitty lately, but we are happy. I promise. I know I'm feeling better about this whole thing all the time now that Donovan is out of our lives.

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You're welcome! How have things been going for you?

OMG thank you! You're so sweet!