I've taken the first steps to possibly buying a house - I'm in the process of being reviewed for a pre-approval for a loan. Once this is done, I can begin setting up appointments to view places. I have a few in mind already but am holding off getting too anxious.

If my credit is still too shakey and I can't be pre-approved, I will find out what the heck I need to do to improve my standing and focus on that for the upcoming year.

It's all kind of scary but hopefully better for us in the long run.