After these messages I'll be riiiiiight back!

Whoa. I'm a bad bad blogger. I've neglected my blog in ways that it didn't deserve. But I'm back and I'm bad, I'm nationwide. Can anyone name that artist?

Anywho, please take into consideration that this post is being brought about in the mornin' after my 12 hour shift (and the end of 3 in a row) while I'm waiting for my Tylenol PM to kick in. So I can't really be held accountable for using expletives on the internet or slandering my neighbors.

Recapping what has happened in oh, the last 4 months.... We closed on the house. We moved in. We are still surrounded by boxes and spatulas that can't find their way to the kitchen. And remotes. We have like 7 unclaimed remotes floating around for no particular reason. And of course I have to keep them all, just in case I ever run into my first college roommate again and she asks for her dvd remote back (which never worked anyway). It's really hard to be a hoarder, I should call Montel and see if he can fit me in for next week's special: People That Have Saved All Their Used Q-Tips. Eww, did I just say that? Moving on...

The first task we tried to tackle when we moved in was the painting. Oh. my. word. I hate to paint. There's a special place in heaven for those that served their life painting. And it's covered in drop-cloth and coveralls. With lots of blue masking tape. I digress.

The dining room (still table-less by the way) is a deep red color.

The kitchen tried to be sage but ended up seafoam. Even typing the word seafoam makes me cringe a little, but not bad enough to repaint.

The rest of the house is neutral.... how very predictable. That's my Dad, he stuck around to watch me fall off the ladder and ended up getting roped into a little distance-painting. It's an Olympic sport. Look it up.

And the wall that the fireplace is on turned out chocolate. Apparently I never took a picture of it when it was done. I could do it now since I'm in the living room, but I'm just too lazy. Or lackadaisical. You may choose.

Here's the one small tiny eensie wittle detail I didn't quite work out when I decided to paint it all myself to save some money: the 23 foot ceilings in the living room. AKA the bain of my existence. Thanks to Dad's Little Giant Ladder (and Dad himself) it was finished in a record time of 2 months.

Alas, all the painting is complete, except for the bedrooms because I'm waiting to be inspired. Any ideas?

Next up on the posting schedule: the mantel!

Anniversary Special

Today is our first anniversary! Just yesterday we walked down the isle it seems, boy does time fly! So, for this special edition post I will be comparing renovation ideas to aspects of our relationship. This could get a little crazy!

Alright first off, we would like to paint the walls. Painting to me is one of those things you are really excited about until about 15 minutes into it, and then you're over it and want to be done. Hmm, I can't think of how that's like Mike and I, I'll get back to this one.

This isn't off to a good start...

Secondly, one day we'd like to replace the flooring. The kitchen and bathrooms are a nice 1994 linoleum which will be exiting soon (hopefully). Downstairs we are thinking about a solid pine wide plank or Australian cypress hardwoods in the entryway, kitchen, dining room, and living room. In the bathrooms we'll probably go with tile (big, I like the 18 inch monsters). This is like our relationship because........ though it hasn't always been pretty (1994 linoleum), it has always been solid (hardwoods). Haha this is so cheesy. No, but really, one of the things I love most about Mikey is that he is steady as a rock, firm and consistent, and he is somehow insusceptible to normal human mood swings.

Oh wait, I thought of one for painting. We are both stubborn. Like, two people that should never be in the same room kind of stubborn. Fights last DAYS with us, and not because we are mad, but because we both want the last word, so when all is worked out one of us will throw in a comment and get it all started again. I'm so bad that I whisper all the reasons he's wrong in his ear when he's asleep. Stubborn has to do with painting because, ummm, well, it's only fun to be fighting for about 15 minutes, and then you've blabbed all you need to get out and you just want to go back to normal, but being stubborn the way that we are prevents that whole "lets just let it go" phenomenon from occurring, so you're stuck in an argument that you don't really care about anymore. Same as painting, after a little while you're not into it and you're stuck with a half painted wall and no enthusiasm to complete it. Phew, I had to really reach deep on that one.

Alright well I think I'm done with this because it's kind of a boring topic that makes no sense, but there are lots and lots of pictures soon to come (as soon as we get our big computer at home online). Stay tuned and have a happy week!

I am asking you to pray for comfort to a family of a little boy I took care of in the NICU. They are a precious family with two little boys that are mourning the death of their son this morning. This child went through so much during his time on earth, and I cannot imagine what his parents and brothers are going through. You can read his story at www.signalmtnboys.blogspot.com. Thank goodness God is a big God, and can handle me questioning Him from time to time, because I sure want to know why on this one.

Dilemma

Looks like we have a little dilemma, and it goes like this: Mr. Seller originally listed the house we are buying with 12 acres. After a few months with no interest, he split up 4 acres with the house and 8 to stand alone, like cheese. This lowered the price of the house to a more popular bracket. The plan was for Mr. Next-door-neighbor to buy the 8 acres for privacy purposes. We were cool with that plan, it meant we could afford the house and we had security that no one would build behind us.
Fast forward to yesterday, when Mrs. Realtor told us that Mr. Next-door-neighbor would not be able to buy the 8 acres, and Mr. Seller is going to list the land for Mr. Anyone in the world to buy. Oh, and did I mention that we are involuntarily "donating" a 30 foot easement through our land so that the back 8 aren't landlocked. Harumph.
So, the irrational person that I am wants to buy up that 8 acres before you can say "lotsa debt" three times fast. There is a possibility that we can afford it if Mr. Seller is feeling particularly generous, but these are not generous times apparently. These are fill up your milk cartons with water and stow canned goods in the basement times, which does not bode well for our situation.
So, my question for the day is, anybody want to be my neighbor? Or give us a couple thousand dollars to buy 8 acres? I'll even sing like Mr. Rogers... won't you be, please won't you be, oh won't you be my neighbor...



But don't bring creepy puppets along. But do change sweaters and shoes when you walk into your house.

Coming up next: special request post of renovation plans for 1994! Thanks to my one reader for the suggestion!

Inspector Gadget

Hello 1994, you will be leaving soon!

Well, we got the house inspected today. It really went well considering what we went through last time (which turned out to be a 30 minute soliloquy on why we should not buy the fixer-upper house). Everything turned out fine except for a few things, which don't scare me too bad.

I really got a chance to examine all parts of the house today and try to envision the changes I would like to make. We have big goals and small goals, long term changes and quick fixes for all areas of the house, and I'm pretty sure it will take us a lifetime to get it where we want it. It's a good thing we're not planning on going anywhere.

My mom and Mike's mom walked through for the first time also. They were both very excited and I think relieved that their children will be living in a structure that maybe won't fall down in 3 weeks.

Next up is getting the house appraised. I can't remember if we want it to appraise high or low, I think if it goes high we will have more equity in the house, but I'm thinking we'll pay less taxes if it's low. Is that right? Is there a different in a regular appraisal or a tax appraisal? I think I'm confused, will have to google that one. After the appraisal I guess we will just hang out until the end of November. I was able to change my work schedule, so I'm off for 5 days after we close (yay!). Hoping to get all the paining done and extract the carpets/general cleaning before we move furniture in. We'll see, I tend to underestimate time and money :o) Anyone interested in helping? There will be free pizza involved!

At Last

Well people, it has happened. Those of you who don't know our real estate history are about to get the play by play. It's sad and pitiful, but that's just because I get attached easily. Stroll with me down memory lane...
August 2007 : Bright and shiny young couple, soon to be wed, find cute 1920's fixer upper. Perfect first house. Offer made, unknown person swoops in and steals home, said couple left disappointed, but still hopeful.
September 07-January 08 : Couple search endlessly, no home to be found. Forced to rent (ugh).
August 08: House is found, too good to be true. 26 acres, foreclosure, lots of work needed, in our price range. Offer made to evil bank, evil bank rejects. Again, offered and rejected. Third time, we find out someone else swiped it from us. Sad, sad day.
August 08: Mike considers divorcing me. On the papers he cites "Ridiculous amount of whining" as the source, but backs out at the last second, remembering the fact that I am the mother of our two dog-children, and the visitation agreements would not be suitable.
October 08: Again, house is found, offer is made, offer is accepted, closing Nov. 21st. Oh happy day!

Ok, so when I write it all out, it doesn't look that bad. But please know that my hopes and dreams were dashed upon the rocks with each failed housing attempt. Fate peed in my sweet tea, and I did not enjoy it. I know, I know, wah wah wah. However, things are lookin up. Though we haven't closed on the house yet, the seller actually signed a contract, which is a first! We are getting the house inspected and appraised, and if all goes according to plan we will be homeowners the Friday before Thanksgiving. Can I get an amen?

More details on the house later, but for now, may I welcome you to the Griffin's!