I Ruined My Granite Counter

Two weeks in the new house and I have already ruined my new countertop.  I decided to display a pretty bottle of infused olive oil, and was unaware that a tiny slow leak had formed in the bottom of the bottle.  This oil, of course, leaked and I didn't know until it was too late. 

I'm hoping the stain will eventually evaporate itself.  It started out black, then it changed to a dark gray and it is still fading.  I just wish this didn't happen.  I will have to contact the manufacturer for a poultice if it doesn't disappear.

Moved In:-)

We had to take a break from setting up house for the holidays, but we're back in action today for a bit.  We have finally moved all of our things out of the rental, and we gave it a good cleaning.  Jeff decided it would be nice to shampoo the carpet there before we left--but the shampoo machine malfunctioned.  Fixing that took the entire day:-(  But I'm glad Jeff is smart enough to fix things.

It feels good to be done with that chapter of our lives so we can truly focus on the new life ahead of us in our new home.  We still haven't hooked up our TV yet or set up the living room.  We decorated just a bit for Christmas, and I baked cookies (which Jeff ate as quickly as I could bake!).

 


I was hoping to get a tree up and trimmed, but there were just too many boxes waiting to be unpacked.  Jeff discovered an evergreen volunteer in one of my flower pots--a tiny 1 1'4" tree.  It's so cute!  On Christmas eve I decorated it with tiny stars.  Jeff thought that was so funny:-) 

We managed to get the downstairs hallway clear of boxes. 

And I got to organize my lazy suzan full of dry goods.  I love the pretty basket that I use to store potatoes.  I managed to find one that fits.

This week we are focusing on getting the living room set up and making the space for the bunnies to run around.  They still aren't used to the new house yet, and we have a bit of bunnyproofing to do.

I put a few personal touches up in the kitchen--some of my favorite photographs.  My violets are on the sill now soaking up that great Southern light.  Unfortunately the one that was planted in the pot that read "Dream" has died:-( 

As we were placing the new china cabinet, we discovered that the glass shelving that was to be delivered with it never arrived.  Jeff took care of it:-)  They are sending us the shelving and even sending someone out to hook up the lighting for us.  I am so glad we didn't have any problems with that. 

We're Moved In!

Just in time for Christmas, Jeff and I are moved into the new house.  The move was quite grueling, but I had the help of family and friends.  At one point during the move Jeff, Tom, Scott, and Chris were moving my dresser.  The door on the front sprung open and all of my bras came flying out all over the lawn in a lingerie trail.  That was pretty funny.

It feels so good to be living in our own home.  It feels good to own something again and be able to say, "This is ours."  If we want to paint the walls, we can.  We don't have to ask anyone.  I have the kitchen all set up now.  Today I even baked Christmas cookies:

There is so much that I love about this house!  It's so quiet here.  I have never in my life had more restorative sleep than I have had here.  I am in love with the new appliances--I can't even hear the dishwasher.  Jeff knows how much I hate extraneous noise, so he researched to find the quietest and most efficient machines and I couldn't be happier.  And I love, I mean LOVE my new kitchen.  Everything I need is right at my fingertips.  We still have to complete the backsplash, but it looks and functions amazing.

It's been a long, long road, but I am so glad it has led us here.  I just know we're going to have a happy life in these 4 walls--so much more than I ever imagined. 

Still Moving...

I woke up today feeling achy all over and very defeated.  I really wanted to wake up in our new home today, and not to wake up with boxes blocking every walkway and no phone service.  I took some ibuprofen and washed it down with a little determination and we got more finished.

Unfortunately, Jeff has to pay a $50 charge to the moving truck company because he lost the keys.  They had to re-key the lock.  Jeff discovered that the keys were in his pocket the entire time.  Moving makes scrambled eggs of your brain apparently.

We did move some boxes over to the house and I cleaned the inside of the cabinetry of any remaining construction dust.  I managed to unpack the spices and spice holder and organized the spices where they go.  And in alphabetical order, too, which was my little act of defiance against chaos while championing order.  It felt good:-)  At least I have 2 feet of organized space in the new place.  It's something, right? 

I love having a huge drawer just for my seasonings!  While I was in my domain, Jeff spent some time organizing the Fios wiring in the living room (which is still unpainted and unfinished). 

Tomorrow the contractors will be installing the ceiling medallion and doing any touch ups.  I'm going to finish stringing crystals on the living room light:

Later, I was trying to make Jeff's lunch for work.  With most of the food already moved into the other place, I had little to work with.  I made him a jelly sandwich since peanut butter was nowhere to be found.  Then was the dilemma--what do I put these sandwiches in?  The reusable green containers we usually use were packed in some box in the great cardboard abyss of boxes.  I managed to find some wax paper and then sealed it with the only thing I could find--duct tape, which I cut with a kitchen knife because the scissors are missing:

LOL.  You gotta have a sense of humor while moving.  Even as I chuckle, though, I am resolving never to move again.  Ever.  With all the blood, sweat, and tears we've put into this home, it's going to be so lovely one day soon.

Complete. And. Utter. Chaos.

This is my life at the moment.  As I type this I should actually be sleeping peacefully at the new house.  Instead, I am scraping my shins and arms on box flaps while wading through a sea of cardboard.  We're not moved.  Everyone is entitled to a rant sometimes.  I guess this is my time.

So many things have delayed us.  Not enough people with enough muscle to help move the big stuff, we underestimated the number of boxes necessary, and lack of hours in the day.  I'm so very disappointed right now. 

Last night my father in law's vehicle got stuck in the mud.  Scott was helping to extricate it and fell into said mud.  What a mess!  Today I broke  a 5lb glass canister all over the kitchen floor and Comet got into the broken glass because there was a few errant kibbles of dog food on the floor.  He had two pieces of glass in his mouth.  I got them out and got the bleeding to stop, but I was very upset.  My herniated disc is flaring up with all of the packing/moving of stuff.  And then, there are people.

People have a way of making an already trying situation even more difficult.  I hate, despise, loathe all of this upheaval and chaos.  I am so not a roll with it kind of gal.  I try, but I'm just not.  I don't like change.  Even good change.  It's the process of it that I have a hard time with.  I've been in my own head a lot lately, and my anxiety level has been exceedingly high.  If I hear one more person tell me that I "have way too much stuff" or that I need to "just have a big yard sale!" I might throat punch them.  Seriously.  It's not funny.  Not even a little bit.

And it's really not funny after you've been told that you won't be moving fully until NEXT weekend.  I learned this after I packed up all of our food, medications, cookware, plates, everything.  I did set aside an emergency meal of pasta and (gag) jarred sauce, however, someone took the sauce and packed it; so if I want to make the pasta there is nothing to put on it.  Oh, and I can't even make the damn pasta without a pot.  Even if I could I have no plates or forks to eat it with. 

Yeah, my stress level is to the max.  And they had to increase my blood pressure medicine Thursday which is bad.  I did get some good news though.  I don't have cancer.  I found a large, hard lump on my ribcage a while back and it never went away.  It's a benign tumor thank God.

Let the Chaos Begin!

So tomorrow we will start the arduous process of moving.  I can't believe moving day is almost here.  

Today cable and internet were set up.  I spent this evening making a gigantic pot of soup and fourty some burritos to feed the folks who love us enough to come and help us move.  We'll see how it goes!

While I was cooking and packing, Jeff was at the house trying to shampoo the ugly red carpet that we will have to live with for a while because we had some unexpected drains on our budget.  The carpet is disgusting!  It smells like a very dirty, smelly wet dog.  I really hate that we have to keep this right now :-(  I have to wonder if anyone ever vacuumed this room.  Jeff also told me that they slopped paint all over the floor molding.  Great.  Thanks again former owners.  The outlet stopped working while he was shampooing the carpet.  So did the other outlet on the same circuit, so we will have to figure that out.

The new floor is coming up.  The company came to fix it, and now it is still puffing up when we walk on it.  Not happy about that, but I'm getting used to things going wrong.  I just have to remember everything that is going right.

I try to remember that as I wonder what the plan is for tomorrow.  The truck rental company is giving us the run around and saying we have to travel an hour away just to pick up the truck, which is not going to work for us.  So we shall see what happens.  Will we actually get everything moved tomorrow?  Where will we be sleeping tomorrow night?  And I have to declare what I've been saying for 5 1/2 years:  I just wanna move!

We Have Central Air & A Heat Pump Now

A year ago today we purchased this home.  We've been working at the house nonstop to move in.  Finally!  Today we had S&K install the central AC and heat pump. 

We're very happy to have both.  The heat pump will reduce our oil use and will save on our heating bill, so it was a great investment.  And the AC is a must for me.  I use it wisely, but I don't do well at all in sweltering heat. 

One thing on our To-Do-List is to remove this tree that is growing from the basement window well. 

I can't believe the former owners would just let this grow there and cause potential problems.  We're discovering that they didn't take really great care of the place, unfortunately.  I feel like the house was sad when we bought it.  I hope it is relieved to have now inhabitants who really love it and who will always care for it properly. 

The crown molding really pops the color.  So many people advised me not to paint the ceiling, but I think it was a nice choice.  I consider the ceiling to be the 5th wall.  It likes to have color, too!

 Tonight Jeff & I divided and conquered; he worked upstairs in the master bath and I worked downstairs.  And he's multitasking as usual--on the phone taking care of business while working.

He had to remove about 20 pounds of a really poor caulking job. Whoever did this botch job must have just dumped the caulk on haphazardly and let it fall wherever it wanted.  AND they caulked right over mildew.  Can you say lazy?  It was awful.  It's like they didn't even take pride in their home.  I'm angry that these things were done to this beautiful home.  We also discovered that they painted over wallpaper, and slopped paint all over the gorgeous woodwork of the staircase.  Thanks former owners.  Thanks a lot!

Sometimes I feel sad that we left a squeaky clean, freshly painted brand-new looking paradise for the buyers of our old house--when we bought a filthy dirty house that isn't anywhere near move-in ready.  Ah well, at least we could spot a diamond in the rough.  Slowly we will restore her to her original vigor.  She's a little rough looking right now, but all she needs is a lil' makeup :-)

What is going to be stunning is to renovate this gorgeous mahogany floor. 

I can't believe anyone would have covered this beauty up with carpet.  We tore the dirty old carpet up, and now we are excited to get started on this project. 

The China cabinet has been delivered and is being stored in the very messy living room for now while we finish the dining room.

The paint and trim is finished!

There's still a mess in this area. 

When we arrived today to work, there was a giant flock of blackbirds flying overhead.  It took about 15 minutes for all of them to pass.  There must have been thousands!

Anyway, check a few more items off our list.  I finished up most of the painting and touch-ups today.  Lots done, but still a ton to do.  I'm trying to divide my time between both houses, and it's getting tough but I am doing it.

The Pressure Is On--Moving Next Saturday!

Well we rented a U-Haul for next Saturday and Sunday, so it looks like moving day will be then.  I thought it would never come!  We've been exhausting ourselves almost daily trying to get the house as done as it can be in the kitchen and dining areas.  The dining room is almost painted.  We're paying my little sister to help us out a bit.  Sheila started a deep clean of the place today.  I don't think that house has been cleaned for a looooooooong time.  Maybe 20 years or so?  I don't know how long, but it was filthy!  She needs another day to finish it.

In the past week, we have done a lot.  The register covers were purchased and we put them in:



We bought supplies and starting prepping the dining room for painting.  Jeff and I rolled out the plastic tarps and cut them to size.



Then everyone got to help put up Frog Tape.

What IS it about painter's tape?  I couldn't resist having a little fun!

Sheila was a big help.  She is comfortable on step ladders.  With my nonflexible bad back it's hard for me to stretch up to the ceiling.  And ever since I was in a terrible car accident my ankle joint doesn't have full range of motion, and that really compromises my balance.  I appreciate her help so much.

See!  I'm not the only one who enjoys the painter's tape!  Once the prep was underway, the spackling began.  

I am a spacklin' fool!

Then it was time for the sanding.  Dust was everywhere.  It was hard to breath.

Something we learned while removing light switch plates:  use a screw driver.  A spackling knife will break if you try to use that.

While the spackling compound was setting I busied myself in the kitchen installing the inner shelves.  I was so proud of myself!  I know to most people it would be no big deal, but this is so not my forte!  I am not handy at all, so this was a little victory for me:-)

I had to sacrifice a little bit of shelf space in this cabinet to allow for the TV hookup.  It keeps it from being unsightly on the outside on the wall.  Jeff thought of this, and I think it was a great idea.

I had some trouble with the shelving in the corner cabinet, so it was Jeff to the rescue!



Soon it was time to paint.  We had to gear up:

With Jeff's dad and Sheila's help, we were able to get the paint on the walls.  Now all that is left is to paint the trim and the windows.

Second coat is on.

Painting is messy!

Ceiling is painted and ready for the medallion to be installed on Monday.

Tomorrow the heat pump and central air will be installed. 

Stopping at Savory Market to take a picture with Salvatore: