Call a Plumber....or NOT!

I seriously doubt anyone else could make changing the seal on a toilet fun besides my awesome cousins! No need to call a plumber for a leaking toilet when you've got handy cousin's like mine! We laughed & had a good 'ole time...once we got past the yuck part! ha!

And, you know there were plumber's crack jokes...

"Ok...seriously, we are listening now Tanner...what are you trying to do?"

I promised Sandy I wouldn't post any pictures of her (after all, she was sick AND fixing my toilet! What a friend!). But really, she did all the work. She taught herself on the internet how to change the seal when it happened at her house. Way to go Sandy! So, for all your toilet needs, just call her! heehee!

Thank you Sandy and Tanner for helping me out. And, of course, for all the belly laughs! Love you both!

Here today, gone tomorrow!

That's the fun part of Christmas money and gift cards...it burns a hole in my pocket until I use it all and use it for FUN stuff!! Shopping with no stress about the pocketbook...it doesn't get much better!

This year I scored a $40 gift card to Bed, Bath and Beyond and $25 Visa card from parents in my room as TEACHER GIFTS!! Hello - awesome!! Then, I got a $50 gift card and $200 in cash from family to blow. Needless to say, I was set! And my first mission was to turn this guest room that somehow became a dog room back into a guest room!! Seriously, this is where Kevin slept when he was in trouble (the doghouse) and apparently Jax uses this bed all day to look out the window for me (see how spoiled he is? I leave the blinds up enough for him during the day! ha!)

Before: After: (thank you Kohl's...the sale even threw in the sheets for free!)
Next on the list...work on the guest bath (aka Kevin's bath that is slowly transforming to a Razorback bathroom). I am trying to do it subtly without just big HOGS everywhere...so here is the new shower curtain with Razorback red in it.
And then, to bring in the Hog theme...this is what holds up the shower curtain:

I still wasn't finished spending freely...I got some Bath & Body Works stuff (great sale, LOVE that store), 2 CD's, and my Boxer calendars for the year. Woo-hoo!

THANK YOU to everyone who contributed to my spending FUN!! :-)

Home Sweet Home

It was exactly 4 years ago yesterday that I moved into my house and started this journey of life after divorce...wow! What a journey...if you would've told me 4 years ago how happy I would be today, I wouldn't have believed you! This is my house a week before I moved in...there was a major panic to get the yard done b/c the bank wouldn't close without it finished. I was closing on the sale of the old house and this house on the same day - July 12th. It kept raining IN JULY and putting off the progress. I was a nervous wreck and my family thought they were all going to have to come lay sod so I could close! ha!
I was very, very fortunate to find a little house brand spanking new that I could afford by myself on a teachers salary. I got it early enough in the building process that I even got to pick out light fixtures, floors, appliances, and countertops. That was FUN! My favorite part of the house was the kitchen cabinets...I thought and still think they are gorgeous. My kitchen is small but somehow I never noticed until last summer when Kevin moved in...wonder why? It was plenty big for those take-out boxes....hee-hee!
Here's my house today...proof that even with a new house, there are projects to do to make it feel like HOME!!
This house will always be special to me, and I will have a hard time leaving it someday. We won't leave until we can afford land...so we'll be here awhile! :-)

Let's Rewind...

...to about Thursday...then, I can guide you through the past 3 days of many up's and down's! Whew...it's been a crazy few days. Let's start with the project from you-know-where (that was suppose to be easy and take an hour!) Here is the before picture of our front porch:The builder didn't use pre-treated lumber and it was rotting, so we had to replace it. Most of the neighbors had already done theirs unless they moved in after me. So, my next door neighbor said it took him about an hour - no biggie. (heehee) Well, my niece was over and between her and Kevin, demolition was done in like 5 minutes and we were off to a great start! Maybe Tayhlor should've stuck around b/c the bad luck started after she left! Here they are ready to demo the porch!
Thank God for good neighbors or we would've been in BIG trouble!! Our next door neighbor stuck it out with us until 10 o'clock at night getting the new columns up. Turns out, we had to cut all 3 of them. When he did his, he only had to cut one ~ which is why it only took him an hour and us over 3 hours!!! Jeez! But we got it done! (and you know on a school night, 10 o'clock is past my bedtime! ha!)
Here is the after picture for now ~ we are going to get rid of all the big bushes and re-landscape later on...now because the storm the following day didn't hurt the new columns - they are still standing, but...my pond, well...
...that's another story! So, as you can see we have an unexpected project that we weren't counting on and have to hurry up and do so my fish don't die! urgh! On the positive side, this pond was never really installed right and drove me crazy b/c it wasn't level. I had threatened every year to rip it up and re-do it. Now, I got my wish! LOL! (the storm winds knocked the pump over somehow and it pumped all the water out of the pond and under it! Good times!)
I'll finish all the rest of the drama and good times tomorrow! :-)

Weekend Projects

The necessary tools ~ and you could probably hear the "Tim the Tool Man" grunting when Kevin was in the garage using the miter saw! Ha! We finished putting up the molding this afternoon. While I was caulking (or doing the tedious work as Kevin said), he disappeared into the yard to start getting his garden ready for this spring...doesn't he look like Farmer Kevin? hee-hee! Mom & Dad brought him some hay from the barn yesterday. And, I think next weekend, we are going to be really redneck and bring home horse manure!

I snuck this picture through the dining room window:
Anyhoo ~ here is the crown molding!!! I LOVE it! We cheated and used the corner pieces, but the corner pieces were the hardest part! That is all we did last night ~ install the corner pieces. I really thought we were in over our heads, and that we were going to kill each other before the whole process was complete! LOL! Kevin is a wise man though and suggested we stop and start back today with a fresh attitude.
Today went really smoothly...it was kind of scary. I think we can tackle the other rooms ~ but after we forget what a pain it was to put in those corner pieces! Ha! It looks good though...I've still got to putty the nail spots and touch up paint, but it's almost DONE!
And Farmer Brown has his compost pile just the way he wants it for now. All he needs is horse manure from Mom's house, and I'm supposed to start bringing home the guinea pig cage mess when I clean it out...FUN! (not!)

Out with the old, and in with the new!

The Before shot:After: (almost finished ~ Kevin informed me we would put up the molding next weekend. I guess since he has to work all weekend this weekend, I'll give him that break. hee-hee!) We made an accent wall of chocolate behind the bed and the other walls are a gold color. The best way to describe it is the back wall was like smearing hot fudge all over the wall and the other 3 are like butterscotch...yum! :-)

I think it's alot prettier in person than the picture shows. I got the new comforter and paint with my Christmas money from Kevin's Mom & Dad - so THANK YOU! And, this is our first compromise...Kevin & I have completely different tastes. I like ornate, he likes simple lines. I like dark colors, he likes light colors. I took some things out of the room that he suggested, and we actually agreed on the paint. Oh...and Mom, the actual name of the chocolate color is cowboy boots. I thought you'd appreciate that!

Nala gives it her stamp of approval. This bed is now fit for a queen!
I didn't take a before shot from this angle...and this one blurred. But you get the idea. I took down some greenery above the shelves on the entertainment center (aka dust traps). I have done some serious cleaning out over the break. There is going to be a big yard sale come Spring in our garage!!
And, finally, the molding that will go up next weekend. Well...I've procrastinated enough. I guess I'll go paint it!

Back to Work...

Today was the first day back to work...I hate the alarm clock! Hate it! And, I even got to sleep in an extra hour b/c we didn't have kids today ~ just meetings (which is worse). Let me tell you, teacher meetings are the WORST! They are boring, boring, boring...and trying to get a room full of teachers to be quiet and listen is actually comical! I doodled my little heart out today and made a massive "to do" list for the weekend. hee-hee!

Yesterday, Kevin and I painted the bedroom. You will see the complete transformation hopefully after the weekend. We aren't completely finished. We think we are going to try putting up crown molding this weekend. Then, it should be finished. It's lookin' good so far...thank YOU Christmas money!!! :-)

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, and whew!

First, thanks for my Best Buy, Wal-Mart and Barnes & Noble gift cards! I had fun spending them ALL yesterday & still have $8 left at B&N. Exciting stuff! Have I mentioned how I love gift cards? hee-hee! Later in the week, you'll see what I spent my Christmas money on from Kevin's Mom! :-)
Second, thank you to Kevin for this WONDERFUL cajun meal last night! I know I've said it before and I'll say it again ~ that boy can cook! This is shrimp creole and boudian ~ YUM!!
Next, thank goodness I finally have a new washer!!! As of this morning ~ no more laundrymat or leaking washer...isn't she purdy? This washer apparently does it all and saves on energy and water. I know one thing, she has a BUNCH of towels going right now and is SUPER quiet! I have days of laundry piled up from not having a washer, so I'll see how it goes and give a full review! ha!

**Lastly, I must put an end to the wondering and the guessing. I wasn't ignoring your pregnancy questions, I just honestly wasn't sure! Yep, we were in the midst of a pregnancy scare! I have taken 3 or 4 tests (who's counting? ha!), and I really think that it is just the new pills my doctor put me on. I won't go into all the girly stuff, but I am not pregnant....YET! :-)

TGIF!!!!

It's FRIDAY!!! Yay! Only 4 more workdays, and my vacation bliss starts!!! The little kiddo's are hyper!!!

Well...the Maytag Repairman is coming out of retirement to come fix my washing machine today. ha! Keep your fingers crossed that my checking account survives the hit! I'm nervous!

Have a great weekend!!!