The House

It's been two months since we've closed on our house. We still aren't living there yet, but have made some big strides here lately. It should only be a few more weeks until we move in. Granted, we keep saying that... but this time we really mean it!

Throughout the house, the walls have been touched up and smoothed out. Though the pictures didn't show it, several walls had visible seems between the drywall, and lots of bumps grooves. The ceilings in the kitchen, dining room, and family room have been textured, which updates the house a little and looks nice too. We did need to paint the ceiling because the dirt was coming through the texture and looked yellow-ish. As if the first coat wasn't miserable enough to do, the primer didn't cut it, so we had to endure doing another coat. At this point, I want to make sure it is done right and looks good because I will never paint it again- ever.

The skimmed walls and textured ceilings

Painting the ceiling

We have put a window where the front door used to be. The front door will be installed on the actual front of the house (it was installed on the side) and hopefully within the next week, it will be in and ready to use. We are downsizing our picture window in the front to accommodate the new front door, but we will still have lots of windows. And speaking of windows, Dad went and picked them up today and a few were installed this afternoon. I am anxious to go and check it out.

Craig, Dad, and Derek installing the
window where the door used to be

My new front door that I paid next
to nothing for thanks to Craigslist!

The basement has come along way since we began gutting out the moldy ceiling and walls. The boys installed a new water heater and dad converted it to run on electric instead of gas. The process of fixing the basement wall began last week. First was the excavation to expose the basement wall and then a temporary support was created to jack up the house while the basement wall was knocked down. The new wall was poured about 8 feet high and then cinder blocks were stacked and sealed on top to bring the wall up to the original height. Today, a sealant was rolled onto the outside wall that will help prevent moisture from entering through the wall and the house was lowered onto the new wall.

The temporary wall supporting the house while

it was jacked up to pour a new basement wall

Our new basement wall, plus a new stoop for our new front door

Not much has happened in the kitchen aside from moving the pantry door from the hallway to the kitchen. Even though it is a little change, I am so happy that we were able to get that moved. It will make a huge difference in the flow of the kitchen. We tore up the tile in the kitchen and dining room and we have new wood laminate flooring to replace it. We did purchase a new sink and faucet- and I was so surprised to pay more for my faucet than the sink!! I like to make sure I get good deals, but I also want to make sure that I really like what I install (uhm... have installed...). Fortunately, I have been able to find some great deals on some things on Craigslist so I have a little bit of room to splurge on important items. I did work on painting the kitchen the other day a nice green and I totally LOVE it. I did not love falling off the bucket, landing in the paint tray, messing up the wall I painted, getting paint on the carpet, and sporting around black and blue bruises for a week.

Dad cutting the drywall where the new door will be

Our new kitchen pantry door!

Derek and Craig pulling
up the dining room tile

We ended up gutting out the hall bathroom. The plan is to use the stool, tub, and sink that came with the house, but we just we got new tile for the shower and for the floor as well. Derek and my dad put the tile and floor in this past weekend while I was at a wedding shower. Derek learned to use the tile saw and got pretty good at it. One of the last pieces he had to cut was one of the tiny accent border parts- originally 1 x 2" and he got it down to 1 x 3/4". He said it was tricky, but he pulled it off. We took out the huge cabinets from the bathroom and also covered the window that was in the shower.

Tile around the tub (before any grout)

Jackson's room and the guest bedroom are primed and ready to be painted. I am thinking we might make some headway on those this week. Jackson's wall of closets has been painted blue and Craig has refaced all of the drawers that line the bottom. Mom found some airplane drawer pulls that I am really excited about using! The interior doors were installed today and now I just need to get some door handles. I had no idea how much the door knobs would be. Honestly, it is surprising how much a lot of the little things cost that add up! Door knobs, locks, light switch covers, trim, etc...

To Do List:

1. Install windows and front door
2. Install subfloor in kitchen and dining room
3. Stain and install cabinet doors, install veneer on existing cabinet to cover up the paint
4. Paint
5. Install new flooring (wood laminate in kitchen/dining and new carpet in rest of house)
6. Install new appliances
   
7. New trim
8. Pour new sidewalk to new front door
9. MOVE IN!!!!
   

And then after we move in, we hope to make a mud room connecting the garage to the dining room, which will allow us to move our laundry room upstairs. Also, we plan on converting the garage from one to two car. The trees still need to be removed and we plan to reside the house with stucco.

Quickie News Bits

1. We are all moved at the in-laws. So far so good! Though I will be excited when we are in our place that has only 1 flight of stairs that is blocked by a door!
2. I've started watching a friend's little boy for the school year. He's 2 1/2 and pretty well behaved.
3. Jackson has two teeth.
4. He climbs stairs (see video).
   
5. He has also started to walk with his push toy in front of him.
6. We've gotten a lot of work done on the house: cleared out basement completely (all walls and ceiling), installed new water heater, painted Jackson's closet and closet doors, ordered kitchen cabinet doors (and hinges and pulls), tore down gutters and fascia, began some painting, and appliances have been delivered.
   
7. We went to see The Proposal last weekend with friends-- loved it!!!

Jackson fell asleep in the swing

Crawling through the coffee table

Hanging out with Daddy

If walls could talk...

I am blogging today as an official homeowner. On July 17th, Derek and I closed on our new house. Since the road to closing took SO long and planning for the upcoming changes began long ago, the attitude was more of "It's about time..." than maybe the typical, "Woo Hoo! A House!!"

And because Derek and I are just absolutely crazy, we decided to buy a HUD (US Department of Housing and Urban Development) home- essentially, it is a government foreclosure. With a quick look around the place, it is not hard to figure out that the previous owners were not so happy about their house being taken away. The kitchen cabinet doors are missing, along with all of the electrical outlet covers, and all of piping underneath the kitchen sink.

But really, those are the smallest issues in the house. To start, the basement wall has a crack. Well, maybe we should call it a canyon. It is leaning in about 12-18 inches from where it should be standing straight. The original plan was to just fix the crack (canyon), but it has now been decided that re-pouring a whole new wall would be best. And next, is the electrical. Part of it can be attributed to the house being over 50 years old. The second part is that well, someone thought that they were an electrician, but they clearly were not. I never know what switches turn on what lights and I swear it always changes. Many of the outlets have three prongs, which might indicate that the outlets are grounded, but they are not. Lastly, many components of the house are original. While "original" sometimes is a positive attribute, in this case, it just means "old." The door from the basement was painted with lead paint, the siding is rotting in places, and the windows won't even open.

View of basement (mold on ceiling)

The infamous crack

Alas, we knew what we were getting into. And the only reason we "got into" this ginormous task was because my father is a general contractor and can guide us throughout the project. We got an unbelievable deal on the house and we just couldn't pass it up. The house is really a perfect house for us (pending updating and repairs)-- three bedrooms, two full baths, full and finished basement, a huge yard with privacy fence, and it is a fantastic neighborhood. My favorite room in the house is the mater bedroom. I just love it. The room is spacious, has beautiful hardwood floors, two huge closets, a built in cabinet, and sliding glass doors to the back yard. Oh, and the master bath has a jetted tub. Heck yes! There is a park across the street and the city swimming pool, too. Not to mention, we are now about 1 minute away from church.

Dining room looking from living room.
Front door on left, basement door on right

Master Bedroom

View of half the backyard from the roof

The work on the house actually started before we closed... Ssshhh! Don't tell. But the mold was worsening so we went in and sprayed bleach and started running some fans to keep it from spreading. We've been over there several times now cleaning up the bricks in the back yard, changing the locks, installing a new basement door, and painting closet doors. But primarily, we've worked clearing out the basement- the ceiling and the paneling- to rid the place of mold. And I just have to include that when Derek and Forrest were tearing out the basement ceiling, drug paraphernalia came falling from the sky: 17 needles, 2 metal spoons, 2 beer cans, and a pack of cigarettes, to be exact. When I called to tell Dad he laughed and said, "If only walls could talk... " and I replied, "I'm not sure what they'd say, but if they could run... I am sure they would have run long ago without looking back!"

More Pictures Here

It's July... already?!?

Jackson has grown in leaps and bounds this past month. He is now crawling, pulling up, and feeding himself! He started saying Da-da right around Father's Day- perfect timing! In fact, Jackson has turned in to quite a Daddy's boy. When Derek is home, he wants to be with him and he doesn't want much to do with me!

A couple of months ago, I wrote about a time Jackson got into the cookie container and was most excited to find napkins and didn't even touch the cookies. Well, he found a cookie and managed to eat the whole thing, while smashing chocolate chips into the carpet and all over his new, white shirt. I'll be sure to add a picture once I find the cord to upload them to my computer. He was a MESS! But, he was happy.

Jackson has been swimming several times and he still loves splashing and kicking in the water. We went to a Royals game in the middle of June. We lost, but seeing the new stadium was cool. Plus, I got a really cute, pink (with rhinestones) Royals hat.

Our 3rd Anniversary was June 10th and to celebrate, Jackson's little cousin was born. Jackson was pretty intrigued by little baby Gabe when we went down to visit. He loves looking at babies and older kids. It's so crazy to think back to the time when Jackson was brand new and teeny-tiny. It wasn't even that long ago and now he is a babbling, crawling, busy little man!

One weekend in June, Jackson spent the night with my mom while Derek I went down to the lake with friends. My mom loves having Jackson spend the night and Derek and I had wonderful conversation on the drive. It was such an amazing weekend. It was relaxing and fun, despite being achy for a week from skiing.

At the end of May, we put an offer on a house in Belton and the contract was accepted in the beginning of June. This house is in dire need of TLC, but we are very excited about having a house of our own! We got an excelent deal on the house. It was a HUD foreclosure and has some pretty big issues to fix, but it's all do-able. We will close on the 17th of July, but we won't be able to move in right away. There is just too much to do. I am hoping that everything will be finished by October, but we definitely plan on moving in as soon as its liveable. Some of the work to be done: removing mold (which has gotten worse since we bid on the house), fix the crack in foundation, new siding, major plumbing work, grouding all electrical outlets, new cabinet doors, new widows... just to name a few. Call if you are extra eager to help! :)

We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend. On Friday, we went to my parents and Derek's parents joined us that evening. We had a good time all hanging out together. It is SUCH a blessing to have our families close by and that they not only get along, but enjoy the others company. Derek and I were FINALLY able to go Transformers on Saturday. I swear we were the last to see it. Pretty good, thought I still like the first one better. Saturday evening, we grilled at Derek's parent's place and ended up watching the neighbors fireworks from the roof-- it's a great view up there! We finished out the weekend over at a friends house on Sunday evening. Fellowship with friends is such an enjoyable time!!

New house, New job, New school

The next two weeks of my life consist of moving, starting a new job, and starting grad school. Add the baby that I am having in November and can you imagine what my score would be on a stress test?? I am going to be 45 by the time this year is over.

New House

Derek and I are moving to Raymore, MO (south Kansas City) next weekend. It was an answered prayer finding a place that is spacious enough for us to gain an office and add a nursery at an affordable price that will not require me to go back to work after our baby is born. We are renting from a couple at church who have several properties on the street so we already know a few of our neighbors.

Our new place is a townhouse, all one level, with 3 bedrooms, two baths, a kitchen, dining room, and living room. Moving from our one bedroom apartment this place feels like a mansion. Aside from the blue carpet, it really is the perfect place for us. The location is great-- we are at the very end of the dead-end street and we are the last unit, so we don't have much traffic our way. Sometimes it is hard because I want to keep up with the Jones's who have nice big houses, but I know this is perfect for us and we are very excited. We also ordered new a new Sofa and Loveseat (or mini couch in Derek's terms) and I am very excited to have them delivered next weekend. Hopefully we'll get some pictures up soon.

We chose to move south of the city in our attempt to cut down on all the driving that we do. Derek drives about 25 minutes to work, I drive about 20 minutes north to work, plus church is an additional 30 miles from home (making it a 50 mile drive from my work to church) and I will be attending school in the south too. This decision was made when gas was $3.00/gallon, so we are very happy to be cutting down as prices keep getting higher. And its hard trying to stay active in the church when it requires so much driving! We have a handful of friends in the Northland but a majority of our friends are further south so we are looking forward to being able to hang out more with friends.

My Dad feels like he will never ever get to see his grandbaby, but I kindly remind him that we will live only about 45 minutes away and that he took us kids 12-15 hours away from our grandparents.

New Job

Since we are moving south and I currently work so far north, I had to tell Dad that I couldn't work for Trickel Construction once we moved. He has hired Kristie in October and she is now ready to take over my job when I leave in the next couple weeks. Looking for a new job was majorly stressful especially knowing that I would be quitting in November, but still needing a job that could cater to my evening classes. Through much indecision and a few interviews, I ended up taking a job at North American Savings Bank in Grandview as a teller. I think I will do alright and that I can enjoy the job. My hours are 8-5 Monday through Friday and then 8-2 every other Saturday. On the weeks that I work Saturdays, I'll get one weekday off. I start on Monday, June 2nd.

New School

I also begin school on Monday, June 2nd. I will be taking 7 graduate hours in only 2 months. Things will be very busy. My classes are Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 6-8:30pm and include one weekend in July. Technically I have class on Thursday evening as well, but I will log in online to contribute to discussion and to turn in class assignments. I can't help but be overwhelmed with my new schedule, but I keep reminding myself that this will only be for a couple months and when I'm done with the summer I will have 10 of the 60 hours I need to complete my Master's. At least its a start! Right now I am waiting for my FAFSA to make it to the school's financial aid office so I can get the ball rolling on getting the student loan money in and so I can buy my books. Man, are they expensive or what?!

And I guess I should mention I am actually enrolled at Avila University out of Kansas City and not MidAmerica Nazarene as I had previously been planning on. The Master's programs are similar, but the class schedules are different. MidAmerica's program is a cohort 2 year program where you and your cohort (class) move through the program together and all graduate at the same time. Their program begins each summer in June and the problem with this schedule is that after I have the baby, if I don't go back to class right away (the next week) and finish the class, then I would be behind and unable to move forward in the program until the following November. The scheduling at Avila is like that of a typical college schedule, where a handful of classes are offered I can enroll in classes (as many or as few) each semester and make sure that I meet the requirements of my program. After I take classes this summer, I will not be taking classes in the fall semester. If in the spring I feel up to taking a class or two, then I can enroll at that time. And I suppose I should also mention that I am going back to school to get my Master's in Counseling and I will also taking a few electives to achieve a certificate in Child and Adolescent Therapy.