Friday, February 10, 2012...another U-Haul rental day.

Today we went to the old apartment to get the rest of our things. What an ordeal that was. I can honestly say I've married a hopeless pack-rat! Hoarders could probably do an entire season on the stuff we have in our house right now. I am hit with the overwhelming feeling that I will NEVER get this place looking like a well-kept home. Needless to say, hubby is being read the riot act tonight. Most of this stuff has got to go! When I moved to my sister's place in Teeswater I got rid of ALOT of my stuff. I downsized again when we moved from Windsor to Tecumseh. I am NOT about to downsize my things again so he can continue to hoard crap we don't need or use. If he hasn't used it in at least a year, it's out the door! If it was something he was saving for his grandchildren, then give it to them! This house is NOT going to be a public storage unit! With all the crap that's all over the house right now, waiting to be unpacked or stored away in the storage room, I don't even have room to move around. I am feeling EXTREMELY clostrophobic right now and on the verge of a breakdown. All I want to do is sit down on the floor and cry, but there isn't even room to do that!

February 5, 2012

Jay had today off. He wanted to go back to the old place today to get some more of our things, but with no bus service out that far on Sundays, I managed to convince him that this was not a good idea. Instead we went to the grocery store to get a few things and something for dinner. $85 later, we walked out with a full shopping cart! While we were gone, Thomas went out and did a little cleaning up in the front and back yards. He picked up all the trash that was laying around in the front yard and raked up all the leaves that were in the back flower & garden beds. The yards aren't done yet, but what a huge difference already.

February 4, 2012

I got the guys to put up a curtain rod in the kitchen for my cafe curtains that I had crocheted. I put up the curtains and I gotta say, they are PERFECT! They fit that window exactly right. I can't stop looking at them. They give just the right amount of privacy while still letting the light in. I already started a panel for the bathroom window. I had my first soak in the tub tonight. All I can say is Oh my God, this house has a FANTASTIC water heater! The water was so comforting!

February 3, Niagara Falls Without Leaving the House

Well, today started off ALMOST like any other day. I say almost because Amigo has mastered going up the stairs and is back to jumping on our heads and gutts while we are still asleep to wake us up! Thomas and I took Amigo out for a long-ish walk in the new neighbourhood today and to meet his new vet. I think he likes his new vet...he never took treats from his last vet, but this one got barked at, asked for treats, wagged at and jumped on, so that's a good sign. Amigo pooped outside for the first time since he was a puppy and was so very proud of himself! lol Around 5PM the plumbing burst in the second level of the house. We had Niagara Falls in the kitchen...10 of the brand new ceiling tiles the landlord just put in now need to be replaced due to water damage. On the bright side, our kitchen and bathroom floors are both nice and clean now. The landlord had the plumber come right away and fix the problem. Amigo has now mastered going both up and DOWN the stairs and does it REPEATEDLY. There is no longer a sanctuary for Salem...poor kitty. I asked the landlord about the stove and he told me how to work it...I now have one working burner and an oven. We have to get new elements for the other burners on the stove. At least we aren't limited to what we can eat for meals now, so that's a good thing.

First Full Day in the New House

February 2, 2012

Nothing exciting happened today. Thomas and I did a bit of unpacking and a bit of shopping. Amigo still hasn't learned to do the stairs, but we are all being patient and trying to help him master this new skill. The kitchen is now unpacked and the cupboards are set up the way I want them...for now! LOL Dinner tonight is pizza from Pizza King across the street...the pizza place Jay worked for when we first got together. Again, we slept VERY soundly tonight and Amigo still slept on the main level of the house...he's nervous about going up the stairs and will NOT even TRY to go down them. Our cat Salem is loving this since she has the entire upstairs to herself.

February 1, Moving Day

It's moving day. We all got up early so we could have a tea and a few cigarettes before getting our chaotic day underway. Thomas was going to pick up the truck from U-Haul and then pick up our friends who had said they would help us move. About 9:45AM, Thomas called the apartment to let us know that he was getting no answer either on the phone or at the door from our friends...it would be just the three of us doing the move. Well, we managed to get the majority of the large stuff and most of the boxes of stuff to the new place, but it was no easy task being down two people. I couldn't figure out the stove in the new place and only managed to get one burner working...3 burners down, can't figure out the oven, and most of my small kitchen appliances were still at the apartment. Needless to say, dinner was quite the task with only one working burner and that being a SMALL one. We all slept VERY soundly that night. Amigo slept in the kitchen because he hasn't mastered the stairs yet.

The New House

Well, yesterday we got the keys to the new house! YAY! We bought a fridge off kijiji for $30 DELIVERED and it works great! Today my son and I went to take care of priming the living room and his bedroom. They were the only two rooms in the house that needed priming. The colours were not only dark (or in the case of his room, bright) but they were DISGUSTING! The living room looked like a disgusting chocolate cave and his room looked like something out of a 70's flashback with turquoise walls that had black and electric grape stripes going all the way around the room. They even painted the door in those colours! I will post before, during and after photos of each room as we complete it's transformation so you can see the changes and difference. We were only at the house painting for 4 hours today, but it sure took ALOT out of us. I could probably sleep through the apartment building collapsing around us tonight (please don't though). We are hopefully going back tomorrow to paint the living room and Thomas' bedroom...now that we've got them started, we are anxious to get them finished.

The Honey Do List

This list goes from area to area in the new house, but the tasks won't necessarily be done in this order. Clearly February is far too cold to be doing any of the outdoor projects. It also goes from the front of the house to the back of the back yard and then the upper level.

Front Approach

new mailbox

new house numbers

expand side and front flowerbeds

paint front door and window trim

install porch light

insulate, panel and paint porch in and out

new plexi windows for porch

Living Room

pull up living room carpet & decide on flooring & install

paint living room

install shelves

install window treatments

Kitchen

install pantry shelving

install kitchen/stairway partition

paint kitchen

hang curtains

Mudroom

paint mudroom

fix screen on door

install shelving

Back Yard

repair deck

install deck railing

install gate on side entry to yard

expand flowerbeds

prep veggie garden

garden lighting

fence around the veggie garden

Master Bedroom

paint

install window treatments

Thomas' Room

prime & paint

install closet shelving

install window treatments

Bathroom

paint

install shelving/storage

install window treatments

paint stairway/hallway

Supposed to get the keys today

Well, today didn't turn out quite the way we had planned. We went to pay the remainder of our rent on the new place and get the keys, but Dan (the landlord) wasn't at the furniture store that his family owns. Of course, he had the only set of keys with him. His brother called him to let him know that the hydro and gas companies were coming to the house today to hook us up, so he said he would be there by noon with the keys to let both technicians in. Well, the roads were pretty bad because of the snowfall we literally just had, so it took him a little longer to get there. By the time he got there, the gas company had already come and gone, unable to connect the gas because they couldn't get in to check the hot water heater or the furnace and just minutes after he got there, the hydro company showed up and connected the hydro. Dan apologized continuously for us having to wait around and then even gave me a drive back home and then Jay a ride to work. He's replacing the drop-ceiling tiles in the kitchen, but said he would have keys ready for us later today and wants us in the house ASAP. He is also waiting for the gas company for us since he will be there doing work on the house anyhow. He said he doesn't want us to have to wait around in a cold house unnecessarily. So, sadly, there are no photos to show you today, but maybe over the weekend we will get back there and I can take some photos then.

Can't Time go QUICKER?!?

Well, we went to see the house at the beginning of the month, put down a deposit on the house a couple days later...here it's 2 weeks later and I am going NUTS! The day we went to pay the deposit, we also went to Rona to get ideas for the house, the yard and the gardens. Here's my problem...I'm already second guessing my colour choices for paint for the various rooms and the list of projects I want to do for the house is getting bigger and bigger every day! Right now I am working on a crocheted cafe curtain set for the kitchen window. Our kitchen window is right above the sink. I've always wanted a window above the sink! I know the best way for me to go about all this would be to take each project as we take each day...one at a time....and of course, at least wait until we get the keys tomorrow! lol

First Blog Entry

This is my first entry on this blog. We are getting the keys to our new home (our first house) on Thursday. It needs quite a bit of work, but my guys and I are up to the challenge. I have SOME pictures of the house now, but I will have MORE before photos to add Thursday after we get the keys, so I won't add any photos to the blog until Thursday night. This blog will be kind of like a before, during and after documentation of turning this house into a home we can be proud of! We are open to suggestions or comments, so please feel free!