Friday!

We will close on our house on Friday! 
Four Days!  Four Days!  Four Dayyyyyyyyyyys!
Get your happy dance on because the fun begins Friday. 

Things to do between now and Friday?

Pick out living room paint, arrange to have the money wired for our down payment (checks are apparently a thing of the past), do a little research regarding carpet steamers, and try to keep calm and carry on until Friday. 

Maybe we could finish our Yellow House Do-To List.  Maybe.  I think that list will grow upon moving in.  Alright, I'm off to go do cartwheels around my house. 

Friday!  Seriously!  Friday! 

Dining Table

Check out the dining room table and chairs that we just bought! 
The table extends up to 8 feet 8 inches, which will be nice for big family events.  I really like the color of the wood!  I'd like to eventually change the fabric on the chairs, but the cream will work for now. 

Just another Craigslist score!  This entire set was just $100!
We will hopefully find out when we close tomorrow, if we're really lucky.  More realistically, we should know by Wednesday.  In the mean time, we'll keep busy with school work, packing, and everyday life. 

Have a great week!

Closing Delayed

We will not close next Monday. 
Closing has been delayed.
The sellers painted the exterior trim of the house after the final inspection.
The house failed the inspection because the exterior trim needed to be painted.
The house needs another inspection because the trim is now painted.
The final inspection could take place tomorrow or early next week.
There will be 3-5 days between the inspection and the closing day.
We could close next week Thursday or Friday.
We could close the following week.
Welcome to limbo land, take a few deep breaths, sit back, try to relax, and enjoy the life around you.
This is a great excuse to start packing. 

We will close eventually.  :)

Weekend Purchases

This weekend, Nick and I spent some serious time on Craigslist and purchased a 3 yr old washer and dryer and a 4 year old gas cook top!

The washer and dryer are from Whirlpool in their "Cabrio" collection  (whatever that means).  They are "high efficiently" and in great shape!  We're really pumped about saving money and getting a great deal on this set! 

The Bosch cooktop is exactly what we've been looking for!  We're really excited to cook with gas instead of electric.  :)  We envision the cooktop being a part of our future kitchen island like the picture below.  We can't wait!

We also had a great garage sale score!

I bought this day bed for $15.  Note the bungy-cord holding it together at the top. It needed some tlc!  So, my dad and I got to work and took it apart and wood glued it back together.

While working on the day bed, I noticed a logo stamped on the inside.

I had to know more about this Limberts Arts and Craft logo- so I did a little googling. 
Read more here if you're interested to learn more:
http://www.arts-crafts.com/archive/limbert.shtml

We're looking at a day bed that was probably built sometime between 1900 and 1920 in Grand Rapids or Holland, Michigan.


Upon further googling I came across this antique dealer website:

http://www.webteek.com/backup/apt-photos/alt-search/alt-search.php?_d=1&item=1171&dRange=&userid=island&maxPage=40&keySub=&sort=&nextPage=&pType=Shops&sid=&xsid=&_sub=0&vendor=&keywords=Limbert&_sa=

Yes, what you are seeing is the exact same day bed (in mint condition with leather cushions) for $2695.  Can I get a collective, "What!???!!!!???!?!?!?!  Are you kidding me?"

So, yea- what will we do with our antique day bed?  Maybe put it on craigslist, may just keep it in our living room.  Maybe our new house will have some awesome antique furniture in it.  Only time will tell.

Last thing from the weekend- boy were we busy!

Check out the fun fabric that I picked out for pillows in the living room.  I think these will really pop against our black couch.  My mom has been assigned the pillow and curtain sewing job once we move it!  yay for fun fabric and bright colors.


That's all for now.  Lots of love. 

Free Lawn Mower That I Didn't Mention

Did you notice the title of the last blog?  And the lack of any mention of a lawn mower?  Well, I didn't- until right now.  I guess I was quite fixated on the appliances thing.  Woops.  We scored a free lawn mower!  On Tuesday, after admiring the house for a little, Nick and I drove away and encountered a lawn mower, that looked as though it had just cut the grass in its yard, with a "free" sign on it.  We stopped and the owner popped his head out of the garage.  We spoke with Mike (oh no- I think it was Mike, now I can't remember) for a little while and not only did he give us a perfectly fine lawn mower for free!!!!  He's going to store it in his garage until we close.  "Welcome to the neighborhood!"

He upgraded to a lawn mower with a bag and didn't want this one anymore! Score!  We felt pretty proud of ourselves and were happy to meet one of our future neighbors.  I never knew that I would get so excited about a lawn mower but I was pumped and high fived Nick as we left.  Is it weird that I can't wait to mow the lawn at my future house? 

Free Lawn Mower!

We've been on a roller coaster ride during the past four days.  However, I think we're back in the "happy," "fun," "less stressed" zone again! Here's a fast summary of the past four days: Part of our purchase agreement involved the purchase of appliances for the house, there was discrepancy regarding if we got to pick them or not.  At first we were told we would, then we were told we wouldn't be to able, then we were told we could but it had to be a certain brand, then we were told they wouldn't purchase what we had requested.  Oh the back and forth!  And it doesn't help that the house's real estate agent is really bad about answering the phone calls and e-mails of our real estate agent.  Lame....

Well, when the final- "no, they won't purchase the appliances you requested" came back, we were pretty upset.  Like, shut the office door because I don't want my students to hear me swearing on the phone upset.  It wasn't cool.  After some great work from the people on our side (our real estate agent and mortgage agent), the money that was set aside for appliances will now go toward our closing costs and pre-paid expenses!  AWESOME!  Meaning that when we close on the house, we'll pay about $4000 less than what we would have.  AND we can use that money to buy whatever we'd like (we'll buy the appliances and replace the electrical box).  So, it's actually a better deal than what we had before.  Point for the little guys!  This roller coaster ride has amazingly lasted four days... The final little nervous twitch that I am currently experiencing has to do with the exterior and interior painting that had to get done by TOMORROW..... too bad it's supposed to rain and be 45 degrees tomorrow.  I guess we will have to put our faith in the process and believe it will all work out.  (hello- we know it will- it always does- it's just a nerve wracking time)

Nick and I very randomly stopped by the house on Tuesday to just walk around and look at what will be ours in 11 days.  We've gotten really serious about our "to-do" list and it is LONG!   We'll post it when we finish it....which may take a little bit of time.  Check out the wonderful lilacs that are blooming next to our (future!) deck.

I love them!
I love our new house!
I love my family and friends!
I especially love Nick!

good night!

What we're working on this week

Patiently waiting- two more weeks!  14 days.  Seriously?!??!!!!  So close!

Anyways, here's a little run down of what we're working on this week.

1. Finding a washer and dryer- we're searching Craigslist for a waster and dryer.  A fancy, brand new set is out of our current budget- but that's okay.  We're open minded and willing to buy used.  So, we're deal hunting online. 

2. We bought a bathroom cabinet/sink base thing from Menards on Sunday.  My phone camera was acting weird when we were in the store and now the base thing is in Nick's Jeep so you'll have to wait on a picture.  We're now searching/researching sinks for the cabinet/base.  Did we mention that the master bathroom needs.... well.... a lot of work.  Like- the previous owners must have been in the process of updating it and then got foreclosed on.    Check it out. 

Oh yea, she could use some elbow grease and maybe a working toilet....  ahh- luckily, Nick and I look at this little hiccup and see the potential.  I mean really- this space has potential if you let yourself believe it.
Get back to me in 2 months- my opinion about that bathroom might be different then.

3. Finally- we're working with the bank's realstate agent to get a few things finalized prior to closing.  We're so close!  Unfortunately, he's the worst- he only deals with foreclosures and now I know why. He is very slow about getting back to our realstate agent even when she contacts him multiple times per day. And he will only e-mail her- even when she leaves him a voicemail, says it's urgent, and requests that he calls her back asap.  One word, e-mail reply. Lame.  Oh well- only two weeks left to interact with him and we'll be home!! 

4. Finally, we're busy with the day to day stuff around here.  Making dinner, general cleaning, work, and Grad School.  Ahhh- grad school - lame but essential.  I really enjoy my masters degree program in Gifted and Talented Education- but wish I had a little more time to devote to it.  (Don't we all wish we had a little extra time?) 

Well, I better finish up the grading that I took a break from about an hour ago.  Love to all!