Moving on Up

When we moved to Seneca, we didn't have a house. We lived with my parents until we found and purchased our current home. It was a great deal and something we planned on being at least somewhat temporary. We wanted to live in it and fix it up, and then turn it into a rental property eventually. It's a little smaller than we wanted, only a one car garage, and doesn't have a basement. We have been keeping our eye on the housing market and in yesterday's paper I noticed a house for sale that seemed to meet almost all of our wants. I called about it this morning and we planned to look at it the first of next week. As Brett thought about it, he decided that we probably better jump on this house since they don't seem to stick around too long. So we looked at it early this afternoon.

The house is pretty nice from the outside. It could use an updated pair of garage doors, and probably some new exterior doors at some point as well. There is an older shed in the backyard that needs some new shingles and a new paint job. I was anxious to see what the inside was like. When we walked in, the living room was pretty spacious. It needed a good cleaning and fresh paint but it was nice. Next was the kitchen. It was pretty large with quite a bit of counter space but the arrangement just made it seem really crowded. It's livable for now, but something we would definitely want to open up to the living room at some point. There were three good sized bedrooms on the main floor, all needing new carpet and fresh paint. The bathroom also needs a facelift but it's roomy enough and not in too bad of shape.

The basement was the next part of the house we saw. It was HUGE although it did need some work. All the walls were paneling and the ceiling wasn't in very good shape. The carpet was pretty old as well. But there was a very big family room, two other rooms blocked off to be used as bedrooms (one had a closet but the other did not and neither had fire safety windows). There was also a small kitchenette in another room that housed the water heater and furnace, and there was a bathroom with a concrete shower. In addition to all that, there was an unfinished storage area. The garage was spacious as well. It was a two car garage but had a lot of space toward the back for all kinds of boy toys. There is a patio out back that was in good shape, as was the yard and landscaping for the most part.

We found out that the house had already had a couple of other offers but that the seller was ready to get rid of it, and would accept a reasonable offer. Brett and I both really liked this house and the potential it had. Nothing needs to be done right now (except paint and bedroom carpeting) but we could definitely make it into something we love over time. The location is nice, and only about 1/2 block or so from my parents. So we decided to proceed with what we felt was a very reasonable offer that she would hopefully accept. As it turned out, she accepted it and we are hoping to close at the end of May. We are scheduling an inspection for next week and had already spoken to the bank a few weeks back about a different house that we put a higher offer in on. So it looks like things are going to move along nicely and we should be moving (again) in June. I am very excited about this house!

Landscaping Before and After

Since the interior of our house is pretty much complete (with the exception of the baseboards and some light fixtures) and the weather has warmed up, we have started working on the exterior. So far, we have planted some grass in the front yard where there were lots of bare spots due to the previous caretaker using Round Up rather than weed eating. We also pulled out the old "landscaping" in the front of our house and replaced it with new.

When we first looked at the house, the front bushes were ridiculously overgrown. In fact, it wasn't even possible to get in the front door at that time. Pretty much as soon as we took possession, my dad came over and helped pull them out with chains and his truck. Then we were left with a gravel bed (I know, who uses gravel for landscaping?) with some plastic weed mat sticking out that looked like trash bags blowing around. Bricks were used as edging.

Once the weather warmed up, we scooped out all the old rock and removed the weed mat. Brett tilled the area and we put down new weed mat and planted some boxwood bushes (which will grow to 2-3 feet) and asiatic lilies. We covered it with dark brown mulch and added some solar lights that we had gotten for Christmas. Brett later added edging that is made out of some type of composite material that isn't supposed to rot.

We had also taken off the old shutters and repainted the mailbox a while back. After the landscaping, we removed the old iron porch railing. Eventually, we want to add some traditional white slatted shutters and a white vinyl porch railing. But for now, this facelift is pretty refreshing.

Master Bedroom Before and After

This post is the first of many "before and afters" of our new home. We purchased the house in October, did a lot of renovations, and moved into a "livable" house in December. A few months later, the inside is getting very close to completion. We still have some lighting/electrical and trim to do. But our bedroom is pretty much complete at this point. Pictures hardly do justice to the transformation this house has undergone.

Before, the room was painted white and very dirty. It didn't look like anything in the house had been wiped down for a long, long time. There was wooden trim and cracks in the sheetrock under the windows. The wall coverings were outdated and the carpet was old and icky.

After, the room is light and uplifting. The paint we chose I believe was called Warm Chinchilla. We painted all the trim white and put up white faux wood blinds. It's difficult to see with the furniture, but we uncovered the hardwood floors. Although we had the floors in the rest of the main level sanded down and re-stained, we opted to leave the floor in this room as it was. We also added an oil rubbed bronze doorknob and will be replacing the outdated and simple light fixture with a more modern ceiling fan.

I look forward to showing you the rest of the house soon... once we get the trim up so it has a more "finished" look. Although it is much smaller than we're used to, we are enjoying our cozy little home.

Farewell, Maggie

Many of you might think this is crazy. I would have never thought it to be possible just a few years ago. But we found a new home for one of our dogs, Maggie. Ever since we moved, having two dogs has been more than we can handle. Well, we can handle it but it isn't the best situation for our dogs.

For one thing, they get really crazy when they see people or animals outside or if someone comes over. They bark and bark and are really hard to control. Then our other dog, Baxter, bit one of our neighbors who came over shortly after we moved in. We are lucky he is a super nice guy and didn't report it because it was a real bite. We've been much more aware since then and ALWAYS make sure he is locked up if someone comes over. But because of how crazy they get, they end up being in the crate a lot. Even when I am working from home they have to be crated because I never know when I'll get a phone call and they will start barking about something they see or hear outside. Same thing for when Ky is sleeping. We don't take them out much because the two of them feed off each other and hardly ever stop barking if we cross paths with someone. We also moved into a much smaller house without a fenced in yard. And Maggie sheds terribly. I can vacuum the rug and as soon as she walks through the room, it needs vacuumed again.

So, we had been sort of joking about it, and then sort of talking about it, and finally I decided I was going to see if I could re-home Maggie. She really is a good dog - great with kids, completely housebroken, and super sweet. We knew we couldn't get rid of Baxter because of his biting so if we were going to go down to one dog it had to be the "good dog." We hope that this will allow us to socialize Baxter more and cause him to be less aggressive (although we will never trust him completely again).

Today we found a couple who really wanted Maggie. They drove a good distance to come meet her and get her. They had had their previous dog for 17 years so that is a great sign. They came with a couple of their grandkids and Maggie was in heaven with them. She didn't even look back at us wondering what was going on. As they drove off, she was looking out the window and you could just tell she had one of those doggie smiles. We were totally honest and open about her quirks and they didn't mind a bit. She now has a fenced in yard with a privacy fence and a family that loves her. We offered to pay for half of her vaccines because she was a couple of months behind and they declined our offer which tells me she is in a good place. I even received an update already that she played hard and crashed on one of the blankets we sent with her. I know without a doubt that she will receive a lot more attention and less time in her crate than when she was here. We told them that they could return her at any time for any reason. We just want her to be in the best home possible.

We miss her already. Baxter isn't sure what to do by himself since he has always had Maggie around. And I'm glad we made Kyler stop playing at the park to say bye-bye to Maggie and watch her leave with her new family. Tonight he grabbed one of their balls and said "here Wong-wong" (his name for her) and walked around looking for her but ended up at the crate saying "here you go, Baxter" when Wong-wong didn't come. I was able to say "remember Wong-wong went bye-bye at the park." He said "yeah." So I think he sort of understands.

Even though we thought taking Maggie in was for her entire life, that didn't end up being the case. I realize we are being a bit selfish but at the same time I truly think she will be happier there. We had many mixed emotions (and still do) about doing this and it wasn't an easy decision. But hopefully it is the best for all involved.

"Loosing" the Grammar Game

Yes I know that "loosing" is not the correct word there. I read a lot of blogs and one thing that drives me CRAZY is the use of "loose" instead of "lose." It seems that about a third of the blogs I read get that one wrong. And some bloggers use it all the time. So please let me know if I am annoying you with any poor grammar in my blogs. I don't care about a typo here or there but repetitive mistakes are bothersome to me.

March Menu

Thursday, 3/1 - leftovers

Friday, 3/2 - baked fish with rice

Saturday, 3/3 - stromboli, southwestern eggrolls

Sunday, 3/4 - chicken pot pie

Monday, 3/5 - chicken cordon bleu casserole

Tuesday, 3/6 - leftovers

Wednesday, 3/7 - white chicken enchiladas

Thursday, 3/8 - leftovers

Friday, 3/9 - fish & noodles

Saturday, 3/10 - Freddy's

Sunday, 3/11 - taco lasagna

Monday, 3/12 - smoked pork chops with crunchy spaetzle

Tuesday, 3/13 - leftovers

Wednesday, 3/14 - chicken soup with spaetzle

Thursday, 3/15 - leftovers

Friday, 3/16 - knoephla soup

Saturday, 3/17 - chicken a la king

Sunday, 3/18 - chicken nuggets with macaroni and cheese

Monday 3/19 - roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy and dinner rolls

Tuesday, 3/20 - leftovers

Wednesday, 3/21 - stuffed shells with breadsticks

Thursday, 3/22 - leftovers

Friday, 3/23 - chicken pillows

Saturday, 3/24 - meatball garlic bread with spaghetti

Sunday, 3/25 - runza roll-up

Monday, 3/26 - pizza and breadsticks

Tuesday, 3/27 - leftovers

Wednesday, 3/28 - pollo magnifico

Thursday, 3/29 - leftovers

Friday, 3/30 - crock pot chicken and dumplings

Saturday, 3/31- ham with baked mashed potatoes topped with kraut

Lenten Promises

Today is Fat Tuesday. How did that happen? I knew it was coming but it came really fast!

I will be following the Catholic guidelines of fasting on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday (not eating between meals) and abstaining from meat on Ash Wednesday and all Fridays through Lent. Last year I didn't do so well. I would end up going out to eat and forgetting I wasn't supposed to be eating meat. Hopefully this year will be easier since I will be eating most of my meals at home.

Additionally, as a couple and for our family, Brett and I are giving up "screen time" while Kyler is awake. This means no television, computer, or phone (besides making and receiving calls). Skyping with distant family and work that can't wait until he's in bed are the only exceptions. (Because I'm a tax accountant it probably isn't realistic for me to never have to get on my computer for work during this time of year.)

Finally, we will not have any excuses to miss church during Lent. We have been doing okay at going every week but just this past weekend we skipped.

Do you participate in Lent? If so, what are your Lenten promises?

Happy Fat Tuesday and good luck with your Lenten promises!

February Menu

Here is my ever-changing February menu. I did a two-week menu to reduce our grocery store visits and then have extended it along the way as our dinner plans change. Here's what it looks like:

Monday, 2/6 - spaghetti, crescent rolls, corn, oranges

Tuesday, 2/7 - hamburger macaroni and cheese, corn, applesauce

Wednesday, 2/8 - oven baked Frito pie, corn, strawberries, magic peanut butter middles

Thursday, 2/9 - chicken spaghetti, green beans, applesauce

Friday, 2/10 - eating out with friends

Saturday, 2/11 - sticky bun breakfast ring, Old Chicago (gift card) for dinner

Sunday, 2/12 - leftovers

Monday, 2/13 - leftovers, sugar cookies for Ky's Valentine treats

Tuesday, 2/14 - leftovers

Wednesday, 2/15 - dinner at parents'

Thursday, 2/16 - dinner at parents'

Friday, 2/17 - prime rib at golf course

Saturday, 2/18 - hot ham and cheese for lunch, french dip sandwiches and American fries for dinner

Sunday, 2/19 - honey beer bread and knoephla soup, slow cooker chicken and dumplings for dinner

Monday, 2/20 - ham and bean soup, cornbread, apples with fruit dip

Tuesday, 2/21 - leftovers

Wednesday, 2/22 - fish and hash browns at Mom's

Thursday, 2/23 - chicken pillows, green beans, apples

Friday, 2/24 - tortellini spinach bake with Olive Garden breadsticks, strawberry shortcakes

Saturday, 2/25 - pizza grilled cheese with leftover green beans for lunch, family get-together with pizza for dinner

Sunday, 2/26 - Windmill for Grandpa's birthday lunch, leftovers for dinner

Monday, 2/27 - French onion soup

Tuesday, 2/28 - French bread pizza, carrots, applesauce

Wednesday, 2/29 - cream cheese spaghetti with homemade slow cooker marinara sauce, corn, apples

Cooking Tip: Softened Butter

It seems like I am constantly getting a recipe out to make something and it calls for softened butter. But I never have the foresight to set my butter out for an hour or so to soften. So I set out to find some tricks on softening butter. My favorite idea was to grate it if it's going in something that gets mixed up anyway. To avoid getting my grater dirty, I'll probably just go with another method of cutting it into small pieces so it softens faster. A third option would be to put it between two pieces of wax paper and roll it into a 1/4 to 1/8 inch piece where it would soften very quickly. While I was at it, I looked for ideas on softening cream cheese. Turns out you just microwave it. Good deal - that's what I've done all along!

P.S. You don't want to microwave your butter to soften it since it will heat unevenly and you will have some melted butter. This makes baked goods turn out poorly. Some say you can do very short intervals on a low setting but I haven't yet had a successful attempt.

Weekly Menu

Here's this week's menu:

Monday - German casserole (ham/potatoes/saurkraut), peaches

Tuesday - baked cream cheese spaghetti, grapes, salad

Wednesday - stromboli, salad, grapes

Thursday - loaded baked potato soup, applesauce, veggie tray

Friday - pizza, salad w/ breadsticks, oranges

Saturday - chili, cinnamon rolls, veggie tray, oranges

Sunday - chicken and black bean enchilada casserole with homemade tortillas, oranges


Desserts for the Week:
- Chocolate covered pretzels
- Microwave Pizookie with vanilla ice cream
- Ice cream