Week 12 . . .

Monday night was our first formal meal at home at the dining table, it was great! Kevin chose the seat facing the TV which does not make me happy. We had spaghetti, not a favorite of the kids but it was quick and easy. Monday's are my worst day at work so Kevin cooked for us. He also was able to get the last set of blinds cut down for our bedroom so now all the blinds are in place!

No, this isn't my table but I have every piece of Fiesta you see in this picture!

This was the last set of blinds that needed cutting down. Kevin was able to get them in place so no more curtains! Still no light/ceiling fan in bedroom so we are using a floor lamp and our trusty vertical fan. This is Grandma Rice's credenza I believe she purchased in the 60's. I thought it was very unique and snatched it up when Linda asked me if there was anything of hers I wanted. The window seat will eventually be in this spot and then I will have to figure out what to do with the credenza!

Tuesday morning the dogs managed to knock one of the boards down on the picket fence and wander around the neighborhood. It cost us $135 to pick them up at the pound, aaahhh, city life. Kevin was told if Howdy gets picked up again it will be $300! I think Lydia needs to write a story about the adventures of Howdy and Maddie!
I finally got the kitchen all neat looking thanks to Lydia's help. While I cooked dinner, she cleared off the cabinets & put things up. Rolan brought over a night stand that looks like a tiny dresser for me to put in my closet for my "unmentionables." Between work, cooking dinner and getting some rest in the evenings, it is just sitting there waiting for Saturday to come around.
Either Kevin or Lydia hit some unknown button on the remote and messed up TV so I had to start going through unopened boxes in search of the TV remote so I could solve the problem. That's when I came across more boxes on the back porch for David! He just thought he was getting it all unpacked, but wait . . . , there's more! All of this didn't go over well with Kevin because he was wanting to watch the election results.
We went to vote with our old address and the workers recognized Kevin and mentioned that we were faithful voters. That made me sad because that was our last time to use that polling site :-(. I was also impressed that it was all computerized now! They were able to see that we had moved! We are already officially registered at our new address! Somebody in the Federal Government is on top of things for once!
Kevin had to add caulk in the bathtub because there was major gap between the tub and wall, we don't want any rot, that's for sure!

On Wednesday Kevin finally removed the ceiling fan from the bathroom! That made him and David very happy so now they can stand tall in the bathroom no matter what they are doing! Amy came over and helped me decide what to do with bookcase now that the armoire has to be in the living room. I really wanted the case in the living room but we ended up agreeing that it should go in the dining room. Having huge furniture pieces you don't want to part with in a small house can be challenging! Now to get the books unpacked. After I do that, almost all the boxes will be done.Yippee! I have always hated the unpacking part....

Look! No ceiling fan! Men no longer fear using the potty and losing their head in the Poer house.

Amy also came over and helped me decide where to put the bookcase! Since the armoir is now in the living room it looked awkward for the bookcase and the armoir to be on the same wall and there wasn't enough room on the opposite wall for the bookcase. So, she and I decided it would look good on a wall in the dining room. Now, if I could just find a moment to get the books unpacked on the shelves!

I wanted it on the adjacent wall to the left but it ended up hanging over into the doorway because of the molding on top of the bookcase.

On Thursday Kevin hung my hooks for me in the shower for our sponges and washcloth. The kids were out at football games in Weatherford and Millsap so Kevin and I ate alone and had some ice cream from Dairy Queen. It's nice when the kids are out, having dessert isn't as expensive.

Friday the electrician, Eason Electric, came and set us up for the washer and dryer and gave Kevin some helpful advice for other electrical work that needs to be done.

On Saturday we were all guilty of being lazy! Finally around 1p we got it in gear. Rain was in the forecast and we still had several boxes on the backporch. I put David to work getting certain boxes in certain places. After that I showed him and Lydia what needed to be taken out of the garage and put in the house so we could organize and put some other items in the garage that we aren't quiet ready for yet. I went to Lowe's and ordered our washer/dryer for Sunday delivery. Kevin worked on getting the utility closet ready for its new occupants.

Today, Sunday, we got busy installing our new a/c/heater unit in the dining room. Sounds simple but it took a while to read the directions and figure out what they were saying! We finally got it done. It doesn't seem much is there to hold up the unit so Kevin talked to his dad about adding some braces for support. It looks nice and now I don't have to worry about decorating around an a/c or gas heater in the living room. After that Kevin had to install a 220 outlet for the new unit in the dining room.

While Kevin was working on the outlet, I was busy unpacking in our bedroom. My Aunt Jackie came up with a small chest of drawers she had used for a nightstand for me to use in my closet (the one I mentioned earlier that Rolan brought over). The kids had brought in the fancy secretary that Kevin will be using temporarily for his t-shirts, wildrags and a few other items. After he gets shelves in his closet, he will be moving those items because he is not going to like all that bending over to get his t-shirts and shorts!

Jackie has allowed me to keep up with this beautiful piece of furniture for several years. I love it! I think it officially belongs to me by common law plus that whole possession is 9 tenths of the law! Notice the bed ruffle hanging to the right in the doorway. We still have not gotten the doors up and I have no idea where they fall in Kevin's list of priorities. I do know when he went to 1st Monday last weekend, he found another glass door knob!

This is the little chest Jackie is letting me borrow. I need to get some new knobs for it but it works perfect for what I needed. Now if I could just get a closet door to hang my shoe bag on, I'll have it made! I have also decided to beg Kevin to raise my top rod. There is just not enough room for the clothes to hang down straight.

The washer and dryer and showed up on time. It was a challenge for the installers because the floor is not finished or level in the closet but they got 'er done! I began putting loads in as soon as I could and it still going now as I type!

I am standing the bathroom to get the picture! They are so nice. I love the chiming noise they make when they are done, so much nicer than the old bbbuuzzzz noise! I did some researching before we moved and found Samsung on the top of the list for washer and dryers and since I settled for less than Samsung on my TV I decided to go for it on the w/d! The price wasn't really that different that comparable brands.

Well, it was a busy week overall. Doesn't seem like we have gotten a lot done but we are still settling in to the new place. We received most of our deposit back on the rental but will be trying to get more. The landlord is trying to charge us sheetrock repairs in the closets and vanity that were there when we moved in. The previous owner chose not the disclose the fact they were there when the sale to place and she never gave the new owner our walk through check list.

Kevin has off work for Veteran's day and I have no idea what he has planned to do. I do know he is upset because I have to work and the kids have school so he has no one to help him! I'll let you know what he accomplishes next week . . .



Week 10 & 11 . . .

We spent the last two weeks getting moved in and cleaning up the rental. Hopefully we will get all our deposit back less $200 for cleaning the carpet. It would probably cost us that much anyway and the landlord said that is what he would charge if we didn't have it done.

Needless to say, it has been busy with all the packing and beginnings of unpacking. I have added some photos of the process, pretty boring but in the pictures you can also see some things that have been accomplished with the house!

This is the fence Kevin put up with his friend Rob. They had it done by Thursday the weekend before we moved. Howdy and Maddie love the new backyard! They bark at squirrels and cats but other than that they are pretty quiet.

The picket fence is 4 feet tall and Howdy is trying to convince me to come see him so he can slobber on me and I can give him some love!

Our beautiful pack porch is not so pretty right now! These boxes are all kitchen, Lydia's room and some books. Linda and I have unpacked most of the kitchen and I had Lydia move her boxes to her room. Kevin is convinced she has as many boxes as him, myself and David put together. Until I saw them all in her room I thought he was crazy.

Kitchen . . .

We were barely able to walk through the kitchen until Thursday last week! It is amazing what you collect when have two bathrooms. We had four medium size boxes for the bathroom and than doesn't count what I threw away when packing and put in the garage sale box!

This picture was taken while Linda and I were unpacking the kitchen this last Saturday. We had already completed several boxes before I remembered to take pictures for the blog. Oh! We had record breaking temperatures on Saturday so it was very warm while we were unpacking.

There is a large box and medium box stacked in the hallway for the bathroom. You can see the beginnings of us filling up the pantry with cookware and can goods.

Bathroom . . .

Not much to see changing here. I think I have decided to paint the cabinet and medicine cabinet a chocolate brown and do accents in teal. I went to Wal Mart to pick up couple of cheap rugs and ended up getting some designer rugs with brown and teal. That is a color combo I have always like but never thought of for decorating. Kevin bought an extension for the shower head so he and David can stand up straight when showering. The ceiling fan is still in place but he continues to say it is going soon! I installed a hotel shower rod. It is so roomy in the shower.

Lydia's room . . .

There isn't much new in here except Lydia has started using her closet space regardless that it isn't yet completed!

The closet alreay filled to the rim with boxes.

More boxes in the corner! Lydia passed out on Saturday afternoon after her first slumber party.

The lights are her purple Christmas lights. She has already hung one bulletin board. This vanity is just like my mom's vanity except for color of course. I bet we will end up repainting to match Lydia's decor and we also have to find a mirror for it. Once all is settled, I will have to get Lydia some more paint to finish up her room.

This is just Lydia. Nothing house related. I hope you can see Belle stretched out with her. You would have thought she was at the slumber party as well. Although she did wake Kevin and I up twice during the night!

Finally, Lydia's blinds are all up! I could not get the drill to screw in the brackets no matter what I tried. Kevin got them to go right in! She moved her bed to where she can see the comings and goings of the neighbors on the street.

After one full week in the house, Belle is still skiddish.

David's room . . .

Nothing has really been going on in David's room either. He has made it home by tossing all his dirty clothes on the floor, all over! He also has few boxes left to unpack but it is hard without somewhere to put his stuff. He and Linda tried bringing in his desk/dresser and one of the drawer facings fell off. This piece was also Kevin's when he was growing up so this wasn't really surprising! Bob is repairing it for David and he will be unpacked soon.

Mitchell spent the night with him his first night and they were freezing. I had made up Lydia's bed for Mitchell in her room and they moved her mattress into David's room so they could share the space heater and they say it never heated the room.

David's bed and floor covered with clothes.

David's blinds were put up this last weekend.

Master bedroom . . .

Kevin was able to get one of our blinds hung this weekend. He is going to have to cut the other down a little more before he can hang it. He was also able to get all the closet rods hung in our closets and David's this weekend.

Blinds on my side of the bed.

Kevin's closet. He hung 3 rods and they are all full of clothes.

My closet. Notice two rods and the top rod is not full. I think Kevin is going to raise the top rod a little more for me. I used some of longer blouses to help decide how far apart the rods should be but they are still too close together.

Dining Room . . .

This room started out as the collection spot for all the bulky furniture. I placed felt pads on the big pieces which keeps them from scratching up floor but also allows me to scoot them around with ease. My office hutch is all set up now. My dresser that was a free garage sale find is in the left corner. When everything else gets unpacked and our bedroom painted, I will get this piece painted as well. The dining room table sat out on the back porch for almost a week before Kevin and David had time to get it moved it. We haven't eaten at it yet but we probably will this week!

You can't see the dresser very well to the left but you can see the credenza on the right. I'm not sure where that piece will end up going right now. It was suppose to be where the TV was going to sit but that idea was a bust so now it just sits in the dining room waiting for a home.

This is my office hutch where I work Monday - Friday teaching geometry and grading papers. I am planning to set the home computer to the right of the hutch so the kids can use it for their homework, writing, etc. As you can tell, there is miscellaneous items just sitting around everywhere either waiting to be unpacked or we are trying to see where it will fit.

Living Room . . .

There was a progression happening in this room through the last week. It started out as a collection spot for mine and Kevin's closet items! This is also where my kids learned what a gas stove was and what it looked like when lit. Elliott came over last Monday and hung out with DirecTV man who had many challenges installing the cable on the interior wall. I think it took about two hours for him to complete the whole installation.

The pile of clothes in this picture are all mine and few of Kevin's. He had the rods up in his closet and a lot of his had been moved already.

The armoir would not fit in our room after all. It is too deep and we would not have had enough room for walking. I was really bummed about that. For now we are going to continue its former use as an entertainment center. It seems so huge in this living room. In our old house we had 14 foot ceilings so it seemed like a small piece.

Looking from front door into living room. My bookcase is to the left on the other side of the armoir. Now it will not look good on the wall it is currently on because of the armoir in the living room. Amy is hopefully going to come over this week and help decide where to put all my furniture.

Look, no clothes! Well it looks like a coat is hung on the rocker, didn't notice it until I took the picture! Now to find the quilt rack so we can get our blankets off the floor.

Well that is where we are for now. We will probably still be unpacking and deciding where to put it all this time next week! Kevin has started finishing up some of smaller cosmetic items, like door facings. I will be cooking most of our dinners at home, yippee!

Week 9 . . .

There is so much happening already this week I thought I would start updating now! I think I am going to switch it up a bit as well, instead of room by room, I am going day by day.

Sunday . . .
Lydia and I worked on staining the floor in the master bedroom, hallway and living room. By the time that was completed it was too dark to varnish the master bedroom so we went home. Lydia and I both forgot to bring the good camera so I took a few pictures of the living room with my phone.

This probably shows the true colors of the wall and floor best in the living room.

You see our pile of supplies in bottom right corner. We kept them all piled on a trash bag since the stain was so permanent, we didn't want any accidents. We also sat a lot waiting for stain to absorb. Roll a section, then wait 10 minutes and wipe off excess, again and again. This is what takes so long. We wiped up excess with t-shirt material that Levi at Home Depot gave us! What a guy! When we ran out later, I just tore up some of my own. After first wipe in master bedroom, we both dawned gloves from then on, it still looks like I've been rooting with the pigs around my fingernails!

This is just a picture of the completed living room before varnish.

Supplies we used on floors . . .

 

I applied stain with paint roller. I found that to be much easier than by hand and I believe it was a more uniform coverage. The roller was lamb's wool for smooth to semi-smooth surfaces. In the dining room I switched to roller for smooth surfaces and there was a lot less splatter. The splatter is pain if it is out of reach on the floor and you can't wipe it up. The polyurethane said it must dry for 6 hours before applying the second coat or you will have to sand the floor before the second coat if you wait beyond 8 hours. Well, I waited beyond 8 hours, it was actually 14 so we will see how it goes because I did not sand the 1st coat.

Kevin worked on the pen for Howdy and Maddie until dark. He started setting poles for the new privacy panels he is planning to put up on Thursday and Friday. He then laid padding down in David's room for the laminate wood flooring and was able to get about 1/2 the room completed with flooring before calling it quits.

Monday . . .

Kevin was able to finish setting the poles in Howdy and Maddie's pen. He moved on to finish David's flooring. By then it was time to get home to bed for work tomorrow. He gave David a job to lay all the padding down for Lydia's room. I think David was happy to have some responsibility because he went after that floor like white on rice!

The back posts are wood for the privacy fence.

The front poles are metal (I'm not sure why) for the picket fence. Kevin didn't want the dogs to be completely cut off from us with all privacy fencing.

David's room. This is looking from his doorway to opposite corner.

This is looking from corner towards his doorway.

David's job of putting down Lydia's padding.

Looking from other side of her room.

I started the evening by applying varnish to master bedroom and living room and finished with Lydia and I applying stain to dining room floor. David helped a little towards the end.

Floor after 1st coat of varnish. I noticed the spots on the picture again so I went and cleaned the lens and re-took the picture.

The spots were worse! I thought something was seriously wrong with Lydia's camera! I went home and researched on the web and found out that those are dust particles that are reflecting off the flash! My first thought is GROSS! My second thought is, my varnish!

The little hallway! Evidently there is no dust in the hall!

This picture shows the true color of the floor better but the flash was too bright. I love the color but still not too happy with the finished product. I wanted a streaked worn look like our bedroom but the wood did not want it. The streaks you see here are not intentional.

I just put this picture in so we could see there is more dust settling on the varnish!!!

This is the living room after 1st coat has dried. The next picture is a better representation of the color.

Looking from dining room towards northeast corner of living room.

Looking from front door towards dining room. The dining room has not had varnish applied yet in this picture.

Tuesday . . .

Kevin was not feeling well today. I think it is a combination of a lot of work with no break, horrible eating habits this last 2 weeks, and stress at work. He just went to the house, took a nap, ate something that would go easy on his stomach and watched some TV.

The kids started packing their rooms. David is almost done and Lydia has just got started. She has stacks of boxes in her room and it looks like she hasn't even begun. Like her mom, she'll learn to start letting things go because it is a hassle to keep packing and unpacking until you get settled somewhere.

Linda came over Monday and Tuesday to pack up most of our kitchen for me! She also took some bigger, bulkier items over to the house.

Some of Lydia's boxes. We had to have a discussion on how to pack boxes and get as much as you can in them. She is not the organizing type although she swears she is.

These are couple of boxes that she hadn't unpacked since we moved out of our old house 2 years ago.

More of Lydia's packed boxes, some from old house and some from now!

Lydia's closet! She has a lot of packing to do!

Lydia's bedroom, scary . . .

David's closet after packing. He is my organizing minimalist.

All his packed boxes from old house and current.

All the boxes Linda packed. There are some at end of bar that you can't see. This is so much weight off my back! She packed a lot of decorations as well.