We finished submitting all our documents to the bank yesterday, and pre-signed a lot of our closing documents. My agent is STILL waiting to hear from the selling bank and the closing date is still up in the air. We have resigned ourselves to the fact that we will be paying rent for the month of November. I just hope our closing date doesn't get extended TOO long. I want to get settled well ahead of the holidays, and aside from that, we are just anxious to get on with our lives! It has only been two months since we first started looking for houses, but it seriously feels like it has been an eternity at this point!
Last weekend, Tadd and I went to the flea market (or the "dirt mall" as we like to call it...any guesses what movie that is from?) and wandered for awhile until the 90+ degree heat got the better of us and we HAD to get out of there. Almost left emptyhanded, until we happened past a booth that was looking to completely rid itself of its inventory. In the very front of the booth was a 5-tier corner shelf unit thingie. It's about 4 feet tall with shelves that get gradually larger from top to bottom. Not the most spectacular item, but I thought it had potential. We got it for $10! Score! I know I want to paint it, but can't decide what color yet. It will be a great spot to hold some fun knick knacks and help to fill up space in the house. At least until we are able to actually afford to properly furnish all this extra square footage we are about to move into.
Not much on the agenda this weekend that has to do with the house...Tonight we are going to see my brother's band New Man play in downtown Orlando. Tomorrow, we are going to the Food & Wine Festival at Epcot! Busy weekend indeed.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Fun with stencils!
Tadd (who actually tends to be slightly more crafty than me at times) and I were roaming the craft store yesterday, when we came across some really cute stencils. He suggested we buy a few, plus some blank canvases and try to make some art for our new house. I thought it sounded like a simple enough project, so we bought the stencils, canvases, some cheap sponge brushes, and four tubes of paint and headed home.
I spread out an old shower curtain on the floor of the living room, put on our DVD copy of Ratatouille (we are big Pixar fans), and we got to work.
Here is what we started with:
Tadd wanted to do two long, skinny canvases, and I wanted one big square one. His idea was to paint one black and one white, then take the bamboo stencil and do layers of different shades of green, going from light to dark, and then dark to light. I honestly wasn't sure what I was going to do with mine when I started. I just kind of played with the stencil shapes as I went. Here is a work-in-progress pic:
Tadd's is hard to see, but at that point, he had only done the darkest shades of green, so it kind of had a tone-on-tone effect against the black.
And here are some finished products. Tadd's black canvas is done, and he has started on the white one. And mine is completely done.
Mine is going to probably go somewhere in the master suite, probably in the bathroom. Tadd's will go into his "man den". It was a really fun project, and very easy.
I spread out an old shower curtain on the floor of the living room, put on our DVD copy of Ratatouille (we are big Pixar fans), and we got to work.
Here is what we started with:
Tadd wanted to do two long, skinny canvases, and I wanted one big square one. His idea was to paint one black and one white, then take the bamboo stencil and do layers of different shades of green, going from light to dark, and then dark to light. I honestly wasn't sure what I was going to do with mine when I started. I just kind of played with the stencil shapes as I went. Here is a work-in-progress pic:
Tadd's is hard to see, but at that point, he had only done the darkest shades of green, so it kind of had a tone-on-tone effect against the black.
And here are some finished products. Tadd's black canvas is done, and he has started on the white one. And mine is completely done.
Mine is going to probably go somewhere in the master suite, probably in the bathroom. Tadd's will go into his "man den". It was a really fun project, and very easy.
Friday, September 18, 2009
I'm back...and very tired.
Back from my whirlwind trip to NYC. Had a great time, but I'm so sad it was so short. Weather was overcast, but the temperature was perfect! And it never rained.
I attended an event at the Central Park Boathouse, which was lovely. Then we went to an after party at the W in Times Square. LOVED Times Square! Loved Central Park too, but there is just something about Times Square...magical! I told my husband we HAVE to go back on a real vacation. I think he would love it there.
I came back to some problems with the house...could be potentially good, but it's still making me nervous. The bank did their appraisal and it came to $8000 less than the offer we made. Our agent is in the process of renegotiating our offer down to what it is worth. It means everything is currently in a holding pattern...But getting the house for $8k less than what we thought we were going to be paying sounds VERY appealing. I just hope it all gets ironed out and we can keep the same 10/15 closing date. Tadd and I already got time off approved for the week after closing so we could paint/fix up the house and move. I just want this process to be OVER so I can start focusing on the move!
I attended an event at the Central Park Boathouse, which was lovely. Then we went to an after party at the W in Times Square. LOVED Times Square! Loved Central Park too, but there is just something about Times Square...magical! I told my husband we HAVE to go back on a real vacation. I think he would love it there.
I came back to some problems with the house...could be potentially good, but it's still making me nervous. The bank did their appraisal and it came to $8000 less than the offer we made. Our agent is in the process of renegotiating our offer down to what it is worth. It means everything is currently in a holding pattern...But getting the house for $8k less than what we thought we were going to be paying sounds VERY appealing. I just hope it all gets ironed out and we can keep the same 10/15 closing date. Tadd and I already got time off approved for the week after closing so we could paint/fix up the house and move. I just want this process to be OVER so I can start focusing on the move!
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Off to NYC!
I'm heading to NYC for a couple of days to attend a work event. Excited! I've never been there. Wish I had more time to do fun stuff...
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Fridges and furniture...
Went refrigerator shopping today. We want a nice one, but are trying to keep it around $800. We went to the Sears scratch & dent outlet and a huge local appliance warehouse. I tend to not like the side-by-sides as much as the ones with the freezer drawers on the bottom, mostly because I feel like the side-by-sides are too narrow on either side. But I am pretty much open to either type.
It seems like our price range dictates that we either get ice/water on the door and get a side-by-side, or we get the freezer drawer type with no ice/water on the door. Decisions, decisions! We found a really great Kenmore side-by-side at the Sears Outlet for about $650 (original price was $1100)! It had the slightest ding on the front, but you really had to know it was there to see it. That was probably the best bargain we found. I would post pics, but fridges kind of look the same. At least, I started to feel that way after all the shopping we did today...
On the way home, we checked another thrift store. OMG! Junk! And everything was filthy. It made Goodwill and Salvation Army look like high-end palaces! It was not a total loss though...the thrift store was next to a used furniture store, so we decided to check it out. It was like a cross between an antique store and the furniture section at Salvation Army. I LOVED IT!!! I'm so glad we found this place. They even had a section in the back where everything was 50% off. We found some Ethan Allan armchairs for $60! And some other random cool stuff. We didn't actually buy anything, just browsed around, but we will DEFINITELY be back.
It seems like our price range dictates that we either get ice/water on the door and get a side-by-side, or we get the freezer drawer type with no ice/water on the door. Decisions, decisions! We found a really great Kenmore side-by-side at the Sears Outlet for about $650 (original price was $1100)! It had the slightest ding on the front, but you really had to know it was there to see it. That was probably the best bargain we found. I would post pics, but fridges kind of look the same. At least, I started to feel that way after all the shopping we did today...
On the way home, we checked another thrift store. OMG! Junk! And everything was filthy. It made Goodwill and Salvation Army look like high-end palaces! It was not a total loss though...the thrift store was next to a used furniture store, so we decided to check it out. It was like a cross between an antique store and the furniture section at Salvation Army. I LOVED IT!!! I'm so glad we found this place. They even had a section in the back where everything was 50% off. We found some Ethan Allan armchairs for $60! And some other random cool stuff. We didn't actually buy anything, just browsed around, but we will DEFINITELY be back.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Thrift store finds...
Laptop is still broken, so I am posting when I can. Hopefully I can post some pics of the loot I got this weekend while thrifting & bargain hunting. We spent about $50 on:
- a wooden lamp base (we plan on painting)
- some decorative wooden yard stakes with Halloween decorations on the top (one is a pumpkin, the other is a ghost)
- two ADORABLE(!!!!) vases...they are teal with white graphic flowers on them (0.99 each!)
- a pair of tall iron candle holders w/ fleur de lis at the top
- a really pretty yellow ceramic flower pot/vase
- a decorative cement ball thing with a fleur de lis (I really like those, if you couldn't tell)
- a Halloween plate with a black cat on it
- a black wrought iron scrolly table-top plate/frame holder to hold the Halloween plate
- two pieces of metal wall art...they are reddish/brownish squares with a gold scroll pattern on them
- and a book for Tadd (not really for the house, but we did buy it at the Salvation Army while we were buying some of the other stuff)
Monday, September 7, 2009
Stupid laptop!
Laptop is broken. Meant to post more, but this has caused problems for me and my plans.
Quick update: Got the inspection report back and no major problems! Just a few things here and there that need fixing. Luckily I married a handy man.
Drove by the house today with my brother and Tadd's best friend Rick. We got to walk around the property and peek in the windows! I was dying to get inside.
Also, bought a TON of stuff over the weekend for the house. Hopefully husband can fix the laptop soon so I can get back to sharing!
Quick update: Got the inspection report back and no major problems! Just a few things here and there that need fixing. Luckily I married a handy man.
Drove by the house today with my brother and Tadd's best friend Rick. We got to walk around the property and peek in the windows! I was dying to get inside.
Also, bought a TON of stuff over the weekend for the house. Hopefully husband can fix the laptop soon so I can get back to sharing!
Friday, September 4, 2009
Inspiration
I have been extremely stressed about all the things we have to do over the next few months. Our home inspection is this weekend, which is something I'm somewhat afraid of, because we are buying a foreclosure and will not have recourse to go back and ask the sellers to fix anything. We are buying as-is. On the positive side, the house was built in 2005, so the chances of there being major problems is pretty low, but you just never know.
To get my mind off of the stress, I am spending time thinking about what I want to DO with this house. We are moving from a 1000 sqft 2/2 apartment to a 2800 sqft 4/2.5 house, so there will be quite a bit more space for us to decorate.
Lately there are two rooms I have been really thinking about...The kitchen & the guestroom. Although I love the kitchen layout (two pantries and a prep sink in the island!), I'm not too fond of the finishes (honey oak cabinets w/ no hardware, beige laminate counters, vinyl floors...yuck), so to start, we would really like to paint the cabinets a creamy white, and paint the walls a sunny yellow. I really want to go with a French Bistro type look, using this Vera Bradley fabric as inspiration for the color palette:
I don't necessarily want busy floral patterns everywhere, but I tend to like graphic floral prints and I love the swirly vines in this print. I was thinking a black & white tie-up curtain on the window over the sink (maybe some kind of stripe?), lots of black & white French accessories above the cabinets...maybe some fleur de lis, some black wroght iron scrolly wall art. Lots of black and white decor against the yellow walls.
For the guest room, I really wanted to do something different from my regular style. I decided I want to do a blue & white motif that suggests "seaside" without being overly "beachy". I saw this beautiful, very simple framed photo of sand dollars, which is what inspired me:
Maybe some bedding like this:
My parents are giving us my younger sister's bedroom set (which actually used to be mine...I picked it out when I was 9 years old!) and we plan on painting the tall dresser, short dresser, mirror, and nightstand white. There is also a desk with hutch, which we plan on painting an antique black and using in the loft (which we currently plan to turn into an office).
To get my mind off of the stress, I am spending time thinking about what I want to DO with this house. We are moving from a 1000 sqft 2/2 apartment to a 2800 sqft 4/2.5 house, so there will be quite a bit more space for us to decorate.
Lately there are two rooms I have been really thinking about...The kitchen & the guestroom. Although I love the kitchen layout (two pantries and a prep sink in the island!), I'm not too fond of the finishes (honey oak cabinets w/ no hardware, beige laminate counters, vinyl floors...yuck), so to start, we would really like to paint the cabinets a creamy white, and paint the walls a sunny yellow. I really want to go with a French Bistro type look, using this Vera Bradley fabric as inspiration for the color palette:
I don't necessarily want busy floral patterns everywhere, but I tend to like graphic floral prints and I love the swirly vines in this print. I was thinking a black & white tie-up curtain on the window over the sink (maybe some kind of stripe?), lots of black & white French accessories above the cabinets...maybe some fleur de lis, some black wroght iron scrolly wall art. Lots of black and white decor against the yellow walls.
For the guest room, I really wanted to do something different from my regular style. I decided I want to do a blue & white motif that suggests "seaside" without being overly "beachy". I saw this beautiful, very simple framed photo of sand dollars, which is what inspired me:
Maybe some bedding like this:
My parents are giving us my younger sister's bedroom set (which actually used to be mine...I picked it out when I was 9 years old!) and we plan on painting the tall dresser, short dresser, mirror, and nightstand white. There is also a desk with hutch, which we plan on painting an antique black and using in the loft (which we currently plan to turn into an office).
On our way...
My husband Tadd and I are in the process of buying this:
We are going to be homeowner newbies. Closing is October 15th. We have a lot to do. Should be interesting...
We are going to be homeowner newbies. Closing is October 15th. We have a lot to do. Should be interesting...
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