Tuesday, August 17, 2010

A Fly-by "Hi"

So! What have we been up to??


Unpacking (Hubby's study and game room ONLY ROOMS with boxes in them yet)


In-law visit! Mom and Dad flew down from PA to help us with painting, patio building, fence moving, ceiling fan hanging, work bench building, furniture buying, curtain hanging and Grandpuppy spoiling. And many, many more things because they are AWESOME!!! Everyone should be blessed with in-laws this wonderful. :-D


Whirlwind visit from an old friend...Mr Scott came in on Thursday, remembered what we were like and immediately left on Friday. ;-) Hope he is enjoying his new life in our nation's capital. Great seeing ya, Mr Scott!!


Pubcrawls, scavenger hunts, Susan G Komen volunteering, baseball games, building projects, cooking projects, and God only knows what else. It's been a crazy coupla months. But crazy is kind of how Hubby and I like things. Gutters are being installed on our house today. Which means dirt can be purchased for flowerbeds and gardens. Which means vegetables can go in the ground in the next few weeks. I could really not be more excited about FINALLY getting back into a garden! Right now I've got a sickly tomato plant, and an enormous basil plant. These were sort of unplanned forefathers for the new garden. I can't wait to get the dirt and get digging!


So that's all for now. More to come soon, I promise!

Monday, May 3, 2010

On the Verge of Collapse, But Very, Very Happy

We are in our new house!!! Closing finally went through last Thursday after yet another closing debacle the week before. Hubby was on a business trip in Alabama at the time, so I started moving stuff over in the sleigh by myself. Hubby got home Friday night and the next morning, some of our dearest friends showed up to help us load the Uhaul. We are IN! I can't tell you how fantastically large the new house feels. And the backyard is just massive. The dogs were running around acting like clowns yesterday. I think they've been absorbing a lot of our stress lately, so it was fun to see them cutting up and being idiotic. So as of now, we've been living in the house not quite 48 hours and I'd say I've got about half of it unpacked. I absolutely hate seeing boxes everywhere, so I just keep unpacking "one more" and the next thing I know, it's midnight. I came to work today to RELAX! ;-) Our new energy-efficient washer and dryer are supposed to be delivered tomorrow, which is great news as we're about to be engulfed by a mountain of laundry. One and a half more hours of work today and I can go home and get started on more boxes! My goal is to be completely done unpacking by Thursday as Hubby and I have plans Friday night. Saturday I want to get some stakes and twine and map out where the flowerbeds and garden will go in the backyard. I LOVE PROJECTS! :-)

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

The best laid plans...

So much for closing! Our buyer has been having problems getting her down payment/closing costs together, so closing has been a dream yet to be realized. We have been told that she has everything in order now and we can proceed with a closing date of 4/23, but I hesitate to hold my breath. This process has been such a nightmare. I may never move out of the new house. Just to avoid this sort of nonsense in the future. So Hubby and I are in a holding pattern for now. The house is completely packed up. We are living off two plates, two bowls and two glasses. Washing dishes by hand every night is fun (dripping sarcasm). I'm pretty sure that my attitude problem is not going to improve noticably until we are settled into the new house. I apologize to any and every one that has to interact with me.

I do have something to look forward to though. Hubby and I are heading to Florida in May for the launch of STS-132/ULF4 (space shuttle mission for all you non-NASA-geeks out there). The plan is to fly in to the area on Wednesday, putz around Daytona and Cocoa Beach for a few days, watch the shuttle launch and hang out with friends. The distraction will be greatly appreciated. The last time we went down for a shuttle launch we had a marvelous time. I took my coffee to the beach every morning with a book and enjoyed the non-polluted waters of Cocoa Beach. We're staying in the same hotel, so I look forward to doing that again. I'm also looking forward to revisiting some of the eateries we discovered our last time there and tossing back a few Yuenglings. The thought of a near-future vacation is keeping me sane if not overtly friendly.

So that's where we're at right now. Hopefully the next time I post, I'll bore you senseless with talks of my new kitchen, etc. And hopefully I won't be cranky and snarky. Till then... C-ya!

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Eek!

So Hubby and I are supposed to be closing on the new house a week from tomorrow.

All I can currently think of is how many ceiling fans needs to be purchased, how many window treatments need to be ordered and whether or not we can move the house, garage, attic and storage unit all in one day (I'm betting no). I'm trying to get excited about the whole venture by thinking of all the space we're going to have. The kitchen island will be a godsend. Having the utility room in the house will be amazing. I'm not too keen on the see through glass shower door (I am just a private person - bite me!), but I think I can talk Hubby into putting up some frosting or something on it. Otherwise, I'll be showering upstairs. Some silly things are exciting me. I get to get a new toaster. :-) I've had the same toaster since I moved out on my own 14 years ago. I want a new one! Hubby is also talking about updating our washer and dryer with front loaders. I bought our current washer and dryer used in 1998 and to tell the truth, I'm amazed they still work. I have no idea how old they actually are. The prospect of cooking on a gas stove has me thrilled beyond belief. But for a person that hates to vacuum, 3500 square feet of mostly carpet seems daunting. And being that private person, not having window treatments on the street facing windows the day we move in will drive me nuts. I'll be walking around in the dark so no one can see in the house. :-)

It will all work out. I just need to breath and try to be optimistic.

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Hey there!

Yes, Hubby and I made it back from our wonderful trip! The vacation was everything that we hoped for and even a little more. Things have been a little crazy since we got back and to be honest, I've been in a bit of a post-vacation funk. I apologize for not updating.

I can't even begin to tell you how much I loved Europe. It appealed to me on every level, far exceeding all my expectations. Five months later, the reality of life is still depressing after the wonder of such a trip. But - life has a way of chugging on anyway.

Because it was soooo long ago, I won't even bother with telling you about Germany or the wonderful people we met there. :-) Just know that I loved every experience, every view, bite and drink.

I will tell you that the new house is ready for move in and the target closing is April 1 (I know - a colosal joke in the waiting). I'm of two minds about the new house at this point. The POTUS released a budget proposal 2/1/10 that seriously cripples the United States manned space flight program. Jobs within the NASA community are not guaranteed at all. Hubby maintains his usual aplomb, but I am nervous. The idea of taking on such a large mortgage (compared to what we currently have) is daunting. Also at issue is the fact that on our very first date, Hubby and I talked about how we both wanted to move out of Houston. Part of me wanders if this earth-shattering development in the space program is the catalyst that we've been waiting for. If we let it slip by, when will we have such an excuse again? On the other hand, I'm really looking forward to having the bigger house. I can't wait to have Hubby in his TV room upstairs and silence prevailing the downstairs. I want to cook in my new kitchen and bore you poor people with pics of homemade bread and pizzas.

I will also tell you that I just spent a wonderful week in Napa with several of my girlfriends. Several things about Napa reminded me of Germany, which reminded me of this long-neglected blog, which is the only reason you're getting an update. ;-)

I loved the Napa valley. I spent an entire day driving through small towns with my iPod blaring through the rental cars' speakers, sipping coffee and wearing a shit-eating grin on my face. I did not, however, smoke - so kudos to me! Much wine was tasted, much history absorbed and one very important lesson learned - I'm a beer girl. :-D Loved spending time with my girls. Loved, loved, loved the scenary and the Napa experience. But give me a nice draft beer over a bottle of wine any day. Not to say that I wouldn't do it again, because I totally would. I'd go back to Napa in a heartbeat just to eat at Taylor's Refresher or to grab a Tail-Wagging Ale at Downtown Joe's. I bought 4 bottles of wine and 10 (20oz) bottles of beer. :-)

So anywho - I am alive. I apologize for neglecting the blog. I make no promises, but I'll try to do better.