Recent Happenings

I'm lying in bed at 4am unable to sleep, so I thought this would be a great time to give some updates on the house progress. I'm pretty sure the diet coke I just drank is not going to help with my non-tired feeling, but oh well. I went to bed after watching Half Light with Demi Moore (quite interesting) at about midnight, then woke up at 3am ready to party. I haven't done that in a long time, and am strangely enjoying this quiet time...well, Larry is snoring. Anyway, back to house updates.

1. Appliances: WHOA! Expensive. Like whoa. I am blown away at the expense when you add them all up. G-ross. But, after the shock of bye bye to money we have now picked out every appliance minus the refrigerator. Which is muy expensivo (nice Spanish), so we're trying to wait for a good time to drive up to Nashville to pick one out at the scratch and dent...but toting it back is an intimidating venture, so this is a sticking point that is keeping us from making the drive and the purchase.

2. Cabinets. WHAT?! Expensive. Like whoa whoa. But, we did it. We have picked out a color---went from being completely set on white, to a dark brown brown. I'm not sure what color brown brown is but in my head that's the best way to describe it. It's a rich brown, and I'm really glad we made this last minute switcheroo from white after imagining little kiddos with popsicle fingers loving on the white cabinets. And, a mom who has little to no cleaning skills just looking around at the white cabinets turned tie dyed and wishing I'd gone with brown brown. Some of you guys would be talented and proud white cabinet owners because you are far better house keepers than I, and I will have to just admire these in others' kitchens and in sweet magazines because I know my nature, and it falters in the area of clean. Anyway, cabinets are a few weeks from being ordered and then should be installed in about a month after that date. Oh and the layout is sorta an L-shape wall cabinet design with a big island that'll have a sink on it, all one level. Sorry, I got totally focused on the cabinet color only in that rant.

3. Flooring. Oh please, don't break us! E.x.p.e.n.s.i.v.e. That was sorta hard to type, but I had to get the point across. I get a little nauseous feeling when I imagine the quotes that have been returned to us for this. I think I'd rather buy a car. Or a small island. Wow. Okay Dramatic Dolly (what?) just came out, it's not really a small island, but maybe a car equivalent. Someone will be laying floors in the addition, refinishing floors in the remaining downstairs, and piecing together the upstairs and laying carpet in most of the rooms up there, and we will be happy about it and broke at the same time. Yay for renovations!

4. Electrical, Plumbing, HVAC: All in line to be finished upon the 'tracing' out of the cabinets onto the floor.

5. Shelving, built ins, etc: We're waiting to see if we have money left for these:) Just kidding, sorta, but this has been pushed back in terms of progress while we try to get the other things done.

6. Vanities, showers, toilets, laudry room cabinets: All picked out except for the vanities/laundry room cabinets. This will be phase 2 of the cabinet experience, and probably not ready for installation for a few more months.

7. Lighting: We have some ideas of what we'll be installing, but holding off on purchasing until much of the above is in progress and or complete. I'm not really sure I have any order in this numbering system because I'm looking at it, and pretty sure appliances will not be the first thing put it the house, you know prior to flooring and such.

8. Painting: I think I know the colors...I call it Tuscan in the back and classic elegance (huh?) in the front. I don't know what that's supposed to mean really, but the back is neutrals with hints of Tuscan colors, probably more in the form of pillows more than paint...this is where we'll mainly live (den, kitchen, bedroom), and the front will be light neutrals with a gray-ish blue dining room. The front and back probably don't flow. My motha called it out, but hey, I'm no color pallette sophisticata (i've got to stop making up words), but I really like these colors. The upstairs will be all plain and stuff for now. Gotta wait and decide on permanent colors once kiddos exist. Then, there will be either camo or hot pink up there. Kidding, I have no idea:) I will probably force a little girl to have a room with hints of lavender in every corner...that is until she is old enough to tell me to go on with my lavendar room dreams...then, I'll try to convince Matt to let us do this in our bedroom. I did pick out a sweet lavendar chandelier...but it was from Horchow, and Matt looked at me like I'd finally lost it. Gosh, I was not REALLY going to purchase it:)

9. Other things I haven't remembered: Wellllll, I'm sure they're in progress or we'll realize we've forgotten something like when we go to put something in the pantry and realize we forgot shelving. I'm sure these things will happen when you have two corporate loons trying to plan and build a house. I wonder if there is any SAS code I could write that would formulate the remaining house plans. I'm going to guess 1) no, 2) I shouldn't be such a dork, and 3) the acronym SAS should never appear in my blog again. foreals. sneaky sneaky work inserts.

10. Just needed a ten for balance.

Anyway, my mom and I looked at fabric today for recovering some old furniture. I am just not a good female. I totally enjoyed it, but could seriously go from, "yeah, this looks great," to, "noway, that will not work." I don't really have a fabric plan. So, I came home with lots of swatches and confusion. I think there was somewhat of a theme, though. I noticed many creams and blue hints....this is for furniture that will go in the front of the house...you know, the classic elegance zone---I'm delirious.

I'm thankful to say that while spending money never really feels good, we're still within budget, buuuuut way off timeline...but that's the way I'd rather it be. I may not be able to say this in about 6 months. We do expect some overage, so we'll have to see where we land. I hope we land safely because it'd be nice to put stuff IN the house when it's done, but hey, if you come over and we're missing couches and stuff, I hope you'll still hang out. We have a nice porch with steps to sit on if furniture doesn't make it in for a few years:) I'm kidding, we will at least have a built in breakfast room seat...and of course, we can move our Larry covered white turned dirty colored couch in for seating. Whatever works without breaking the bank. (that comment is for my dad)

So, there's my novel on house updates. Sorry for the lack of pictures. I'm on a different computer and have no access to any.

With all that said, I'm pretty sure it'll be summer before a move in, but I like to pretend it will be late April. We'll have to see.....

Later gators.

SNOW IS FUN!!!

There is something about snow that just gets me so excited! It seems like we all revert to childhood and watch and wait for the first spotting of a snowflake. I even joined the crowd and went to Kroger to 'be sure' we'd be ready for the snow attack, and when I walked out it was already coming down like crazy. It's beautiful! Here are a few pictures from tonight. I'm hoping tomorrow we'll get to play some more, but AutoZone rarely closes, so I will probably be daydreaming of snow fun from my cubicle...but it's still very exciting. Just the fact that I can look out and see it all over the ground will add a lot of good feeling to the day.

Matt called this picture, "fueling up." Nice. Love that I look like a man.

Larry got SUPER excited about the snow.

COLD!

Snow Angel!

The snow angel has already disappeared, and this was about an hour ago. It's still coming down! fun fun.

My friend, Lili, and free stuff!!

http://wanderinglili.blogspot.com

The Power of a Praying Wife....

My friend, Lili Vincent, is having a giveaway of this book on her blog! I just wanted to blog about it to a) increase my chances of winning, b) get the word out, and c) because I think Lili is an awesome person and such a great friend, and I think if you haven't met her, you'd enjoy 'meeting' her through the blogging world!

So, it sounds like a good book, and she will be going through it chapter by chapter, so please follow her if you're interested, or even if not, you'll enjoy her blog, so follow anyway!!

http://wanderinglili.blogspot.com/2011/01/give-away-power-of-praying-wife.html
(takes you right to the entry)

A few updated before and afters since the addition...

Picture 1. Looking into kitchen after some demolition.

Picture 2. After knocking the wall down.

Picture 3. After finishing out walls and removing chimney.

Final Picture. The studs are where the addition begins...this is where we extended kitchen/breakfast room 8 ft.

Picture 1. Same room, but looking toward windows that were in the picture above to the left.

That whole wall moved back 8 feet for the kitchen.

Picture 2. Not the best after picture, but had this been the old one the cabinets would be in the left wall surrounding the double windows.

Picture 1. Looking into den.

Picture 2. After tearing out plaster, putting up drywall, and uncovering the chimney. Picture was taken from the kitchen which ends where you see the marks in the floor.

Picture 3. So, sadly, where you see to the left of the door, the blank spot, that was where we had to get rid of the cute chimney...because now to the left, centered will be the den area, so we have to build back the chimney now centered with the addition. Like working a puzzle, I swear:) but every piece costs money to move.

Picture 4. Another angle, looking where the chimney used to be.

Picture 1. This is the bedroom. I can't really explain what all has happened here...but here goes:) To the left were the only set of stairs to the house. Yes in the bedroom:) We knocked them out and added a bathroom there. To the right was a door leading to the hall. We turned that into a closet entered from the bath and rearranged the hall way with new stairs, now.

Picture 2. Only stairs in the house originally. Entered from the bedroom.

Picture 3. Looking at the bedroom, now...that doorway once led to the stairs, and now goes to the bathroom...the other entry to the once hallway, is a wall with a closet behind it.

Please excuse the garbage bags of old insulation. 

Picture 4. Looking at the completely opposite view of the bedroom. With the addition, we added a 5 foot wide closet....all of that goodness you see studded in that covers the whole wall of the bedroom. I.Am.Pumped! 

The back of the house. Pretty much finished.

Ahh! So, sorry for the millions of pictures that are probably sorta confusing!

Hopefully, dry wall and insulation to the addition, soon.

Mumford and Sons, again

I really wish these guys would tour somewhere close to us; I think it'd be a fun concert. I was just looking through their search results on youtube, and found this. For some reason, this song by Old Crow Medicine Show was always soothing, and to find that my new favorite group covered it just really made my day. Thought I'd share...
Not the best picture and sound...the bottom video is Mumford and Sons only and the studio version, so the sound is better.

The addition nears completion...

I love that they were able to get the exterior to look like the original...that planking stuff. All it needs it a coat of paint. I'm getting really excited. I'm starting to look at colors and house magazines again. I think I have the paint colors figured out. I'll have to paste them in here some kind of way. I also think I pretty much know how I want to arrange most of the rooms. I've spent too much mental time on this:) I just hope it can actually become what I'm imagining...but really, I'll just be happy to have the house move in-able. Can't WAIT! I may never leave it. Please come visit me here. There's a good chance I'll just stay in the house and stare when it's all over. Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas! 

And, Happy New Year!!!!

Cool Kid's Birthday

Last Saturday was Matt's 33rd birthday, so I wanted to dedicate a post to him. Birthdays are big! I think they should be at least....and when your birthday falls exactly 1 week prior to Christmas, it's easy to get the short end of the birthday celebration.

This year I have to admit. I really blew it at doing something cool for his birthday. The first year we dated, I did "The Month of Matt" and had a small gift or card for him to open each day. Yeah, I was hunting for the husband commitment:) got him! No no, that sounds bad, I just needed to show him how sweet I could be...it's just too bad that was the only year I really went all out for his birthday. Wellll, wait, we did throw him a surprise party for his 30th...but we had it at like the very beginning of November, and to this day, it could be July and we're going somewhere and Matt's like, "we're not going to a surprise party for me, are we?" I will never live down the month and a half early surprise party.

So, we had already decided "no gifts" for birthday/Christmas since each week is like getting a gift..just in the form of dry wall, flooring, and cabinets. But, still, it needs to be acknowledged, so for a gift I gave Matt a 6 pack of Newcastle, beef jerky, and a duck whistle. That last one makes no sense, but I saw it in the aisle at Kroger and it made me laugh. Of course, that might have been his favorite. Its quacking sound was hilarious. What's even crazier is I kept thinking, "that thing looks familiar," and we finally figured it out that he had gotten me the same exact one as a stocking stuffer a few years ago. Why are we so weird?

Anyway, other than that we celebrated with Gus' Fried Chicken (his only request), and potato salad and chicken salad from Bozo's. It ended up being a really fun and special celebration, and I hope his 33rd birthday is a fun memory in his mind.

In the spirit of celebrating Matt, here are some reasons I think he's cool:
He does the dishes
Everytime he's out, he'll call and ask if there's anything I need before he gets home
He irons his own clothes for work (wow, I'm just exploiting my bad wife qualities)
He surprises me with my favorite wines (this should have been #1)
I think he has cool hair
He breaks out in dance on a regular basis and I can't help but crack up (now I'm just being incriminating)
We can hang out and enjoy our time even if it's just waiting in line at Kroger
He totally lets me be me (it took some time, but I don't blame him) :)
He never gets upset if I want to spend time with friends
He's goofy and silly
He goes out of his way to help anyone
He is the BEST caretaker of our animals and I can tell how much he loves those crazy kids (larry and wally you know)
He works hard, super hard, at his job, and rarely complains
He's honest to the point that he can't even keep a straight face if he's trying to hide something silly like a gift he's gotten me.
And, really, he just rocks as a person to me, and I admire him, and for some strange reason, he really loves me. And I love him.
Happy Birthday William Matthew Cox!

Someone is really happy about fried chicken

Having fun fishing

For some reason, this is one of my all time favorites of Matt. I laugh every time I look at it. I would say he was skipping, but that wouldn't be nice of me to call that out. Although, it does add to why this is hilarious. I mean, who skips like that? 

The 'I didn't do it' face.

The 'i did do it, ha ha ha' face.