I was going through the last post I left
everyone with before the unexpected and unannounced hiatus. It seems like I left a lot of things up in
the air. Let me update everyone one
where we are now…
Cars
Oh, our cars.
This topic makes me want to curse. After selling the Sante Fe we did end up
finding Steve a truck. It’s a smurf blue
Rangers. I think it’s a late 90’s model. We thought the truck would be a great idea
since we could definitely use a truck around the house for projects and Steve
likes driving a truck. Well, turns out
not so much. We had a small budget to
buy (like $3K). Unfortunately neither
Steve or I are very car savvy, so “fixing up” a car is not in our forte. We opted for the best we could get and it
ended up costing us a pretty penny down the road. We went over our budget and bought a truck
for $3,500. And after about a week of
ownership had to immediately put in over $1,000. And just a couple of weeks ago we had to put
in another $1,000. I know old cars
require more maintenance and such, but geez.
And now Steve uses that truck on a regular basis (baseball and such) and
I use it for occasional kid free work days (now that we are down to one kid
car) and I feel like it’s going to give out on us at any moment. We have been discussing getting another small
car that gets good gas mileage to use for the regular hauling kids around car,
but I just don’t know how our budget can manage.
Julie Keating, NAC?
Yes, don’t worry, I’m still certified. They didn’t call me back and say “oh, there’s
been a mistake!” No, no. I just put the question mark because I opted
not to find work as an NAC. Instead I’ve
been clocking some hours in at Harborview as a volunteer and just started
working for a friend of mine who recently became a nurse practitioner. The job is great because I can do it from
home and it gives us the ability to keep Maddie in preschool. Unfortunately, that’s all it affords. I wish I could say I now get to throw some
money in the community pot, but no. My
paycheck comes in and it immediately goes out to the preschool. While it is a bit discouraging working for essential no monetary gain, it is fantastic experience, and if it is what I must do to get into
nursing school, so be it.
The Leak
Another topic that makes me want to
curse. The @#%$^# leak! I tried a repair kit from Home Depot and that
lasted about a day. I did some research
and found a company that did crack repairs.
They came out fixed the leak and sprayed the tub. I wasn’t in love with the results (the tub
had a giant lump where the crack had been and the covered coating didn’t
match). We also had to spend the night
away from the house because of the fumes.
But the tub was fixed and no more leak…right? Wrong.
The tube cracked again in the same place. They “guaranteed” the work so they came out
and inspected it and told us our tub was one that the regular patch didn’t work
with. They would have to order a super
strong patch and repair it again.
OK. So they did, and they did…a
month later (because the guy who did their tub repairs blew out his knee the
day he was supposed to fix our tub).
OK. Again, results not great
(lumpy, not matchy) and another night away from home. But to finally have the tub repaired I would
do pretty much anything. So for about 3
weeks we were happy…and then the tub cracked again. It cracked in the same spot AND on the other
side. The company is now telling us they’ll
only refund $250 (less than half the cost) or they’ll try and fix the tub again
– but that requires us to rip out all the drywall in our downstairs so they can
access under the tub. I would do that,
if I knew it would work. But with they
past experience I’m betting it’s not.
And not only that, but both times the finish chipped off and looked
terrible. I’m not sure what we are going
to do now. The tub repair was expensive,
but replacing a tub is EXPENSIVE! For
the moment the cracks are covered in duct tape and we are trying to make up our
minds.
Lights
The lights downstairs look awesome, but are
still missing the shades I’m planning to make.
The bedroom is slowly but surely coming together. We got our new king bed and purchased new
sheets. We got a dresser for $30 off
craigslist that I’m planning to paint & stain. I found some nightstands off craigslist too. Curtains and artwork are hung and it’s
finally starting to look like a bedroom.
Well, more like a bedroom anyway.
Other updates
I have an office. Mad’s room is painted and I’ve gotten a
couple of projects done on that list.
Our living and dining are in some major transition. AND, we may have gotten a dog. :)
Sorry for the lack of pictures, it’s been
busy, busy around here. There are lots to come.
But you’ll just have to wait a few days
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