Homeownership: From Great to Really Ugly

Howdy! What a day.  First day back to school after mid-semester break! ALREADY. Where has the time gone?? 

ANYWAY. 

I wanted to talk about the great things about being a home owner, and some of the bad things, that no one really talks about specifically.I've always heard, "It's a lot of work."  Sure, yeah, I know.  TRUST ME.  I know. 

Today after running some errands, hubby & I found that the sump pump wasn't working, and we have about 2 or more inches of water in the pump room downstairs, and it's starting to come out into the main basement area.  I'm sitting here waiting for the emergency plumber to come bail us out {shoutout to McAllister's Plumbing: THE BEST people in town, coming out here after business hours and the MOST reasonable.}

The joys of homeownership.  There are many pros and cons, and for me, obviously the pros outweigh the cons. {Hey, we own a home!}

Things people don't tell you, and instead replace it by "It's a lot of work":

- ALWAYS. ALWAYS. ALWAYS. Have an emergency house fund.  You never know what will happen! Is your tub going to get clogged, is your sump pump not going to work? Do you need a patch in the roof? Did you accidentally break a window? You never know!

- Don't sweat the cosmetic stuff! A solid house will always win out over having a pretty interior.  I want my home to be safe, accessible, and in good working order.  Not a death trap that looks pretty. 

- Take care of the big issues ASAP.  (New roof, foundation, heating, damaged windows, etc.)  The longer you put them off, the more dangerous the house is, and the more expensive it will become on the market.  GET LOTS OF OPINIONS!!! DO NOT JUST GO WITH THE COMPANY THAT LOOKS GOOD AND SOUNDS GOOD!!! Do your research. Look at Angie's List.  Get recommendations from other friends and family.

- Seriously. You have to get out of bed and cut the grass at least once a month.  Go do it. Otherwise people will start to ask if they can come hunt in your yard.  Not that this has happened, Alex and I just joke about this happening.

- Know that all repairs do not always happen overnight.  Have patience.

- Think of the small nuisance things.  Like if your home gets invaded by flies or bees, and you need to get rid of them.  Or remembering to shampoo your carpets every once in a while so they don't look terrible. Power washing the house.  

- For all the bad, always remember the GOOD, the reason why you bought the house to begin with.  My reasons just off the top of my head?

 > One of the few school districts left in the area that really focus on personal growth and responsibility of the student (in my opinion)

> Great, SAFE location; not on a main road and NOT IN THE CITY. Don't get me wrong, nearly every city is great to visit (especially NYC!!!) and I always enjoy myself when I'm there, I just know that it's not for me 24/7, 365.  

> In the village, walking distance to nearly everything except the produce stands at the local farms.  It's an old railroad town, and we can appreciate it as such.  A strong history, even with it's own Civil War officers building some of the victorian homes around the village!

> Great neighbors!

> The small things: the octagon window in our front hall.  The "closet" we use next to our bedroom.  The heat lamp in the upstairs bathroom.  Heck, the entire upstairs bathroom.  First floor en suite with walk in closet for guests.  Big windows.  Great yard with a safe backyard that bumps up to the school's soccer & baseball fields. 4 bedrooms.  The ability to customize the interior.  The way we have this great little piano area. The original hardwood floors from the turn of the century. The way we can have 4 cooks in the kitchen doing different things and not run into each other constantly. I could go on! I'm sure you get the picture. 

> I'm not paying rent. (What I see as just putting money in the landlord's pocket and the bare minimum of garbage disposal and lawn maintenance, but heck, I had a balcony.  I didn't have a lawn! :P )

REMEMBER, it's important to LOVE your home!!

REMEMBER, no matter how big or small a repair might be, it is one less thing you have to worry about fixing within the next five to ten years. 

What was some of the best homeowner advice you've ever received?? 

xoxoxo

Summer, Vacation, and Lilly

Long time no talk people!! Can we just take a second and breathe?!? This has been one HECK of a busy summer, and an even busier start to the school year!

Here's a photographic diary of my summer :)

These first ones are from my visit to Genessee Country Village and Museum:

Ladies gathering for a prayer before they get to work sewing, doing the wash, and other outside work before a battle.

Here's a photo of the mounted cavalry of the Confederacy that was represented by these fine gentlemen! They came all the way from Virginia to re-enact! This was when they stopped by the picnic pavilion to ask for a kind lady to offer a ladle of water after winning a battle.

There were two battles that day, and below is a photo of the one that was fought in a town.  The scenario was: Town being attacked, town must defend itself from the Federals.

Swinging back into the "school" mindset, I ordered my agenda for the year.  Little things like this make me smile :)

Here's a favorite from lifeguarding: my niece stopped by with my mom when I was at work and we had a nice hour or so swimming around and having lunch.

Another GREAT year with the Erie County Fair! Our Historical Society got 5th Place (out of over 15), and qualified to be recognized at a special dinner for our display.

Our scene was a Doctor's Office from 1915; everything you see is a TRUE artifact, no reproductions. 

And of course, Hubby and I walked around and found these cute, happy pigs :)

The three little pigs!

Another addition this year: my in-laws are mobile! They found a park where they can keep their camper year-round, and use it as a vacation spot! It's relaxing out there! There are lots of amenities out there, including a seasonal pool, shelter, game room, a schedule of events, etc.

SO. Let's get into something a bit more relaxing. I  had my first professional massage this summer at Corto's and it was AMAZING.  There are a few different rooms, and this one below... Can you imagine soaking in a bubble bath in the tub before/after a massage??? Talk about relaxation and serenity.

I had the lovely experience of babysitting this little one, who wasn't even a week old! My mom's friends are foster parents, and had to go to a wedding so I gladly stepped in!

VACATION!!!!! IT HAPPENED! We went back to Pawley's Island and had a few changes this go-round.  We took 2 days to get there, and 2 days to get back.  Our first overnight was in Hagerstown, MD.  Below is Alex, finishing his breakfast with a bowl of fruit loops :)

It was a bit of a foggy ride from Hagerstown to our next stop in Virginia to meet up with some friends.  From a distance, we couldn't decide if this (below) was a mountain or some more fog to drive through.  What do you think?? :)

Why hello, Virginia!

Heh, I had to laugh.  This was inside the truck stop.  I can only speculate what happened that forced them to put up this sign...

CAROLINAS! Our mandatory stop at the restaurant Twin Lakes in Sunset Beach, complete with the best ever hush puppies and great drinks.

Mr. Lionfish wants to come out and say hello!

We were too full to eat dessert, so we took their famous (and BEST EVER) Key Lime Pie to go, and had it for a midnight snack at the hotel.

Our view this year:) 4th floor perfection.

The stairway to heaven:

Okay, this is one of the best hidden gems in Pawley's Island if you're vacationing there.  They make homemade meals, freeze them, and you can buy them! Which was perfect, because we had an oven in our hotel room. We got a small container of the Palmetto Cheese to try because it is the "Home of Palmetto Cheese", Chicken Cordon Bleu, Palmetto Macaroni and Cheese, and Chicken and Orzo.  This was great because we didn't have to worry about lunches, or food on the road.  Some of it even lasted until we got back home, and had it for dinner. Next time we go, I think I'll get some pralines for Alex to try for the first time.

Vacation selfie!

Heading out for dinner! Such a fancy and handsome husband :)

We went to Perrone's, and we HIGHLY recommend this place to anyone who wants quality food, prepared excellently, and even great service. Below is my lavender lemon drop martini and a Manhattan for Alex, as a pre-dinner treat.  Alex ordered the duck, and the filet for myself. This steak could not even TOUCH the steak I had when I was out west.

After dinner, we went to a cigar/bar/whiskey specialty place, and saw lots of flashing lights go by, and started wondering what was going on.  When we made it back to the hotel, we found police directing traffic at the intersection where we turn in to the hotel, and found that the entire Hotel community was without power! There was a transformer that blew off-property.  I cannot give enough credit to the hotel staff, the Fire department, and other vacationers! Especially the owner of the entire hotel complex; she was in our building going through each floor with a flashlight making sure people were okay, and did a great job overall. She had firemen standing at the stairs making sure to share information with the vacationers, and to make sure people were safe and had a flashlight or other source of light. The power was on within an hour, and things were handled with care.  GREAT JOB!

This (below) was dinner Sunday night, at Capt. Dave's in Murrell's Inlet.  We sat outside, and had some pretty awesome views.  We had boats going by, docking, goats walking around, fishermen coming up with their catch. 

Raspberry honey butter for hush puppies!

Below is... Can you guess?? The place where Andy Griffith was filmed! :) Pilot Mountain. 

It's football season!!! Go Bills!!! Beat the pats on Sunday!!

Below is my Lily Agenda pattern with my Future Female Leader sticker on it! #GOP

Here's to another start of school!

Summer + Reunion Time!

SOOOOO.... ALEX IS DONE WITH MEDIC SCHOOL!!! Well, almost.  He has the college exam Monday and Tuesday, and the state exam at the end of August.  SO CLOSE! And I am SO proud of him! Below is a picture of a majority of his course books and notes.  {Remember, that's not all of it!}

So we had a pretty visitor the other day... {Dragonfly}

And we also got a pretty interesting could formation after a heavy rain day!

So for the family reunion, my uncle came to stay with us! Here's a picture of him making his fantastic zucchini/onion dish!

We also went blueberry picking the next day! 

Here's a view of the fields!

And here are some pictures of the family reunion!

Uncle Mike and Casey

Look who stopped by!

With his proud Mama!

"Grandma, I really like dogs!"

And he's walking!

A selfie to end the day!

We're all tired at the end of the day...