It's time to put on your big girl panties and deal with it...

Have you ever seen a grown-up throw a temper tantrum? Stick around.

I got a call this afternoon from the granite place.  You know, the place that is coming Friday to install my granite?  Yeah, apparently, they're not coming.  They discovered a crack in the slab today.  So, I asked calmly when they thought they might be able to remedy the problem.  They informed me that our new installation date would be September 12th.  ANOTHER 10 DAYS!  Not another 10 days from now...another 10 days from the original installation date.

No, no, no, no, no!  Please, please make it stop.  I'm so tired of eating at restaurants!  (Seriously, I NEVER thought I would utter those words.)

Honestly, I just wanted to cry.  I realistically know there is nothing I can do about it.  Perhaps that's why it's so frustrating.  I mean, I have been accused of being a control freak before, but I didn't think anyone was serious.  ;-)

It's a tenament on Wheels...

Well, we've had our first house guests.  Cousin Eddie and his family, (Oh wait...it's my dad and step-mom ) drove over in their new motor home to visit us.

You can see it fits nicely in the spot previously occupied by our dumpster...

Not much progress on the house since my last post.  Tile should be done in the shower this weekend.  It will be nice to have that job completed!  I think that would give us our only fully functional bathroom.

The girls started school yesterday.  I'm so thankful to be close to school.  Especially since we woke up late and had to rush to get ready.  We were able to get all morning tasks completed, and still walk to school...all in 39 minutes. 

Honestly, the walk to school in the morning has been so great.  Obviously, the novelty may wear off as we've only done it twice, but the weather has been amazing that time of morning.  We get to chat on the way to school, and the girls even let me hug them goodbye when I leave them at the crosswalk.  ;-)

Still counting down the days until the granite comes.  Life will be much simpler when we have an actual kitchen to cook in.

For now, we just have to relax and enjoy the journey.  We'll just call it an adventure...

We ain't first class, but we ain't white trash...

Hallelujah!  The 20 foot dumpster is gone from in front of my house.  I can't tell you how tired I was of seeing that monstrosity every time I pulled into the driveway.

We also now have a hooked up washer and dryer.  I can finally catch up on some of this laundry that's been piling up for the last week.

Oh, and we're up to 4 toilets, two showers, and 3 bathroom sinks.  We even have a couple bathrooms that have a sink AND a toilet functioning.  Oh yeah, baby.  ;-)

We still don't have a kitchen, but like I said, that should be completed around the 2nd of September.  We're still eating most of our meals at restaurants. 

Our beds are actually set up, we only had one night of sleeping on mattresses on the floor.  Here's a shot of our first night here...

I had Syd sleep in Peyton's room since we didn't have the blinds installed yet and
her room is on the front of the house.

So far, I think most people that hear how we're living think we're insane.  I might have to agree with them.  It's certainly not ideal, but it's been working out okay.  Although, I'm not sure it's any different than someone living in the midst of a home remodel.  I'm just telling myself it's kind of like camping...except with indoor plumbing.

Oh, and thanks to Sawyer Brown for the title inspiration.  If you don't know the song, the next line is fairly fitting as well...

I ain't first class, but I ain't white trash.
I'm wild and a little crazy too...

Hoarders???

Nope, it just looks that way.

The view from my front door. 
Wouldn't you love to come home to this?

We officially moved in to the new place. Is it done, you ask? Oh, heavens no. We have no kitchen. The granite is scheduled to be installed September 2nd. Seriously. So, while I could use the stove, it's not hooked up.  I have no dishwasher. And while I could obviously live without the dishwasher, we don't have a sink either. I do have a utility sink, but I'm not sure I really want to wash a meals worth of dishes there.

We have a toilet, a sink, and a shower.  But not all three functional in any one bathroom.  It's a bit comical to see us trying to get ready to go anywhere!  And don't even get me started on the coffee situation. 

But, we will make it work. We can be tough...I think.

Today's post brought to you by the letter "F"...

and the makers of Advil and Prozac. ;-)




This might just be the expression of a crazy person...


Last night, my brothers-in-law Scott and Chris, and nephews Brandon and Tilson worked with Mark to get started on the cabinet build and installation.  Chris and Tilson assembled all the kitchen cabinets, while Mark and Scott worked on Syd's bathroom.  This is pretty much where the letter "F" comes into play.  Here are a few of the Tverdy boys hard at work...

And while the Tverdy boys were working, the Tverdy girls were here...

Yes, this is a couch in my driveway...

At some point, someone thought to ask "Where is Sydney?".  Well, we found her, in my closet...

She had been to a sleepover the night before.
I'm pretty sure she was sleeping for about 3 hours
before we realized we should probably wake her
 or she'd NEVER get to sleep that night.

We did take a break and go to dinner.  But by the time we finished working for the night, we were all exhausted!

Today was an equally busy, busy day.  I really want to thank my sisters-in-law Julie and Teresa, and my niece Donna for all of their help packing.  They worked like crazy and got the majority of our kitchen, garage, and bathrooms packed and loaded into the trailer.

Just a small portion of the boxes they packed today.

I'm sure it will only take me a day or two to sort out where everything is.  I am also pretty sure the "B" box will be my favorite...booze, binoculars, bulbs (as in light bulbs), and a bible.  Yes, these items were all in the same cabinet.  Weird.  Best quote of the day "All we needed was some bullets, and we'd have ourselves a crime scene". ;-)  Honestly girls, I'm so thankful for your help!

While the girls and I packed, the boys (minus Brandon who got stuck here helping the ladies) finished assembling the cabinets and installing them.  The doors all still need to be attached, but I can finally see how the kitchen will look.  It's so much nicer for me than trying to envision the final product from a piece of paper.

The guys also hauled the new appliances over.  I love them so much!  The only issue came when it was time to move the ginormous fridge in.  We ended up having to take the front door off the hinges, but in the end it fit...barely.

One last thing to mention...
If you come to my new house, you no longer have to worry about being the first one to scratch my pristine hardwood floor.  Somehow, I discovered the first scratch.  I can rest easy now...the suspense would have killed me for sure.  Here is the picture of the hardwood...I dare you to try and find the scratch. ;-)

1 week and counting...

Today, the carpets were finished, the front door installed and all but two light fixtures are in.  It's starting to look like a real house.  Oh, and we're up to two functioning toilets now.  Yeah, baby.  Frankly, I'd be happy with two, but no, we're going to have 4 bathrooms to clean.  What was I thinking?

We're going to try and get some things moved this weekend.  I've scheduled movers to come do the heavy lifting next Wednesday.  We have to be out Wednesday so they can do the final walk-through that evening.  We close Thursday.  Oh, dear Lord...

The rest of the trim should be done this weekend.  The doors should be hung.  Doorknobs installed.  Tile finished.  Hopefully cabinets installed, as well as vanities.

I did order the granite for the kitchen today.  I also picked out a remnant for Syd's bathroom.  Unfortunately, it takes about two to three weeks for the process to be finished.  Which brings me back to things I still need to buy.  Faucets.  Ugh! 

I purchased mirrors for the bathrooms today.  As well as some miscellaneous things I tend to forget about.  You know, like a shower rod, and shower curtain.  Those would probably be helpful.  The master shower is a walk in, but in the event that the tile isn't done, we're going to need to use the main bath which requires a shower rod and curtain.

Every time I go to the store, I think "Wow, this is the last thing on my list that I really, really need."  Then something else comes up!  Just realized today that I need to add blinds to my list.  I'm sure the people in the nursing home would love to catch a glimpse of us.  On second thought, maybe blinds can wait.  I'm guessing the people in the nursing home can't see that well anyway.

It seems as this blog progresses, it gets a little crazier with each successive post.  Obviously, it's following my mental state.  I'm getting a little crazier with each passing day.  I go from super excited, to super stressed out in a matter of seconds.  So, if you've made it this far without your head exploding, congrats!

"We Have A Real Flushing Toilet, Mom!"

This was the message I received on my phone the other day.  As I was in Vancouver attending a funeral, Syd called and left me a voicemail.  Now, I know toilets are not super exciting to most folks, but when you've had a stupid porta-potty out in front of your house for a month or two, you'd be pretty excited about indoor plumbing too!  Now, we just need to get rid of said porta-potty AND the 20 yard dumpster that is currently sitting in our driveway.  We're totally classing up the neighborhood, dontcha think?

I arrived home today and we drove directly to the new house.  The guys were in the midst of installing the hardwood.  I must say, I love these guys!  Not only do they work cheap (beer and perhaps pizza) they are doing a great job.  Here are a couple pictures of the hardwood...



Before...

Part-way through after...













Even my dad, who came for Sydney's birthday, got in on the action.  It's now 10:30 pm and they aren't home yet.  I'm sure they are going to be exhausted.

Curtis had a bit of a set back on tiling the shower while I was gone.  Something to do with the drain.  I trust him to handle it.  Honestly, I really don't even know exactly what the problem was.  He explained it, but I'm running on 8 hours of sleep in the last two days, so I may have checked out a tiny bit during the conversation.  And really, he will make it right.

We got both girls rooms mostly painted before I had to leave.  I will admit that I had super big control freak issues leaving Mark to finish the bit of edging in Peyton's room.  I'm sure it's fine.  I actually didn't even look at it while I was there.

Speaking of toilets, we're waiting for the other three to be installed.  Along with the master vanity, and a couple other things, the toilets are hanging out in the master bedroom.  Again, super classy.

Sydney asked if she could take some pictures while we were painting.  I had to laugh at the things she chose to photograph. 

My jeans after day two of kid rooms.
I said I was a good painter, not a clean one.
The walls however look fabulous...

Her sister being goofy...

The paint pan...

Herself, of course.
Kind of a creepy one...

Daddy making sure Mommy won't kill him.
Very, very careful...

And me with the
"I need to get this done
in the next 15 minutes so I can get home, shower, pack
and catch my flight in two hours...
take the freakin' picture already!"
face...

Apparently, the hardwood will be done tonight.  Then we tackle cabinets.  That will be a huge project.  I wonder if our floor and tile guys need a beer incentive to come back?  I'd even buy the good stuff!

2 1/2 Weeks?!?!?

Okay, the freaking out has officially begun.  It dawned on me yesterday that we must be totally out of this house in 2 1/2 weeks.  Why did August 18th seem so far away when we accepted the offer?  Yikes.

So, not only do we have to pack this house, we have to finish the new house.  Right now, we're waiting for the hardwood to de-humidify.  As soon as this happens, we can start laying it.  Hopefully, that will just take a couple days. 

Today, my job is to finish unpacking the boxes of wood, in hopes that being totally exposed will help the process.  I also need to finish all the touch-up painting.  I'm pretty sure this will take all day.  If I have any time left over, I need to try to get the girls rooms painted as well.

To add a level of difficulty, I have to head to Vancouver for a funeral on Thursday.  I'll get home Saturday morning.  I wouldn't dream of missing the funeral, it just adds another layer, you know?  We also have to find time to celebrate Sydney's 10th birthday somewhere in there.  She turns 10 tomorrow.  And here I thought the next 2 1/2 weeks will go quickly...what about the last 10 years?  Whew!  Can't dwell on that though, or I'll be in tears.  She is, after all, my baby!

So, after the wood is installed, we can start on the cabinets.  Once the cabinets are installed, we can have them come measure for the granite.  We also need to install the vanities, buy toilets, install the doorknobs and the doors, stain the front door, finish the trim, get the carpet installed, and it seems like there are about 10 new things to do every time I turn around.  I'm guessing we will be moving in without counter tops.  Which means no kitchen sink.  That should be super fun, huh?

We've already told the girls that the next couple weeks are going to be days of super late bedtimes, and little adult supervision.  I think they were slightly excited.  Wish I could be equally so...