Funny Farm/Money Pit

Well, we are home owners! And it's been a very interesting process. From having to post-pone our closing 2 days prior, to tearing up the back yard with plumbing issues, it's been an adventure to say the very least. On top of all that, we gutted the kitchen, so major work there! Brandon and I were talking last night and we feel like we are a mix between the movie's Funny Farm and Money Pit. I knew there would always be projects, but I can barely even unpack a box in the evenings beacuse we are just trying to get the house in working order first!


I will wait to post all "after" pics, until the "after" is actually here. But here, is our Home Sweet Home!
Every time you walk outside you get bitten up by mosquitos, so anyone that has any suggestions other than coating yourslef in bug spray, we are all ears!

We are really proud of all the work that we (okay, my dad) has done in the kitchen. Here is a "before" and a "so far" picture. I will have more soon.

Before

So Far

Our plumbing fiasco started when my mother-in-law noticed the toilet gurgling when she was cleaning. Next thing we know, sewage is exploding in our basement when the plumbers take off the main cap (glad I wasn't there!) and then our back yard looks like this! Turns out the drain line from the house was clogged with roots. Donations can be sent to: The Pottsy Fund 310 Benham Dr. Chattanooga, TN 37421. Just kidding, but do please update your address book. I guess I should do the same for all our bills now too... When do they start hunting you down?!?

We are really happy with the way Maggie's room has turned out too. We picked a pretty green color to go with a new rug we bought for her room, and decided to do a lighter green stripe. I love the way it turned out! Now if I can only get her room organized and all her "stuff" put away! This picture was obviously taken before any of the "stuff" got here!

Speaking of Maggie, here are a few recent pics of her doing her thing. She's still a very active child and really runs the show!

She LOVES pockets! She walks around with her hands in her pockets, twisting and saying, "pockets!"

Still obsessed with her passy, at least she uses it in style.

This is a true depiction of Maggie right now. She was probably running from me when I took the picture!

Daddy likes to tickle her under her arms and she just loves it! There nothing quite like the sound of a daddy making his daughter laugh. A mommy can never quite get the same laugh. Something about those daddies.

Brandon has been really excited to get some yardwork done. We have owned our home for going on 4 weeks and Brandon just put together our new weedeater last night! Thanks to a hand-me-down lawnmower (pictured below with the proud handy-man himself) we have all the tools necessary to have a decent looking yard. It's been mowed once, thanks to my father-in-law, who mowed the first week. Our new neighbors in Brainerd Hills are wondering if we are going to be "one of those people" who doesn't take care of their yard! I swear we will! We even got gas for the mower last night!

Despite all the fiascos that happen on a daily basis, like doing my first load of laundry last night and coming into the kitchen and hearing water spraying EVERYWHERE (Yikes! The hose had come loose from the back of the washer and the entire LARGE load, except the few bucketfulls I could manage to catch and run to the kitchen sink, drained onto our laundry room floor, and leaked into the basement! Awesome.) we really do love our house and have enjoyed it the very few moments we have had to relax in it. I hope that all of you will be able to enjoy it with us at some point. You are all welcome at any time (especially now when there is lots of work to do)!