Living

We can actually live in our living room now! Last Saturday, we brought home a piano and that groovy yellow chair. It may get reupholstered someday, but for ten smackaroos, it's perfect.
Jesse couldn't believe that I finally found my piano. He would scour craigslist for me and be baffled when none of them interested me. Then we saw this one. It's an older Baldwin studio piano, pretty good tone and pitch. Best of all, it was under budget.

I think I'm finally getting used to a mostly finished living room. For awhile there I felt like I was in the wrong house! I'd still like to find the perfect area rug, hang something over the mantel, put in some sort of heating unit (pellet or wood stove? Fireplace?), and wouldn't an antique umbrella stand with mirror look great next to that window? For now, it is pretty delightful having a mostly finished space.

Come visit us!  We'll hang in the living room!

First Time

photo from here

So we haven't gotten an offer from the school, but if we do, we'll most likely buy a house.  I can't say it very loud because it's SCARY.  We've been serial renters our entire marriage, so buying a home seems like a very big step. 

Here's what I've learned so far:
-I think our piti should be less than 25%.
-Lots of houses are in foreclosure right now.
-And there are lots of other houses on the market.
-A lot of them are dumps, especially the ones that will be easy to afford.
-I don't mind a kind of fixer upper.  I'm not sure about a gutter.
-Jesse and I are not in complete agreement about what kind of house we want to get.
-I don't know anything about buying a house.


So what do you know?  What do you suggest?  What has your home buying experience taught you that I should know?

Organize/Purge

 

Jesse was inspired by my sister in law, Amy's closet.  Everything was neatly boxed and labeled.  He said the order of it made him happy.  He feels that way in Master Brooke's house, too.  She is very organized and good at getting rid of things she doesn't need.  

I decided to try and organize one of our chaotic places with see through storage bins.  This is stuff that would be in a linen closet if we had one.  I have a box for medicine, hair stuff, travel size, first aid, toothbrushes, and contact/glasses stuff.  The basket on top has lice stuff (remember last year?).  And the basket on the bottom has nail stuff.  

I'm surprised by what gets used the most.  It's not what I suspected.  The hair dryer gets a lot of use but no one is asking me for all the barrettes and rubber bands I put away.  They just use the 10 barrettes I left out.  Hm.  I'm in the medicine box almost every day for cold meds or ibuprofen (I have been sick, but I still feel like a junkie every time I open the box).  But no one has used a band aid in the last two weeks.  

This organizing-purging bug has bitten me big time.  I took 4 bags to Goodwill today and then found more things to purge from the kitchen.  Even I don't need 5 silicone spatulas.  Who knew?  I am officially down to 2 colanders.  But I looked at my bento making paraphernalia and promptly put it back on the shelf.  There are some things that you cart across an ocean and a continent and my bunny egg mold is one of them. 

Stuff Conundrum

Are you like me?  Do you read *this article and get totally inspired to jettison all non essential items from your home?  (Hello three colanders.  At least one of you is leaving this week.)

But then on your shopping trip to Target where EVERYTHING is clearance priced you buy red sparkly shoes for the girls For Next Year.  Five of the same crafty toy for Future Birthday Gifts.  Two dolls your girls were coveting 4 years ago because they are on Clearance.  And a new pair of boots, also on Clearance.

 Is it just me that loves/hates stuff?  Where does thrifty end and hoarding begin?  

*Thanks for the link Da.

Home

Jesse and I both read the NYTimes online.  We hardly ever read the same articles and this is probably one of them.  It's about palliative care and how patients and caregivers create a home for them to die in.

One of the most amazing experiences of my life was helping my grandmother her last month of life.  We listened to soft music.  We looked at pictures.  We fed her Haagen Dazs, because when you're dying, who cares about fat.  We visited with all the great people who dropped food by the house.

I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want to be surrounded by alien heads, but a warm beach, a beautiful garden, lots of kids and grandkids someday.

For now, making our home beautiful still weighs on my mind.  I had kind of given up on this house because it has so many problems.  But maybe I need to give it another chance.  Put a little elbow grease into it.  Get the scary places organized.  A few more plants.  A few more pictures.  I don't want to wait until I die to have my dream home.

This was taken at the cemetery in Maine.  It overlooks the river.  Not a bad view for a final resting place.

DIY Friday-Water Saver

In honor of the upcoming weekend, I wanted to highlight two little projects I completed about a month ago.  They are super easy and need approximately 1 tool, a wrench.

Our water bill was $100 last month which got me moving on these two projects.  I'd been hearing the toilet run, but what was once a minor annoyance became money down the drain.  There's a simple test to tell if your tank water is leaking into the bowl.  Take of the lid and drop some food coloring in.  If the bowl water becomes colored, you're leaking.  (I told you this was easy!)

A trip to Home Depot had me looking for a new stopper.  It was about $5, and I was on my way to pay when I noticed this.  For $20, who wouldn't want a two way flusher?  I believed them when they said it was easy to install.  And get this, they were right!  I needed the wrench to remove the old handle, but everything else just slid into place.

The second DIY project I did was to replace the shower head.  Our old one was pouring out water in copious amounts.  I love a long shower, so something had to be done.  I found a low flow shower head at Home Depot, but then on the way out I found a super low flow at 1-1.5 gallons a minute.  This shower head is for the long showerer and those who suffer green guilt.  Most shower heads let 2.5 gallons out per minute and they are great water savers compared to the old shower heads.  I needed a wrench to remove the old one and the new one screwed on just with my weak hands twisting it.  Easy Peasy.

Both of these projects are super easy no brainer water savers.  They are relatively cheap, and as a renter, I can actually take them with me to wherever we go next.  I kept the old parts for both the shower and the toilet.

Now I can't wait to get the next water bill.  I'm dying to see if we've cut down on our water consumption significantly.  It will probably take awhile to make my money back on these improvements, but I think it's worth it.

Chore Chart

This is the embarrassingly easy job chart I created for the kids.  Being a stay at home mom to two kids means that they think I'm in charge of their lives.  This chart is slowly weaning them off of me, I hope.  They don't have daily chores, but this way I can get some work out of them before they can go play with the neighbors.  Anything from putting toys away, or clothes, or taking out the recycling.  Also, I don't have to keep reminding them that homework needs to be done, etc.  They put a clip next to the job they've finished.

I love my kids.  I also love a simple system.  It may not last long, but we might learn something from it.

TeleQuest Graham Phone

I found this lovely piece of design at the Goodwill last week.  We just need a land line and a few cords and we're set.  I love how the numbers are in two rows.  I hope it works!


I'm a big fan of corded, non electric phones.  Because sometimes it's great just to sit down in one place and talk on the phone. 

My original thought was to sell it on ebay, but I'm smitten.  And I can't find a comparable, just on this Japanese website from the Space Age Design Museum. 

Is it just me that loves thriftstore design?

Pretty Flowers

Our house is not much to brag about. (Unless you want to talk about the wood paneling in the living room. That is hot.) The backyard has some redeeming plantings. Some oregano, a butterfly bush, chives, and some late blooming flowers.I think the smoke smell is mostly out. I find butts in the oddest places. Kind of gross. I'm looking forward to planting some bulbs for spring. The weather just dipped, so I've got tulips on the brain. This poor house needs someone to love it.

Kayaking Goodwill

Last weekend we went to Little Sabago Lake to kayak. It was cold and windy, not tons of fun for me and my little river kayak. But it was good to get out.

And the best part. The Goodwill over there (Gray, maybe?). We got some clothes for Mermaid. And this sweet vintagey pot. (Aren't the handles so fun?) And these great Noritake plates (Up-Sa Daisy is the pattern name. How can you not love them?)
So yes, we are still moving, but now we'll be moving stuff I like. Though J is still trying to get me lose the red chair. Not Happening.

Keeping New House In...

Indiana

I know. Crazy. It's hard to imagine us there, but maybe we'll like it. Jesse is skeptical, I am optimistic.

It's another year appointment with the possibility of going tenure track next year. (where did we hear that one before?) Anyway, keep following us as we take a stab at living in every time zone in the USA. We'll keep having FUN and hope you come along for the ride!

My Dirty(dish) Little Secret

When I can't stand the thought of washing dishes, but dread thinking of overnight risotto encrusted bowls, I set the timer for 10 minutes and wash as many dishes as possible. Tonight, that was all of them. I took an extra minute to wipe down the counters and table. I want a prize.

Home of the Week

This is one of my favorite places to waste time. I mean get inspired for my future house, wherever it may be. It's the LA times home of the week. Love it.

Borax-who'd have thunk it

It's funny how it takes Grist to tell Jesse to tell me to try Borax. I noticed a box of it at Target the other day and threw it in my cart. For $4, it's worth a try.

It's been around for ages, but I'm not sure if I've ever used it. WHY? I don't know. Because it works like MAGIC! Sprinkle in with your whites-gleamy sparkly clothes. Clean your tub and sink to glistening brilliance. This stuff is good.

Oh right. It's totally cheap and way less toxic than almost everything else we use to clean. Go get some. Go.

My Method-Grapefruit

I know there's so much more going on than keeping house, but if you must...
I HEART Grapefruit Method. I love to clean my sink with it. I use it in my kitchen and on my kitchen floor. I love the way it smells. And it cleans quite nicely, too. I love that it's gentle on the earth and on me. I also love that it's at Target. Convenient. And Yays to Big Boxes who put good stuff on their shelves. Love that!

Ant Eradication

Sometimes keeping house means asking the little pests to leave. Jesse wants me to do it in a green non toxic way. Well, I tried the corn meal, we have a cinnamon barrier in front of the door, and I've put dryer sheets in crevices. The vinegar is supposed to kill their trails, but I only have sushi vinegar, so they might actually like it. Don't tell Jesse, but I'm off to Target tomorrow for some toxic, horrible for the environment substance to spray around the perimeter of the apartment. They are ruthless. And the cinnamon just doesn't compete. And just so you know, it's not just a couple of ants, they are swarming. ( do ants swarm?)

Jam Stats

24 jars of jam (1/2 pints, pints, and quarts)
6 jars of blackberry pie filling (5 quarts, 1 pint)
And my mom babysitting so I could do it all.
Yay!!