Ruby Sipes

A Few more progress pictures Staining the floor. Varnish the floor Oliver surprised at the furnishings Still need to finish the art for the walls. New house new life. I like the calm colors for the house. The crazy green in the hall is the only pop of color. The dining room is in the kitchen, much better for us.

Just in time for the new year we have made a claim on most of the house. Just got the living room built. Still needs the art on the walls and the crown molding but it is very nearly finished. As you can see Oliver is thrilled. The kitchen is functional. I still need to paint the cabinets, the molding needs to go up, and new countertops. But at least it looks like a kitchen at the moment.

Yes, it does feel better than rent. This week I hope to get the floor prepared for staining. There is still about a third of the glue floor to chip away. I will have my Christmas tree this year. I am hoping this will include a living room too. The windows should be ready soon. Once they are installed the house will be even more efficient. Did I mention that it costs us about $40 a month to keep the house at 68 degrees. The floor does look better stripped. It's a hard life for Oliver...

Things have been busy around here even if it isn't obvious. We have walls (well mostly) and they are mostly the color they should be. The animals are feeling more comfortable too. I did the floor myself and it doesn't even look bad... Look appliances... Still need to finish the trim, the pantry, the lighting, the floor, and paint the cabinets... OK so a lot to get done, but I can use this kitchen Pandora would not quit moving...animals

Totally exhausted but progress is being made. We are taking it a pone ourselves to insulate the parts of the house that are not already. Luckily it is only 2 rooms. The living room and what will be our room. Since we discovered the office is insulated I get to finish the room... Remember this? Bye bye Christmas tree, hello white wall... Today the final color will be painted. The primer KILLZ does work.

We Survived!!! On 10/12/2010 we finally closed. And immediately go to work here is some of the progress. The therapy started... Ripping down the walls in our bedroom. The mess on the floor... I guess I will get this. Yeah now we can look into the bathroom from our bed. Well a girl has got to eat... MMM vegan nachos!!! No I couldn't finish it. Oliver hard at work figuring out his back yard. What is left of the chimney above the roof... Shane's dad is a lifesaver. All the walls are bare in the bedroom just need to rewire, insulate, sheetrock, paint, and move in the bed. Really is that all?

I woke up hoping to not stress about the house but that was unsuccessful. Today Shane, Oliver and myself are going to the coast. Please let the sunshine and warm come. I hope I can find the beach blanket... I hate living out of boxes. So happy thoughts and ice cream here I come.

Because our lender lead us to believe we were on track and good to go, we gave notice in our rental giving ourselves 40 days to move. Here we are 20 days from when we need to move and still no home. Our rental has been rented so now what? We are waiting to see if the new tenants want to wait. If not... I am renting a storage unit. Stressed!!!

Oh, Prospect Mortgage Lied!!! Clear to close my ass. They want more documentation... again. HUD wants more money again... When do we give up? When do you say I am a renter? I wasted a summer dreaming of my own home and I wasted $3000. The worst part I feel lied to and cheated. I don't know? Shane is still trying I am ready to quit!

So the bathroom in our home is tiny... but going to be redone. I actually found a bathroom that looks a lot like I was planing. We did already purchase an accent tile. I am not sure how we will use it yet. Probably a band around the shower maybe shoulder height. Also I am going to use the below tile on the floor and incorporating some of the accent tiles in place of some of the square tiles. I did get a Big Ben decal wall clock for this room and I am planing on going with a London theme with the art. Probably black and white images we took while on vacation.

After months of waiting the day is here... well almost. I figure it will be Monday September 2oth, 2010 we get the keys but they are trying today. Friday September 17th we have been given the clear to close. No more document hunting, resigning documents that were filled out wrong, thinking the lender is completely incompetent (OK this hasn't changed). The home will be a reality soon and the stress of getting things ready and moved. We will make it happen.

It has been 79 days since our bid was accepted. I know that once this is behind us we will enjoy our new home but right now it is just frustrating. I think we are at the stage we can feel secure that we are getting our loan. But our lender cannot get their act together and continues to need more information causing delay after delay. And HUD is charging $25 a day, despite they had us sign an extension till 9/20. I do not see why this is fair. On vacation to get the house started but we are spending all of our time trying to get the house. I am hoping they give us the keys this week. The Backyard: Boring but has potential The Living room: A good size but all surfaces need refinishing. The Kitchen: Big ugly getting a temporary face lift.

We are getting closer. I think this is the final choices for all rooms but our bedroom. We are trying to bring color into the home but have a nice flow to everything. I think the goal is to keep permanent things neutral and change the art and accessories. The kitchen will have stainless appliances and butcher block counters with slate back splash.

OK so now I am dreaming about tiling. And worst of all I am tiling badly. Trying to decide what furniture goes in what room. The art on the walls. The color of the walls. All the work that needs to get done and who is going to do it. I think escrow exists to drive people insane. The neurotic thoughts just won't stop and we have 3-5 more weeks of waiting. So my brain hurts...

So all our money is correctly designated for upgrades to the house but after 10 years of the same furniture is it possible to change the look you have using he same furniture. Paint is included in the budget I could rearrange the painting/prints (there are a lot). I see the house in grays and greens. The kitchen will be stainless steel appliances, butcher block counters and a slate back splash. I am re-purposing the current cabinets and painting the much to my Mother in laws dismay gray. I am hoping to uncover the wood floors. They are there but covered with several layers of linoleum/vinyl. I am still unsure of the wall color but I think it will be light. The bathroom will be very traditional. It is small so we are replacing all of the fixtures. The shower/bath will be tiled with mostly white subway tiles. I think we will add some green mosaic tiles. Faucets will be a modern take on traditional styles.

Well HUD signed and we are in escrow. September 5th is the official closing date. We need to come up with a plan for the rehab loan. Things we want: Gas brought into the home. Currently heated by an oil furnace and a small wood stove. This will also include a gas water heater and gas line for the kitchen. New windows. There are five windows that need to be replaced due to being single pane and/or being damaged. A new fence in the backyard. Oliver really needs a place to go. We have had him for 2 years and it is time for him to get a yard Insulation and sheet-rock the house. We are really trying to make the home more energy efficient. A new load center. Currently there are 2 ancient breaker boxes. Paint on the exterior. HUD is putting funds in an account for us to do some required repairs. The house next door burnt down last year and the heat from the fire has caused the paint to peel. HUD is requiring that we fix this. So I am painting the whole house. New bathroom. Another HUD fix is

So the current news is there is no news. HUD is currently in negotiations with a title company so we (Shane and myself as well as anyone else waiting for a HUD purchase) must wait. Here are some more pictures to laugh at.

The previous owners had their own ideas on interior design. I guess the devil is in the details.