June 30, 2010 Today's the day

Welcome to my new home! I sign the papers and take delivery of the keys at a 11:30 closing this morning.

This is where I will be busy working today. Got all the shelf paper already loaded in the car. After closing, I am heading to deliver my 30 day notice letter to the landlord of my current house rental. Then off to my ****NEW HOUSE**** to unload my car. Then back to the rental to load some kitchen boxes, a radio and a chair. Then back to the new house to unload and put the shelf paper on the shelves, so I can unpack my kitchen stuff and re-use those boxes again. :)

Prior to all this occurring before closing today, I still must:

* Finish packing the kitchen this morning

* Take a shower and dress

* Load the SU catalogs in the car (they are all in envelopes already addressed and ready for mailing)

* Head to the post office to send out the catalogs

* Head to the furniture company to check on the scheduled date of the bedroom furniture delivery.

* Head to the bank and empty out my savings account in order to have my cashier's check for the closing of the house

* Be at the title company prior to 11:30 for the closing.

It is going to be a very long day today. LOL.... In fact, it will probably be the first of MANY long days in the next couple of weeks.

Have a great day!

Arlene

Monday, June 28, 2010

It is getting to close to closing on the house. Today I went with the realtor and did a walk thru on our "fix it list" that the seller has to complete. There are 3 items left on this huge list:
1. Put new seals on the front door --- it is cracked and not airtight.
2. Spa tub in the master bath needs cleaning. Apparently it was wiped out only. Tonight we filled the tub and turned on the jets. Still needs cleaning. More gunk appeared (not as much as when the inspector tested it) so it still needs to be addressed.
3. The master bedroom carpet to be replaced (which will happen after closing on Wednesday).

Tomorrow (Tuesday) I will get the time for the house closing, which we are asking for Wednesday morning. I am so ready for these details to be completed.

Wednesday at an unknown time we will do the closing, and I will hand over a HUGE check and get the keys to my new and first home. :) :) :) :) :) I have the first load in my car and my trunk to be unloaded. Hope to move 2 more loads on Wednesday.

Thursday morning I have to be at the new house by 8 a.m. The man is coming to install my gas stove (which you have to have a licensed installer to do). Then after he leaves I am coming back for yet another load of boxes. I have to be at the house from 1 to 4 p.m. on Thursday to have the new refrigerator delivered. So I plan on unpacking a few boxes and putting together the white cubes for my paper storage in my scrapbook room.

Friday through Sunday, I will move several loads over each day. Monday I will pack more here. On Tuesday, the man is coming with my 2 storm doors for the new house. I bought one for the front door that is very decorative (glass with a nickel finish arch in the glass) and the back door is a full glass storm door with a screen at the top only. My furr balls will love laying at the back door and watching outside. That door is reached from the sunroom/scrapbook room to the deck.

Tuesday morning I also have my new bedroom suite coming. I broke down last week and bought a California King size sleigh bed, a set of mattresses for that bed, a dresser and 2 nightstands. I also bought 2 corner curio cabinets for my kitchen to put all my china/crystal and the beautiful things Mom got for her wedding years and years ago.

Wednesday and Thursday of next week I will be back and forth between houses and packing. I want to carry as much with me as I possibly can before I call the movers to come and get the furniture and appliances. I hope to have the truck and men here to move these items either on Thursday, July 8th or the following Thursday, July 15. Whatever day I have the moving men and the truck, then my babies have to go the vet the night before until we get all the furniture moved. Can't have them going outside at either place. So they will go get their shots, an overnight stay at the vet and their nails trimmed. Then when I pick them up, they will go directly to the new house.

On Friday of that week I have a chemo cycle, so I will not be doing alot of packing or lifting. I figure I will stay at the new house and unpack and set up a few things.

So much to do and so little time!

Arlene

June 1, 2010 The House

Okay, the seller rejected my offer. They counter-offered. I accepted the counter-offer. I get all closing costs paid, new bedroom carpet, and a home warranty. I spent more than I wanted, but I got $8,000 in concessions (which is great since the $8000 tax credit is no longer applicable).

The home inspection will happen by the middle of next week. Closing is set for June 30th. Will keep you posted. I am still not believing that this happening.

Went by the house today and took measurements of each room. Marked them and the locations of each phone jack, cable outlet, electrical outlet and light switch throughout the house on my house plan. That will help me determine what will go with me and what gets donated to Civitan (it is an agency that works with the developmentally disabled and they have a resale or thrift store).

Saturday, May 29th, 2010

As you know I have been out house hunting. I have seen over 35 homes. Today I went back out and saw my top picks again. This is the one I have decided upon. It has 1,719 square feet of liveable space. This afternoon I wrote a contract for the house. My offer is much lower than the asking price. So I am betting that the seller will counter-offer.

It is a brick home with 3 bedrooms and 2 baths. It has an electric stove in it now, but it DOES have gas hookup for a stove! That makes me a very happy camper. I love a gas stove. Above you see the front of the house. The two windows you see on the left are the two extra bedrooms. The master is to the rear of the house behind the 2 car garage.



This is the living room (or great room). It has a gas log fireplace. It is about 16 ft. x 20 ft. The double doors open onto the sun room. To the left you see the bar of the kitchen and the dining area.

Notice the bar in the kitchen to the left? You saw it from another angle in the previous photo. I will have to replace the electric stove with a gas stove, and purchase a refrigerator. Those cabinets on the right are a pantry storage. The bottom cabinet has deep drawers that pull out that will make it easy to find what you are looking for. There is a dishwasher that you can barely see on the left close to the sink. This room (the dining area, the sunroom, and both bathrooms) are ceramic tile. The rest of the house is carpeted.

This view was taken from standing in the kitchen at the sink looking into the living room. That is a gas log fireplace. The sunroom is off to the left through the French doors.

A view of the sunroom. The plans suggest it be used for a sunroom, a formal dining room or a study. This will be my scrapbook area to work. I plan on using the smallest bedroom for scrapbook and stamp storage. There is a bank of windows across the back wall of this room to view the sunlight and backyard.

There is a small deck out back (you go out thru the sunroom to the deck) but if you know me, I don't stay outside long. But I love, love, love windows. And this has windows!!!!! I can work and actually get alot of natural lighting. I can already say I want to plant some gardenia bushes outside that set of windows! LOL

Will let you know next week what they counter offer..... I have a bit more breathing room to use for this house.

Arlene

Sunday Morning, May 16th, 2010

Finally! This is my new classroom area in the NEW Middle School Building. We were given the keys on Friday. I can now come and go in the room and begin to get organized! The students will begin the new school year in this building. What you see above is the massive amount of room for my classroom space.

On the wall with the red fire alarm will be a SMART BOARD.... it is an amazing piece of technology where I can show students lessons from the Internet. It makes the lessons enlarged for the entire class to view. That gray rolling computer stand is for my *hopefully* digital camera and new laptop. Off to the right you can see one bulletin board... further down that wall is a wipe board to write on in class.

Now this side of the room is opposite of the WHITE BOARD. As you see I took the photo before moving tables or the rolling computer stand. Will take more photos this week to share. My desk is now in the middle of that bank of windows. Behind it and centered to the windows is my black bookcase. Makes it easy for me to turn around and grab something and then turn back to my desk. My computer will rest on the right side of the desk and the printer will be on a computer stand next to my desk (can't move these until school is out!).

Ahhh! A kitchen! We can finally teach a few simple cooking skills to the students. It is a galley kitchen style. Love the buttery yellow walls. Floors are concrete and then stained. There will be no tile to deal with in this building. That door you see at the end of the kitchen opens into my storage unit.

Now I love the fact the storage unit came without shelving. LOL... Yesterday, Wayne, Laura and I took 7 sets of bookcases to the school. Wayne assembled them and we got them placed inside that storage unit. I am moving one more bookcase in that room from my current classroom. But finally I will be able to properly store, organize and find materials! Each bookcase is 31 inches wide and 76 inches tall with 5 shelves. So I have 40 shelves!!!!! I already have my plan on how to fill these shelves. One bookcase will be strictly for Science books and materials. Another for Social Studies books and materials. The next is for Independent Living materials (Life Simulation, Drivers' Education, Independent Living books). Next is the Reading/Language Arts bookcases (yes need 2 of them!)... and so on. Am excited that I will be able to walk into the closet and grab the right book without having to drag out boxes and check out each one. My current storage closet is smaller than my kitchen pantry.

Now the other side of the kitchen. The wonderful bank of windows! I am going from a tiny, tiny room to this wonderful room. Going from a single window to 2 huge banks of windows. For me it is great because I love natural light.

Today I am cleaning the scrapbook room (and currently as you see taking a break). I have to stamp some images for a trade I did with a lady. Then I have to begin prepping for my June 5th card class. Today I am going to work on the Father's Day card, which is so cute. I saw an idea on the web and then have played with it and changed it a bit. I am going to use that stamp set called Totally Tools. Can't show you until the 5th of June because my class gets to see it first!

So I better go put something into the crock pot for dinner tonight, and get back in here to finish cleaning. I have alot of stamping I want to happen today. Yesterday was a dud day for me. After I got back from the middle school I ended up propping my feet up all day.

I went out to dinner with Tawanna and Lisa on Friday night. I know better than eat Chinese food, even though I love it. The sodium kills me. My ankles were sooo huge. They were much much wider than my feet. Oh and they ached! I was walking (or rather shuffling) because it was so painful. Thought that I better keep them up and not stay in a sitting position any longer. Went home and took a fluid pill and of course, drank water by the gallon and was constantly in the bathroom.

But today, they look more like ankles. But am taking another fluid pill ..... something about the combination of heat, humidity and then add sodium and my poor ankles and legs fill with fluid. The doctors call it "idiopathic (unspecified) edema" --- basically they cannot find out why this occurs and it has been happening since my late teens. My ankles look like elephant feet.... ugh ugh ugh... that is why you NEVER see me in dresses..... and I only wear shorts around the house.

Hate people seeing my horrible legs. Now add the psoriasis that the chemo gave me.... I look like a patchy, scaly set of elephant legs.... Even have almost quit wearing short sleeve shirts for the same reason. The psoriasis is bad in red scaly patches on my legs, but both elbows are hard white patches and sometimes it appears on my hands and face.

Yet, I cannot complain too much. After all the chemo is also what has kept me alive. So it truly is a small price to pay. Life with psorasis versus death without psorasis.... hmmmmm rather be alive. I think my mission in life or on earth is not finished. So here I am!

I will get off my soapbox now. You all have a great day!

Arlene

Wednesday morning, May 5, 2010

Good morning! Here is the 4th and final card from Saturday's stamp camp. The stamp set is called Sweet Scoops. The cardbase is the retiring Pixie Pink. The first mat is the retiring Green Galore. Then I took a 1/4 sheet of White cardstock and ran it thru my BIG SHOT with a wooden rectangle frame I purchased at Michaels. By putting this frame at the back of the Square Lattice Embossing folder when going thru the Big Shot, I created the negative rectangle on the white mat. The rest of the mat had the embossed design of the Square Lattice. Then I trimmed it to be 1/4" smaller than my Green Galore Mat.

I used a More Mustard Marker and my stampin-ma-jig to center the ice cream cone on the rectangle space. I stamped 3 ice cream scoops on White cardstock, using a Pixie Pink marker, a Green Galore marker, and a YoYo Yellow marker. Then I came back with the striped stamp (looks like ripples in the ice cream) with a Pink Passion marker to overstamp the Pixie Pink ice cream scoop; a Garden Green marker to overstamp the Green Galore ice cream scoop; and a Summer Sun marker to overstamp the YoYo Yellow ice cream scoop. Then you cut out all 3 ice creams scoops. In any order you like, place 2 scoops on the cone using adhesive. On the top or 3rd ice cream scoop, add a dimensional to it to make it pop up!

On the inside I added a white mat and stamped the cherry using a Chocolate Chip SU marker for the stem and a Real Red SU marker for the cherry. I chose to stamp in the lower right corner. Then I inked up the sentiment, "Have a sweet celebration!" with the Chocolate Chip marker. I centered the sentiment in the remaining space at the bottom of the card to the left of my cherry stamping. Viola! You are done.

Today is supposedly my next to last chemo session. I go back May 26th for a supposedly final chemo session and my 3 month scans. I say supposedly because until we get the results of those 2 scans, I will not know if this is over or not.

Supposedly we are moving into the Middle School building this week. All we are waiting for is the occupancy certificate. We already have a OPEN HOUSE scheduled for Tuesday night, May 11th from 5 -7 p.m. I won't be around work for the remainder of the week during the move due to my chemo cycle. Now I did not plan this. We have been supposedly gonna move several different times for over a month. This time I believe it because we were given the Open House date.

Okay I must get moving.

Have a great day!

Arlene

Monday morning, May 3, 2010

Yet another card that I taught at Stamp camp on Saturday. This one makes me think of Micki, who loves Hawaii and Lucia who loves the beach. It is a double flap card. On the top flap I stamped the palm tree from SU Tropical Party in Chocolate Chip and Old Olive ( I used the SU markers). I made a mask with a torn post it note and then sponged in Close to Cocoa for the sandy beach/island. I took a dauber in Tempting Turquoise to create the water. This was matted to a Old Olive mat that has a 1/2 inch scored flap (it fits under that white base; between the white and turquoise cardstock).

Now the inside flap. First I stamped the coconut with SU markers in Close to Cocoa, Yo Yo Yellow and Rose Red. Later cards I changed from Close to Cocoa to Chocolate Chip for the coconut and liked it much better. This is matted on a Old Olive Mat and it hides behind the upper flap of the card when close.... sort of a surprise treat. The inside flap is So Saffron cardstock. I used Versamark ink to stamp the tropical flowers over it to give it some texture/depth to the card. This flap is also scored 1/2 inch from edge to be attached between the white and turquoise mats. I used Old Olive Grosgrain 1/4 ribbon for the bow.

Now the inside, which has a sentiment from Sincere Salutations in Old Olive Ink centered on the mat. The DSP (Designers Series Paper) Island Oasis are strips 1/2" x 4" placed at the top and bottom of the white mat (which is 5 1/4" x 4"). This is mounted on a piece of Tempting Turquoise cardstock (5 1/2" x 4 1/4").

Here it is Monday morning and I am up at a strange hour..... it is only 4:35 a.m. Well I am going to go do a load of laundry and wash a few dishes before I go shower and dress for work. I seem to have most of my energy between the time I wake up and 1:00 p.m. After that I slowly go downhill.

Tonight I am going out to dinner with my family. Today happens to be a special day... ssshhhh ... it's Wayne's birthday and we are going out to steak dinners at Colton's Steak House.

Happy Birthday Wayne!