CAUTION: Woman In Progress

Confession: Now that the house is bought, the move is over and I'm all settled in--I'M BORED. LOL All these months of working towards this--the phone calls, the trips here and there, the problems, the excitement of the long annoying process, the drama of it all--I was so preoccupied with it all that now that it's all done, signed sealed and delivered I look around and ask myself, "What now?" Yeah, there's still a ton of things I want to do. I want to paint over some (if not all) of the paneling throughout the house. I've still got pictures to hang and I'd love to get some new light fixtures installed in several places. Some hardware installed in the bathrooms. You know, all those little things that new homeowners tend to want to do. But you know what? The moneywell's done run dry. Not entirely, no, but I've put a cap on it before it does. And July's gonna be a booger on the budget. It's only the first full week and I can tell you that w...

I really shoulda thought this thing through. Me, Miss Independent, Miss On Her Own moving a mile down the road from her parents...What in tarnation was I thinking ?? I musta been outta my everlovin' mind. LOL No, it's not that bad--yet. Might get there, though, before I hafta hurt some feelings. I mean, last week, yeah, I can understand them popping in at odd times all week long. I was unpacking and they wanted to help. Emmy was staying up here all week, too, and liked that she could pop over anytime Nana and Bobo would give her a lift. So, yeah, I didn't let that bother me too much. I was grateful for the help. Sort of. But yesterday...Oooo, boy, yesterday I hope will not be a forerunner for the rest of my life. While I love my parents, yeah. Not so much into being under their thumb anymore. I mean, yeah. I see my mother every day at lunch and of course, you know, we ride to work together. But she usually pretty much stays out my business otherwise. But yesterday... We had...

I am so tired. I don't think I've ever worked so hard in all my life as I did last week. Things that took me two months (or more) to pack, I unpacked in a week. Non stop, I unpacked and put away. Sorted and stowed. Not to mention the cleaning as I went. I worked in circles. But, I am completely unpacked and put away. My house actually almost looks like a home now. All that's left to do is hang pictures and stuff like that. That, however, is proving to be a pain. The wood paneling is so thick I can't hardly get a nail in there. I finally found some command strips that I'm trying out to see how well they work. But those things ain't cheap, either, and I'm nearly flat out broke. Pictures may hafta wait awhile. But anyway, I got Direct TV installed Wednesday. Poor guy. He got there shortly after 8am and didn't finish until shortly after 12. And he was a filthy sweaty mess by the time he was done. I felt so bad for him. I never thought about what a hot and gr...

Because she wanted to see them, here they are. My new stove. My new Fridge. Notice, I've already "decorated" it. LOL

Mostly. hehehe Nah, it really is done. I did leave a handful of things at the apartment but I did that on purpose because there are some things you just can't trust BOYS to load in a big truck without losing. Wish I had a picture of the fully loaded truck, though. It was awesome and I almost cried with the overwhelmingness of it all. lol But here's the 1/3 full truck. They ended up fitting EVERYTHING, including my full assembled two seater swing. You know, my pretty green one that lived on the back patio this year? Yeah, they lifted the thing OVER the fence, carried it around the side of the apartment and loaded it fully assembled onto the truck. Never underestimate the vastness of a 26ft truck or the resourcefulness of a couple of 54 and 55 year old men. LOL But let's go backwards a bit to Friday night. So, Friday night I sent the DP home with Mama because, well, 1) I wanted a night alone because I needed time off for good behavior from puppy parenting. I don't care wh...

That's how I'm feeling right now. LOL I keep thinking as I do things, "This will be my last time to do (insert activity here) in this apartment." I kept telling the DP last night while she barked at the noisy neighbors, "Just relax, baby. This is the last night you ever hafta worry 'bout them. Tomorrow night you're with Nana and Saturday we're at our new house!" She, of course, looks at me as though I'm nuts--and she's right--but I wish she could feel the same excitement and anticipation that I'm feeling right now. I'm anxious to get moved and settled and start this next chapter of my life. At the same time, I equally dread the task of moving. It's supposed to be 98 degrees tomorrow and though I've been steadily getting rid of things, there's still so much that's going to move tomorrow. I pray that I can get those boys really crackin' and get this stuff done well before the temps reach 98. We're starting at...

So this weekend was the practice run for moving day. Sis1 came in from T-Town with the plan to help me move some boxes to the new house. I was just SURE that between her big SUV and my car we could get most, if not all, of the boxes moved. Except--*sigh* Sis1 recently got a new SUV. A GMC something or other. Unlike the Expedition she had, the seats in the back don't fold all the way flat. Meaning? Well, not so many boxes would fit in it that I was planning on. Last year, we loaded her Expedition down with ALL the boxes. This year? Maybe half. I managed to fit about six in the trunk of my car. We got up early and went on a donut run first thing. Which was great except she made me by a cappuccino at the donut shop instead of running across the highway to get one from Micky D's. And whether you hate Micky D's or not (which I don't. I love them), they haz some killer cappuccino's. Like, for realz. The donut shop? Not so much. They use the machine that mixes the powder w...

And I ain't talkin' 'bout no silly boy band, either. Yuck! This has just been a miserably hot week. Yesterday, with all my errand running, driving, etc. I kept a constant sheen of sweat and humidity on my entire body, so much so that I had to shower when I (finally!) got home at 9:30 last night. Oh, but ya'll don't want to hear about sweat. That's just gross anyway. But yesterday was the big day! I, Jana, am now officially a first time homeowner! Catch my while I hyperventilate. lol So I took off the whole day yesterday. For one thing, I was too excited to work. For another, I had a ton of things I needed to do. Like grocery shopping and, well, shopping. Sis1's coming in from T-town this weekend and we're going to be moving boxes tomorrow and cleaning the house. So anyway, I got up super early yesterday and got my grocery shopping done. Made some phone calls (realtor, attorney's office, U-Haul for price quotes) and played with the DP. Then Sis2 and I...

I may never catch up. *shakes head* BUT... Despite copiers croaking, printer cartridges drying up and patrons out the wazoo I've been a happy little clam this week. Wanna know why? I'll tell you anyway. My neighbors have been on VACATION (as in GONE!!) since Saturday morning!!! Picture me doing cartwheels and that's how happy I am. Actually, don't picture me doing cartwheels. I'm wearing a skirt today. :-0 hehehehe But yeah, they're gone this week. Saturday morning while I was loading up Goofus's truck to go to the folks' house, I overheard the mother say, "We'll put the suitcases in the back" and I was intrigued. When I got home Saturday evening and they were gone and didn't come back, I was cautiously optimistic. Well, it's Wednesday and they're still gone so COLOR ME HAPPY!! hehehe It's been so peaceful and quiet. Well, mostly. They've had a friend to come by every evening to check on the cat, water the flowers, etc. ...

So last weekend wasn't all that bad. Neighbors disappeared for most of the day Saturday leaving me and the DP in quite bliss. I love it when they're gone. hehehe Spent most of the day packing and watching Lifetime movies. I know, sad, right? But Lifetime was having some kind of "weird movie" weekend or something and they weren't your regular stereotypical Lifetime movies. Lifetime's branching OUT. hehehe Also made a quick trip to JC Penny's and picked up the drapes I'd ordered. LOVE. THEM. They're so totally gorgeous. Of course now I'm totally regretting the money I spent...well, charged on them. But it'll be worth it when they're hanging gorgeously in my living and dining room. Sunday was just your regular Sunday. Church, the folks, and home. Oh, but when I got home...The neighbor's daughter...*shakes head*. She needs a spankin'. She'd smeared something that looked like mud but may have been poop all over the porch posts o...

And I've only partially lost my mind. hehehe Yesterday I was pretty sure it was gone for good but I've managed to recover at least part of it. Well, only through heavy prayer and turning things over to the Father. So, I have an estimated closing date on my house of June 19th...in case you missed my twitter update. My realtor finally managed to finagle that out of my mortgage officer on Tuesday, which...how in heck does she get to talk to the MO and I always have to leave a stinkin' voice mail? And can I just say that May/June is the WORST time to buy a house? Everyone's going on vacation!! Last week it was the MO. This week it's the attorney's secretary and next week it's my insurance agent. Grrr...Don't these people know that the world is supposed to slow to a halt until I get my house closed! hehehe Meanwhile, the only "vacation" I'm likely to get is the ONE DAY my supervisor is allowing for me to be off to move. And the little here and t...

I realized the other day that while I've been whining about mortgages, Realtors and all the other odds and ends of buying a house I hadn't really told ya'll much ABOUT the house. It's as though I went from, "I want to buy a house" to "I've made an offer and crap it's a lot of work." At least, I couldn't find where I'd told ya'll any specifics. That's a total lapse on my part because I feel as though I've told EVERYONE about it. LOL So, here it is. My future home. Three bedrooms, two baths in a little more than 1200sqft on 1.5 acres of land. It's got central heat and air, a tiny little kitchen (as in teeny tiny), lots of windows, a laundry room just off the kitchen and a carport!! It's situated about a mile and a half away from my parents out in the country. My sisters think I'm crazy to want to live that close to the parental units and that far out of town (45 minutes from work) but I can't imagine that the...

Okay, so more house news: Called today and set up the appointment for the inspection. We're meeting Thursday morning to get that done. I'm really hoping they don't find anything major. While it would be the seller's responsibility to repair it, it would push the closing date (and my moving date) back. Which I don't want to happen. So fingers crossed on that. I'm excited to know, though, that the inspections going to cost me a little more than half of what I thought it would. Turns out, smaller houses are less expensive to inspect. So color me happy. (and a little greener.) Also ordered some drapes for the house. I know, probably a little premature, but I knew what I wanted and wanted them here at least by the time I move. Turns out they're on back order and should be here by the middle of June. So I may not have them EXACTLY when I move, but close enough. And they'll look GREAT with my furniture. :-) Turns out we won't be signing my contract until T...

So, I have some great news. My realtor called me late Friday afternoon and informed me (warning: Shouting ahead) THE SELLER ACCEPTED MY OFFER!!! Woooo hooooo! We're supposed to get together sometime today to get the rest of the paperwork fixed up so that we can get it to the bank but I haven't heard from her yet. I'm calling her in a little bit just because I'm impatient like that. lol But yeah, I ended up calling the realtor after I got home from work because, hello. Three days is a ridiculous amount of time to have to wait on knowing whether or not an offer on a house has been accepted. I got her voicemail, though, so I left her a "Please call me back and let me know something. I'm getting anxious here," message and she called me back about 30 minutes later with the good news. Apparently she'd known earlier in the day but didn't have a chance to call me. She's busy and important, you know. Anyway, I think I floated most of the weekend. Am sti...

I don't think I ever got around to telling y'all, but Daddy had an excellent doctor's report Monday. His white blood cell count is down in the 100's now from the 300's it was in when he was first diagnosed. Doctor said this is VERY good and that given this quick of a response the meds, he expects Daddy to be doing super by this time next month when he goes back. No, he isn't cured, but he's well on his way. So yay! On the house front, I'm now waiting to hear back on whether my counter offer to the seller's counter offer has been accepted. Fingers crossed. I so want to be a homeowner by this time next month. Which, if the seller replies fast, could definitely be a possibility. Mortgage officer told me last night (when she finally called me back) that if we get all the paperwork in by the end of this week, we could totally close by the end of the month. If not, it'll be the first of June. Which would suit me, cause that would mean my first mortgage...

Late Friday afternoon my realtor finally got back to me with the seller's counter offer. I don't really like it as it's not as low as I'd hoped AND he's rushing the close which would put me in a bind with my lease/rent and the like. *sigh* I've put in a call to my mortgage officer, though, to see what she thinks about the quick close and when my payments will start and then I'll know better what I want to do. I want to be able to counter offer with the price I was really hoping for and if I can work out the close date he wants he might go for it since I'm fairly certain he's pushing the date so that he doesn't have to make another mortgage payment. And heck, I'd love to be able to move in June instead of July. The quicker I can get away from all the noise and bothersome neighbors the happier Libby and I will be. Ah, but I had a happy Friday night and Saturday. Next door neighbors were GONE all Friday night and most of Saturday. I think they g...

So I finally got in touch with my realtor yesterday. Last night during Heroes , actually. I'm meeting her this afternoon to write up an offer on "my" house. I'm nervous and excited and a little scared. I'm almost scared to believe that something I really want might actually happen this time. I've been dreaming of owning my own home for so long that now that it's actually happening I'm having to pinch myself to make sure I'm awake. The next little while is going to be a long wait. Between waiting for an offer to be accepted, getting inspections, appraisals, and all the other closing stuff, I'm going to be a nervous wreck. BUT, it'll all be worth it when the realtor hands me the keys and it's mine all mine. (At least I'm praying nothing happens to dash my dreams.) When I can close the door on the apartment for the last time and bid noisy inconsiderate neighbors adeu. When I can take Libby out without having to listen to make sure the ...

Okay, so I went to a different mortgage officer this morning and...I GOT PRE-APPROVED. Yeah, apparently I have excellent credit. Who knew? lol The mortgage officer was super super sweet, kind, helpful and she made it as painless a possible. All the anxiety I felt yesterday is now gone, I feel 99.9% sure that everything is going to go off seamlessly and that by the end of my lease term I will be a home owner, whatever home I decide on. I can't begin to describe to you how amazing that feels. I can't quite wrap my mind around it. Me, Jana of the Jungle, poor little pathetic spinster daughter is going to be a homeowner. I mean, no, I haven't signed on a house YET, but the very real, very likely possibility is there. It's a dream I've had for at least a half a decade. Something I thought would never become a reality and yet here I am, firmly ensconced in His warm assurance that yes, Jana, there is a future beyond crappy landlords and even crappier rental homes. And yeah...

Whoo boy, if ever I wanted to be an ostrich, this is it. I got my mortgage application in the mail yesterday. Yeah. It's intimidating as all heck and I'd rather jab my own toe with a hot poker than sit down and start working on it but jabbing my toe with a hot poker won't get me a new house. *sigh* Honestly, I'll say this upfront: I have no idea what I'm doing. Months of research and years of dreaming could not prepare me for the scary pit in my stomach of fear that is taking me over this very second. Can I really do this? No, can I REALLY freaking DO this? I know it's physically possible. Folks buy houses and survive all the time, right? Folks as poor or poorer than me. It can't be that hard really. But sheesh, it sure feels like it. I can see my suddenly meager looking savings frittering away on things like credit reports, appraisals, title insurance (I didn't even know there WAS such a thing!) etc. And honestly, not having my savings scares me more th...

So I'm still consumed with house hunting/buying thoughts. Frankly, I'm about sick of it all. I just want a new home. Bought. Rented. I don't care. So long as it's clean, safe, affordable and in good shape, I'm cool. But all this hurry up and wait, looking, thinking, talking and planning is driving me up the wall. I guess more than anything, it's the uncertainty of it all. What can I REALLY afford? What's there REALLY out there for me. And I'm so stinking afraid of making the wrong choice. I mean, hello. This is me. I jump blindly or drag my feet and usually all with the same results. Bad. But, I know there's a place for me. I just have to keep looking, praying and seeking. In the meantime, I hope it doesn't all drive me crazy. In other news, I'm a horrible terrible friend. *sigh* BFF in SC called me Sunday night. It wasn't until I picked up the phone that I realized I hadn't called to tell her about Daddy's Leukemia. That's us...