Samples

So... Since everything is already picked out, I'm putting up samples! :)


This is the color of our countertops (Dupont Zodiac Quartz in Black Forest).





This is the color of our kitchen floor tile (Ozark Sand).







This is what our dishwasher is going to look like.





This is basically what our microwave/vent will look like.

This is basically what our range/oven will look like.









This is basically what our refrigerator will look like.

I hope that everything is going to look nice together. We put it together on a small scale and it looked great (I don't have a sample of the cabinets, but they're cherry wood with a ginger finish and a chocolate glaze. Also, the paint pulls it together better... it's Slate Green but I can't find the color online). I'm worried that it won't look as good together on a larger scale. I guess we'll find out very soon.

Oh. Joe told me that we have to paint the upstairs bathroom immediately (I was going to put it off for a while since we have so much other stuff to do that's more important). Apparently that's on the list for the appraisal to come back correctly, so it has to be done. It doesn't look like we'll be going to Texas this weekend after all, so I will probably start on that this weekend (and hopefully get it finished!). Wish us luck!

Update

Well, we have the cabinets ordered. They will be installed in about 3 weeks. Our appliances have been ordered. They should arrive at the end of this week. The tile guy will be taking down the tile in the downstairs bathroom on Thursday as soon as we close on the house (Joe's appointment with the lawyer is at 11:00 am on Thursday. Once all the paperwork is signed by both parties, the will give us the key and we will be homeowners!).

Then, the following Monday, Paul Kitchen is coming in to tear out the baseboard heating (that will probably take a few days). Also on that Monday, someone is coming to tear out the carpet in the living room. Then, on Wednesday, my mom will arrive to help us out! She'll be here until the following Wednesday.

Once the tile guy finishes tearing out the tile in the bathroom, he's going to tear out the bottom cabinets in the kitchen so that he can start tiling the kitchen (the tile has been ordered, but it will take a few days to get it in, so hopefully he can start on the kitchen as soon as he finishes tearing out the tile in the bathroom). Once he finishes tearing out the tile in the bathroom, my mom and I will take out the door on the bathroom, put up new drywall to cover that hole and put in a new door on the wall that is shared with the master bedroom (which will turn that bathroom into the master bathroom. Once we finish that, the tile guy can put in the new tile and the new shower in that bathroom.

My mom will also be helping me tear down the wallpaper in the master bathroom. I've never done this before, but I hear that it's a pain in the butt to do. I hope that it all comes down easily. She will also be helping me paint all of the rooms. I hope that we can get it all done in the time that she is here. I'm going to try not to get my hopes up, because I don't know if it's possible, but hopefully we can at least get most of it done. We've got to start on the bathroom first because it is something that I can't do by myself. And then the wallpaper in the master bedroom. And then we'll do the painting in the rest of the house.

My mom and the boys and I will most likely be staying at the house the whole time she is here so that we won't have to waste time or gas (especially with this stupid fuel shortage) going back and forth from Shelby to Gastonia. So, if anyone wants to come see us (or help us!), you're welcome to! :)

We're going to own a house next week!

I talked to Joe just a little while ago. And there is good news! We are approved. And the house appraised for $175,000. :) (well, that's the appraiser's estimate of what the house will be worth when we finish the remodeling).

It's so exciting! We're going to start scheduling everything now! I can't wait! The bad news is that we won't actually be able to close on Tuesday. The bank said that the paperwork will take until Thursday to finish, so we will close on October 2 instead of September 30. Our realtor said that the current owners should not have a problem with 2 extra days, so it will not be the end of the world.

Joe just got back. We have a meeting with the tile guy and the cabinet guy today. :) I am so happy. And the guy who's taking out the baseboard heating is scheduled for Monday, October 8. And that means that I can get my mom and my sister tickets to come down! I am so excited. I talked to my mom and she said she'd stay for as long as I need her and she'd take off whatever days she needed to. She's as excited as I am.

Such good news! And now we wait a week. And then by this time next week, we'll be home owners. :) And next weekend (if we're not in Texas), we will be working on our new house! And then the following weekend, my mom and my sister will be here helping us paint! And then by the end of October, we will be all moved in. And no longer living in Crackton. Such great news!

Appraisal + Gas shortage

The appraiser finally called yesterday afternoon. It was like 3:00. And it still wasn't final. She had questions for Joe. At that point, she was at $165,000. That's very good. Joe flirted with her a little to try to boost it up a little bit. :) He wants it to be higher. The higher the appraisal, the more we'll be able to borrow for remodeling (we can only borrow a certain percentage of what it will be worth).

Joe is at the bank right now meeting with the banker and trying to get things set in stone for the mortgage so that we can close on Tuesday! :) I am so incredibly excited. So long as everything goes well with the banker (we don't expect any problems), we will just have some final paperwork to complete, and on Tuesday, we will own our very first house!

Joe and I were supposed to be going to Salisbury this weekend to hang out with some very cool people (They know who they are :) ), but this stupid gas shortage may cause us to cancel those plans. Last night on our way home from work, there was a gas station which actually still had gas (all grades), so there were lines clear down the streets at all the entrances to the station. My car is at about a quarter of a tank right now. Joe's truck is at like 3/4 of a tank, so even though it gets less gas mileage, we're driving it. They don't want people to get gas unless they absolutely have to, so we're trying to hold out on filling up my car. Besides that, Joe's truck is a diesel and diesel seems to be easier to find right now.

If we have to cancel our plans, I will be going to Lowe's to pick up supplies for the house... like paint and other such items. :) Also, I have to pick up some stuff to repair the house we're renting right now. Daly chewed on the cabinets in the bathroom and I have to sand and stain them again. :( Also, I have to replace the floor trim that she chewed on. And I'll probably start packing up the stuff that we don't use regularly. Joe and I have decided that even if we aren't finished remodeling the house in Shelby, we're moving in by October 31 so that we won't have to pay another month's rent at the house in Gastonia. I am so incredibly excited that I can't even find words! No more Crackton. It's the best news ever. :) Besides finding the love of my life, Joe, and the adoptions of all four of my babies, of course. :)