After searching for two years we have found the new boat that we want to buy; it is a twenty foot cabin cruiser with sleeping berths for four, so we can go on weekend trips on the boat and not have to worry about a place for everyone to sleep. We have it out of the water right now getting it checked over and if everything is as good as it seems we will pay for it and get her back in the water next weekend. I can not wait we have wanted a big enough boat to go out for two or three days at a time and get out of our hot house! We have got it now and I am very happy about this purchase, and can not wait to get it in the water!
Too hot to cook inside
It has been so very hot, it is to darn hot to cook inside. I refuse and we are going to live off sandwiches and if some one wants to fire up the grill they can cook outside. I hate summer in this house it does not have an up to date air conditioning system and it gets so very hot in a couple of rooms including the kitchen. So after it gets hot I stop baking and only cook breakfast, that is while it is still cool from the night. No more chicken and dumplings no pies and worst of all for me at least no turkey and dressing. These will just have to wait until it cools off a little.
Damage
Almost every house along our street has some damage from the wind and rain last night. It hit here about 5 pm and we did not get our power restored until about 9 last night. We have a couple of small limbs torn down that fell into our yard, but just a few houses down a whole tree came down barely missing the house. I am glad we did not have any drama like that and they are calling for more storms tonight, lets hope they are wrong. We have had a storm filled June and I for one will be very happy to get on further into July and see if the weather will calm down a bit with summer getting here.
Spring cleaning
Every spring I go through my house from top to bottom and throw out the old and bring in fresh new things. This year my focus will be getting new carpet in my living room and bed room. I will be looking for the best price and the best carpet when I start shopping for my new carpet. I have narrowed my choice of colors down to two shades of brown I need the brown due to my dogs and the amount of traffic these rooms have. As I get closer I will also look at the carpet outlets in near by Georgia to see if I can find a bargain.
Laminate counters from Kitchen Magic
Since I am in the process of starting some home improvement projects for the winter months, I took a good hard look at my kitchen counters and then started looking on the internet where I found Kitchen Magic. I am quite impressed with what this company has to offer. I love the durability of laminate counters and it seems while everyone else is choosing wood, or stone at exorbitant prices, I wanted to go for not only beauty, but something that would handle the wear and tear of a regular household and be affordable.
With laminate counters, there is no dangerous fumes that a sealant could be released, nor is there any worry about radon that can also be released into the air. I don’t think people think of these things while buying counter tops. To me this would be very much of a concern, since food is of course prepared on counter tops and one can never be too cautious about these things.
With Kitchen Magic counter tops, I found that I could get counters that look like real stone or wood, without any worry about ruining the surface if they were accidentally cut or something hot was put on them. I’m leaning to getting these counter tops for my kitchen and I really can’t wait to get started on my next projects!
Gathering seeds and doing household repair
Over the last few weeks, I’ve been gathering seeds from what I call, my “blown out herbs and flowers” so I can put them in packages, mark them and then plant again next year. I love having herbs, flowers and other plants that I have grown and then gathered the seeds, and planted again the next spring. Generations of plants, so to speak.
I’m also getting the house ready for the winter. There are some repairs needed to be done on the outside of the house, due to the drought and yet also the terrible storms that passed through when we did get rain.
All of these things I love to do but need help with, and I have to admit that my kids have been wonderful about helping me with the a lot of the things that need to be done. This gives me peace of mind and also knowing that I am going to be prepared (sort of) for the winter and also have the spring seeds to plant, will save money and help me to keep from a great deal of worry.
Home repair grants
Having written about home repair grants in the past, I am a firm believer that more people should take advantage of this service. I’m in the process of looking for a contractor to help with venting and also repairing the old pipes in the bathroom, and believe me when I say it can get very expensive. With the economy the way it is, any help with money situations is a big deal and it’s worth checking out to see if you are eligible. It only takes a bit of one’s time and it can make all the difference in the world.
A friend of mine moved back to where she had been renting out the home she owns. When she got there and was settled, she decided to check out assistance with home repairs as the old tenants had trashed her house, then skipped out on the rent and repair bills. My friend was in dire need of assistance to help with the repairs since she couldn’t afford it on her own.
I was told an insulation assistance in NJ was just the thing she needed, as my friend’s previous tenants had even run up a heating bill in the winter that was outrageous. The utilities had been included in the rent so she went into debt with that also. I’m glad she is using her head and checking out various grants and professionals to help with and do the work she needs to have done.
Home energy audit to save money
Because of this past winter, and the amount that our energy bills were, we have decided to have a home energy audit. I know that this house is old and drafty, but it also can be fixed up to be a warm and cozy place, with the right assistance to show and tell us how we can save money on our energy bills.
I’ve always lived in older homes that were cold and drafty while I was in my 20’s. I loved each house, and it seemed rather “quaint” to have to use lap robes and haul in wood for the fire place, that wasn’t for ambiance, but for real heat. Now that I am older and know more about ways to save money in the long run with the heating bills, I want to hire a home insulation contractor, since I found out we have very little insulation in this house.
I’ve read that there are federal grants for home improvement, and that would help a great deal with the financial aspect of getting my home insulated and perhaps do even more improvement of the house, as I’m super tired of waiting for the money that I save, to be enough for these improvements. It would add to my peace of mind if I knew I could be able to fix this home up.
Siding problems
Today all my kids and my grandson were outside, shooting of fire rockets and such that my brother had given them last summer. My youngest daughter gave the guys all of hers and they had a LOT of various bangs, booms, fizzles and zips going. I was sitting outside watching and also looking over the garage and back of the house, to see if the snow, hail, wind and basically nasty weather over last year had hurt any of the siding, roof and window trims. Indeed it had taken it’s toll in a lot of places in the siding.
I had told my husband that I did not like the guys work, while they were putting up the siding and he ignored me, saying that he hired them because they were grandsons on a acquaintance, bla…bla…bla. In other words, he had never seen their work. I come from a very long line of construction men. Roofers, siding guys, masons, and concrete guys. Remodel men and even plumbers and electricians. I took one look at the job they were doing and I raised holy hell. Unfortunately, my husband hushed me up before I could flat out fire them. To this day he is regretting that I didn’t…but of course, he won’t admit it.
While assessing the siding on the house, I came across loose panels, holes, gaps and even some of the corner ( I believe they are called, but don’t quote me ) facets missing. I have a feeling that isn’t the correct word, but I’ll ask a friend later. Anyway, long story short sort of, a lot of the siding is going to have to be replaced. To say the least, I am bummed out that I didn’t go on my first instinct and fire those guys. They didn’t charge as much as the men I had talked to, to do the whole job, but at least had I gone with them, they had a warranty and also were reputable. I say I and me, because my husband ought me this house when we got married. So…it is MY house to make the decisions with. Now, I need new siding and am for sure going with who I wanted in the first place. In the long run, it will help with money matters and I won’t have to worry.
Home security is like insurance
This guest post from Lenny Mcknight
I think it is about time I got security systems for home. I told my husband that we really should start considering getting something done at our house. It is an older house so all of the locks and windows are a bit odd and hard to keep closed and locked. We thought about going through and getting all the windows and locks replaced. My husband did not really want to since he felt that it would take from the character of the house. For me, it was always about saving money. The old windows were so bad, it seemed like we just wasted so much energy and money. I am not sure if we will replace the windows, but I have definitely made a good case about it to my husband. When it comes to home security systems though, I just keep telling him that it is like an insurance policy on your house, except better probably. I do not understand why we have all the insurance policies we do, but we cannot get something simple like a home security system set up. It is more practical in my mind since it’s protecting the things you use and the place you live every day!