Beautiful Weather

Wow, I have a lot of catching up to do on here!  We have been so busy getting things taken care of and accomplished that I just haven't had the time to sit down and type.  I promise, I am going to try over the next couple of day catch everyone up with my latest happenings -- including my last doctor's appointment!
We have had such lovely weather the last two days!  Jerry and I have been busy getting things fixed up and tweaked up around the house.  Let me fill you in on everything we've done this week!

Saturday, February 18th - Jerry and I both worked.

Sunday, February 19th - Jerry and I both worked.  {22 weeks pregnant!}

Monday, February 20th - Jerry and I both worked.

Tuesday, February 21st - Jerry had to get some sleep and my sister-in-law and Susan had an important meeting at school about one of her kids.  So the boys and I went into Harrisonville around 9:30am and joined Emily and Susan at their "playgroup".  Susan left before playgroup was over, then I took all three to the library for story time at 11:00am.  They had a little craft to do after story time, so Jacob and Emily took their time making their doorknob hangers while we waited for Susan.  The boys had so much fun, I think I'm going to try and make it a weekly trip to Story Time at the Library.
It was after 12pm went I got home with the boys.  I fed them both lunch and set Jaxen down for a nap.  Then Jacob and I relaxed around the house until Chloe got home from school.  I can't remember what we did that evening, but I do remember Jerry got us Chinese for dinner.
Wednesday, February 22nd - **World Thinking Day for Girl Scouts!**  The weather was beautiful!!  Jerry, Jacob and I got outside most of the day.  {Jaxen played outside for a while with us then took a couple hour nap!}  We cleaned up the yard from the dogs getting into the trash or shredding their pillows into stuffing!  While we were out there, we figured out how Zinzi and Bandit were getting out of the yard. . . Jerry was able to fix the fence to keep them in and out of my trash!

BEFORE

After the yard was clean, we headed to the garage.  It was a disaster zone, but when you move within a matter of days it's going to happen!  I'm embarrassed to show the before picture, but I have to in order for you to get all the work that we put into the stupid garage!

BEFORE

Now mind you some of that is now sitting inside my dinning room waiting to be unpacked but now it's in the house and I can't use the excuse that's it's too cold outside to go get it. Most of it is things I just need to go through and get rid of and I will over the next week or two! It's only been inside my house 24 hours and already I'm tired of it all sitting there.

AFTER

After we got the garage half-way decent - it's not finished but it's good for now because we can get two cars inside and get to the tools and refrigerator and deep freezer - we went to Susan & Bob's house to take Emily, Chloe's old Dora bike to use this summer.  Plus we needed to use their air compressor to air up the kids' bike tires.  = )  {Side Note: We had to take the Explorer because of the kids' bikes.  This was the first time that I had gotten back in the Explorer since we laid it on it's side January 2011.  I was a nervous wreck, brought back a lot of scary memories.}  We stayed and chit-chatted for a little bit, while the kids all rode bikes and played outside together. 

When we left Susan's house, we swung by Walmart for sandwich cheese, cat food, curtain rod and Mt. Dew.  Since it was getting late when we left Walmart we stopped by Little Caesar's and got a couple of their $5 pizzas to take home for dinner. 

Thursday, February 23rd - Once I got Chloe on the bus and Jacob to preschool, I headed to Walmart  When I got home, Jerry and I went out and reburied our septic tank.  It doesn't sound like a big task, but I was beat after moving all that dirt with a shovel!!  Since I pulled into the garage to unload the milk and bread into the refrigerator out there {no room in the refrigerator in the house for 2 more gallons of milk}, we went ahead and cleaned out my car, vacuumed, and washed the windows.  = )  Now they are finger print and dog nose free - for now!

By the time we got the car cleaned out, it was time for me to pick up Jacob from school.  Once we ate lunch, I cleaned up the house and got laundry going.  Then we hung up a lot of my picture frames!  I'm not done yet, but I got a good start to it. . . I'm so procrastinating on getting my dinning room emptied out!

Anyone want to come help me?!?!

But in my head I justified doing what I wanted after I got the garage cleaned up and pretty for Jerry.  Makes sense, right?!  So I spent my afternoon playing around on the computer and hammering nails into my walls!!  Check out *SOME* of my handy work!!

Okay, that's it for tonight!!  You will have to come back in a couple of days to see the update for the week prior . . highlights: My doctor's appointment and income taxes!  = ) 

MY Domain!!

Good Evening, blog-reading friends!!  I have been busy today!!  While Jerry and Jaxen slept this morning/afternoon, Jacob and I unpacked some more boxes out of the garage.  In all, today we got rid of 11 boxes and a 7 large / bulky items that weren't boxed - like bookshelf/computer desks/filing cabinet/etc.  Of course, it wasn't anything we absolutely had to have unpacked - like bathroom/towels/dishes.  Nope, it was my office!  If you can call it an office now!  Whatever you want to call it, it's all mine!!  {Okay, and Jerry's - but it's kid free, although you won't tell from the pictures!}

So lets show off some pictures!

Girl Scout Area - Once the boys start Boy Scouts, I will have to change this to the "Scout" Area but for now it's Girl Scouts!!

Another picture of the Girl Scouts stuff in it's early stages - I just like how Jaxen fell off the chair.  :-)

My littlest helper looking out the OPEN window. . . 66 degrees on January 31st!!  Woo-Hoo!

My sewing table - that will easily convert to Jerry's computer repair area when / if he needs to fix a computer.

All finished!!  The office. . . notice all the Girl Scout supplies!! 

And since it is the OFFICE, here's my bill payin', computer playin' area {where I am currently sitting}!!

Besides unpacking all that you see in the pictures, Jacob and I also brought in a desk for Chloe's room, another box of lost toys for the playroom, and 2 huge boxes of towels and blankets {I've been wondering where they have all been!}.  I have also made the kids curtains for their bedrooms - which I will promise to take pictures of another time!!  Chloe's curtain is made and hung because the hardware was still on the wall from the previous owners.  Two of Jacob and Jaxen's curtains are made and ready to be hung once I get the hardware up and I still need to make them a third curtain once I get or find some more material.

Tomorrow the plan is to burn all the unpacked boxes and start putting up the dog fence.  Jerry went and got the last thing he needed to get this fence put up this week since tomorrow is going to be another 60 degree day!  The kids and Jerry also go to the dentist so hopefully, I will have lots to post for you tomorrow evening!

Septic Tank Woes

Home ownership is fun!  Seems like if it's not one thing, it's another.  But I can honestly say that so far we have been lucky, things haven't been too bad.  Just time consuming.  Lol.

Our problems started about a week or two ago.  I ran a load of laundry in which flooded the laundry room.  Now, honestly I didn't think too much of it.  It was a load of blankets and I thought I over stuffed the machine and the water spilled out. . . the mess wasn't horrible but noticeable.  {And on a side note - I told Jerry about the incident and he did not look into it!}  The rug around the toilet had gotten washed every time I did laundry because I kept finding it wet. . . I thought the kids were doing it!

Fast forward to last weekend.  I was downstairs putting Chloe to bed and switching over the laundry and cleaning up the cat's stuff (litter box, food/water, sweeping, mopping, etc).  And as the washing machine started to drain the water from the basin I heard water pouring over and hitting the floor.  I ran into the laundry room and I find the toilet bowl over flowing with what I can clearly see as sewage.  It was everywhere!  So I told Jerry the next morning, that we had a problem. . . Heck, I wrote him a note for him to read in the morning when he got home - I still have it for proof!  {He still didn't LOOK in the laundry room}  He told me to only run one appliance at a time - that night I was also running the dishwasher upstairs and all three kids had baths. . . thought that maybe I was using too much water at once and it couldn't get out of the house at the same time.

So the next day I did what he asked.  I ran a load of laundry and only the washer machine was using water. . . It happened again.  So we went to Walmart and bought a plunger and a tiny toilet snake. . . Jerry said that the kids probably put something down the toilet and clogged it.  {Jerry still hadn't looked at it - do you see a theme going on here!?!? :-)}  When we got home, Jerry went down to unclog the toilet. . . he was downstairs a while. . .

He came up - not so happily, and reported that it was a bigger problem.  He ran to Walmart again to get a chemical to put down the drain to unclog the pipe.  The next morning, it still hadn't worked so that brings us to today!  I did some research on our Home Warranty and I found out if it was only a clog we were covered.  I had to do some talking to Jerry because he's a fix-it man and wanted to prove he could fix it himself.  But I finally got him talked into calling the warranty company and having them send out a certified plumber.  It was only a $60 service charge for us. . . and I'm sure after everything Jerry wanted to take apart and buy and break and fix and replace - it would just save me money in the long run! 

The warranty company considered it an emergency fix and sent someone out today.  Of course, it had to be after our doctor's appointment and picking kids up from school.  The plumber was suppose to be here around 5pm.  So while waiting, we did some more looking and talked to the plumber. . . he needed a accessible clean-out pipe in order for the warranty to pay for it.  Jerry and I couldn't find anything anywhere. . . but then again we didn't know exactly what we were looking for.  So with a quick call to his dad, we found out we had to dig up part of the septic tank.  Thank goodness Jerry knew almost exactly where the tank was and was able to dig up the top of it and found the manhole cover on top before the plumber got here.

Come to find out we do not have a clean-out point.  But the plumber was able to help Jerry dig a bigger opening and install a clean-out for us for $20 parts / $20 labor.  After they installed the clean-out point, the plumber called the warranty company to say "Yes, it is a clog that can be snaked.  Yes, there is an accessible clean-out port."  The warranty company gave the go ahead for the repair work and the pipe was snaked and opened up!  Everything is back to normal except the hole in the yard . . . which will be filled in once I buy a longer PCP pipe and cap.  Then if it ever happens again. . . the clean-out pipe is accessible without having to dig up the yard!

All-in-all, it was a pretty descent fix. . . I only had to pay $103.00 to have the septic tank unclogged and a clean-out point installed.  I am so thankful for that amazing plumber who helped Jerry out without charging us an arm and a leg.  It would have been so easy for him to say, no access point - not doing it.  And without the access point the warranty wouldn't have covered the fix.

We learned a lot about our septic tank today. . . and Jerry learned to check-out the "problems" I tell him about. . . even if he thinks I'm crazy!  :-)  Tomorrow is my disinfect-the-laundry-room-to-do-the-laundry-without-having-the-toilet-overflow day!!  Lol. . . it's the little things that make me happy.