The new place...a work in progress

Ah, we are finally settled in; not that we are finished with all the work that needs to be done, but we can eat, sleep, bathe and relax. Having a house is still has not sunk in. We saw easily 50-100 properties. Its been quite a task, but the good Lord provides. Can I get an AMEN! Its SOOO nice not having a faux bedroom that is part of a dining room! And a bedroom is like a sanctuary...a place to get away from screaming kids who whine and fight and cry. Tho we really need some rugs or something to absorb all the noise, cuz the sound bounces off all the hardwood, echoing and destroying my ears and chipping away at my sanity... I still hear the kids loud and clear. They're great, they love all the space to run around in. And test their vocal range. So I said I would post some pics of the new place. I just had to wait a while til we got the place looking somewhat presentable. so without further ado, here they are: Living room is above.

 Here is my groovy kitchen. Those cabinets are actually brown and sponge-painted. A bit hideous, but livable. I'd like to paint them white. Actually, I'd just like a new kitchen. My husband got us a new stove thats retro and awesome but I have fallen in love with my built-in electric stove we initially thought didnt work. Its over there to the left with the green tea kettle on it. And once I get that dish washer working, no more slaving over dishes for me! I've seriously have been doing dishes since i was about 8. And we had 8 people worth of dishes to do. We complained to my parents to get a dishwasher and my dad would always say " Why? we have 6 of them!" Referring to me and my 5 other siblings.

Here is the dining room. Its very large and bare. I mean, what else do you put in a dining room besides the table, chairs, a buffet and a small table? I do like the paint job. The color is a gray with a hint of purple. Though we will eventually replace the 1950's table set with a large farmhouse style wooden table, it sure matches well in there.

This is the back porch entrance...the door with the 'keep out' sign is my craft room. Because kids need to KEEP OUT. Too bad they can't read yet. We just pulled up the nasty foul smelling carpet from these rooms. And it was a gross red-orange color with stains, frays and an awful stench of mildew. My husband pulled it up yesterday not knowing what to expect underneath, but fortunately the floors underneath were actually quite nice. They are a green painted wood in great condition. Dodged the bullet on that one.

Now here is my craft room. I am making a project out of this 11 x 6  room. Wait and see.

Ok, so there is a preliminary look at the new diggggs. As you can see...a work in progress

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I'm Back

Finally back online! Our internet has not been working since my last post and I felt strangely isolated from the rest of the world. Well, pics of the new place will be posted. Im happy here and we are settling in nicely. There are a few things we have to fix...like right NOW. But otherwise its all in good shape.

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I love Levi!

Of course I love this kid, he doesn't bug me when I want to scarf down a bag of dark chocolate peanut M&Ms... while I have send the other 2 to play in their room at times like this. Its funny being a parent. Its also funny when you wonder how the baby will be while you are still pregnant. I mean, you always have those friends or family who tell horror stories of how they hadn't slept in a year or how they can't leave the house or the kid will throw tantrums and destroy an entire city block. I had the 'perfect baby' who slept wonderfully and never threw a fit. Heck, we could take her to the movies without a problem. But all kids are one of a kind. My second is the city block destroying type. I also never slept until she decided she was ready to sleep thru the night...at 19 months...and it was still quite shaky. But this lil guy...he is a gem. He is just so sweet and cute and lovable and snuggable...ok, I'll cut that out. 

Now that I have 3 under 5 yrs old I'm noticing the biggest challenges. Like simple things that become complex...like going shopping - they all cant go in the cart with the food and I aint pushing 2 carts!! We need a bigger car, bigger living space (check!), more arms, more hours in the day, more everything. And on top of it all we're moving, painting, priming, fixing, working several jobs and trying to keep our wits about us...especially when these kids refuse to nap! But, as I hold Levi as he sleeps in my flabby arms, to heck with everything else. Its nice to relax and look at his sweet little face. ♥

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Yep, Still moving..the journey continues

UGH, this move is quite the arduous task! I suppose when you are moving 5 people, two etsy shops, and a whole lotta crap, its an uphill battle. Oh, and I forgot the mass off stuff in storage...we also have stuff still stored in the last building we lived in. I wonder if its still there.

What's taking so long is this: we bought a foreclosure. Yes, its a long and drawn out process but well worth it considering the price tag and quality of the home. Its a lot of house for a little money and in a nice area. It does, however, require some work - thankfully it is all cosmetic. This part is taking longer than I want. All we really need to do is slap on some paint and trim and its totally livable. Our yard is small - but all standard Chicago lots are, but we do have a beautiful blooming tree with a branch that grew in the most perfect spot to hold a swing for the kidlets.

I'd like to also mention that because this was a foreclosure we bought it "As is" and technically any problems found on the property were our problems to correct. Luckily we bought from the bank who was also our lender and got a few perks. One of the biggest and best was a brand new heating system. That floored our Realtor who said banks NEVER do this kind of thing on a foreclosure...apparently ours did. They also scraped and repainted windows, fixed gutters, painted the garage, fixed any peeling paint in the house, replaced some plumbing fixtures...and all this came to a hefty price tag for the bank. For the price we actually paid for the home compared to the price of all the things the bank fixed I sorta feel like we ripped them off...but then I think about how interest works and realize how silly a thought that was!

But all in all, we got the Chicago Bungalow we've always wanted and when we add all these blessings together it's really reassuring to know the Big Guy is taking care of us.

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