Patti-1, Icemaker-0

James and I are rapidly learning about the joys of home ownership. This is the second home we've owned, but the first was a brand-new townhouse, so there wasn't really a big worry about something breaking. Our new home is 14 years old, and pretty much everything (refrigerator, stove, roof, a/c unit) is original to the house. It all works fine now, but we're budgeting and planning for some major work in the next five years.

Anyway, our fridge is one of those side-by-side models that have an in-door ice dispenser. Very nice, especially for an ice addict like myself. There's a little problem; the icemaker is very slow. As in, it makes about five (5) cubes a day. I'm not exaggerating. It's been quite frustrating.

So, I figured out a solution. I made a few trays of ice cubes, and tossed the ice cubes into the ice storage bin. Voila! The ice tumbled oblingingly into my glass. I may have to be an ice-making machine for a few days, but hopefully we'll have an abundant supply of ice before long.

James spent this weekend working on our master bedroom closet. A few days after we moved in, half of our closet shelving fell down in the middle of the night. Apparently the previous owners (or the builder) hadn't placed the proper supports on it. Grr....Now half of our closet is redone, and we could probably swing from the rods and not have it collapse. The other half of the closet will be redone probably sometime this fall---after I've started work and have received a paycheck.

We found a house!

Last week, Susanna and I met James in Chesapeake to go house-hunting. Over the past two months, James has been working with a realtor and looking for homes in Chesapeake and Virginia Beach. He probably looked at 50+ homes and narrowed it down to about eight that he liked and thought that I'd like. We spent Thursday looking at all of these houses. James had done a great job; I wouldn't have minded living in any of them! However, we did settle on a mutual favorite and wrote out an offer for it. The sellers sent back a counter offer, so we sent them our own counter offer. Finally, Kim (our realtor, who is simply amazing) called us this morning to tell us that our offer had been accepted! Yay!

The house is one that we'll hopefully stay in for a while. It has 4 bedrooms, 2 1/2 bathrooms, and is in the best school district in Chesapeake (very important now that we have Her Highness). It has a nice yard for Simon and a lovely master suite for Mommy and Daddy. We're hoping to close shortly after Memorial Day. It will be so nice to be homeowners again; we've already begun thinking about improvements and landscaping.

We're Virginians Again!!!

Since today was my day off, James and I decided to go to the DMV and get our licenses, title, and registration changed over from KY. We arrived at 10:11 am. Two and a half hours later (12:45 pm) we left the DMV as legal residents of Virginia. We had some snafus when we FINALLY got to a customer service window. We were both still in the system, and at first the computer wanted us to take the written test again...because our licenses had "expired." That got straightened out quickly (since we surrendered our valid KY licenses). Then they wanted to see our marriage license...since I was in the system under my maiden name. Never mind that I had a passport, Social Security card, and license in my married name. (: That got fixed as well. We are now "legal", with VA license plates to boot!

This afternoon/evening we began unpacking boxes. We got the bedroom finished, and are amazed at how big it is. Tomorrow we're tackling the living and dining rooms. Hopefully this week I'll be able to finish the office. Then the fun task of decorating comes. Good thing I have my very own Personal Decorating Consultant on retainer (a.k.a Mom the retired interior decorator)!

Live! From Danville...

It's been a crazy few days. On Tuesday, James and two NCCU guys (David and Mark) loaded a Penske truck with 3/4 of our furniture. It was POURING RAIN for most of the day, but they loaded stuff in between bursts of rain.

On Wednesday morning, we moved into the parsonage. I have to say, this pastor thing is pretty cool! We had a "moving crew" there to help us unload, cold drinks and some food in the fridge, and fresh flowers. At about 2:30 p.m. we left to drop off the truck and take James back to Morrisville (he had to teach that night, and our other car was at the apartment). I headed back to Danville after loading the car with more stuff.

Today (Thursday) the cable guy came and set up our Internet and TV. Then I went to the church to check out my office and do some work on the bulletin for Sunday. I also went to Wal-Mart and spent a disgusting amount of money on food and cleaning supplies. The nearest (major) grocery store is 8 miles away, so I don't plan on going more than once a week.

Tomorrow I'm going to finish the bulletin and copy it. I also have to put the finishing touches on my sermon. James thinks he may mow the lawn, since Danville received five inches of rain this week.

Woody is doing well, although he's a little confused with all this moving. However, he loves his new yard. All of the church people have loved him so far; they think he's SO well-behaved, SO handsome, etc.

I'll try and write an update next week.

Parsonage pics

Here are photos of the parsonage. It's a beautiful house, with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living/dining room and an eat-in kitchen. It has a fireplace, a deck, and a HUGE yard. It's only a mile or two from the church, so my commute will be short.

House sale update

We just accepted an offer on our house! It's a really good offer; only a little bit below our asking price. We'll still wind up "in the black" when all is said and done. The closing should take place by the end of the month.

Woody's sad that he's losing his yard. But we're assuring him that by this time next year, he'll have a BIG yard to play in.

Durham pics: apartment

James and I found a lovely 2 BR/2 BA apartment in Morrisville, just outside of Durham. The apartment has loads of storage space and a HUGE patio! These are pics of the actual apartment we'll be leasing. Obviously, they're all outside pics because we couldn't get inside. :) The first pic is of our view from the patio. Woody should like it!!

Wanna buy a townhouse?

It's official...our house is on the market! We have the sign posted out front and a lockbox on our front door. Check out the listing (soon to have pics!) online at Rector-Hayden.

If you know of anyone who's looking for a very cute, well-built, nearly-new townhouse, send them our way!

Durham trip #2

We just returned from our SECOND Durham trip, and this time we were successful! We found an apartment we really like. It's in a really nice town and only 15-20 mins from NCCU. It's really big-1300 square feet-and is right near a park.

James will be teaching the summer session @ NCCU, which begins on May 15. He'll be moving into the new apartment a week or so before that. Woody and I (and all our furniture) will arrive sometime after Memorial Day.

Coming soon: pics of James' new office, new boss, and our new apartment!

Our house should be on the market by the end of this week. We're meeting with our realtor on Tuesday.