Our loan application for the house has been approved!� Now, all we have to do is wait for a new roof, and we’re ready to close!

It sounds pretty ridiculous in here.� =)� David and I are at the table in the dining room, both on our computers.� I’ve just finished making up the hour of work I missed today (I went to the bridal shop with Bethany to get her alterations done – it’s a maid of honor’s duty!) and I think he’s just playing around online.� We’re both sniffling like crazy.� I’m just coming off a week-long head cold and I think he’s just now starting.� Anyway, thought I’d share – it’s cracking me up.

The house: No news on the mortgage loan yet – but in this case, no news is good news.� The only way we’d hear something back this soon is if something’s wrong.� We’re meeting with the realtor Thursday at lunch to talk over the inspection.�

After we got back from the bridal store today, I drove Bethany by our new place (she hasn’t seen it).� As we walked around outside we almost ran into [literally] four huMONgous spiders that had strung up�webs in all�the walkways around the house.� They were evil-looking, even to a non-arachnaphobic like Bethany…� After the fourth we saw, we just decided to leave and come back later with other people.� There’s safety in numbers (and in carrying big cans of Raid) when you’re dealing with GIGANTIC arachnids.�

We found a house. We’ve looked at house after house over the past couple of years (between going around with friends who are house-shopping, watching friends buy and move into new houses, and searching ourselves last year and recently), and I’ve never seen a house I love as much as this one.

That said, let me tell you a little about it. This house is on a one-block section of street that’s between a brand-new elementary school and a city park. it’s got a large lot with a lot of trees. It’s a two-story “Arts and Crafts” style house that was built in 1935. It has all hardwood floors and the original woodwork of the house. It’s been kept up very well and updated. There’s a large deck in the back and beautiful landscaping (complete with a fountain, pond, and a couple of herb garden enclosures). There’s a 2-car garage. We just couldn’t find a thing to even worry about – it’s gorgeous and well-kept!

The house we have fallen in love with (these pictures don’t do it justice):

the front yard

the porch

the entryway – and the beautiful staircase

the entryway – and the beautiful staircase

some of the kitchen.

some more of the kitchen.

the dining room

more of the dining room

the deck and the backyard

the house from the backyard

the downstairs bathroom, just off the kitchen

the staircase

the second bedroom

the washroom (on the second floor!)

the second floor bathroom

the master bedroom (two walk-in closets)

We decided that we didn’t want that house. There were some really neat things about it, but neither of us really loved it. We figure that it’s not a good idea to spend that much money on something we don’t absolutely LOVE. So, we spent some time last night on MIBOR and have contacted several realtors about other properties. Hopefully we’ll hear back from them soon. =)

…

Also, AdoramaPix is having an amazingly great sale on 11×14 prints. Now’s the time.

Read this.

Here are 2 quick pictures of the front and the back of the house. We live in the left (as you’re looking) half of the duplex. Dave’s standing guard at the front door.

I’d like to take you on a tour of our new home. New to us, that is… There’s not much new about this place (except for the things we’ve added or things replaced because they were broken when we moved in) – it was built at the turn of the century, and some parts of it haven’t changed at all. =)

Pros:

• Hardwood floors: they’re gorgeous, and mostly original!
• Location: I’ve moved into the neighborhood of my church and the vast majority of my Indiana friends. Who cares if it’s the ghetto?
• Size: Much bigger than our last apartment – there’s room for us and our things!

Cons:

• A very wet Silence of the Lambs basement – it’s scary down there, and unfortunately, that’s where our laundry is.
• It’s hot. There’s no air conditioning, and we moved in during the muggiest week of hte year so far.
• It smells really bad. The woman who lived there before us had 7 (count ‘em – 7!) cats. My theory about the smell: they ran feral and used the carpets as a litter box. Oh wait, she had the litter box in the shower! (That was gross to clean.)

There’s good news, though. We’re addressing the cause of the smell asap, and in the meantime we’re covering it with air fresheners (which work pretty well for now). The colors in the house are great – tans and greens and off-whites – colors I’d have chosen on my own if I got to pick, and that match all our furniture. And I really love being here – this is where I’ve wanted to live since I first started going to this church years ago. There are adjustments to make, of course, but I think things are going to be great.

Here’s a look at the chaos:

This is our living room, the first room coming in from the front door. I love the hardwood floors and the wall color. =)

Another view of the living room – my piano has already been played many times, and will continue to be played because of its location (in the middle of everything).

The dining room. You can see that large blank wall behind David (he’s taking a break)? We’re going to hang a HUGE mirror there. It’ll open and brighten up that room (which is bigger than it looks).

The only bathroom, which, maybe because it was used as the litterbox or maybe because there’s something wrong with the plumbing, smells horribly in the absence of air fresheners. It’s bearable, and barely noticeable, with a new air freshener in there or after a shower.

The kitchen. It’s nice now. =) It was really, really gross. We have a new fridge because the previous (moldy, rusty, mildewy, catty, stinky) fridge broke. Thanking the Lord. =) I now have my first gas stove, which I’ve already learned to prefer to electric ranges.

The stairway. Two different colors of rug. The scratches on the right wall are from trying to get our boxspring into the master bedroom (the bottom of the stairway has a very tight turn). We ended up trading some friends who have a split boxspring until we move out.

The second bedroom. It will be our computer/guest room, but now it’s just a storage room. It’s the least necessary and therefore most unpacked of all the rooms in the house. Smelled like cat, but after a few pet shampoos (vaccumed by my wonderful husband) and a strong air freshener, it smells tolerably.

Our bedroom. I love the colors, it’s huge and has two huge windows. It’s fabulous… Except that awful smell. It’s, in my opinion, the worst smelling room in the house. It’s the one we are really trying to do something about. If we can’t find a solution SOON, we’re going to beg our landlord to rip up the carpet. I think I might leave the air fresheners off for a hot day and then invite him to breathe in our room. =)

More pictures later, as we clean up. This was just for you folk too far away to come see the mess in person.

Back home again in Indiana…

I made the 13-hour trek home from Wednesday night (9:45pm Hawaii time) to Thursday night (5:30pm Indiana time). The flights were uneventful, the travelling exhausting. I’m still adjusting to a time zone 6 hours later than the last I was in, but not having slept Wednesday night made it easy to go to bed. Now I just have to get better at waking up in the mornings. =)

Boy, was I glad to see Dave again. That was the first time we spent more than a night apart since we’ve been married, and I missed him! It was good, though, to be with my family alone – I haven’t done that since we started dating. It was like stepping back in time, being just me with my family.

I’m at a coffee shop right now, as we won’t have high-speed internet access until we move to downtown Indy. David is at Taylor’s graduation. It’s his last for a while (hopefully), since he won’t be teaching there next year. He’s had a rough couple of days instead of the relaxing ones he anticipated (problems with one of his groups’ projects), so he’ll be glad to be officially done. Once he is, we’ll be packing madly… Moving day is next Saturday.

In the meantime, I have to post all my Hawaii pics (which means I have to organize them first) in my photo albums… I might actually take this chance to rearrange all of my photos, if I can find time while we pack and move. Regardless, I’ll post links when I’m finished.

Off to start the sorting now… I’ll be listening to my new copy of Abbey Road – thanks, Leah!