And We Finally Have DSL

Herr received an email at work yesterday saying that our DSL service could be activated today and that we would want to do so, as the billing was starting immediately. The minute he got home, he called Verizon and was, of course, told that it was too early to activate it according to their records and that they weren't going to do it until Friday. At that point, Mt. Vesuvius erupted and the Verizon guy suddenly changed his mind and helped us activate it. The End.

Progress is being made on the house. Below are some photos of the house. We'll see how Blogger aranges them since my page NEVER looks like it should when I post multiple photos. Herr and I painted the bedrooms and the office on the second floor and we have painted the basement. This week, our boy Vitaliy painted the exterior of our house to rid it of the pinkish hue. Unfortunately, choosing colors is always difficult for me. What looked really brown on the color swatch should not have been named "Cafe Royal." On my house, it looks like it should be named, "Butterscotch Pudding", no?

At any rate, we're going to live with this color for awhile.

Moving on. Here are some befores and durings. The "afters" won't be taken until everything is done. While the bedrooms are all painted, they still need new doors, new closet doors, crown moulding and carpeting. The carpet will be installed after we return from vacation.

Here is the dramatic linoleum in our foyer. Classy.











Above is our new dining room. The wallpaper is quite something. As of 2 hours ago, it is gone since Vitaliy and his team is here removing wallpaper and painting the rooms on the first floor.



These photos are of the porn studio basement. We have since painted it so that it will become the girl's playroom. Once the carpet is installed and it is finished I will post pictures. In the meantime, the brick "Wallpaper" going down the stairs is staying.



And finally, this is a photo of my office. We decided to throw caution to the wind and paint it red. I'm pretty pleased with it, despite the fact that I am a pretty vanilla kind of a gal. I'll enjoy working from here, I think. Did I mention I am going back to work 3 days a week after I return from vacation? And the children will be in daycare? YAY!

Unpacking, Cleaning, Paaaiiinntttting, The New House (Sung to the tune of Loving, Touching, Squeezing)

I am currently writing to you from the Wegman's near my house since they are generous enough to have a hot spot. This is a welcome break as I have done nothing but clean, unpack, pull wallpaper off walls (the easy stuff), paint some rooms, figure out what I am going to do with towels that are aqua blue and happy green when all of the bathroom have the same turd brown tile ,listen to people come by to give us estimates on everything from siding, to carpeting, to a new patio, to a deck, to painting the outside of our house and the inside as well. We've had numerous people come by to turn things on and connect things, but not a single person is capable of allowing us to set up our dsl until 8/25, so we are without internet access.

All in all, we have gotten a lot done. My husband mentioned last week that I am so busy that there is no time for me to cry. Part of me wanted to kick him upside the head ala Billy Jack, but he's right. We have worked really hard to make Baby Girl comfortable in the new house because she is not really liking it. She misses her old house and wants her old room back, and I am right there with her. Every day gets a little better. It helps that some of our friends have visited and she has had playmates to help occupy her time. And I'll be honest, I am motivated to get this house into a home so that I can stand to live in it.

In the meantime, I am COMPLETELY behind in my blog reading without a chance in hell of ever catching up. Especially since I am leaving for LBI next Saturday for a week and I will be doing nothing but drinking and stuffing my face with Peanut Butter and Fluffernutter sandwiches (that's Long Beach Island in New Jersey for those of you not in the know.)What's been happening?