Meet Jen, My Friendly Neighbor

Even though I've only known her for a few weeks, I admire Jen. She is the real deal: smart, cute, nice, business-like and stylish.

I spent some time with Jen in her cozy 1920 bungalow yesterday and asked her some questions to get to know her better. Boy, I'm glad I did!

Q. What is a perfect day for you?

A. Hanging out on the beach, going to a spa and getting a massage, facial,
pedicure and manicure, then going to dinner with my husband.

Q. What makes a house unique or special?

A. Charm---when you can walk in and say, "This is so them." It's not necessarily that the colors and furnishings are in style, but that you know it's their style.

Jen earned a Bachelors degree in Finance and worked for five years at Novell in licensing compliance and inside sales. She now works for Tenacious Integration Services as an account executive. She also hosts a Finance Club in our ward. This lady knows her stuff!

Q. How has your background in finance affected your personal finances? Do you feel you make better choices on how you spend your money?

A. Totally. I was originally going to go into architecture, but I found it was too structural. I considered business marketing, but decided on finance because it was more applicable. I knew even if I could never use it after college I could use it on my home. My business understanding has helped me as I've bought a house and invested in a 401K, for example. These things put you on the road to financial security. I would know what to look for and then research it out. It gives me a foundation.

Q. What's one topic in finance women rarely understand?

A. The whole concept of a 401K.

Q. Do you give advice very often about financial matters?

A. Seldomly. Only when they ask a specific question.

Q. What retail store to you most identify with, style-wise?

A. Pottery Barn. I love everything in Anthropologie, although practially-speaking, I'm a little too conservative for it.

Q. What's the secret to a happy, fulfilled life?

A. I'm still trying to figure it out. Being happy with where you're at and what you have.

Well said.

Thanks, Jen for enlightening me and those who read this blog! I have always been intimidated by business-savvy women, for some reason, and it's nice to chat with one so down-to-earth. Next time, I'd like to learn the secret to great, toned arms!

The Weekend in Pictures

The Shaker Ward had it's annual campout at the John Johnson Farm in Hiram, OH this weekend. We took our two man tent and headed out to the "roughies." I wouldn't exactly call bathrooms and showers roughing it, but I deserve an award for lasting a whole night sandwiched between Finn and Lucy, on a thin sleeping pad, over a rocky spot.

The Johnson Farm and the house where Joseph Smith was taken in the middle of the night and tarred and feathered by the angry mob (in the background). The Church has restored the area and the home and it's very tranquil out there.

Lucy and me, helping put up the tent.

Block Party: Saturday

Finn was all ears listening to the Cleveland Heights fireman.
He even got to sit in the seat!
The firemen raised the ladder up to a house window. Finn thought that was really neat.Lucy made friends with Diana. Don't they have similar facial features?
I took this to the street party potluck....
...and these to the cake walk. The little girls liked them.

And so did Finn.

Settling In

In weeks

One slowly goes from fumbling for a lightswitch in darkness

To perceiving its place

Beforehand.

Errands

Become confident routes

To somewhat familiar stores.

Not wild goose chases.

Mail delivery time learned: Between 12 and 3 PM.

Neighborhood protocols: garbage to treelawn on garbage day, don't stare, general keeping to onesself (much like the unwritten rule in New York: avert eyes from anyone).

Falling into patterns- awake, eat, walk, wipe clean, get out, put away, bathe.

Developing a routine.

Undecided how I feel about newness wearing off.

Behold the Project

This was yesterday's project: prime and....

...paint heat duct grills.


Here's my other, ever-present project: Finn and Lucy.
Here's what she's thinking:

"Here's my chance to get back at him for all he's put me through the last six months!"
Tongue out, as per usual these days.
A little study break treat for Mr. Fixit Sr. a la Mrs. Fixit Chocolaticus.

The Moment We've All Been Waiting For...

Please keep in mind that while we've completed 90% of the work, we still have some finishing touches to make (installing trim, painting the walls, putting up curtains, etc.) And, also, try to imagine the "old" space smelling like dog and cat pee, hair and other vile things I shall not mention.

KITCHEN : Before

KITCHEN : After

KITCHEN : Before

KITCHEN : After

KITCHEN : Before

KITCHEN : After

BATHROOM : Before

BATHROOM : After

FLOOR DETAIL : I still have to paint the baseboard trim.


And fiddlesticks on those of you who don't like what my mama and daddy have been working on!

Working in a Coal Mine

This is the window countertop/bar that Mr. Fixit Sr. put in Saturday. I am excited to have an eat-in kitchen. I put the first coat of poly on about half hour ago. I will paint the legs white to match the cabinets.
Installation of said counter.
Ta-da! I can't find the before picture, so this will have to do for now. And, it's very very messy. But, I wanted to post what the kitchen sort of looks like.

From This Media Center to Yours

I thought I was being clever to quote a song I heard on "The Office," whilst other more "media savvy" folk were aware of the original song. I got stumped! Anyways, so Heather gets mention because she knew the original song and Whitney gets mention for the Scranton party part. I had to laugh at Erin's comment:

"ps. I used google to help me with the coolio reference... "I got sides in my rides and motion for your ocean. Coolio got the potion to get the party open."

Very well said, Erin. Thank-you for the extended version!

This was fun. Maybe a giveaway of some kind is in order for the near future.

I'm enjoying my after-church pork and beans with hint of lime chips. What are you eating?

"Ain't no Party Like a [Cleveland] Party..."

The first person to know what I'm referring to gets mentioned in my next post!

So we've been chipping away at the old block (Did I use that phrase correctly? Oh well...) Meaning, working on this house. It's coming along, don't get me wrong. We've got some finishing work to do on the kitchen and then we'll be done (mostly) with what we had set out to do about 4 weeks ago when we got here.

Above picture: Brother Fixit installing media counter. "What is a media counter?" you ask. It's for our computers and my sewing machine.

Junior Plumb-bob trying to help "wurhk hass," translation: work on the house.
Miss Toots sporting her older brother's do-rag (spelling?) so much more pleasant than he ever did.

Sleeping so seriously...

Sleeping so chubbily...I can't get over those rolls on her right leg, so soft and perfectly folded over each other.

Special Day

On our way to the Amasa Stone Chapel on the Case campus. If I have one picture with Finn pushing his truck, I have a thousand.
Inside the chapel.
Travis receiving his white coat. It's a ceremony they do every year for the incoming class. The students recite an oath and they have speakers. Then they call each student's name and put their "student doctor" coat on them.

I had a "defining moment" while I was sitting outside the building during the ceremony. I was sitting on the lawn eating take-out Chinese that we hadn't eaten yet because we were running late. Finn would not stay quiet inside and so I was stuck outside with my two kids. I thought, great, this is what my life is going to be like for the rest of my life, missing out on things to keep my kids satisfied. I didn't come to a peaceful resolution to that thought, but I realized that now I can't just do whatever I want. I am tied to my kids. Like it or not, that's it.
Our "happy family" once again takes a classic shot. I don't think we've ever had a family picture where both Finn and Lucy are smiling.
CWRU Dental Class of 2011.

Finn Turns Two

On Saturday past, we celebrated the second birthday of little Finn-Bob. In the past two years, he's grown from a little tadpole into a small frog, metaphorically speaking. I got to thinking about what lies ahead (preschool maybe next year) and I thought of how precious the time is. He is pictured above with the truck Grandma Gigi gave him (which he loves...both the truck and his grandma).

We spent the morning of his birthday walking to yard sales. We managed to make it home with this heavy load (notice the 10 lb. dumbbells for $1!!) Then Finn wanted to go to the library and walk across the bridge that goes from one building to another. We ended up getting there at the magic time when the toy room was open. You can imagine his delight. He loves nursery and anytime he can play with toys and other kids.

It wasn't hard to convice the neighbors to join us for the Bob the Builder ice cream cake. They have four kids and they are alot of fun to have next door.
Out go the candles!
And.....as a sneak peak for a more finished look of our place, here's the kitchen backsplash tiling. Keep checking....next week I should have a picture of the final product!