Keep Calm & Close in 9 Days!

Yep, you read that right - we're coming down the home stretch in this process!  We received word about a week ago that our closing is set for Friday, July 10 at 11am.  To say we're excited is an understatement!  Of course, like with everything else, there are challenges before we get those keys but the end is definitely in sight.

It's been a really hectic few weeks (noticing a pattern here?  Us too!) what with getting everything out of J's old house, preparing this one and some other projects too.  We successfully unloaded 1 mortgage payment last Friday - J's Cranberry property is off the books!  The closing was pretty easy from the sellers' side - show up, sign a bunch of forms (but not as many as the buyer) and receive a check.  Score!

We have also started to pack up my house - not quite as big of a concern because we aren't forced out by a certain date BUT I'm not hiring movers just for furniture - they can carry the boxes too.  I just need to get things INTO the boxes.  There's no sugar-coating it, and it's no surprise, but moving royally sucks.  Our goal is to have the upper 2 floors finished this weekend.  That means paper plates and takeout for 2 weeks.  Eh, whatever.  It'll work.

Just a few pictures this time - I really need to go check on the place but I have, ahem, other things keeping me busy after work.  Like...

Meet Harrison, the original Toy Boy!

Duck is as big as Harrison!

Proud Parents!

#notimpressed

That's right, we took the plunge and added a puppy to our little family!  Harrison is a 9-week old Labrador Mix (they tell us Collie...maybe like 2%?  He's pretty diluted on the "mix" part) that we rescued from Ohio.  We closed on J's house and hauled you-know-what to Ohio to make the 3pm pick-up.  He's adorable and full of puppy mischief.  A ton of work, to be sure, but totally worth it.  

We've already decided that we will buy a little set of temporary steps for our back door & a 10 x 10 patch of sod for his to use while the grass comes up - since we plan to install a stone patio next spring, who cares if the "real" grass grows right there??  I'd rather have a non-muddy area for potty training!

We DID get a chance to visit on Sunday - we're at the point now where we would need to either go during "visiting hours" and get the key or roll the dice that the morning room door is still unlocked and J can climb up and let himself in.  Upper body strength must be nice.  I just wait near the garage until he lets me in.  They've made more progress inside - we now have a dishwasher, sink, stove & our backsplash looks pretty sweet!  That being said, a TON of work remains.  Still need to change out the 3 broken windows, the broken drawer front in the kitchen, final coat of paint, deep clean everything, etc. But I'm going with the mindset that it'll get done & we shouldn't worry!

Yep, I LOVE my backsplash!

Who has a basement with natural light??  WE DO!

I just love the stone!  And the colors do work together.
Now about that blah door...

The light pole & curved sidewalk are just cute!

Final note - remember my venting about our worthless SR, the guy who's trying to make it right and MORONS at NVRM?  Well the new SR continues to really save the day here.  I like this guy & just wish that he had been our original SR.  I'm still thinking I'll be venty on the comments section of the survey but he gets good marks - no fair making him pay for the sins of the Worthless.  As for NVRM, seriously, people, you're pretty much incompetent.  Why on earth do I have to KEEP sending the SAME document over and over?  Do you not have the ability to save a file to a location you can remember?  Bah.  Underwriting can kiss my grits.  The final straw was when we had to turn in pay stubs within 30 days of closing.  Mine was dated 6/17.  Qualifies, right?  Nope, apparently the pay period ended 6/9.  Really?  Really?  REALLY?  Our processor guy was all put out that I didn't get paid again until today.  It's not my policy, bub.  Deep breaths, we're almost done with this incompetence...

So, we'll continue to pack my place, spend time with our new puppy and LET THE COUNTDOWN BEGIN!!!

So, yeah, it's been a minute...

What can I say? It got a teency bit busy the last few weeks between my job, J's job, packing up one house, thinking about packing up another, attempting to adopt a rescue dog, dealing with a sick cat at the emergency vet and of course pool season! So the blog slipped a bit. In my defense, there wasn't really anything that interesting going on until about the last 10 days or so. Finishing drywall is about as exciting to see as it sounds. Well, maybe that's not entirely true as they did a really nice job, for the most part.

Now for the pictures and the true updates!

I'll start with the hanging of drywall. It was cool to see this in progress, cooler when it was taped & finished.

Great Room & Kitchen...Halfway There!

Half of the Morning Room 

Good selection on that sheet...

Walls AND a ceiling in the kitchen?!?!?  What next?!!

The Future Rickhouse (aka the basement & bar)

Now for some entertaining mishaps and utter nonsense (I'm guessing this will be fixed. Otherwise it's getting the blue tape treatment)

Fail!

Sweet crack.  Hopefully it's just mud

Measure twice, cut once, punch off the corner?

Strong control of English..."You mist"
(this is the above hole)

Not really feeling this is a quality concrete repair job

Again, not a quality repair

Was a level optional?  When is this door
going to close properly?
I know - on the 12th of Never!!!

Big Progress - here's a look at the exterior, then & now! Rumor has it we get stone this week...

Given how little is on the house that made Bucks County Ledgestone a no-go for us, I'm just amused. I think 2 pallets covered all 18 inches of stone on the elevation they chose. And for that we had to re-pick the stone & color scheme? Fail. Just Fail.  

Exterior on May 24

Exterior on June 13

Stone!  It's not Bucks County Ledgestone but we like it

And finally, Big Progress on the Inside!! Hold onto your seats - WE HAVE CABINETS! FLOORS! VANITIES! TILE! SHOWERS! ELECTRICAL OUTLETS & LIGHTS! We are carpeting and toilets away from a legit house! Oh, and of course all of the finishing work like countertops, cleanup, actually hanging doors properly, repainting the walls, final grading, etc. But since we are closing, yes...we have a date...there's an end in sight!

A garage full of goodies!  Yet it was still unlocked.  Very trusting...

This truly is my dream kitchen!

Close-up of my floors - darker in real life but I love them!

Floors & Tile

Main bath - it's livable.  Not my fave but a fun shower curtain will cure it.

My master bath!

Shower & Soaking Tub!!

Yeah, this floor was so much better tiled vs fiberglass.  Worth. Every. Penny.

Beast Mode is Definitely On!

As for the closing, well, RH has dropped the ball again. I don't know why I'm surprised at this point. After our pre-drywall meeting, our PM allegedly gave our Loan Officer the target date. Why that wasn't communicated to us to lock in our rates just isn't clear.  At least not satisfactorily so. What I do know is by the time I found out, raised hell & put props under it, interest rates had risen from 3.85% to 4.125%. On a 30-year loan, that ain't chump change. To say I was livid is an understatement. EVERYONE felt it, from our SR to J. They did take a little off of our closing cost but nowhere near the amount that this mistake will cost us. I'm not above dangling the survey over peoples' heads. I've done it a few times with great results. I really am not a difficult or mean-spirited person but do NOT mess with my money. Ever. It ends very badly. Think Bane in the Dark Knight Rises movie bad.

Speaking of the whole SR situation, remember that debacle? We were apparently the red-headed stepchildren left hanging when the old one moved on to bother another community. The guy left eventually took us over & told her to buzz off. Not sure how much buzzing was done since she wasn't doing jack squat anyhow but she won't be bothering us anymore. New guy really is trying to placate us me. I'll give him that. But you better believe I'll be tearing the old, useless SR a new one in the "comments" section. What a waste of space she turned out to be. Her personal issues aren't my problem. Period. Everything is much smoother now but in all honesty I just want to be in the house. I've hit the "over building a house" stage full-on this week! 3 weeks...just 3 more weeks...

Oh, and here are just a few other pictures relating to why it took so long to make a new post - my sweet baby Vinny. This poor cat started HOWLING in pain at 7:45pm on a Saturday night. Of course this was right after his vet had closed so we got to visit the emergency vet. A TON of cash and a 5-night stay at the animal hospital later (thanks...that was for furniture, Vincent) he's all better. But I do not recommend trying to drug a cat on your own. The big benefit was that he was all cuddly due to the painkillers. J wants to know if we can get more & keep him drugged up. Maybe...maybe...

At the hospital, wearing his Cone of Shame

Happy Kitty, Sleepy Kitty, Purr, Purr, Purr

Found this at Consol Energy Center -
they would NOT let me take this for our basement.
No vision on their part!

Love this sign!  Didn't even make it to the open market!