Our Home

Does anyone out there also secretly loathe owning their own home? I know that buying a home is supposed to be the "American Dream" but I'm not sure I knew exactly what I was getting into when I signed on the dotted line. Don't get me wrong, I really like our house. It has lots of character, is in a quiet neighborhood and has a great backyard. Not to mention that my pantry is HUGE, which I love. But in the 2 1/2 years that we have lived in said home, we have repaired and replaced so many things already, and have a huge list of to-dos as well. Here is what we've already done:

1. repair broken sprinklers in front yard
2. replaced HVAC coil
3. replaced HVAC coolant line
4. installed vent-a-hood above the stove
5. remodel entertainment shelving to fit our new TV
6. Rescue Rooter-to fix our plugged shower, Christmas 2008. Yeah that was fun with 6 people sharing our tiny, spare, stand-up shower.
7. replace the shower pan and re-tile the tiny stand-up shower. After the heavy usage during Christmas 2008, we realized water was leaking in the next room.
8. replaced control panel on the spa-after the rats had chewed through the wire.
9. Multiple garage door repairs.
10. Electrician adds new breaker box and fixes some of the shotty wiring in the house.

Not to mention the appliance repairs we have made:
1. Fix squeaky dryer
2. Fix ice maker in fridge
3. replace 50-year-old oven and microwave

So, here is our current list of to-dos that seems to grow daily:
1. Fix the peeling paint on the east side of the house.
2. Buy a new spa cover. Dogs have ruined the one we have.
3. Buy a new control panel for the spa (yes, the second one), because the wiring has once again been chewed through.
4. Re-grout the master shower
5. Replace counter in the master vanity
6. Re-tile guest bathtub and add a shower head
7. new carpet for Kevin's office
8. New light fixtures and mailbox for the front porch
9. re-decorate and paint guest room
10. re-finish wood floors
11. remove and re-do the cabinet trim in the kitchen. Seriously 60's.
12. replace all 3 garage doors
13. Replace the ugly light fixtures in the dining room, entryway, and both guest bathrooms

All of these repairs on top of several pieces of furniture that we still need to buy... This is why we never go on vacation. So I am posting all of this to the blog in the hopes that I can look back it in a year (or two), and hopefully will have accomplished all of these goals for our home. Flawed as it is, it is still home sweet home. If you ever stop by for a visit, please do not judge us for the imperfections you see. Instead, just drop some money in our Fix-It-Jar. Contributions are tax-deductable. Just kidding.