108 North

What this thing is still active?

2010-07-15T11:18:00.004-05:00

Well the unthinkable has happened - we actually got one room almost done. We painted the second bedroom on the second floor and now just need to paint Katie's craft room. We are going to have someone come and sand and finish the floors.

I am going to strip and paint the doors separately.

Then onto the downstairs office...and the windows, roof, kitchen, basement, etc.

No really, we started again.

2009-11-17T22:27:00.004-06:00

We have a lot to do by the end of the year. I ordered a infrared paint stripper and I have to admit, it is pretty cool. It helps but does not totally replace having to scrape off old paint. Just working on one small room on the second floor. Then on to the front bedroom. Scrape, scrape, and then scrape some more. Can't wait to have this part done. Just doing the trim and doorways for now.

Wait for it....

2009-07-03T11:53:00.005-05:00

OK, admittedly it has been a little while since our last post but things are beginning to happen. With the work of a new water main being put in (or upstairs bathroom remodel caused us to need one according to the city) we have started to work on 108 again. (photo below) Phase 1 continued. First insulation was put into the remaining upstairs walls. (photo right) Now patching those holes and preparing for painting. I did purchase a infrared paint stripper though.

A new start

2008-11-10T22:00:00.007-06:00

So a few minor projects and one big delay, that would describe us recently. We took care of a few small details but mostly just put project 108 on hold. We traveled to London, spent time with a certain god-daughter, and started making of list of what is left to do on the house. Fall is a great time to start planning on indoor projects.

One down...mostly

2008-09-09T21:20:00.005-05:00

So we are very close to having the Kids Bathroom done. We just need some final items done for the washer dryer we just had delivered. And then it's just the trim paint around the door and window.

Also the closet took a final step with the installation of some shelving. Again the trim has to be painted.

Oh yeah, the house

2008-08-17T08:53:00.003-05:00

We have taken a bit of a summer break. Gone to California, hung out in Michigan, and tried to get down to Chambana as often as we can! So, needless to say the house project time line has been stretched a bit.

I recently went to show someone details of the kids bathroom and realized we don't even have photos of the finished project must less posted on the blog. Time to get crackin'.

A few shots of us living life.

Back on track....

2008-07-14T07:06:00.004-05:00

Week 4 was overlooked based on our vacation to wine country for my friend Aaron's wedding. We blatantly ignored our new healthy eating regime and indulged (me - In N Out, Steve - libations). Both disappointed but not surprised, I gained 1 lb back and Steve gained back 2.

Week 5 was much more successful. Although WW reminded me that losing over 2 lbs beyond week 3 was ill-advised, I managed to lose another 4.6. This means a grand total of 15lbs to date! I pushed myself much harder this week because I wanted to make up for the gain. Rather than starve myself, I walked and walked pretty much all weekend. Steve also had a good week (not sure of the exact number), but he has lost a total of 8 lbs to date.

I am guessing if we don't start doing house projects and posting them - we may have to stop thinking of this as a house blog. I still think this should count as renovation!

The gloves are off!

2008-06-30T06:45:00.003-05:00

I am happy to report that Steve and I had pretty successful weeks. Steve lost 4.6 lbs and I lost 3.6lbs! Which means I am at 11.6 lbs towards my 25lb goal. Steve (who started after me) is at 5.6 lbs towards his 28 lb goal.

Steve was greeted with happiness and shock when he told me his numbers. I know everyone had warned me - but all I could think of was how much harder I had to work for my lbs. Not to say that he hasn't been trying. He did burn a great deal of calories doing yard work and mowing the lawn with the push mower while I vegged out.

I assume this week will be even tougher for many reasons. I am at week 4, which I hear is when there is a drop off. We are also going on vacation to Cali, which includes attending a wine tasting, rehearsal dinner and a wedding. I am already making my list of what snacks I can take to help curb my appetite. Although, I also mentioned that a trip to In and Out burger was on the menu.
Hopefully we can get lots of walks in as well.

2 week update (a little late)

2008-06-26T07:57:00.003-05:00

So it doesn't seem fair to give an update since Steve was on day 3 of his diet this past Monday. In any case, I will share that in week 2 I lost 3.2 lbs.....grand total of 7.6 lbs. I am supremely confident that this will slow greatly in weeks 3 and 4 - but I have my secret weapon for when that happens....actually going to the gym. You know the one I pay every month so I have the option to workout. I have been doing nightly walks of 30-45 mins, but it is getting muggier and buggier every night.

I am also happy to report that Steve on Monday was down 1 lb. He also randomly posts his actual weight on his site - so I will leave it to him to update his progress. He hasn't fully adopted the ww points plan- but does check in with me to see how many points values of different foods. For the record, they give 0 pts to most veggies and salsa is also a 0-1 pt option (depending on how much you eat). Steve has taken to sliced green pepper with salsa as a good snacking option.

Even if at this week's weigh in Steve has lost tons of weight while perhaps not following as strict of diet, I will be happy. While getting to healthier weights is one of the goals this is more about enstilling healthier eating habits that will last beyond the weight loss.

Biggest Loser(s)

2008-06-22T19:37:00.002-05:00

Ok let's just overlook my lack of updates on the house. We have started a new project called remodeling our stomachs.

2 weeks ago I decided to step out of denial about the amount of weight I have gained in the last few months. I did the mental game of - well as long as I weigh less than X, I'm not so bad. Of course I made that number 5 lbs more than I thought I was (having not weighed myself in quite a while). When I saw that I was only .5 lbs less than my inflated estimate - reality hit.

I knew I could talk myself into exercise - it was the change in diet that seemed overwhelming. I went to weight watchers to check out their online points system. They were offering one-week free trial - so I figured why not? In the first week I lost 4.4 lbs and this week I am on track to lose another 2-3lbs. My official weigh in day is Monday.

This past Friday, Steve and I met for lunch at Chipotle -one of my favorite places (pre-dieting). I was able to put together a lower point option and had to manage the rest of my food intake that day. I also decided to challenge Steve to participate in my quest to lose weight. After fattening him up, Steve agreed to take the challenge. His goal is to lose 30 lbs and mine is to lose 25. I figured I need to give myself a stretch goal (still within my ideal weight for my height) since I am a few weeks ahead of him.

No before pics at this point. Perhaps when we get a little further I can post the house and the owner before/after shots!

The Bag Lady

2008-04-29T12:27:00.002-05:00

My mom would drive my dad to the train station when he worked downtown. My sister and I were often fascinated by the characters at the train station. One such lady always rode her bicycle and carried a bag of bags. She was affectionately named the bad lady by us and I'm sure many others who saw her around town. I remember my sister at no more than 3 or 4 claiming that she wanted to be the bag lady when she grew up. Today, my eco-friendly little sis wouldn't step foot in her house with a bag of plastic bags. She was the first in the family to start using the cloth bags at the grocery store and routinely turns down the use of a bag when carrying the items will surely do.

Since we now have a hybrid and we recently celebrated earth day, I decided to go bagless this weekend. I haven't made the effort to purchase the grocery store bags but I was able to make grocery and household purchases at meijer, walmart, target, linens n things, and lowes without a single bag. I have purchased vinyl cube baskets for the trunk so no worries of spillage.

I know that this is not a major breakthrough for many folks - but it was suprising to me how little effort it took on my part and how much it threw off the store clerks. I know my sis and bro-in-law get similar reactions when they say "no thanks - we brought our own". JC Penney went as far as saying that the bag would ensure that Dr. T was not wrongly accused of theft. I guess the receipt wasn't quite enough evidence of a legitimate purchase.

I was planning on posting some pics of the house since things are really coming together. It will have to wait a little while longer as I don't want to spoil it for those that are coming for the big day bday/open house bash.

17

2008-04-13T21:19:00.012-05:00

cans of PAINT! I just went around and counted all of the full and partially used cans of paint/primer in out house. Bear in mind, this 17 doesn't include the 20+ cans of paint that came with the house and currently reside in the basement.
This pretty blue is waiting for the kids bathroom. It has been all primed - but needs a coat of ceiling paint. For whatever reason in the pic below, the wall looks blue - it is actually just primed.
I think we might as well get stock in Kilz primer which we are using on the future kids bedroom.

We decided to paint the ceiling white to cover up the corrugated tile looking things. The plan is to go back and fill in the brown around each of the tiles. Needless to say, this is going to be a rather tedious process....only slightly more fun than the few hours I spent cleaning the walls in this room - 30 yrs of dirt removed!

These 8 cans are the remains of the master bedroom and bathroom painting. We also have a few cans of ceiling paint and some paint for the trim to use.

Finally, here are the supplies currently sitting in the living room. The lady who we hired to paint the living room and family room is using these.

Here is her work so far. The bay window had some water damage, so we are hoping that the Kilz will keep this looking good for a while.

A strangely familiar feeling....

2008-04-11T07:57:00.002-05:00

I woke up this morning and had this strange ache in my back. In fact my whole body was sore. I spent a good minute or 2 wondering how this happened. Until, it hit me. We spent most of Thursday night painting the kids bathroom. Hence by deduction, the physical labor had strained muscles that clearly had not been used in a while.

Suddenly it all came back to me - this familiar feeling of doing work on the house in the evenings during the week. Since we moved upstairs at Christmas we have been slowly getting things done under the gise of being ready for my bday party. We have also had a woman painting the downstairs living room and front room. The plan was to have her finish up and then we would start our work.

Not quite sure why we couldn't be working simulataneously (she's downstairs, we're upstairs). In any case we have procrastinated away several weekends. Buying a car is way more fun than painting!

So pictures to come - as I hope we are pretty close to done on the kids bathroom!

Hey Harvey!

2008-04-10T10:02:00.002-05:00

We are pleased to announce the latest addition to our family - Harvey the Highlander Hybrid.

This is a picture of what Harvey will look like in the rain that is due today and with his new sunroof (which is being installed at the moment).

We decided to take the plunge this weekend into full yuppiehood and get not only an suv but a hyrbid. I love it and am thoroughly annoyed at the non-hybrid loaner from the dealer which requires a REAL key and gasp - doesn't tell me my mpg! I know the horror. Let's just say in a mere 5 days I have gotten used to all of the bells and whistles of Harvey.

Not to brag - but Harvey is smart and therefore only requires a button to start. He is also wise enough to show me what is behind me so that I don't run over things (btw no beeping noise either Prius owners). It is making me a more cautious driver as I am aware of the size difference between a car and an suv. I also have a fun new game to play called - drive so that you can get your mpg as high as possible.

So why the name Harvey - well first off we are big geeks and wanted alliteration AND a certain song from hs about a hamster pops into my head when ever I hear the name Harvey. 2pts if you can name both the song and the artist!

Why Katie no longer posts....

2008-03-31T16:28:00.003-05:00

A. If she waits long enough, Steve will post for her, the house will be done and PT will have started college.

B. She is so humiliated by the pics Steve posted (yet too lazy to take them down) and is hoping the internet will forget that she was the instigator of this blog.

C. When not working, she spends all of her time with the Gilmore Girls and her new best friend- a Cricut machine.

D. All/most of the above

On to the future Kids bathroom

2008-03-29T09:23:00.005-05:00

I will post some 'moved into' pictures of the master bedroom but right now it has a lived in look. So moving onto the kids bathroom.

Here is the beginning of the work taken last summer with a trench in the middle of the room for our new plumbing. On the opposite wall studs and plumbing go in for our laundry. And of course we needed the "little inspector" to make sure that everything was up to standards. Up next, the vanity's and bathtub go in.

And the beat goes on

2008-03-16T11:28:00.005-05:00

It does help that we play music while we work. We agree on most stuff but sometimes I need a little extra push from something heavy like Rammstein - especially if we have a 'heated discussion' about what should be done first or how fast something should take. (Katie is a lot better at getting 3 things done is the same amount it takes me to do one - but I get more detailed, so it all works out.) Happy wife - Happy life.

So we flash forward a bit (thanks to Katie's persistence). We move our bedroom upstairs into the kids room and finish painting the master bedroom, closet and I start working on painting the master bathroom.

Master Bedroom, Craft Room

2008-02-27T22:44:00.006-06:00

So moving right along - some chipping and wallpaper removal with a pinch of plastering.

We try to keep track of each stage but we missed a few points. Getting the wallpaper off in the Master Bedroom was rough. There aren't a lot of shots of the process because we were just happy to get it done. The picture of the cabinet is the one that used to be in the 2nd floor kitchen (now the Kids Bathroom). It will be well used in Katie's Craft Room.

Slow Progress

2008-02-15T20:53:00.008-06:00

We are further along than these photo's indicate but they show some progress of the Master Bathroom. All the tile is in and the shower basin is set.

Now for a few fixtures.

Along with the general mess that comes with a house renovation. And on the the stripping! Stripping of the old wall paper from our Master Bedroom. I'm not sure if I am allowed to post a picture of the Mrs. as we both tended to get a bit messy.

We are alive.

2008-01-25T14:48:00.000-06:00

Along with painting, putting up shelves in our closet and getting ready for more contractors this weekend, we (or maybe just me) will be updating our blog.

Much love.

So far behind...

2007-11-18T22:04:00.000-06:00

I think I must have taken a picture of every hole that was made in our house over the last few months. Then when each of those holes were patched, made into an outlet or had a new fixture installed - I took another picture. Seriously - I went over board. So here I will share a few of my favorites.

The master bath - with the right tile!

My scrapbooking cabinet in its new home.

The opening to the old kitchen all patched up.

The tub installation in progress..

Slightly Distracted

2007-11-14T07:39:00.000-06:00

Here is just a quick tease. We have been busy but we will upload the progress.

We're still here

2007-10-27T08:13:00.000-05:00

The House (phase 1) is almost complete - I would post photos but we have been kinda lazy and not downloaded the photos yet and my wife has the camera with her at a scrap booking weekend. The home equity loan is also almost complete, but as you will see in near future posts with pictures it is well worth it. The plumbing is almost complete, electrical has a few goofs which are going to be corrected and now its our turn. We (and by we I mean Katie) has to scrap a lot of wall paper off, fix some cracks, prime and paint. Whoa. That is a lot of work she has a head of herself. Anyway, we will keep you posted.

Labor Day

2007-09-03T19:50:00.000-05:00

There has been tons of labor at our house as we get further into the rennovations.

Unfortunately there has also been a great deal of non-house related labor ie the kind that helps pay for the professionals. I have tons of pictures and zero time to write about them.

We did take some time this weekend to attend the Naperville Last Fling, enjoy our front porch, celebrate PorTillo's 4th birthday, see a parade and give several tours of the house in progress.

Hopefully I will be able to catch up on my blogging in the next few weeks....

New views

2007-08-12T16:48:00.000-05:00

We haven't been impacted too much from the work being done on the house. For the most part, all of the dust and dirt has been contained upstairs.

The one exception is in the bathroom downstairs. Since the plumbing is stacked, they replaced the pipe that connects from downstairs to upstairs. It required cutting a hole in the downstairs ceiling which enabled us to take these shots...

Me in the bathroom downstairs while Steve is in the bathroom upstairs (taken from both vantage points). I know we are 2 wild and crazy kids!!!

Other than a great deal of dirt and heat getting through which forced us to move all toiletries out of the bathroom - this wasn't a big deal...until today.

Today when I went to do laundry in the basement, I noticed water on the floor. Apparently there is some kind of blockage which now prevents us from using any water upstairs. The washer drains right there in the basement. Fortunately, my mom teaches close by and was able to get us access to the school bathroom and we will be staying at their house tonight.

Never missing a moment to joke about it. Steve proclaimed that our anniversary had really gone down the crapper. My reply, "Yes, it's a real pisser."

Hallway

2007-08-12T16:35:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately, I don't have a before picture of this hallway or the bookshelf that used to be on the other side. Steve captured it on video - but it will be a while before I figure out how to splice and post parts of that.

This is the hallway that leads into the existing kitchen (left) and living room (right). The opening that is shown below was blocked off so that you had to pass through either the kitchen or the living room to get anywhere. That makes sense for an apartment, but not really for a single family home. We had suspected that this was once a hallway because of the cased in bookshelves on the other side.

If you look at the opening on the far left in this second picture, you can see that it was framed the same as the doorway to its right, which goes into the kitchen. Since we are closing off the kitchen opening by putting in a bathroom and using the existing living room as a bedroom - it made perfect sense to get rid of the bookshelf and return it to a hallway. It was hard for me to let go of the bookshelf (so hard I didn't take a single picture of it before demo). Having the kitchen cabinet in the soon to be reading room will certainly more than make up for the lost storage space.

Kitchen Cabinet - before and in progress

2007-08-12T16:12:00.000-05:00

In the existing kitchen, there was a built-in cabinet (pictured below). Because this was my great grandmas, I wanted to find a way to keep it . The first thought was to move it downstairs and incorporate it into a future kitchen remodel.

The very top few feet of the cabinet (shown below) would have to be removed, because the kitchen and dining room downstairs have ceilings that are a good 2 ft shorter than upstairs.

When the cabinet was removed in 2 pieces, it became apparent that the only way to get this thing downstairs would be to take it apart into more pieces or send it off the back porch (like was done with the blue bathroom furniture). Neither of these seemed like good options. So we decided to find a home for it upstairs in the reading room. Basically it will be on the same wall as it was previously just on the other side.

Right now both pieces are in the kids' bedroom and will need to be put together in the reading room.

Below is what it looked like in the kitchen after this was taken out. The first shot is the floor and the second is of the wall. As shown in the bathroom/laundry room pics - this is where a toilet, bathtub and linen closet will go.

Steve is giving me a hard time about the amount of blogging I have done today. What better way to celebrate your anniversary, right?

Laundry room/bathroom Part 2

2007-08-12T14:19:00.000-05:00

Here is what the laundry room/bathroom looks like now. This is the nook for the toilet. Originally it was going to be on the wall to the left of the sink but it didn't work plumbing wise. I think it will be better to have one toilet that is not next to a window.
Steve and PT are standing where the bathtub will be (to the right of the toilet).

Below is the area above where the vanities will go. They have started marking where the sconces will be hung.

This is the innards of the plumbing for the sinks. Yep - that's right - double vanities!!!

Plumbing for the toilet and bathtub....

Here is more of the laundry room setup. The first shot is just with the framing. The second and third show the progression of the plumbing and electric .

This final shot shows where the old entrance to the attic was. It is being moved out into the hallway. This wall will be for the bathtub on the left and linen closet on the right.

Laundry room/bathroom in progress Part 1

2007-08-12T14:10:00.000-05:00

Underneath the yellow linoleum was this lovely yellow and green linoleum. We decide not to save this...

In order to do the plumbing on this wall, they needed to frame it out because the plaster was too fragile.

This is the wall where the kitchen cabinet was. In the corner will be a toilet area. Where the orange tool is standing will be the bathtub shower. In the unseen corner will be a linen closet.

Kitchen ...soon to be bathroom/laundry room

2007-08-12T14:00:00.000-05:00

I didn't take many pics of this room before.

Here is the kitchen sink, which we are hoping to reuse somehow in phase II when we remodel the downstairs kitchen.

This wall where the kitchen sink was is going to have the 2 sinks/vanities.

This corner (to the left of the window) had a stove, which is now in the garage. The thought is to rehab this also. Going forward this will be walled off to make the laundry room part.

The wall not shown has the kitchen cabinet, which I will show before/after in another post.

Master bathroom in progress

2007-08-12T13:32:00.001-05:00

Here are some shots of the master bathroom in progress.

This shot shows where the door used to be. We always suspected that the one on the right was not original because it is shorter than all of the other doors in that room.

It was kind of weird to see the radiator hanging out there. They ended up removing it and draining all of the radiators.

Below is the plumbing for the toilet. Yes - it will be great to have a view out the window while taking care of business...

Master Bath - before work began

2007-08-12T11:36:00.000-05:00

Our neighbors reported a flying blue toilet, sink and bathtub. Here are some before shots of the master bath. It's a tight space - so I did my best to get some good shots.

This picture below is one of my favorites of the bath tub and light. For whatever reason the electrician said it would not be possible to keep this set-up. Doesn't everyone need an exposed light above their bath???

Room by room

2007-08-12T11:34:00.001-05:00

A few vacations, travel and family gatherings have made it nearly impossible to stay up to date with the blog. My thought right now is to do room-by-room posts on where we are at...and if time...where "we" are going.

One would think that hiring someone to "do" the work would give all sorts of time to blog about it? My guess is that I will be much more anxious to show off progress - when it's hey - look it what i spent my entire weekend doing.

I am sure the next few months will test that theory. Enjoy the pics...

Just a couple

2007-07-20T23:17:00.001-05:00

Imagine if you will...

2007-07-17T19:26:00.000-05:00

The problem with being on the road while your house is being worked on is that you are completely at the mercy of your husband to update you on what work is getting done.

Yesterday - Steve informed me that they took the plaster out of the master bathroom. In doing so, they discovered that there was an opening for a door on the wall were the sink was. I'd insert a picture here - but for now you just have to imagine.

This door would have connected what we are calling the master closet to the master bath. We know that the master closet used to be the back hallway and there was a stair case into the kitchen. We also know that this back part of the house was not original. Now it follows that this room was added but may not have always been a bathroom. I have often stared at the bathroom and closet doors and wondered why they are different heights. It makes sense if one is not original.

Today Steve came home and was excited to see more garbage in the dumpster - some Kohler boxes. He thought this meant that they had installed some of the bathroom fixtures. Since we did not purchase anything made by Kohler - he quickly came to the realization that this must have been from another job site.

When he went upstairs - he didn't even notice (at first) that the hallway had been extended. The existing blue dining room (soon to be reading/craft room) had a book case in it. The book case was added to frame in a doorway that connected this room to the hallway/stair case. It is so odd to think about what it will look like to "see through" that wall into the room.

Finally, in the existing kitchen (soon to be kids bathroom) - they took out the kitchen sink and have started to prep the kitchen cupboard to be removed.

As excited as I am about all this change - its scary as well. I have only known these rooms as they looked for the last 30+ years. The cleaning out and wallpaper removal that I have worked on are merely cosmetic. Crazy it is going to sound - I am going to miss this space as it once was.

We are doing alot to preserve the footprint of the upstairs. It was like a time capsule up there. You could see (and at one time smell) what life was like up there. The kitchen will never again be a place where cookies are made. The dining room will not be a place for hosting friends for dinner. My grandpa's bedroom will no longer be a place of boyhood dreams.

It seems odd to have these connections to these rooms since I never baked in the kitchen, dined in the dining room, or even saw a bed in grandpa's bedroom. I do take comfort in knowing that the kitchen will now be a host to the smell of clean laundry and bubble bath, the dining room will be a place to relax with family, and grandpa's bedroom will hold toys to be played with in the same rooms my mother and grandfather played in. I also know that prior to my family living in the house - these rooms had other purposes - before the house was a 2-flat. So I guess my "memories" are all relative (no pun intended) and that the house will continue to change as the needs of its caretakers change.

On the road again...

2007-07-09T21:18:00.000-05:00

When you go more than a few days without posting, it is hard to figure out what needs to be left unsaid. I will do my best to keep to the key moments over the last few weeks.

Previously on 108 North...

We had just found out about the water line and were headed for our first cruise. The trip was great and we have lots of fond memories like....being detained in Mexico and leaving 1 cell phone in LA. The Gs safely made it back to 108N and the phone...well...Steve just got the shipping info today - so he promises it will be here shortly.

PT got to vacation with gma, teach and ellie in chambana and had a grand old time.

The house...while in spite of best hopes of progress while we were out of town...little was done inside. The electrical did get updated - so that's a start.

The week of the 4th - which I keep referring to as 2 weeks in 1 - dragged on. Seriously what kind of a joke is it have a holiday mid-week? Tues felt like Fri, Wed felt like Sun, and Thurs felt like Monday AGAIN. Remind me when this happens again in a few years just to take the week off.

We celebrated like it was 1812 at that band concert on the 5th. It actually was nice that work hadn't really started on the house. I just know there will come a point when having people over will not be feasible. We also got news on a new addition for our friends. Not sure if this has been announced - so will just leave names out for now :) We're so excited for you guys!!!!

This morning I left the house bright and early for ORD and a business trip to Houston :) Steve went for an MRI - his back/leg have been messed up. He also reported in that the dumpster is in the driveway, which I hope is an indicator of lots of work getting done this week.

Tonight I am procrastinating because I have work to do. The hotel offered a free movie and popcorn - so I just got done watching WF and JH in Blades of Glory.

Now this...this is complaining...and a long one...

2007-06-15T18:58:00.000-05:00

Steve and I both have had a pretty rough work week. Sometimes planning to go on a vacation feels like more work than it is worth. That is not to say that vacations aren't necessary.

It just seems like this week has been full of things that take longer than you thought and no real time for planning - throw in less sleep than normal and you have 2 cranky, frantic people.

Will shift a little blame to the dog who this week decided might not need the huge comforter in his cage to keep him warm in our un-air conditioned house. He is really found of all blankets and will bury his head under the throw on the couch just to cover his eyes from the light. It clearly made sense to us that he must be getting warm under the comforter. In hindsight he may not really mind the heat. Our little black pup will find the one inch of sunlight on the porch and bake himself until he is panting and we take him inside. He's not like some other dogs we know in Champaign who have taken to bask in the shade. In any event, pretty much every night this week he has woken us up during the middle of the night barking and refusing to go back into his bed. At least once in our drunken sleepiness we have ended up letting him sleep in our bed just to make the barking stop. So apparently we need to give him back his blanket so he will sleep through the night.

I know this is nothing compared to the sleepless nights that parents had but it just added to a crazy week. Today, we got a call from the contractor (who has yet to do more than draw circles on my walls were light switched and outlets will go) - to say that the city is making us upgrade the waterline....a $12-$15k expense we weren't really planning on...

Did I mention we are leaving on vacation in a few days? woo hoo...we should make sure to pack those bags and bags of money we have laying around....

So it's time to re-look at our plans...because the budget is the budget. The good news is that the electrical work will get started next week when we are gone - which will be nice. We have to narrow down where we can cut corners, delay things or what we can do on our own.

Gosh...was my last post some kind of foreshadowing???

Not complaining....just documenting

2007-06-10T14:52:00.000-05:00

I am used to operating under such things as a "schedule" or what one might call a "plan". I have even caused Steve to arrive 45 minutes early for his own birthday party in order to satisfy my need to be "on time". Furthermore, I am used to getting what I want, when I want it.

Needless to say this attitude and need for timeliness of actions does not bode well for someone entering into a large house project, which requires the help of people who are not maritally bound to meet my demands of getting things done when I expect them to be done.

We are leaving shortly to go on a cruise with some friends, so the plan was to have things underway so that work on the house could get done in our absence. This was in compliance with "my plan".

I bought things and ordered things to comply with said plan.

Friday we were scheduled to "start" with the electrical box upgrade to 200 amps. This has now gotten pushed back until late Monday. This means that actual work can't start until Tuesday. No problem....just getting to be 2 weeks later than we originally thought. So I can see how this quickly turns into a slippery slope with these kinds of projects.

Yesterday we got a call that the bathroom tile was in. Yeah! We decided to go get it on Sunday since Saturday was jam packed with activities. Steve and I headed in the direction of the tile store in separate cars since there was a chance that 130 sq ft of tile would be too much for one car. On the way, we stopped at Kohls to exchange swim trunks I had bought Steve for our trip. He picked out new ones and I got in the returns/exchange line for a bit. I sent Steve on to the tile store so that he could get his half.

After 25 mins in line, I was pleasantly suprised to learn that Steve was able to get all the tile in his car. So I headed over to my parents to pick up a suitcase to borrow. We chatted for a bit. My dad went in to the ER last night for kidney stones- so there was a bit to talk about. So far no sightings of the "golden nuggets" (as my mom is calling them).

By the time I got home, Steve had already taken all 20 boxes upstairs. I was happy to have gotten out of manual labor - but a little disappointed when I realized 7 of the boxes were the wrong tile....

We loaded up the tile and I called the store. "Oh Chip must have put the order in wrong".
Admittedly the order was slightly confusing since 130 sq ft was of 2 in all white hexagon tile with a white square and 72 sq ft was of 1 in hexagons with an ebony center hexagon . Sounds like the same thing - it's not.

I conjured about my best Grandma Rose* impression and was off to give them a piece of my mind. By the time I got there I wasn't willing to start making a scene until I gave them the chance to make things right. They claim to be ordering the right tile and it should be in Thursday. God help them if it's not.

Yes I realize it's not the end of the world - since the likelihood of the contractor laying tile while we are gone is slim. I still feel like it is my natural born right to be a pissed off customer when I don't get what I want.

*Grandma Rose was a former inhabitant of the house, who chose to speak her mind when given bad customer service and well to be honest sometimes they deserved it and sometimes they didn't. She wasn't a public cusser - though she did own a necklace that said "Oh Shit" - but had she waited in that Kohls line - they would have heard how ridiculous it was. And she would have been right. Nothing is more infuriating as a customer than to see 1 person at a customer service desk and other workers nearby not coming over to help. I know perfectly well that the person I am seeing is probably not trained for customer service and is probably tasked with putting away returned stock...it just doesn't make my wait any shorter.

The little woman will do it

2007-06-06T23:15:00.000-05:00

I only wish I had a picture of this, but last weekend Katie and I worked together cutting the lawn. (I am alternating using the push mower and the gas mower hoping to get to a point were I am using the push 2 times for every time I use the gas - to save some oil. The reality is that the push mower doesn't cut as well as the gas mower.) So it was time to cut using the gas, but Katie wanted to try using the push. She cut a good sized portion of the lawn just pushing and I did the rest with the gas. A passer-by even gave Katie the thumbs up for plugging away. Needless to say, I was impressed by her not just trying but doing. Now on to the renovation's - starting as early as Friday. We got our first permit to start work!

In honor of Memorial Day

2007-05-25T15:03:00.000-05:00

I thought it would be fitting to post a few pics of a former owner of the house in his navy uniform. I believe that some of these were my grandparents engagement pictures...

My apologies for how these are scanned. I need to go back and re-scan them!

Pretty toilets?

2007-05-21T13:23:00.000-05:00

When we first looked at toilets - my thought was...a toilet is a toilet, right? As long as it isn't some funky color (like the existing blue one) - this should be an easy choice. Steve was all about the "elongated bowl" - I am not even sure what that means in terms of functionality...but sure - if he feels strongly about it. No problem.

But then I saw it and knew it had to be mine....The Pegasus Structure from HD....

Oh wait - is that a matching pedestal sink???

It is really hard to tell from the pics online - but both have an art decoish edging. These are what I think we will go with in our bathroom. The kids may end up with the same toilet - I just got to see if it is more $$ than other white elongated bowls....that's all for now - my break for lunch is over :)

Justification

2007-05-21T12:56:00.000-05:00

I think we have most of the bathroom stuff picked out, which I will post pictures of later. It now comes down to justifying the purchase of a double vanity for the kids bathroom.

After looking at HD, Menards and Lowe's - I stumbled upon exactly what I was looking for....at Pottery Barn....Teen. As if it wasn't bad enough to pick something that is from PB - now it is in the teen catalogue? They do have a similar item in the regular PB - its just the wrong color.

Here are some pics of the fabulousy over-priced item that I want more than anything and am struggling to justify....

Do you see all the cute storage spaces?

Of course I realized now - that if I get this I will surely have boys - who will have no appreciation for this at all...... I guess I will have to think about this one a little more.

more...?

2007-05-08T14:30:00.000-05:00

I must go to the store tonight so I can stop scouring the internet for this stuff...

Tile and bathroom inspiration

2007-05-08T08:53:00.000-05:00

I'm too lazy to take the time and document where I found these pictures. I am leaning towards the very last picture, which uses the hectagon tiles....

Shopping!

2007-05-07T21:53:00.000-05:00

We had the contractor over this evening to do another walk through and talk more numbers. The goal is still to start things in early June. With that in mind we really should be doing more to box things up - the less we have out and in their way the better.

We also walked through all of the purchases that need to be made - which is clearly the more fun part. Here's what's on the list (side note: Steve wanted me to write all of this down when the contractor was here - just so we don't forget what we need to do.....I hear where he is coming from - but this is shopping....no chance of me forgetting what we need on this one!):

1. Double vanity, 2 sinks, 2 faucets and a large mirror for the new bathroom upstairs (existing ktichen) - we have started referring to this as the kids' bathroom
2. Single Vanity, sink, faucet and mirror for the master bath - I am starting to think pedestal - but we will see on that one. I figure if we do for pedestal I will have more options on side storage cabinets.
3. Two toilets!!
4. Corner shower for the master bath
5. Shower/Bath combo for kids bath
6. Tile for both bathrooms
7. A whole mess of light fixtures
8. A storage chest for the kids bathroom linens - hopefully we can refurbish something from a flea market or garage sale

So when all is said and done - we will have tripled the number of working bathrooms in the house. We have done pretty well with just the one small bathroom - but there have definitely been some difficult moments when it would have been nice to have more than one. We also opted to keep it a single sink in our bathroom. A double would probably fit - but since the bathroom ceiling is sloped - I figured I'd rather have the storage space than the extra sink. Besides - I can always regulate Steve to the full bath downstairs or take over the kids bath until they are of age to realize it.

I have collected a few pictures of things I like so far. I am sure this will change when I actually go see them in person.
ok - I give up. I am using Steve's laptop and it is very slow. I am going to go search for a few pics of my "dream" bathrooms - to get a few more ideas and call it a night...

One more thing. We also will need a new washer and dryer, but since we are keeping the ones we have in the basement - there is no rush on this purchase...here is the Maytage Neptune front loader washer. Teach and the doc just got new appliances - so I will have to get some recommendations from them on this one.

Did I mention that Steve checked in on me mid-post and asked if my OCD had kicked in yet? That was a good 30 mins ago, so I think the answer would be yes now.

Hard at work

2007-05-01T11:57:00.000-05:00

In order to keep ourselves busy before we "start work on the house", "we" have taken to yardwork. Steve wants to go organic - so he spent several hours this past weekend digging up dandelions.

Fortunately, "the supervisor" was out there to make sure he got the work done...
Even the supervisor needs a break, right?

In the end, Steve learned that cutting the grass is one way to make all of the dandelions disappear, which was nice for the couple who came over to take pictures in our yard after getting married at the church across the street. Hmmm, we could probably make a few bucks renting out our front porch and yard for weddings......

Teach and the Doc

2007-04-25T09:13:00.000-05:00

I've been giving my little sister a hard time about her attempts to get a blog going.....and she finally gave me the link to her site.

I'm sure many pics of the new house, Ellie Belle and life in Chambana to come!

Upstairs Pictures

2007-03-26T22:35:00.000-05:00

I was really bored one day and took a few pics of some of the details upstairs....

This is the light fixture in the upstairs back hall (our master closet)

This is a calendar that was hanging up in the kitchen. I considered it a good omen since it is Steve's birth year.

This is the knob for the chandelier in the dining room (reading room to be).

This is the view out the door in the master bedroom. It goes out on to a balcony that is over the back porch. I can't wait to have guests out there!

Happy 1st Birthday Z!

2007-03-26T22:33:00.000-05:00

Where the Sidewalk Ends...

2007-03-26T22:24:00.000-05:00

One of Steve's projects over the last few weeks has been clearing our sidewalks of the grass that has overgrown the edges. This is weather and time permitting as it is a long and tedious undertaking. He's made it about 1/2 way down the block (on one side).

It will be great when it is done to have a wider path to walk on it. I'm sure that even once he is done - it will be a battle to maintain each year. We'll keep you posted as to where he is in a few weeks!

1864!

2007-03-16T11:45:00.000-05:00

I have not only been negligent in my blogging, but we have also lost momentum on doing house research.

Today, however, I got a call from Value Net a company that is contracted through our bank to appraise our house (without actually seeing it) for a possible home equity loan which will be necessary to fund the home rennovations. This is all still very tentative, but since the appraisal is free - we figured it had to be done at somepoint, right?

The bank let me know that this person would be calling to confirm some details on the house - such as have we added a big pool or any other big improvements. So I was kind of expecting something along those lines. The interesting thing is what they do is compare your home to others that have sold in the area and my understanding is that they only do an in-home appraisal if the amount of the loan is above $250k (which thankfully, ours is not).

She confirmed the address and if we are in a subdivision. Then she asked me to confirm the year the house was built, "Does 1864 sound about right?". I confirmed :)

We had always known that the house was most likely from the 60s (1860s that is) - but had never pulled up the public files to get any further details. For some reason it was strange hearing it said out loud and thinking wow - this has been around for 143 years.

This also means the house was no spring chicken (in its 50s) when my family moved in 1916....so it had so much history even at that point.

In any case, we should know the outcome of the appraisal early next week. The only other notable suprise was when she asked me what I thought the house was worth. So I very quickly did the math, what we paid + how much we need for a loan = my answer. Really I'd love to know what they do with that information. What sane person would ever give a number different from how I calculated mine?

So that's the big news of the day. I hope to fill in some other details from the last month or so - but no promises. In a few months, there should be pictures of Casa de Champaign from my little sis - hopefully she will let me share. Especially since she is the one who calls me to remind me I haven't posted and also claims she has started her own blog and just doesn't know how to do it yet :)

Put it on the list!

2007-02-05T15:33:00.000-06:00

Upstairs in what eventually will be our walk-in closet off the master bedroom is a piece of furniture I am excited to make new again. This was my great-grandma's vanity. It doesn't look so bad once you clean off a few layers of dust and dirt. It could also use a new paint job. Any suggestions? I am picturing creme or off white.

In order to get this picture, here are all of the items that needed to be taken out of the drawers or cabinet. Some I might just keep for nostalgic value - none of them appear to have expiration dates....

Here are another set of handles that we found in the basement and it took a while to figure out what they were for (they almost were put in the sell pile - oh no!). I think they also sell these at Anthropologie here - so perhaps I may end up changing out for another color.

Granted it is not at the top of the list, because crazy me I think it will be easier to paint outside when it is not 30 below (with the wind chill). But it is nice to have some small manageable projects to tackle in a short period of time when you know you are embarking on a renovation that may/will suck time, energy and money out of you for months if not years to come!

Addendum to previous post

2007-02-02T22:47:00.000-06:00

My sister informed me that I left out the ending of my story.....

Yes I was dropped off first.

How's that for keeping my posts short, Mr. Bighead?

Why I love our house/Why I am neurotic...

2007-02-02T07:45:00.000-06:00

Inspite of knowing there is a great deal of work to be done (especially inside), our house is actually in pretty good shape from the outside. Like my 13 lb. pup - I'll admit it - I like compliments - which sounds kind of vain.

So how does this relate to our house? Well the thing is that although our neighborhood is changing and younger families are replacing many of the "old-timers" like my grandparents - it is somewhat unusual to 1) be able to afford a decent home in our neighborhood 2) want a home that will require a great deal of rennovation and 3) be under 30. For the unexpectedness and many other reasons, I love getting compliments on our house

I sometimes take a shared ride limo from the airport when I travel for work. If I get dropped off first, I often get the "really, you live here?". I sometimes think because I look so young people assume that I must still live with my parents.

Last night was truly unique because when I got picked up at ORD I realized that sitting next to me in the car was a guy who I had gone to college with and had a huge crush on him. Amy - if you are reading this - remember "dry cleaning" boy?

I was all bundled up in my hat, scarf, gloves. I was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to identify me from our brief friendship more than 7 yrs ago. So I sat the entire car ride pretending to sleep, struggling to remember how I had met him and hoping he would not start a conversation with me. Neurotic, right?

It gets worse. My head than turns to thoughts of hoping I get dropped off first. Even though I am sure he has no idea who I am, I get a great pleasure out of thinking that a "wow - she lives here" thought might cross his mind. Completely neurotic, right? Who spends 45 mins hoping someone will compliment your house if only in there head.

So in summary that's one of the reason I love my house and why I am neurotic.

It's getting more "Real"

2007-01-29T09:28:00.000-06:00

So a few days ago I started this really nice post about learning more about our house and comparing the committment you make to your home to the likes of entering into a relationship or marriage. It was all nice and good in my head - but I never finished it. So like any good gen Xer - I will just jump to the next thing and leave it for some day when I have more time to reflect.

The house plans seem to be getting more real by the second. On Saturday while I was off at "Jump Start January" (an all day scrapbooking event) with Jill and Amy, Steve was hanging out with the contractor who came over to draw up preliminary ideas for the house. And I do mean "hanging out" - I don't get the idea that they had nuts and beer, but I believe they were watching dog fights on the history channel while measuring in the living room.

In any case, the house has been measured! Along the way the confirmed my suspicions about our bedroom. There was at one time a fireplace in that room with a chimney that went through the house. It may in fact still be there. Closets were built on either side and it is possible they just covered it up to make it more of a bedroom.

On Sunday afternoon, we got a phone call from the contractor (let's call him Bob for sake of me continuing to type "the contractor" a million times). Bob had some rough plans for us to look at and wanted to get some guidance from us to see if he was headed in the right direction. I was in shock - I expected it to be at least a week before we heard from him again. In his words, "It's like a good book - once you start you can't put it down."

So we treked over and he walked us threw the existing and the potential new plans for both floors. I have opted not to show here since we already know some inital changes we want to discuss with him. Besides - it feels a little weird to put that out in cyberspace.

After discussion, a Portillo's dinner and me walking around the house with the drawings in hand - I have started to put together my list of "5 things" that are important/must haves in the house.

Re-use the built-in kitchen cabinet from upstairs. I love this cabinet. My original thought was to keep it upstairs as part of a laundry room. It just might not work as well - and if/when we redo the ktichen it would be so great to use it for it's original intent.
Reading room. Part of what we are debating right now is how many bedrooms do we need. Do they all need to be upstairs? I love the existing 2nd floor dining room as another family nook area for a couch, tv and a place for kids to play upstairs.
Full bath on 1st floor. As a follow on to #2 - we would like to have a bedroom downstairs (where the existing "little bedroom" is) for guests, extended family stay, or possibly a kid who doesn't want to share a big room upstairs. I also want it to have an entry from a hall (no more walking through a bedroom to go to the bathroom).
2nd floor laundry room that is not part of a bathroom. One of our original ideas was to split the upstairs kitchen into a 2nd full bath and laundry room. Depending on how we divide the space - it may end up making more sense to put the laundry room as part of the existing dining room (thus encroaching on my reading room). This one is still not all clear in my head.
Toy room off of kids bedroom. Currently upstairs there is a small room (that was my grandpa's bedroom) which I think would be ideal for lots of shelves and toys. The idea of having a space for everything seems perfect to me.

So that's kind of where my head is at. Steve needs to come up with his top 5 as well. We then will take these ideas as well as a million questions back to Bob, so he can than fix up the plans. He will probably also fill us in on the pros and cons of our ideas.

We are still trying to get through to him - that we are more than ok with making a house that isn't "resellable". We aren't going anywhere and any future generations - well, they will be getting a free house...

Da Bears, Da Bears, Da Bears....

2007-01-21T19:01:00.001-06:00

Going to Miami.........

Enough said.

Project Update

2007-01-21T08:43:00.000-06:00

I think we are finally getting our heads around how to approach the house project. Steve went and visited with a few of the neighbors who have done similar big house renovations .

One of the neighbors is using the contractor we like for a house a few streets away and have done a huge addition and full upgrade. The other neighbors have done upgrades on electrical/plumbing, insulation, etc. They offered us lots of free advice on getting used to the idea that it's going to take more money and time they you plan for.

We met with the contractor again yesterday and decided to take the first big step and have him draw up some plans and ideas. He is finishing up at the neighbors house over the next 6 weeks - so the idea is to have him start the plans now and then see if we are ready to start in March.

So that's what's been going on. In the meantime, my plan is to use the next 6 weeks to start consolidating our stuff that has taken over the upstairs.....

Maps...

2007-01-12T11:02:00.000-06:00

After posting about the Sanborn maps I found yesterday and then doing a little research to decode the map key, I realized how strange it was to suddenly be learning so much about maps in my quest to better understand the house.

It reminded me of a guy I dated (pre-Steve). We met on the train and when I asked him what he did - he said he was a cartographer. I consider myself a pretty educated person - but I had to be honest. I had not a clue what a cartographer was. So I asked. He politely explained that cartography is the process of map making.

I went blank. I had nothing. The only thing I could muster to say was, "well everybody needs maps I guess". It was the best I could do considering in my head it sounded like the most uninteresting profession ever. I am the worst at feigning interest in something I know nothing about.

So the relationship didn't last and before long I met Steve. Fortunately, Recruiter/Career Advisor was much easier for me to make conversation about. But perhaps I could have benefited from listening to the cartographer.....

Note 1: For those unaware (as I was) the Sanborn maps were fire and insurance maps that were used to map out houses, buildings, fire hydrants, etc.

Note 2: An even older map has shown that pre-1900 the house number was 605, but I think we will keep with 108 North - it just has a nice ring to it.

128 North

2007-01-03T17:17:00.000-06:00

So I did a little more digging and found the Sanborn maps which show that 108 North was formerly known as 128 North. The pdf is too large to post, so here is the piece that shows our lot with the old number 128 and the new number 108. Based on the maps, it looks like all of the numbers were changed in the 1920s. It also now shows that this was also the time when the porch was added. Now I just have to go into the library and look at the maps to figure out what all the numbers mean.
In my digging in the house, I also found some of my great-grandmas letters/post cards. One did have the 128 address - perhaps others I have seen had it as well and I just never noticed. I also found a few that were sent without a street address at all or just reference the 2 streets the house sits on. In an age where a character in a web address can mean the difference between finding the site you want or not, it is hard to think of a time (especially in this town) where your name would be enough.

One more thing - here is the "Bird's eye view of Naperville, DuPage County, Illinois 1869". It does show a house at our corner, but the style of the house is very different from ours.

Given this is a "bird's eye view" - does this mean that our house was built pre-1869? Or was there another house here before us? More research!

Jackpot!

2007-01-02T21:32:00.000-06:00

In decorating our giant tree a few weeks ago, I realized that we did not have enough beaded chains. I investigated upstairs for some that were my grandparents and found not only chains but a few boxes of pictures that I have yet to go through. And now that I have a scanner - I can share a few.

It started with this picture in an album. I didn't recognize the name, but the stone on the church looked vaguely familiar. I also knew that my family at that time attended the Methodist church across the street from 108. Bingo - yes Ls - this is the church you were married in. If you look very closely, you can also see the side of 108 (it is easier to tell in the hard copy version).

I had seen this loose picture of a church and realized it was the same one and with a much better shot of the house! My guess is that this was also around the same time. It is hard to tell at first because the porch was not there yet and it looks like there were shutters.

This one is actually a much better shot of our neighbors house, but still very interesting to see the front door.
Finally, these last 2 show my Great, great grandparents and my great grandfather on the front steps. I dismissed these as being at someone else's house for several reasons until I had pieced together the others. Now my only question is finding out why 108 came to be the address. This picture shows 128......128 North? just doesn't sound as good to me either.....

It is a Wonderful Life

2006-12-22T20:44:00.000-06:00

One of the benefits of living in an our home is that I get to relive Christmas memories from years past including a real, big tree. I tried to explain to Steve that "the house" required a real tree of 8-9 feet. Anything else just didn't seem sufficient. That is part of why we ended up with "Frank".

Granted in the last few years my grandparents celebrated they switched to a slightly smaller fake tree - but most of my memories here include a real tree that took up most of the bay window.

We were also fortunate enough to incorporate some of the older decorations. This included the tree mat which used to be stored under the rug and has Santa Claus on it.

I also found an ornament which my grandmother had bequeathed to me. Her exact words written on the box "My will - Fred blue clown, Katie and Jill pink clowns". Unfortunately one the pink clowns didn't make it, so instead in the box for Jill was her absolute favorite decoration - the glass teddy bear. When I showed this to my sis before she left for her holiday in Costa Rica, the ornament brought tears to her eyes. And the to me is what the holidays are about.

Since I started this post pre-Xmas and it is now 3 days after Christmas- somehow I have lost the nostalgic feeling when I started this. Steve and I did end up watching his favorite holiday movie "It's A Wonderful Life" one night, which will be added to the list of Grosskopf family holiday traditions.

Happy Holidays from 108!

Introducing Frank the Tank

2006-12-18T18:18:00.000-06:00

I think the pictures speak for themselves........

Change of Scenery

2006-12-15T08:25:00.000-06:00

Since we haven't exactly gotten around to decorating the house for the holidays or being even remotely close to having all of the gifts bought, it seemed entirely appropriate to spend some quality time yesterday updating the look and feel of 108 North.

So here it is...... I am still trying to figure out how to make the picture at the bottom less life-sized.

In other news we bought a giant tree last night (around 9 feet). I guess this is what happens when you have tall ceilings and a bay window.

Frank the tank (as I have just named him) is resting peacefully on the front porch wrapped in a plastic tree bag, which probably looks like a plastic scarf seeing as the bag is made for "normal" trees.

Pictures to come when Frank makes his debut later tonight. In the meantime, I will leave you with the thought Steve and I both had as we drove off the lot with Frank strapped on top of the Jetta, "Since when did we become grown-ups capable of making decisions about buying Christmas trees?"

Making the fat hurt....

2006-12-14T09:35:00.000-06:00

I am not one for making new year's resolutions (or having any expectation of keeping them). I also wasn't one of those brides who was fasting or living at the gym the weeks before her wedding. In fact, I distinctly remember thinking that changing my diet or exercising would not allow me to "maintain" the size I was when I was fitted for my dress.

Let's just overlook the fact that during my engagement I had been traveling for work and probably had put on a few pounds. Needless to say, my dress fit perfect.

Post-wedding, since I was going to be in town for at least a few months we made an investment to join the Y which happens to be 2 blocks from our house. I say investment not because of the cost, but the mental commitment to actually....dare I say it....work out.

So we are on our 2nd month and some weeks we do better than others, but I am actually really enjoying it for a few reasons.

1. Steve and I get out of the house together and although talking on the treadmill is somewhat limited - the walk there is usually a nice "catch up on the day" time
2. They have tvs with closed caption where I can watch the shows I would watch at home anyway - but I am not really into (ie Office, Grey's Anatomy and few others must be watched in the comfort of my home).
3. The facility is older and hence does not attract the more serious workout freaks - a few high schoolers and NCC kids but for the most part it is people like us who are definitely not training for the Iron Man or anything. This alone makes it easier to go and feel like less of a sloth.
4. And of course the obvious health benefits of exercising.

The last few weeks I have started pushing myself towards a goal, which I now feel compelled to document as a way of keeping myself on track. The goal is to run 3 miles in 30 minutes and while that may not break any records it is big deal for someone who started walking 3 miles in just under 1 hour.

So Tuesday night I got my time to 38 m 40 s. Unfortunately I am sort of negligent on the whole stretching thing so by the next morning I was very sore - especially my stomach. I expected the legs to hurt - but this was weird.

Last night when I got back on the treadmill, I figured it out. It was from my stomach bouncing when I run....it was official "my fat hurt". Although I was not able to beat my time from the previous night, it solidified my drive to reach my goal.

My hope is that in time there will be less fat to hurt...we shall see.

and the first car stuck on our street...

2006-12-01T08:26:00.000-06:00

First Snow Fall

2006-12-01T07:53:00.000-06:00

Because I am lazy and I already spent 45 minutes shoveling the drive this morning, pictures of the first snow will all be shot from the comfort of inside the house.

From the little bedroom......

From the front door.....

From the back door....

So far...so little?

2006-11-27T18:09:00.000-06:00

Well we have some homework to do - we met with Contractors 2 and 3 and now have to figure our next steps. First we have a few large numbers but no specifics on how much it is going to cost us to renovate. Also, we aren't positive on what the next step is but we do know a bit more about what the future holds.

Now its time to decorate and try to insulate the house for winter - even though the last few winters have been mild (global warming?) we want to be prepared for cold.

The Next Steps?

2006-11-21T08:14:00.000-06:00

As Steve mentioned last week, we are on to the talking to contractors phase. Until we decide who we are going with let's just call this guy #1.

#1 seemed very laid back and is currently working on one of the homes a few streets away. We got his number off the sign - so this isn't exactly a referral at this point but we figure it is good to see what else he has done.

#1 walked the house as we jabbered away about the "character" of the house (cloth wiring, lead paint, etc) and what our rough plans are for the next phase. He didn't seem shocked by any of this and even complimented how much better the structure of the house (as seen in the basement) was than he expected. He also confirmed that the floor boards in the dining room are the originals.

Overall a positive review for #1. He was able to figure out a good plan for efficiently using the upstairs space to create a hallway into the kitchen and the dining room. The plan is to divide the kitchen into a laundry room and full bath (for the kids). We also discussed the ideal spot for putting a staircase up to a 3rd floor (obviously this is not part of the next phase - more like phase 27).

One other revelation - our dream of 2 staircases may not be possible. A little history - when the kitchen was remodeled in the 1950s, they took out the back staircase which went up to the back hallway to expand the kitchen. Having been a Cosby fan in the 80s - I always thought it would be so cool to have 2 staircases. The contractor pointed out that without expanding the space, the stairs would be very steep and not up to code.

#2 had to cancel for tonight so we are hoping to re-schedule for this Saturday. It will be nice to hear his perspective as well. #2 re-did the B&B in Naperville and the owner speaks very highly of the work they did.

More to come when we starting getting numbers and deciding what we can afford. The good news is that #1 said that we would save a ton by doing the demo upstairs ourselves. And of course the male in the house thinks that would be a ton of fun...

Next step - the contractor.

2006-11-16T23:08:00.000-06:00

We have a couple of appointments set up with contractors this coming week. This will help us determine the size of our project. I haven't asked anyone how much it would cost to add a second basement. A second basement? That's right. Well not for 108, but my dream is to have 2 floor basement. How cool would that be, "Oh, that's right, we keep that in our second basement..."

This is a random photo for possible ideas for landscaping next spring. That is a project in itself. We are going to be taking some ideas from Conservation at Home.

A start?

2006-11-10T21:18:00.000-06:00

Well we had our first appointment with an Architect! He reaffirmed that we needed to be talking to a contractor to get the real overall project scope. So back to the drawing board. We are going to visit a few of our neighbors (one of which turns out owns the The Naperville Running Company) to find out who they used. Again the key is finding a contractor with an eye to keeping the house historic.

Katie is still working at ripping down some of the wallpaper and scraping some paint in the bathroom (possibly our first project).

One step for us, one giant leap for 108

2006-11-02T22:44:00.000-06:00

It has begun. We have appointments with a few architects next week and we should start getting numbers on what it is going to cost us to get 108 fixed up. It sounds like there will be some things that I will be able to do (our town is a bit permit heavy). More to come...

Blogging on the train...

2006-10-31T16:36:00.000-06:00

I just had to try this out.

I got my new Verizon Wireless card today for my work laptop. So, when I realized that not only did I leave my cell phone at home this morning - but I also did not call Steve from the office to let him know when to expect me - starting up my laptop was the obvious answer.

Not a major catstrophe by any means - he could live without the information that I am on the 4:28 which gets in at 5:12.

However, now I have the ability to send him an email from my laptop on the train. Alas - I have no idea how fast it will send from underneath union station nor if I even caught him before he left the office....

What's a girl to do?

Of course I can send a text message to his phone.

So now I am in utter suspense. Did he get the emails (one from gmail, one from my work account)? Will the tm reach him in time?

The only way I will now for sure is if when I exit the train a small pup named PorTillo is waiting for me....

So now we will see how long it takes to post a blog....and how long my battery lasts. In 15 mins we have gone down to 78% - not looking good.

I get phone calls ......for dead people

2006-10-31T09:16:00.000-06:00

One of the things about living in a house that has been in the family for a while - is that most if not all of your utilities bills may in fact be in the names of relatives who are no longer with us.

Getting our names on the bills - is changing this week as we officially have a mortgage as of tomorrow. In the meantime - it is awkward to have someone call and ask for your grandmother who has been dead for 8 years.

When I first lived in the house only a year after my grandpa passed, it was hard to get calls and mail for him because it reminded me of him. As time passed the calls lessoned and having my name on the phone bill has certainly made an impact.

It seems like some of the charities are going off of old phone lists. When we get calls for picking up donated goods, I have to resist saying "no, she's no longer with us."

Many of the marketing materials that come to the house just say "Residents at..." so you are never quite sure if it is a mass mailing or targeted to some demographic.

I did for a time get mail with my name on it for funeral homes, senior living, being cremeated, etc - which I can only assume was due to having my grandparents demographic info mixed with my name. I can assure you - I mainly got dating service ads when I was at the townhouse.

So what prompted this post? I received a reminder phone call the other day for a pick-up of a donation. The woman completely skipped over asking for one of my deceased relatives and went directly to "Is your mom there?"

Given what I described above - I am ready for people calling and asking for just about anybody - but my mom, really do I sound that young. So I guess in addition to clearing up names associated with the house, I am also going to have to work on sounding like I am older than 12.

Itsy Bitsy...Spiderman

2006-10-17T18:23:00.000-05:00

Who else can teach your kids about gang signs?

I just saw a commercial for "IBS" and had to know about this plush toy that is sure to be a Christmas blockbuster.

Well worth seeing the flash promo with the singing and dancing.

hmmmm...actually some of those dance moves look vaguely familiar.......

Unknowingly keeping Da Bears 6-0

2006-10-17T08:22:00.000-05:00

Sometime during the 4th Quarter I got a phone call from Steve who was watching the game from a local watering hall with a few friends.

"Go to my closet and put on my Walter Payton jersey right now".

I am not a wife who takes kindly to such demands - but I had seen the 4 interceptions in the first half and I knew what I would have to deal with if the Bears continued down the path of a total disaster.

Miraculously, the Bears pulled out a win as I learned in another call (putting on the jersey didn't curtail my watching home improvement shows).

Just happy I was able to help out the team.

Piecing together 108 North

2006-10-16T20:23:00.000-05:00

So tonight I was doing some research on the style of 108 North. The house was included in a book, "A Guide to Chicago Historic Suburbs On Wheels & On Foot" and classified as of the Italianate style c. 1870. I began by googling Italianate house and was able to find the following:

The Italianate style was derived from the villas of the Italian countryside. Two full stories, low-pitched hip roofs with cupolas, and expansive overhangs supported by decorative brackets are typical features of the style.
The Italianate style dominated American houses constructed between 1850 and 1880. It was particularly common in the expanding towns and cities of the Midwest as well as in many older but still growing cities of the northeastern seaboard.

Here is an example of a classic Italianate house. I can see parts of 108 North in this image...

The Guidebook indicates that the front porch was most likely added in the 1910s which seems to fit with my family moving in to the house in 1916. It also refers to the "slightly lower service wing" which we call the kitchen and dining room as having the original tin roof. What is troubling to me is that it doesn't seem to fit with the Italianate style. Although the upstairs windows go to the floor - they have none of the characteristics of the style. Plus the roof doesn't match.

The more I look at the house - the more I want to know how did it get to be this way? What were the original owners like? How many bedrooms were there upstairs? Why was the "service wing" made lower than the rest of the house? Was the back always 2 stories? The house was white when I was little - but what was the original color?

The more questions I come up with the more I want to know. I guess I'd better get back to the "service wing" - the dishes won't wash themselves.

***Crazily enough our plans for that part of the house include expanding the kitchen into the dining room - so I guess we may be returning it to its original use.

Reflected Reflection

2006-10-12T22:31:00.000-05:00

Please honey, you have given insight into more important things that College basketball or Mall walking.

My list is as follows (just to name a few):

1. Naperville - deserves its reputation.

2. Just do it - while I like to plan 108 projects - you start removing wallpaper.

3. We have to make appointments - talk about busy schedules.

4. Little dogs - yeah, I will give that one but I still want a Husky!

5. From Professional woman to little girl in 3 seconds flat - when you want something or need something after I just sat down to watch Patton.

6. Features and Benefits - we are both stubborn but even when I say "End of story" you continue to zig and zag and before I know it I am sold on an idea. Slighty evil.

7. It takes two to tango - I thought I did a lot when I was solo, that is nothing compared to what we got ourselves into now (108, a certain clock ticking which I can't mention, etc.)

8. Cool chicks - they exist! Who had the idea of me coming in as Elvis and then let me do it?!?

9. Thinking things through - "what would happen if I strapped a jet engine to the car? hmmmm" (I would like to say those ideas are no more but at least they are less frequent)

10. Angel - I can't tell you enough of how I need you in my life.

Possible Halloween costumes....

2006-10-12T20:49:00.000-05:00

Super Steve!

German Skier from the future?

Army Guy!

Bat Girl?

Reflection

2006-10-09T19:24:00.000-05:00

Yesterday we celebrated Steve's 35th birthday with the family (although the actual date is this Sat the 14th). It has been a tradition for the last few years to go bowling for his birthday.

So in the spirit of celebrating my hubby, I started thinking about how in addition to a bowling birthday what else Steve has brought into my life (in no particular order).

1. Watching the news in the morning - I am just not a news person in general and so without Steve I probably would have never known what was going on in the world.
2. NPR - to be honest I am more tolerant of news in the morning than news radio, but it is good to see this whole other world called "Wait, wait don't tell me" and "Car Talk" - although I can only handle about 15 mins
3. Rescue Me - definitely a show I would have never thought to watch. Plus the theme song gets stuck in my head.
4. Discovery & History Channels - 2 channels I seriously never knew existed
5. Elvis - while I will always be more of a Beatles girl - I have to say that the man has grown on me
6. People watching - Steve enjoys sitting and watching people more than anyone I know and so when I travel (read am stuck in the airport or eating dinner by myself without a book) - I find myself people watching because I know how much Steve would appreciate it - if he was there.
7. Soccer - I now not only understand some of the rules - but can sit through a whole game and plus I love the side bets
8. Beer - now I am not saying I enjoy beer anymore than pS (pre-Steve), but I have a better appreciation for how many different kinds there are
9. Rolling Stones - another band that I always enjoyed - but didn't get until we saw them live
10. Fantasy football - I haven't gone so far as to look at "his guys" but I do ask how he is doing and have a general understanding of how it works

On the flip side - here is what (I think) I have brought to Steve - perhaps he has his own thoughts.... (hint, hint - this is where you chime in)

1. Watching videos on MTV and VH1 in the morning
2. College basketball
3. Little dogs
4. Apple donuts from the Long Grove Apple Festival
5. Westin's Heavenly Bed
6. Russell's dry cleaners
7. Panera's Potato soup
8. Mall walking
9. Home repair/design shows
10. Tom Petty

One simple project

2006-10-04T22:45:00.000-05:00

I have started one little project slightly under Katie's radar. I read an article in FastCompany about these lightbulbs and I have installed a few but now I am on a mission to replace all of them. The decorative ones will remain the same, but the rest are getting swapped out one by one.

This is an underlying theme in my mind for 108, simple ways to make the house more energy efficient and a bit more green. Another idea is to replace the water heater with tankless one.

Baby steps...ummmmm baybay!

And that's the truth...

2006-10-04T22:04:00.000-05:00

This was taken near our resort/lodge in Lake Tahoe on the Honeymoon. It's my Edith Ann impression.

Here's a novel idea...

2006-10-02T22:18:00.000-05:00

So I was reminded tonight by my husband that the purpose of this site was to blog about the house....so I thought I might want to actually post some pics of...welll...the house.

As Promised..

2006-10-02T06:11:00.000-05:00

Who could resist that smile?

Pics from the "Katie and Steve Show"

2006-10-01T22:48:00.000-05:00

Steve and I put together a slide show for the rehearsal dinner.
Here are some of my favorite pictures of me. Steve's will be up soon as well....

(Left) - This was taken at Brookfield Zoo. As the lore goes, soon after the shot was taken - the pig knocked me over.

(Right) This picture cracks me up for several reasons - note the groovy 1970s outfits and my dad's ears looking very Spock like. It is also cool to have a picture at 108 in the dining room when I was small.

(Above) oh yeah - I was styling in my patent leather shoes and underoos!

My problem with blogging or Where do I start part2

2006-10-01T22:19:00.000-05:00

Brevity.

I have really good intentions - I will just write a quick stream of conscious post about the important/interesting parts of an event....but I end up flooded with words.

Take my last post...I even started with a list. That will for sure keep me on track........not so much.

To me every detail is important - summarizing is great for 6th grade book reports - but doesn't fit with how I think or write. So bare with me as I learn to find my blog "voice" and describe my life in a way that might be interesting to more than just me. I may have to start up a diary again for the detailed descriptions of life at 108.

In the meantime, here is one of my favorite pictures from the wedding. It reminds me of Reservoir Dogs as I walk with my posse. PorTillo was great - it was like he knew exactly where he was going.

Where do I start.....(part 1)

2006-09-18T19:25:00.000-05:00

Since it has been so long since I posted (and someone has taken to adding his own 2 cents), I don't know where to start.

Some highlights of the last few months:

1. Passed Will Ferrel in a Dallas hotel in July while he was out promoting Teledaga nights (wrote a very nice blog about it which will remain in draft mode most likely forever....)

2. Had bridal shower #3 at the Walls home (last weekend in July)

3. Two weeks before the blessed event was in beautiful Dublin for work(ok so it was Ohio)

4. Ran around like a crazy woman the week before the wedding finishing all of the last minute details (programs, menus, seating chart, etc).

Side story: During the last week - I was having some difficulty getting a hold of our very ditsy wedding coordinator from the reception site. Finally 3 days before the wedding I find out that she is "pursuing other opportunities within the hotel". I was pissed - I decided not to lose my head over it because I wasn't overly confident in her abilities - but it still was frustrating to have to walk someone else through the wedding details......

5. Rehearsal Dinner - was awesome. A very relaxed dinner at Portillo's with family and close friends. My dad gave a speech that made me cry and Steve and I even managed to pull off the "Steve and Katie Show" a powerpoint pictorial of us throughout the years.

6. Post Portillo's, Steve decided he need to give me a wedding gift that night back at our house. He had made (with the help of my mom, his sis and his mom) a scrapbook of pictures of me over the last 28 years....again more tears. It was so sweet....I couldn't help but feel bad that his gift was less than sentimental (to be opened on the wedding day - the Band of Brothers DVD set and a very nice card)

7. Morning of - I woke up (I guess that is what you call it after going to bed at midnight, walking up at 3:30 and falling back to sleep around 5:30), took care of the pup, showered and headed for the salon. Jill and Amy were well on there way to beautiful and soon it was my turn.

Becky (my neighbor and hair stylist) did an awesome job on my hair and make-up. Needless to say - I don't wear much make-up (read: NONE) and so I was not good at letting someone be so close to my eyes. She finally relented on the eyeliner as I explained I would tear up and ruin everything else.

We all headed back for the house - not without some drama in between though....

Steve had forgotten his tux at the house and so we had to coordinate it getting to him without us talking - in hindsight - we probably could have relented on that rule. He also then called Jill while I was getting ready because he also needed "something" (to be identified later) for the reception - which he could only somewhat describe to Jill and I had to hide in a bag for him to get post-ceremony, pre-reception.....I know it's confusing.

So I am eating my Jimmy John's, Tony is on Portillo duty because the photographer is early and I am not even in my dress yet. I say to the photog"here - take some pictures of my very pretty and uncomfortable shotes". I was so not ready to be in charge of the getting ready - and a little overwhelmed by it all. As Steve said when he looked at the pics - you were not smiling with your eyes.

I get dressed and we take a few pics by the bay window. I then have it my head that it will be an awesome shot to have me in the front hallway up on the staircase....I didn't really plan on how big my dress was and the 3 inch heels - but I made and didn't kill myself.

I will now take a short pause so that I can rejoin my life (ie packing for a work trip to Dallas) and will plan to pick up this saga at a later time.............

Game on!

2006-09-07T13:51:00.000-05:00

Well, after months of saying, "We'll do that after the wedding", it's time. We had a great honeymoon and got back to a list of projects. We will keep updating as we go and it looks like 108 will be the biggest project of them all. And it may be too early but I would like to start a countdown to 'bay-bee' time, it would be at about 545 days right now.

Editor's note - if I could figure out how to strike through this post I would, and since there are 2 comments on it - I won't remove it. I just think someone was a little premature in his announcement......kg

They have email in Alaska?

2006-07-13T14:28:00.000-05:00

My dad, the outdoor adventurer (pictured left on last summer's family trip to Door County, WI) arrived safely in Alaska.

Steve jokingly asked my dad if he was also going to blog his trip. Instead - I have posted his first email as proof that they have email up there.

"The flight was good. The weather was beautiful the first day, sunny and 70s. We are staying at the Anchorage Guest House which is like an adventureer's bed and breakfast. We hiked to to top of Flat-top Mountain. It was beautiful and little more strenuous then I would have imagined. We were out of breath, but 9 out of 11 made it to the top. Peter a 65 year old retired engineer from Argonne will be my tent mate the rest of the trip. "

It sounds like this years summer trip will be more adventurous than last years! Although dad, Steve and Dr. Tony did attempt golfing -

Less than 1 month!

2006-07-13T08:51:00.000-05:00

Yesterday (July 12th) marked the official one month countdown to the big day.

I am happy to report that we are in the final stretch and should be ready for all the big doings over the next few weeks.

Should we happen to deviate from my very well planned schedule - I am sure you will hear about it.

In the meantime, feel free to visit the wedding website for any details.

Steve and I both are getting really excited for the celebration!

Steve's Triumphant Return to the States

2006-07-11T12:29:00.000-05:00

(Told in the third person, because obviously my body was overtaken by aliens when I inserted myself into this adventure...or perhaps just a little anxious to see my sweetie)

2 days prior to arrival

Tom W.: "Katie, I'd like to meet Steve at the airport what time does he get in?"

Katie: "Let me check - Steve sent me an email with all of the flight info. I'll call you back tomorrow. "

Katie sorts through numerous emails with no luck. She thinks to herself, "Hmm..which email did he sent it to? We definitely need to get better about subject lines. Ok - I'll just go to Air India's website. This is certainly no American Airlines - oh there it is. Flight AI127 with a scheduled arrival of 1605."

Later that evening....

Steve's mom: "Fred (Steve's dad) would like to greet him at the airport and take a picture."

Katie: "Ok - I think Tom W. also wanted to pick him up. I will call him tomorrow to let him know."

Steve's mom: "Well - he will probably just take a bus out there to meet. "

Katie (thinking to herself): "I wish I could leave work early - because I'd really like to meet him. Oh well, sounds like they have got it figured out." She talks to both Tom W. and Fred and have passed along the info. She is also posting/emailing Steve - so he will be on the lookout for them.

Day of Arrival:

10am
Katie looks at the Air India site only to see that the flight is delayed - but no time information is indicated. She calls a 1-800 number and they tell her that the flight is delayed until 4:55pm. She passes that info to Tom W. and tm's Steve to let him know that his dad will also be at ORD.

3pm
Katie sits at work - trying to focus so she can get her work done and get home to meet Steve. Since his flight is "delayed" she decides she may be able to take an early train home, pick up the pup and meet Steve in LaGrange at his parents. Sounds like a plan.

4pm
Katie wraps up her work and realizes what an odd coincidence it is that her co-worker is heading in a cab to ORD in a few minutes to catch her flight. Katie quickly packs up to see if she can catch her in the lobby and tag along.

Now 4:15pm
Katie thinks to herself, "Steve will be so surprised that I made it out to greet him and I am sure it will take him time to get off the plane and through security. I have plenty of time." She hops in the cab and throws out any ounce of common sense she has about 1. time 2. space 3. rush hour traffic 4. the reliability of Air India's phone rep. All she can picture is how happy Steve will be to see her.

4:30pm
Steve unboards the plane and calls his dad as he gets through security. The flight arrived on time and Steve does everything he can to navigate through the airport quickly. Once they meet up - Steve is anxious to go and does not want to wait to meet Tom W. He tries to call him and tell him to turnaround - they will just take a bus.

Katie enroute calls Tom W. and leaves a message that she is on her way. She then tries to get ahold of Steve's dad.

4:45pm
Fred answers the phone and learns of Katie's wherabouts. He passes the phone to Steve.

Steve, "Katie, I really just want to get home. Can you have the cab turn around or meet us at the O'Hare oasis?"

Katie feeling sick to her stomach, "Um, no I can't. I am in the cab with someone else. Can you just wait - the cab driver says it should be another 10-15 mins."

Steve, "Where are you? It's bumper to bumper traffic, isn't it?

Katie, "Near Foster, I think. Yes - it's pretty heavy."

In the meantime, Tom W. arrives to pick them up. They decide to get Steve home and come back for Katie at the airport. Fred ends up having them turnaround and drop him off so he can wait for Katie at the bus stop.

5:30
Katie's coworker gets dropped of at Terminal 3 for her flight.

5:40
Katie's taxi cab driver has no idea on how to get to the bus stop so she gets out at Terminal 5. Katie takes the tram over to the bus stop and meets up with Steve's dad. They wait for the 5:52 bus to LaGrange.

5:52pm
They take the bus to its final stop before heading to the garage. Apparently - this was the one bus that doesn't go the rest of the route. They transfer to another stop and wait for the next bus.

6:45pm
Steve greets Katie at 409. His right ankle is bandaged and swollen and his left is not much better. He has at least 3 days of stubble and smells of a man who has not showered for a few days and was camping in Berlin.

7:45pm
Katie and Steve arrive at 108 North. His flight from Germany took him 9 hours and his journey from O'Hare took 3.5. Steve is weary and worn - but exactly where he belongs. Home.

Free to a good home

2006-07-09T19:59:00.000-05:00

One man's trash is another man's treasure? Or so the saying goes....

In the aftermath of yesterday's garage sale, we took two cars full of stuff to the Goodwill store. There were some remaining items that never made it to the garage sale because they were trash or broken and a few other items that seemed to bulky to be carted off in the car. We had a theory that putting these items out with the trash would allow them to go to good homes without the middle man of goodwill.

Mind you, many of these items were marked under 5 dollars. For the last hour, we said everything was 1/2 price. People still hemmed and hawed over paying $2 for a kids microscope set which still had its original price tag of $33. Needless to say, I believe it was donated in the end.

I fully expected that long before the garbage man came tomorrow morning a mirror, wobbly table and chair with a yellow flowered print cushion would be taken. Interestingly enough - the man who took the chair sat in it during the garage sale and wouldn't pay the "sale" price of $1.50 for it.

The most suprising thing was the number of items that were taken that we had deemed "not garage saleable" - an old box of Cheer (most likely from the early 80s), a mirror that had once been attached to a dresser and a rusted and dented dollhouse.

A teenage kid on his bike took a lawn chair that was riped only to have it open on him as he rode away. The girl he was with kept asking - "What are you going to do with it?" and made the observation that it was also a rocker and not just a regular chair.

I was annoyed with a few people who took it upon themselves to investigate one of the big black garabage bags by ripping it open - seriously, just untie the handles. No need to make a mess for the garbage man or me.

Even though we made a few bucks off the garage sale and were equally surprised at what people will spend their money on - in the future I plan to be sure and display more "junk" in my yard on garbage day...just to see if it gets taken. I know - I need to get a life. Not to worry - Steve will be home in less than 24 hours and he won't let me throw away anything.

If it's before 7am on Monday July 11th as you read this - feel free to stop by and pick through my garbage. There is still a metal bird cage, push mower, and an old chair with a crack down the middle of the seat. Just leave the rest alone. And don't bother with the canned tomatoes - best we can tell those are from the 60s.

Things I don't like doing....

2006-07-05T21:10:00.000-05:00

1. Mowing the lawn*

2. Cleaning up after PT

3. Taking out the garbage

4. Washing dishes

5. Doing laundry

Come home soon......we need you!

*I did mow the lawn today for the first and last time.

A Little Haus History....

2006-07-04T21:01:00.000-05:00

Steve has been asking me what I am doing to celebrate the long 4th of July weekend. I had little to say because I spent a large portion of the weekend finding homes for the new items we received at our wedding showers, unpacking the stuff we have been storing upstairs and prepping for a garage sale. I know sounds pretty exciting....

But wait - haven't you already had other garage sales this year? Yes, that's correct we are on to the final sale - #3 in 2006. We have had a total of 7 garage sales in the last 4 years and donated many items to Goodwill, Amvets, and of course the Naperville garbage and recycling.

I have mentioned previously that the house has been in the family for 90 years....and it is starting to feel as though we have 90 years worth of stuff. I thought it would be appropriate to explain how this all came to be and whose stuff we are sorting through. I am missing many details, which we are hoping to piece together as we rehab the house, but here is what I have.

In 1916, Elizabeth (Houser) Hein and her husband Emil Hein moved into 108 North with their 2nd son Ernest A. Hein and his wife Elizabeth (Thiel) Hein. These are my great, great grandparents and my great grandparents. The house at the time was a 2 flat with the younger Heins living upstairs. My grandfather Ernest R. Hein was born in 1918. The upstairs has a kitchen, dining room, living room, master bedroom and bathroom. It also has a very small room which until recently I assumed was a closet. It was my grandpa's bedroom.

In a one year span (Oct 1935 - Aug 1936) - Elizabeth Houser Hein, Emil and Ernest A. Hein all passed. This left my grandfather who was 17 at the time as the man of the house with his mother. When he married my grandmother, Rose Koretke, in October 1946, they continued to live in the downstairs apartment and raised 2 daughers (my mom and aunt).

When my great grandmother Elizabeth passed in 1979 (I was 1), time stopped in the upstairs apartment. I can remember going upstairs as a child and playing with my cousin. He had a train set up there and I remember all of the rooms set up as if someone still lived there.

Over the next 20+ years, my grandmother used that space as extra storage. Very little of my great grandmothers things were gone through or removed.

The summer before my sophomore year of high school (1993), there was a fire in the downstairs kitchen. Although it was late at night ( I belive around 2am) both of my grandparents were awake and made it safely out of the house. The kitchen was completely remodeled and there was smoke damage on the first floor. The fire fighters said that the space between the kitchen ceiling and the upstairs floor (the master bedroom) saved them from more fire damage.

In June of 1998, my grandmother passed away after battling pancreatic cancer. She was under hospice care for the last few weeks and was able to stay in a hospital bed at the house.

My grandfather was very ademant about remaining in the house that he was born in. He did so until December of 2002. It is easy to see how tied to this house he was given the history of his family and all of the memories he had from raising his own children there as well.

It has been quite an interesting journey as we sort through all of the items that have been stored and used at the house. On more than a few occasions we have struggled to determine what a particular item was, why anyone wanted it or how it ended up never getting used (still in original packaging, unfinished craft projects and many clothes still with the tags on).

I am really excited to see what the next phase holds for this house as we continue to sort through its history and return it to a single-family home.

So - Steve that's what I have been up to the last few days (oh and a little shopping).

Celebrating Germany in Naperville?

2006-06-30T08:11:00.000-05:00

I swear I am not making this up.

Last night the Naperville Municipal Band's concert theme was "Celebrating Our German Heritage". I kid you not.

Steve's niece, Nicole, is in town this week from Iowa. So I decided to invite her out to Naperville for the concert to celebrate our German roots and Steve's trip.

PorTillo even broke out the lederhosen for the occasion. Ok - so that part I made up, because if he had lederhosen we would surely have a picture of him wearing them.

Nicole and I had a great time as the weather was just perfect. After a few songs, I realized hmm perhaps a band concert is not as exciting for an almost 6th grader as one would have thought. I think she was grateful to be relaxing and resting her feet after a long day at the Brookfield Zoo. We ended up chatting through most of the concert and eating the most chocolatey of brownies. It was good to get some visiting in with my one and only jr. bridesmaid.

Almost forgot - we also made a stop at Sts. Peter and Paul Church (where Steve and I will tie the knot in 43 days). I wanted Nicole to get a chance to see the long aisle we will both be walking down that day.

On that note, I guess I should get back to some of those wedding details.

Auf Wiedersehen.

Wetter aktuell

2006-06-29T10:38:00.000-05:00

It looks like Steve is going to have better weather over there then is predicted in Chicago.
Break out the calculators - these temps are in Celsius.

Which means in Berlin it is?

Anyone, Anyone? Bueller?

23 Celisus = 73.4 Farenheit

This is as of 3pm Berlin time - which is 8am here. I believe. Too many conversions.

*WeatherChannel.com also has this info - but the picture won't copy. So I managed to navigate a website in German to find this picture. Click here to link to the site.

Master of the House

2006-06-28T10:27:00.000-05:00

Even with his eyes half closed - the iron paw of PorTillo reigns!

When Steve is gone on camping trips, PorTillo is allowed to sleep with me in the bed as my protector. This is a big treat for him since he is not allowed in the bedroom at all under normal conditions, because of his ability to get under the bed in places I cannot reach.

So far, he is good once he is in the bed and doesn't use it as an opportunity to steal my socks and hide. Just in case I have taken to putting his Illini leash on him when he sleeps.

The past few nights I have found myself staying up later to organize things around the house and tidy up. PorTillo usually cashes out on the couch as this is when Steve would normally lay and watch tv with him.

In light of not getting that "snuggle time" on the couch, PorTillo has decided to set 10:30 as our new bedtime, because he starts whining at me (similar to the nagging I do when I want Steve to come to bed) until I go to bed. I was confused at first and thought perhaps he needed to go outside one last time - nope that wasn't it. His little tail wagged when I put the orange leash on him and walked towards the bedroom.

Last night, I put him up on the bed while I continued to get ready - brushing my teeth and such. He patiently sat there as if to say, I couldn't possibly fall asleep until you tuck me in under the covers. He stayed under the covers this morning until I gave a few raspberries to his belly (stole a page from the Lippoldthaus style of parenting). Hmmm - who is the owner in this relationship? He has so got me under his paw......

All I can say is, "Dog - you are in for a rude awakening when Big Head comes home!"

Remnants of the night out...

2006-06-26T14:43:00.000-05:00

Hmm, since when did I develop a freckle in my ear?

Oh wait - that's purple glitter....

I wonder where that came from?

*Editor's note: In Steve's absence, I have NOT taken to talking to myself. This was all in my head. Although, PorTillo is a great conversationalist.

WOW - What a finish!

2006-06-26T11:57:00.000-05:00

The game came down to a last penalty kick!

I can't imagine the excitement/disppointment that is all around Steve as they depart from the stadium.

As disappointed I am about not being able to shout "Go Socceroos!", I think that an upset over Italy would have created major havoc in the stadium. Just my sense - we will have to wait for the man to chime in with his experience.

I guess I better turn off ESPN 360 and get some work done.

I hope that quenched Steve's thirst to see a World Cup game - 500 euros ($650) is a lot of money and I am sure it will only go up as the competition goes on.

Game On!

2006-06-26T09:28:00.000-05:00

Italy vs Australia (the socceroos !?!) starts in about 35 minutes.

To follow the game that Steve is at go to:

http://www.worldcupblog.org/world-cup-2006/liveblog-australia-vs-italy.html

As you will see, I am choosing not to predict the winner of the game on the comment section of this site. Instead I am hoping for Steve to be safe.

I will be cheering for the socceroos, because really it would be so much fun to yell!

-Soccer Mom in Training

Steve's Plan

2006-06-25T16:53:00.000-05:00

This may be better info for Steve's Germany site, but here is the email he sent me with the tentative cities he is planning to be in:

This is a tentative plan for Germany
The cities listed are where I will be sleeping that night.
Friday July 23 – Frankfurt (due to time change I will be on the plane for Thursday night)
Sat.24 – Frankfurt
Sun.25 – Frank (maybe Nuremburg)
Mon.26 – Kaiserslautern
Tue.27 – Hanover
Wed.28 – Berlin
Thu.29 – Berlin
Fri.30 – Berlin
Sat.1 – Frank
Sun.2 – Hamburg
Mon.3 – Munich
Tue.4 – Munich
Wed.5 – Munich
Thu.6 – Berlin
Fri.7 – Berlin
Sat.8 – Berlin
Sun.9 – Berlin
Mon.10 – Frank*
Tue.11 – Home*
VERY Subject to change.

*I know this will change as Steve's plane ticket for home is on Monday the 10th not Tuesday the 11th - we looked at it before he left*