progress.

We are supposed to close on the purchase of our new house Monday or Tuesday, depending on when the loan officer can come down from Fayetteville. The people we are buying it from are supposed to close on the purchase of their new home in Russellville on Friday of this week, and are supposed to be moving this weekend. We hope everything comes together and we can move at the beginning of next week. (Sunday or Monday, I hope)

We have gotten the new roof done now, and it looks great. We still have to repaint all the balcony/second floor deck. We have officially hired painters to complete the painting on the interior. All the paneling is painted. Both kids' rooms are pink, their bathroom is yellow, as is the half bath. The playroom and my photography room will be a neutral khaki tone. I will post pics as soon as I can. There are a lot of other changes we want to make, like new bathroom and kitchen countertops, and new carpet. I want patio furniture, and a chiminea or fire pit. Most of this stuff will have to be done a little at a time, over the next few years. I am still holding out for blinds for my bedroom. I am used to sleeping in a pitch black room, and am not thinking I will like it being so bright. Those run $70-$100 per window, for the ones I want. I need to win the lottery....

We are still in search of the perfect area rug, but I think we will probably end up getting one from Lowes. All this house stuff has been so draining.... It's fun, but hard to let go of the cash. There's so much I want to do, but so much that I just cannot afford to at the time.

I am looking into cutting corners on our monthly bills, too. I am getting rid of our storage building rent (38 bucks) and also am calling about Cablevisions new "triple play" program where you can get a home phone with caller id/call waiting/unlimited long distance, basic cable, and cable internet for $99. That will save me about thirty bucks if I switch the house phone.