Operation Dream House Loading: All New Bones

So when you walked into the main living area of the house, you could tell that the floor kind of waved. Like most older houses, it settled and made things uneven. We called in CRL Masonry & Construction LLC (which is actually J’s sister and brother in law’s company) to have a look. They quickly determined that the house was about 3+” from one side to the other and we would have to start looking into fixing the foundation. So began the tearing up of the floor:

 

We got the floor torn up and came upon all sorts of new problems. The foundation was literally just a poorly poured footer (and none at all in some places) then blocks with no mud holding the house up. All the floor joists were rotted and patched together with 2x4s. I have no clue how they didn’t give way and send someone through the subfloor. Chris and Renee guided through what they would need to do to fix it which started with us digging trenches all the way around the inside of they house so that we could reach the old block and they could put in the new. 

Got new block put in and all new beams:

Buuuuuuut we ran into a new problem around the same time. 😕

Stay tuned for the next post😉

Also, check out CRL Masonry & Construction LLC here: https://www.facebook.com/CRL-Masonry-Construction-LLC-1630433527003994

Meet the Pack: Tyson Xavier

Name: Tyson Xavier

Nicknames: Smoosh/Tys/Smoosh Dog/Butt head

Birthday: May 9th, 2017

Age: 3

Color: Blue/Brindle

Breed: Staffordshire Terrier (Registered as an American Pitbull Terrier but clearly not😑)

A little about Ty: The absolute sweetest smooshy boy who just wants to be up in your face and get scratches. He does have some food aggression issues that we have had to work with and work around. When he first got here we had issues with Diesel being a territorial prick and starting fights but after a few months together, all three live in peace. He is actually my brother Tyler’s dog but due to allergy issues, Tyson came to live with us. 

He’s a shoe thief (doesn’t chew them but will get excited and pick up the first shoe he sees and take off with it). Lately, he has also been stealing my underwear but I guess I still like him. Generally, he is happy to curl up under the bed (since Diesel and Hazel insist on sleeping between J and I in our QUEEN sized bed) but as soon as J leaves in the morning, he sleeps right by my face. 

The Latest and Greatest + What’s to Come

So, clearly, Bottles and Bows had to get pushed to the wayside for a bit while I got things taken care of and handled the take off of my side business. A bunch has happened in the months I have been gone so here is just a short run down:

• Miss Dakota turned 3
• Chey had her first dentist appointment and Kota had her second
• Bought a house (first post about that is up! Plenty more coming in the next week or so!)
• My side business took off and we have rebranded to prepare for the future accomplishments
• Finished some renovations here at the rental house that I’ll share with you all
• Took in another smooshy boy (post coming tomorrow)
• Got laid off and called back
• Finished my first degree

Bottles and Bows has been my absolute dream to do consistently. I love writing and this is my happy outlet so stay tuned for all the things to come! However, I will take suggestions on what y’all want to see! I’d love to get into some product reviews and affiliates!

If you have a small business that you’d like to promote here, lets talk about advertising😉

Operation Dream House Loading: The Beginning

So I started casually house hunting earlier this year. I kept track of ones I liked on Zillow and even went and looked at a couple but I knew I wasn’t really in the prime financial state that I wanted to be in before buying a house. My wishlist was also a bit needy for someone wanting to stay under $100k. 

I had to be out in the country and wouldn’t settle for less than an acre of land. Obviously, due to having 3 children and a multitude of out of state family, I needed at least 3 bedroom but preferably 4. Barn was a huge plus. It definitely had to be within 15 minutes of work because I’m over the whole commuting life😅

There was one other property I heavily considered but the house itself would’ve had to have been leveled and rebuilt. Then I stumbled upon this one just by pure chance. 

Warren Straley (who I highly recommend working with because he was just fantastic) took J and I through it and I was sold. This was going to be my dream house. 1.25 acres with a barn and shed. Two story house with 3 huge bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms. Plus that PORCH😍

This is exactly what we started with:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everything was basically stripped down to the subfloors and drywall. The downstairs bathroom had been gutted except for the tub. The only room that was still usable was the upstairs bathroom (until we found out there was no water😅). It was basically a clean slate. 

Some of the windows can be saved. The roof is newer and metal and basically everything outside was in good shape so with the help of my father, we bought a house😊

My Nightmare Thursday

Happy Thursday everyone! Sorry for the small hiatus while I battled the stomach flu and finals. So so so much stuff coming in the next couple days so stick with me. But first, let me tell you about my nightmare Thursday so far...

Babies got up around 8am which is pretty normal for us. Immediately, Kota is in a bad mood. She throws a holy fit over putting socks on and then insists over and over that it's time to "go bye-bye" (an hour before Chey's appointment...)

So we load up and head to the doctors office for Chey's 15 month check up (all the details in next post). We're in the waiting room and Kota decides that she doesn't want to wear her boots anymore so she takes them off and throws herself on the floor just as the nurse is calling us to come back. So I'm trying to force her boots on and make sure Chey doesn't decide to take off. It was awful.

We get through the appointment with Dakota screaming about "snacks" that she seemed to think I was hiding in my pockets (which I wasn't). So I run to the gas station and get her some cookies (because apparently gas stations around here can't just carry fruit snacks anymore...) and suddenly both my children and their carseats and jackets are covered in chocolate and cookies before we get back home. So more laundry for me😅

Finally back home and I'm trying to get them lunch and down for a nap since they are well past naptime. Kota is throwing a fit and just wants to go to bed so I give up on forcing her to eat, let Chey finish, and put them both to bed. I had a phone advising appointment set up for 1pm and I thought "this is perfect! They'll be napping while I'm on the phone".

Too bad I forgot that my college is on Central Time and therefore an hour behind me so I'm just sitting around for an hour waiting for her to call.

Oh what a day and I still have to go into work tonight. Wish me luck and Happy Thursday guys!😘

Sam the Foster Pup

I had a friend post on Facebook that she was looking to rehome her beloved dog because she was stretched thin and just didn't have the time for him. Of course, I'm always looking for an excuse to bring in more dogs and I reached out with the understanding that he could stay with us for as long as she needed.

Sam was the greatest. He was super sweet and friendly and loved playing with Hazel (though he was slightly terrified of Diesel). Kota kind of scared him but I can’t say I blame him.

Never jumped on people, never had to be kenneled, bit of a barker but nothing serious and he adored me. He would follow me around the house and lay under my desk while I did homework. Unfortunately, he just wanted attention and cuddles and I couldn’t help him.

Ever since he came to us, he paced the house and just went back and forth between the windows like he was waiting for someone. When his mom came to pick him up, I thought he was going to explode from excitement. He just lit up and it was the most precious thing.

The time we had with him was a blessing but unfortunately, he was never going to settle in with us and I am happy to report that he's doing great back with his mom and family😊