As you all know, I have a Venice. (Love it!)
It's much taller than my old house which looks like this:
Why do I show you this?
Because I use to do ALL the work on this place. (Then my husband came along and did some too)
At any rate, it gave me the mentality that I really can do all the house repair and anything I want to.
But should I?
Forward several years and some time in my New Home....
I can easily do things like painting the multiple bedrooms and getting in the attic (by the inside access instead of climbing on the roof)
Here's a photo of my girl's bedroom. :) Love it! (By the way, Walmart sells this Glitter Gloss that is 100% worth the costs. It makes the room glow in sunlight)
We do more "repair" type things with this new home than the old home and ladders are a MUST.
With the high ceilings, even light changes need a little extra boost.
I found myself in contemplation when presented with the challenge that the upstairs dryer vent needs changed every couple months.
This requires a very LONG ladder and a lint grabber on a long stick.
It's the only problem I have with the upstairs laundry room, but it's a pretty big one.
If I twist the wrong way I plummet. Even just climbing a ladder sometimes leaves me in weird positions while trying to get the lint out of the extra long dryer hose that is trapped between the walls of bedroom 4 and the laundry room (for some of you it's a closet).
This inevitably leaves me in need of my Wexford Chiropractor friend and a pack of ice.
As much as I love climbing ladders and fixing my own things. The inside of a huge house is big and challenging enough.
There are so many things I still want to do so I feel that risking my back and my ankles and challenging my big ole' butt on and extension ladder is likely not the best idea.
It's time to do one of two things:
1. Build a deck so I can get to the vent without plummeting two stories (it will be just one)
2. Hire someone to do the work for me.
I think I'm going with #2. For goodness sake, I pay the neighbor boy to come and pick up dog poop. I certainly can hire someone to climb a ladder and get rid of lint for me.
What would you all do?
Do any of you face the crazy high upstairs laundry vent issue?
How do you handle it?
This is our new home building journal with Ryan Homes......the good, the bad, and the ugly. We are not paid by Ryan Homes or receiving any type of incentive to do this. We just want to document for ourselves and share with others so that they know what to expect. This is our first and hopefully last home together! We hope you enjoy this as much as we've enjoyed and learned from others blogs about the home building process...which isn't as scary as we originally thought. :)
Sunday, November 1, 2015
Saturday, October 3, 2015
Another Fall in your Home.
As another Fall approaches, I am happy to have learned so much more about the online world and blogging.
My home had held up well and what is funny is that, although I love the house and location, I have already started dreaming of a bigger home in a warmer spot.
It's not that I don't like the Venice at all, it's just that I have started to really get serious about my blogging adventures and find a need for an office in a central location in the house.
Right now I have my office/guest room upstairs next to the kids bathroom and I barely am ever in it.
I do most of my online work on my couch, morning room table or on the floor next to the fireplace (like I am right now) because I'm a heat hoarder.
I love my fireplace.
If you are building a Ryan Home, or any home for that matter....get the fireplace.
I'll have to figure out where I got my fireplace blower too (I'll share that soon) so you can get one too.
I just bought one and popped it in and here I am enjoying it.
There are some Ryan Home models that have great layouts for office space and I know I've seen the Palmaro (I think that's the name) that is a larger home with a great layout for office space on the living floor. It's a little more closed in though but the kitchen is in a central location so it's still really nice.
With my blogging now, I can see the benefit of a home that is less of an open floor plan just so you don't get attacked by drolling and grasping little one year olds who smell like poo. (Yes...I just got attacked)
Being able to work uninterrupted is kind of a commodity around here.
Do any of you guys out there have a home you love that allows you to work but still kind of be a part of the action?
I'm curious how you do it and what you thoughts are about an open floor plan with an office to the side or a closed floor plan altogether.
Thought? Please share! :)
Have a great day!
(Ps...if you wanna check out my biggest online adventure:www.marikinavalley.com Eventually I'll be writing more about the job killing program for those that are interested.
My home had held up well and what is funny is that, although I love the house and location, I have already started dreaming of a bigger home in a warmer spot.
It's not that I don't like the Venice at all, it's just that I have started to really get serious about my blogging adventures and find a need for an office in a central location in the house.
Right now I have my office/guest room upstairs next to the kids bathroom and I barely am ever in it.
I do most of my online work on my couch, morning room table or on the floor next to the fireplace (like I am right now) because I'm a heat hoarder.
I love my fireplace.
If you are building a Ryan Home, or any home for that matter....get the fireplace.
I'll have to figure out where I got my fireplace blower too (I'll share that soon) so you can get one too.
I just bought one and popped it in and here I am enjoying it.
There are some Ryan Home models that have great layouts for office space and I know I've seen the Palmaro (I think that's the name) that is a larger home with a great layout for office space on the living floor. It's a little more closed in though but the kitchen is in a central location so it's still really nice.
With my blogging now, I can see the benefit of a home that is less of an open floor plan just so you don't get attacked by drolling and grasping little one year olds who smell like poo. (Yes...I just got attacked)
Being able to work uninterrupted is kind of a commodity around here.
Do any of you guys out there have a home you love that allows you to work but still kind of be a part of the action?
I'm curious how you do it and what you thoughts are about an open floor plan with an office to the side or a closed floor plan altogether.
Thought? Please share! :)
Have a great day!
(Ps...if you wanna check out my biggest online adventure:www.marikinavalley.com Eventually I'll be writing more about the job killing program for those that are interested.
Sunday, September 20, 2015
Beaver County Rental Home
Hi All!
We now have our rental home for rent. If you know anyone in beaver county that is looking for a home. It's in a nice older neighborhood.
I'll post more info here momentarily.
The home is very close to I376 and in the middle of three great towns (Chippewa Township, Beaver, Beaver Falls) and very close to a lot of things but far enough away so you don't feel like you're in a city.
Here's a link to some more details: http://houserentalbeaverfalls.blogspot.com/
Which site do I use to help me rent my rental home?
www.rentalhouses.com is a great resource for any of you out there who need a quick and easy place to go to rent or find rental homes.
Using it, I have had great success in finding quality renters.
Finding them is only half of the battle though.
Make sure you update the photos and make sure your asking price is within reason compared to the competition.
RentalHouses.com (gold membership is what I do) is well worth the cost and it plasters your information everywhere. If it's anything like last time, I'll have a surplus of interested renters even after I have rented the home.
One thing I highly recommend when renting a home too is to join ezlandlordforms.com and utilize their credit check/background check service. I am very diligent when it comes to prospective tenants and this valuable service has helped me keep my rental home nice and my pocketbook secure. I have not had any problems (knock on wood) with using this method.
Charging the potential renter upfront for the background check will also deter people who already know they have shady rental or credit history. I charge it upfront and offer it as a deduction on their first month rent if they are approved.
If you all are thinking of renting out your old home and want some more advice, I'll be glad to share. We have been really blessed in making the decision to keep our old home and rent it.
We have actually talked about renting our Ryan Home too and building out a new home somewhere else. Actually, building a Ryan Home Venice in a different state and moving all of our stuff to the exact same spot.
The only reason we talk of moving is because we both like a little adventure and we are turned off by the fracking that seems to be taking over all over PA.
I'm curious if anyone else out there has had fracking pop up and disturb their sleep. It hasn't happened in a while now but when it does happen, you notice.
I'm not a fan of allowing fracking sites right next to residential areas. My main issue is the loss of sleep and the lack of information that they supply the affected residents.
What are your thoughts?
Which site do I use to help me rent my rental home?
www.rentalhouses.com is a great resource for any of you out there who need a quick and easy place to go to rent or find rental homes.
Using it, I have had great success in finding quality renters.
Finding them is only half of the battle though.
Make sure you update the photos and make sure your asking price is within reason compared to the competition.
RentalHouses.com (gold membership is what I do) is well worth the cost and it plasters your information everywhere. If it's anything like last time, I'll have a surplus of interested renters even after I have rented the home.
One thing I highly recommend when renting a home too is to join ezlandlordforms.com and utilize their credit check/background check service. I am very diligent when it comes to prospective tenants and this valuable service has helped me keep my rental home nice and my pocketbook secure. I have not had any problems (knock on wood) with using this method.
Charging the potential renter upfront for the background check will also deter people who already know they have shady rental or credit history. I charge it upfront and offer it as a deduction on their first month rent if they are approved.
If you all are thinking of renting out your old home and want some more advice, I'll be glad to share. We have been really blessed in making the decision to keep our old home and rent it.
We have actually talked about renting our Ryan Home too and building out a new home somewhere else. Actually, building a Ryan Home Venice in a different state and moving all of our stuff to the exact same spot.
The only reason we talk of moving is because we both like a little adventure and we are turned off by the fracking that seems to be taking over all over PA.
I'm curious if anyone else out there has had fracking pop up and disturb their sleep. It hasn't happened in a while now but when it does happen, you notice.
I'm not a fan of allowing fracking sites right next to residential areas. My main issue is the loss of sleep and the lack of information that they supply the affected residents.
What are your thoughts?
Thursday, August 13, 2015
Troy Polamalu Signed Steelers Jersey!!!
I just found a great sports memorabilia place that has this Troy Polamalu Signed Jersey and a bunch of other great signed items by the Steelers.
If you're out there in black and gold land and you are thinking about getting some great sports memorabilia for our Pittsburgh Steeler's fans, you should check these guys out!
I found this great coupon, but I have no idea how long it will last.
I hope this helps the Steeler's fans out there looking for Signed Steelers stuff!!
TAKE 10% OFF at Steiner Sports with code SPORTS10! You can even use it on the Franco Harris signed football they have! I need to get a sport room up in my house to put something like this in! I hope someone out there can use this code! Click here and it will take you to the site: TAKE 10% OFF at Steiner Sports with code SPORTS10! Ttyl
Wednesday, August 12, 2015
Loving my Morning Room and Renting Out Your Old Home
I was just talking to another blogger the other day (it might have been today!) about how much the morning room really makes my home.
I was super "lucky" when I built my Venice because I was able to build my home with the Morning Room included.
I'm not sure if I ended up having to pay more for other things or not during that time, but I don't feel like I lost any money.
I'm so eternally happy that I got the morning room instead of the finished basement option (because you can finish a basement on your own) for many reasons. The main one being that the morning room addition added to our square footage and I just don't see where a finished basement would even compare to that. We did finish our basement!!! (I shared some crappy photos in prior blog post)
I think once you make the decision to build a new home, or buy a new home, you just go with it. In Hindsight, there were a lot of things that I worried about while my home was being built, that I probably didn't need to worry about so much.
But, that time was a part of my homebuilding journey and it's the only way that I got here too right? Being in the home close to 4 years now, we do not regret our decision at all. Sure there are some things we wish we had more of, but for our first home build, this is a great house and in a great neighborhood.
There are a lot of people selling homes around us in this neighborhood and that has me wondering but, of the ones I know personally, they are job relocations or divorces.
I do wonder if they decided they didn't like their Ryan Home or not but the answer to that doesn't really matter because I do like my home.
Of all the homes I have ever lived in, My Venice is literally the most energy efficient. My bills are ridiculously low compared to other homes of the same or bigger size.
As a matter of a fact, my old home that I made a rental has higher bills than my new home!
Speaking of renting a home....remember when I made that decision?
For those of you out there wondering what to do with your own home, I HIGHLY recommend keeping it.
Why?
Well, for one, there is a report out there that less and less people are buying homes. Do you know what that means?
It means that you will likely have a harder time, than in the past, to sell your home.
It also means that if people are not buying homes, they are RENTING HOMES!!!!
This is great news and because of my decision to rent my old home rather than sell it, I have to do a little bit of work here and there BUT I am getting a home paid for on someone else's money.
Certainly I pay with my time in upkeep on the property and making sure my renter pays, however, I can't say enough about how awesome it is to have someone else putting down the cash to pay a mortgage on my first home.
I get to keep all that hard work I put into it and put some time in every now and then (which ..in case you didn't know doesn't cost money...time does not cost me money in this respect) and in the end, I own a home that holds it's value and even rises in value as the area around it builds up and as inflation happens.
It almost makes me want to sell my current Ryan Home, rent it out and then buy another.
I wouldn't make money on renting my Ryan Home right now though because I don't think that the renting price would match what the mortgage is.
BUT if you are thinking at all about renting out your old home, chances are pretty good that you can rent it for close to double what your monthly payments are on the mortgage.
I make about $400 a month on my old home and of course I put it back into the home for the water bill (which I pay) and the up keep and repairs/ city fees etc..
Think about when that home is paid off though!
I get even more money in my pocket.
So it looks to me that my retirement is going to be awesome!!
I could probably push it up a little too if I get that old house and this new house paid off asap.
Seriously, consider renting homes out.
If you can get some older homes that will do for renting, you might want to do it.
They pay for themselves and gain value while it's being paid for on someone else's dollar.
I don't know why more people aren't told about or encouraged to rent homes.
I have a friend who hates renting because she always has bad renters, but I was smart and did background checks and credit checks. (That doesn't always guarantee much of anything but it has helped me keep a pretty sound rental income going!)
I use landlord station to help me out with stuff in that realm. I also used a legal site and another site to help with my listing.
If I remember, I'll make sure to share it on my next post.
Speaking of posts!!!
If you are out there building your own blogs and stuff and you're building out a blog like me, learn to monetize your site. It's not much, but it's fun to watch the traffic of your site make a couple bucks here and there.
When I started, I had no clue the "power" behind building a blog.
You know, you always hear of people making money online, but I had no clue how much or HOW people did it.
You almost feel stupid when you find out but it's pretty awesome once you know how to do it and it makes it even more fun to blog!
Alright!!
WEll...it's time to go sleep away and get ready for a super productive tomorrow!
Have a great night my Blogger Friends!
I was super "lucky" when I built my Venice because I was able to build my home with the Morning Room included.
I'm not sure if I ended up having to pay more for other things or not during that time, but I don't feel like I lost any money.
I'm so eternally happy that I got the morning room instead of the finished basement option (because you can finish a basement on your own) for many reasons. The main one being that the morning room addition added to our square footage and I just don't see where a finished basement would even compare to that. We did finish our basement!!! (I shared some crappy photos in prior blog post)
I think once you make the decision to build a new home, or buy a new home, you just go with it. In Hindsight, there were a lot of things that I worried about while my home was being built, that I probably didn't need to worry about so much.
But, that time was a part of my homebuilding journey and it's the only way that I got here too right? Being in the home close to 4 years now, we do not regret our decision at all. Sure there are some things we wish we had more of, but for our first home build, this is a great house and in a great neighborhood.
There are a lot of people selling homes around us in this neighborhood and that has me wondering but, of the ones I know personally, they are job relocations or divorces.
I do wonder if they decided they didn't like their Ryan Home or not but the answer to that doesn't really matter because I do like my home.
Of all the homes I have ever lived in, My Venice is literally the most energy efficient. My bills are ridiculously low compared to other homes of the same or bigger size.
As a matter of a fact, my old home that I made a rental has higher bills than my new home!
Speaking of renting a home....remember when I made that decision?
For those of you out there wondering what to do with your own home, I HIGHLY recommend keeping it.
Why?
Well, for one, there is a report out there that less and less people are buying homes. Do you know what that means?
It means that you will likely have a harder time, than in the past, to sell your home.
It also means that if people are not buying homes, they are RENTING HOMES!!!!
This is great news and because of my decision to rent my old home rather than sell it, I have to do a little bit of work here and there BUT I am getting a home paid for on someone else's money.
Certainly I pay with my time in upkeep on the property and making sure my renter pays, however, I can't say enough about how awesome it is to have someone else putting down the cash to pay a mortgage on my first home.
I get to keep all that hard work I put into it and put some time in every now and then (which ..in case you didn't know doesn't cost money...time does not cost me money in this respect) and in the end, I own a home that holds it's value and even rises in value as the area around it builds up and as inflation happens.
It almost makes me want to sell my current Ryan Home, rent it out and then buy another.
I wouldn't make money on renting my Ryan Home right now though because I don't think that the renting price would match what the mortgage is.
BUT if you are thinking at all about renting out your old home, chances are pretty good that you can rent it for close to double what your monthly payments are on the mortgage.
I make about $400 a month on my old home and of course I put it back into the home for the water bill (which I pay) and the up keep and repairs/ city fees etc..
Think about when that home is paid off though!
I get even more money in my pocket.
So it looks to me that my retirement is going to be awesome!!
I could probably push it up a little too if I get that old house and this new house paid off asap.
Seriously, consider renting homes out.
If you can get some older homes that will do for renting, you might want to do it.
They pay for themselves and gain value while it's being paid for on someone else's dollar.
I don't know why more people aren't told about or encouraged to rent homes.
I have a friend who hates renting because she always has bad renters, but I was smart and did background checks and credit checks. (That doesn't always guarantee much of anything but it has helped me keep a pretty sound rental income going!)
I use landlord station to help me out with stuff in that realm. I also used a legal site and another site to help with my listing.
If I remember, I'll make sure to share it on my next post.
Speaking of posts!!!
If you are out there building your own blogs and stuff and you're building out a blog like me, learn to monetize your site. It's not much, but it's fun to watch the traffic of your site make a couple bucks here and there.
When I started, I had no clue the "power" behind building a blog.
You know, you always hear of people making money online, but I had no clue how much or HOW people did it.
You almost feel stupid when you find out but it's pretty awesome once you know how to do it and it makes it even more fun to blog!
Alright!!
WEll...it's time to go sleep away and get ready for a super productive tomorrow!
Have a great night my Blogger Friends!
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Totally Off Topic But I have to share here because I know there are other mom's out there...
So this is going to be off topic from the Ryan Homes Blog but I feel like many of you, whom built your home around the same time I did, have something in common.
Kids.
Having my second child and being my my Ryan Home was a fantastic idea.
Both of my girls have so much space and I can't emphasize enough how safe we feel with our kids playing in the yard in our neighborhood.
Everyone in our Ryan community kind of looks out for one another and we help each other out in the winter when PA decides to throw some crazy snow at us.
Some of us in the community have found that our slopped driveways maybe aren't the most ideal and others (me) have been inspired to just buy a new vehicle that just destroys any "driving in the snow" problems that might exist.
Last winter was a BEAST.
But..that' s not what I hopped on to talk about.
I want to share my pure joy and delight for the Ergo Baby Carrier.
Seriously. I didn't have this thing with baby #1 and I swear my back paid for it.
But I have it for baby #2 and I have to tell you it's the best money in baby carriers I have ever spend. Literally...it is.
I have bought almost every baby carrier there was out there. I don't know how I missed this Ergo Carrier the first time around but I"m so glad I didn't miss it the second.
Right now, I have a snuggly little baby cuddled up to me and sleeping away and when I'm done typing here, I'll be able to easily slip out of my carrier and leave her to sleep in her bed for a couple of hours.
Aside from the close cuddly contact, my absolute FAVORITE FEATURE is one of the most simple things about it.
The Ergo Carrier has a little black cloth that you can pull up and snap to your shoulder straps.
The cloth covers the babies head and makes it almost completely dark.
THIS IS AWESOME!
I'm serious.
You have no idea how much I was just struggling to get this little baby bugger to take a nap and finally in a moment of desperation, I remembered this carrier.
I tried to put her on my back first but that just didn't work. She got more calm but she wasn't going into a trance.
So I switched her to the front carry withe carrier (cause you can do both) and BAM! in less than 5 minutes she was conked out and now here I'm typing about it.
Little black nap cloth covering her head and a little bundle between me and my computer...BUT at long LAST she is sleeping.
Once I realized I'd have some time after she feel asleep my pure joy and admiration for this baby carrier had to be shared.
Plus...if I let her get a little deeper into the sleep cycle while I rock back and forth and type this blogpost while standing at the kitchen counter (which I still love btw!) then I might have a chance of having more freedom today than I planned. (Freedom in regards to more time to blog my butt away!)
So there you have it.
An "off topic" blog post about my Ergo baby carrier because it is literally one of the best investments (aside from my home of course) that I have made.
Now...if I could just lose a little more weight and look sexy with this little bundle like those skinny mamas! ....then maybe I'd share a photo.
Haha!
I hope you have a great day!
-C
ps...My horrible weight loss story is n't so horrible anymore! Boooyah!
Kids.
Having my second child and being my my Ryan Home was a fantastic idea.
Both of my girls have so much space and I can't emphasize enough how safe we feel with our kids playing in the yard in our neighborhood.
Everyone in our Ryan community kind of looks out for one another and we help each other out in the winter when PA decides to throw some crazy snow at us.
Some of us in the community have found that our slopped driveways maybe aren't the most ideal and others (me) have been inspired to just buy a new vehicle that just destroys any "driving in the snow" problems that might exist.
Last winter was a BEAST.
But..that' s not what I hopped on to talk about.
I want to share my pure joy and delight for the Ergo Baby Carrier.
Seriously. I didn't have this thing with baby #1 and I swear my back paid for it.
But I have it for baby #2 and I have to tell you it's the best money in baby carriers I have ever spend. Literally...it is.
I have bought almost every baby carrier there was out there. I don't know how I missed this Ergo Carrier the first time around but I"m so glad I didn't miss it the second.
Right now, I have a snuggly little baby cuddled up to me and sleeping away and when I'm done typing here, I'll be able to easily slip out of my carrier and leave her to sleep in her bed for a couple of hours.
Aside from the close cuddly contact, my absolute FAVORITE FEATURE is one of the most simple things about it.
The Ergo Carrier has a little black cloth that you can pull up and snap to your shoulder straps.
The cloth covers the babies head and makes it almost completely dark.
THIS IS AWESOME!
I'm serious.
You have no idea how much I was just struggling to get this little baby bugger to take a nap and finally in a moment of desperation, I remembered this carrier.
I tried to put her on my back first but that just didn't work. She got more calm but she wasn't going into a trance.
So I switched her to the front carry withe carrier (cause you can do both) and BAM! in less than 5 minutes she was conked out and now here I'm typing about it.
Little black nap cloth covering her head and a little bundle between me and my computer...BUT at long LAST she is sleeping.
Once I realized I'd have some time after she feel asleep my pure joy and admiration for this baby carrier had to be shared.
Plus...if I let her get a little deeper into the sleep cycle while I rock back and forth and type this blogpost while standing at the kitchen counter (which I still love btw!) then I might have a chance of having more freedom today than I planned. (Freedom in regards to more time to blog my butt away!)
So there you have it.
An "off topic" blog post about my Ergo baby carrier because it is literally one of the best investments (aside from my home of course) that I have made.
Now...if I could just lose a little more weight and look sexy with this little bundle like those skinny mamas! ....then maybe I'd share a photo.
Haha!
I hope you have a great day!
-C
ps...My horrible weight loss story is n't so horrible anymore! Boooyah!
Monday, July 13, 2015
It's Hard. Or is it? Look at all I've done...even if the photos kind of stink!
Ok. I love taking photos and I know that I promised I would shoe some update photos since it's been a while.
While they are not the absolute best photos on Earth..they are still pretty cool so you can see some of the neat stuff that we've added to the house. :)
The biggest thing we want to do next is to add a deck (yeah I know...we still don't have one) but it's crazy to find a reliable and good deck builder in these parts!
So anyways...here I am just chilling in my house and I forgot to tell you guys that we finished the basement! (real nice photos to come of course)
It took just under a year because we did all the work ourselves, but now we have the coolest storage closet, a built in "library" of sorts, a full bath in the basement and a family room that still needs some tender loving decoration and care.
I can't decide what to do paint wise and I still need to get to a point where I can keep up with my kids and their toys but I think the house is looking pretty good! I'll share more photos of that too!
Silly me. Today I didn't have the right camera lens on so please forgive the "strange" photos. I figured something is better than nothing!
Here you go!
While they are not the absolute best photos on Earth..they are still pretty cool so you can see some of the neat stuff that we've added to the house. :)
The biggest thing we want to do next is to add a deck (yeah I know...we still don't have one) but it's crazy to find a reliable and good deck builder in these parts!
So anyways...here I am just chilling in my house and I forgot to tell you guys that we finished the basement! (real nice photos to come of course)
It took just under a year because we did all the work ourselves, but now we have the coolest storage closet, a built in "library" of sorts, a full bath in the basement and a family room that still needs some tender loving decoration and care.
I can't decide what to do paint wise and I still need to get to a point where I can keep up with my kids and their toys but I think the house is looking pretty good! I'll share more photos of that too!
Silly me. Today I didn't have the right camera lens on so please forgive the "strange" photos. I figured something is better than nothing!
Here you go!
So this is the what I did in the morning room. I have no idea what to say about it other than sometimes I feel like it looks like a grandmother did it and other times I just love it and that's all that really counts.
Here's one of our living room:
Clearly I have an obsession with trees...and my daughter loves Spongebob.
Here you can see we are run by small minions. (aka two children who are spoiled to death). I spent a fair amount of time picking out this two paint colors and figuring out exactly what to do on this wall.
I don't mind a plainly painted wall but I couldn't stand the only thing on this wall being a television as the accent so I stepped outside of my lazy comfort zone and spent several hours making this wall look super duper. I love this wall and it's my favorite by far in our Venice.
I plan on doing something similar on the same wall that goes up the stairs but I'm no 100% committed to the idea yet. The baby stuff will eventually be gone and I'll be able to show you some photos of what I envision (not with baby toys all over the place). The book shelf thing on the right will be gone to as eventually we will run wires to have the dvd player downstairs or it will be on a shelf that compliments the tree design. That's my challenge right now. I know what I want but I have to find a way to balance it into the design.
Once again, I apologize for the weird angles and such. I didn't have my wide lens on the camera so it is what it is! :)
I love the white against the neutral background. It took a while to do, but I just absolutely love this wall. Really, I've painted a lot of walls through the years and this one tops all of them!
Here's the basement...(part of it).
This is the room in the basement that is towards the street in the Venice. These build in book shelves were made right against the stairwell and I'm standing in the basement bathroom to take the photo.
Check out some of the bathroom:
This is the downstairs basement bathroom that use to be a rough in! Yay! No more concrete walls! :) So...we saved a ton by doing it ourselves but it sure seems to have taken forever! I'll make sure to take better photos once I get my wide lens out.
And last but not least, here's a shameless plug for this wonderful woman named Sheri that I met. She makes these AWESOME Minion Gourmet Treats for kiddie parties and all sorts of things. So if you love Minions (come on...I know you do!) and you or someone you know is thinking about having a minions themed party and is looking for minions party ideas, please share her information! I know you won't be disappointed! Here's a link to her site where you can order the minions or any other gourmet treats! She totally customizes things so it's so exciting for me to share her little world with you guys! I know I'm going to be buying a Corporate Holiday Gift Tray or something like that for the holidays because these are seriousely good gourmet goodies! (I order the marshmallow/pretzel treats for kiddie parties but I get the gourmet chocolate/caramel choices (see her site) for the more adult based stuff).
Anyways!
I hope you like them if you order them! You'd be crazy not to!
Tell her you found her through me too! I would love her to know that I'm spreading the word and trying to get her little minion creations out there! (She doesn't get the whole minion thing...but I do!)
:)
Have a great day! See you next time!
Monday, June 29, 2015
Beachbody Coach? Pay for my home with extra money on the internet? Is it possible?
So, after two kids I'm wondering if I should become a beachbody coach (well really..it's not if I should become one...I did it) So I'm just starting out with that.
It should be interesting. I'm already making extra money online but I want to lose weight too and why not make money doing it right?
It's funny how much motivation you have to make a living from home when you learn there is a way using the internet.
I'm really excited to workout with beachbody and the Shakeology shakes have actually been kind of good for me. I drink them with coffee each morning and I work on my little (soon to be big) business and off I go!
If you think you might actually be interested in doing the beachbody with me ( I have 30 lbs to lose) then make sure you let me know because I would love to know if you were one of my blogger friends!
So...you're probably dying to see my kids since I've moved in.
Remember that baby from all the Ryan Homes Venice Build Photos earlier in this blog?
Check here out now:
It should be interesting. I'm already making extra money online but I want to lose weight too and why not make money doing it right?
It's funny how much motivation you have to make a living from home when you learn there is a way using the internet.
If you think you would like to try BeachBody out too, you can join me for the next beach body challenge here: http://www.beachbodycoach.com/beachbodypittsburgh
I'm really excited to workout with beachbody and the Shakeology shakes have actually been kind of good for me. I drink them with coffee each morning and I work on my little (soon to be big) business and off I go!
If you think you might actually be interested in doing the beachbody with me ( I have 30 lbs to lose) then make sure you let me know because I would love to know if you were one of my blogger friends!
So...you're probably dying to see my kids since I've moved in.
Remember that baby from all the Ryan Homes Venice Build Photos earlier in this blog?
Check here out now:
This is that little baby from when we were first building our Ryan Home near Pittsburgh! Can you believe it? |
Here she is last Fall. |
This is the new little baby. She looks almost like that last one huh? She's a stinker and we are so glad we built our Ryan Home Venice because now both of our girls have a fantastic home and neighborhood to live in! SO I really want to make sure that I get back into shape for these two cutie pies! I'm using the beachbody traning because I was able to lost over 20 lbs in the past before I had kids and now I'm not much a beachbody success story....BUT I just heard about a the new beachbody cize so I'm really excited about that because my oldest girl LOVES to dance so I'm hoping we can all do that together. Have you gals that have had kids (or guys too I guess!) noticed that once you have kids it just seems so much harder to find time to workout and lose weight? I hate it. It makes me crazy but it's totally my fault. I haven't not tried the p90x from beach body but I hear it's really good. The last time I lost wait it was with beachbody insanity but that is a really high impact exercise but the slim in 6 is a little too slow for me. So I recently started the 21 day fix and I loved the little containers but then I got busy. So now I'm trying the Focus T25. I have no idea what to expect. I'm just hoping to find SOMETHING. ANYTHING that will keep my interest long enough because honestly....I use to be a fitness coach and an endurance athlete. How can I let myself be out of shape? I can't. I just can't. Not any more. It's time to make a change and I'm hoping BeacbBody can help me out this second time around! Of course now I owe you guys photos of our house. Don't worry. I'll make sure to do it soon. I've been so busy building out my other site that I forget what time of day or what day of the week it is sometimes! Life is good! |
Friday, June 26, 2015
Blogging and Enjoying My Ryan Home in PIttsburgh
One of the strangest things to me is the fact that so many people pop by and check out this blog.
I really have no idea why people like to listen to me blab about my house, but that's cool! I understand. I spent hours and hours and days and nights and more days and night (well..you get the idea) watching my house being built and worrying to death if everything would turn out all right.
Well..I'm here to tell you it does.
Maybe you won't have the same journey though. I'm very fortunate that I still have a husband and two beautiful babies here in my new (err...now almost new) Ryan Home.
Not everyone is so fortunate and I have to be aware of that and attentive to it so that I understand people overall a little better and tread lightly when pain enters their hearts or anger exits their mouths.
One of my neighbors built a house here in our Ryan home development and they got "the works". A nice deck with stairs, granite counter tops, fireplace...etc.etc.. I remember thinking once that I would love to have what they had.....but then forward 2 or 3 years.
About a month ago, we were walking in our little neighborhood and this guy was moving all of his furniture out to another neighbor's home and selling every last thing he had in his perfect Ryan Home (A Venice just like mine). He was a bit tipsy so we got the whole story...and it's such a sad one.
To make a long story short...His wife left. To make it super sad.....She took the boy. To make it righteous....He did something bad.
So...it all turned out like it should, however, that's not a happy Ryan Home anymore. I just hope that the next family that moves into it is able to fix it and make it "smile" again.
The energy that it must have had to go through while fights and battles over things that don't matter were going on must be exhausting.
I'm so glad that the majority of my childhood was filled with turmoil so in a sense it is out of my life. Kind of like I've paid my dues I guess.
So...unlike those neighbors, I have thoroughly enjoyed my Ryan Home Venice and I'm totally happy that we spend (borrowed) the money to be here. Our daughters love this place and home ownership (although challenging to keep up with at times) is well worth it in the long run.
We are proud of what we do and we have something to work for every day of our lives and with my new adventure in Job Killing (more about that later), we are really making a great life story here!
I have painted the morning room, the living room and put decals in one of the bathrooms. I have learned that I really really REALLY like trees. (Perhaps it's a little influence by my husband's deceased mother) Trees. Paisly and swirly things. I don't know what it is...I just love them!
Alrighty! Gotta run. I'll be sure to post some photos of the painted morning room and stuff in the future!
BEsT LOVE to you!
I really have no idea why people like to listen to me blab about my house, but that's cool! I understand. I spent hours and hours and days and nights and more days and night (well..you get the idea) watching my house being built and worrying to death if everything would turn out all right.
Well..I'm here to tell you it does.
Maybe you won't have the same journey though. I'm very fortunate that I still have a husband and two beautiful babies here in my new (err...now almost new) Ryan Home.
Not everyone is so fortunate and I have to be aware of that and attentive to it so that I understand people overall a little better and tread lightly when pain enters their hearts or anger exits their mouths.
One of my neighbors built a house here in our Ryan home development and they got "the works". A nice deck with stairs, granite counter tops, fireplace...etc.etc.. I remember thinking once that I would love to have what they had.....but then forward 2 or 3 years.
About a month ago, we were walking in our little neighborhood and this guy was moving all of his furniture out to another neighbor's home and selling every last thing he had in his perfect Ryan Home (A Venice just like mine). He was a bit tipsy so we got the whole story...and it's such a sad one.
To make a long story short...His wife left. To make it super sad.....She took the boy. To make it righteous....He did something bad.
So...it all turned out like it should, however, that's not a happy Ryan Home anymore. I just hope that the next family that moves into it is able to fix it and make it "smile" again.
The energy that it must have had to go through while fights and battles over things that don't matter were going on must be exhausting.
I'm so glad that the majority of my childhood was filled with turmoil so in a sense it is out of my life. Kind of like I've paid my dues I guess.
So...unlike those neighbors, I have thoroughly enjoyed my Ryan Home Venice and I'm totally happy that we spend (borrowed) the money to be here. Our daughters love this place and home ownership (although challenging to keep up with at times) is well worth it in the long run.
We are proud of what we do and we have something to work for every day of our lives and with my new adventure in Job Killing (more about that later), we are really making a great life story here!
I have painted the morning room, the living room and put decals in one of the bathrooms. I have learned that I really really REALLY like trees. (Perhaps it's a little influence by my husband's deceased mother) Trees. Paisly and swirly things. I don't know what it is...I just love them!
Alrighty! Gotta run. I'll be sure to post some photos of the painted morning room and stuff in the future!
BEsT LOVE to you!
Saturday, March 21, 2015
I've made money at home and finished my basement in the Venice!
Well...my quest to find a work at home job has really been super successful. Just the other morning I work up to $900 I wasn't expecting in my paypal bank and I thought...Man!
I finally found it. I found the work at home gig that I was looking for. Each day since I've been taking the courses in this program have proven to be invaluable. I will NEVER regret the money I've spent or the time I've put into this because it is seriously the real deal. I'm so glad I wasn't afraid to jump in and give it a try...and even better than that, I'm really glad I ditched the whole Ipas2 thing and trusted these guys with their new courses.
If you are at all interested in learning how to build your own business online and help your local businesses at the same time, message me or something and I'll be sure to give you a little more information. I never thought I'd be someone writing a post like this and I totally know how skeptical some of you may be reading it..but if you have followed my blog at all, you know that I don't ever just type crap and make stuff up. This is a real opportunity and I'm so blessed to have found it. Here is an interview they did of me: http://www.marikinavalley.com
If you decide this is something you might like to try, make sure you go through me because I may be able to help you get a discount or a scholarship (depending on a phone interview) to join. I was on a scholarship and I'm so glad I was. I am forever grateful to this program and I can't wait to pay off my Ryan Home and spend more time in it! :) Here is an example of what I've done and something that is currently paying me while sitting on the couch or walking the dog really! www.marikinavalley.com I can post anywhere!
Cool huh? I have some cool stuff I have to share...like the tree sillouettes I painted on the wall (the one w/ the fireplace) and the downstairs! We finished the basement and it makes such a HUGE difference! WE got our carpet from Home Depot on the roll (I really researched this and was going to go with a family owned carpet company but I couldn't get the same great quality of the home depot carpet without spending $1500 more .....I'm so glad I decided on the "cheap" stuff because honestly it is REALLY nice. We did buy the best pad we could and it really really is awesome now. We actually go down there now and just sit on the floor. We have one chair but the floor is more comfortable! I suppose I should make a house review soon since that's what this blog is about huh? Well, I hope you all are enjoying your homes and living the dream! I definitely am and I'm so excited for what the future holds! TTL!
I finally found it. I found the work at home gig that I was looking for. Each day since I've been taking the courses in this program have proven to be invaluable. I will NEVER regret the money I've spent or the time I've put into this because it is seriously the real deal. I'm so glad I wasn't afraid to jump in and give it a try...and even better than that, I'm really glad I ditched the whole Ipas2 thing and trusted these guys with their new courses.
If you are at all interested in learning how to build your own business online and help your local businesses at the same time, message me or something and I'll be sure to give you a little more information. I never thought I'd be someone writing a post like this and I totally know how skeptical some of you may be reading it..but if you have followed my blog at all, you know that I don't ever just type crap and make stuff up. This is a real opportunity and I'm so blessed to have found it. Here is an interview they did of me: http://www.marikinavalley.com
If you decide this is something you might like to try, make sure you go through me because I may be able to help you get a discount or a scholarship (depending on a phone interview) to join. I was on a scholarship and I'm so glad I was. I am forever grateful to this program and I can't wait to pay off my Ryan Home and spend more time in it! :) Here is an example of what I've done and something that is currently paying me while sitting on the couch or walking the dog really! www.marikinavalley.com I can post anywhere!
Cool huh? I have some cool stuff I have to share...like the tree sillouettes I painted on the wall (the one w/ the fireplace) and the downstairs! We finished the basement and it makes such a HUGE difference! WE got our carpet from Home Depot on the roll (I really researched this and was going to go with a family owned carpet company but I couldn't get the same great quality of the home depot carpet without spending $1500 more .....I'm so glad I decided on the "cheap" stuff because honestly it is REALLY nice. We did buy the best pad we could and it really really is awesome now. We actually go down there now and just sit on the floor. We have one chair but the floor is more comfortable! I suppose I should make a house review soon since that's what this blog is about huh? Well, I hope you all are enjoying your homes and living the dream! I definitely am and I'm so excited for what the future holds! TTL!
Friday, January 16, 2015
A New Journey and on my way to pay for my Ryan Home!
Well, I know I've been gone for awhile! But I'm back and boy am I so excited!
I have had a lot happen in the past year. I have even found a way to work from home so I can enjoy my home even more!
Here's what I've been up to: 1. Giving birth to my second daughter!
2. Getting Assaulted by a student. (not good but it drove me to do something different!)
3. Finding an awesome work at home opportunity. After really long day in teaching, I went home and cried. A student had assaulted me. A student changed my world in a way I never thought would have ever happened in teaching. It was one of those things that makes you want to leave teaching and find another career.
As a matter of a fact, I spent WEEKS watching the job boards desperately trying to find a work at home job or any job for that matter. I did not want to leave my house and I just wanted to find a way to make money and support my family that was flexible and with a lot less stress! For the first time in my life, I was plagued by anxiety.
Everywhere I went, I would feel anxious.
Something about that day changed my life forever.
I have had a lot of trails in my life, so I knew deep down somehow that I would get through it.
You know what? I did!
I am now on my way to a better future than I could possibly ever imagine.
I am in a position to make money from home and work hard at helping others recover from the ailments that life throws at you. No more feeling alone. No more being tired all the time! More time with my family and an internal happiness that I haven't felt in a while.
I LOVE working now!
I love the people I work with and I love the fact that I get to enjoy my Ryan Home while doing it! This house and this new job is by far the best decision I have ever made in life. The bad thing that happened was just something to drive me into a better life and I am so thankful for it!
If you are in a place where you are looking for a new direction, please visit:....Ask me about it!
I have found a different venture than what I originally posted and am making some great progress. I will definitely blog about it once I get thing up and running. No MLM or quick cash...it's a real business and I'm excited about it.
I don't have time to type because I gotta get back on and get through my courses! I will share soon!
I have had a lot happen in the past year. I have even found a way to work from home so I can enjoy my home even more!
Here's what I've been up to: 1. Giving birth to my second daughter!
2. Getting Assaulted by a student. (not good but it drove me to do something different!)
3. Finding an awesome work at home opportunity. After really long day in teaching, I went home and cried. A student had assaulted me. A student changed my world in a way I never thought would have ever happened in teaching. It was one of those things that makes you want to leave teaching and find another career.
As a matter of a fact, I spent WEEKS watching the job boards desperately trying to find a work at home job or any job for that matter. I did not want to leave my house and I just wanted to find a way to make money and support my family that was flexible and with a lot less stress! For the first time in my life, I was plagued by anxiety.
Everywhere I went, I would feel anxious.
Something about that day changed my life forever.
I have had a lot of trails in my life, so I knew deep down somehow that I would get through it.
You know what? I did!
I am now on my way to a better future than I could possibly ever imagine.
I am in a position to make money from home and work hard at helping others recover from the ailments that life throws at you. No more feeling alone. No more being tired all the time! More time with my family and an internal happiness that I haven't felt in a while.
I LOVE working now!
I love the people I work with and I love the fact that I get to enjoy my Ryan Home while doing it! This house and this new job is by far the best decision I have ever made in life. The bad thing that happened was just something to drive me into a better life and I am so thankful for it!
If you are in a place where you are looking for a new direction, please visit:....Ask me about it!
I have found a different venture than what I originally posted and am making some great progress. I will definitely blog about it once I get thing up and running. No MLM or quick cash...it's a real business and I'm excited about it.
I don't have time to type because I gotta get back on and get through my courses! I will share soon!
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