Appliances

We knew when we put an offer on the house that we would need to purchase a washer and dryer. I was really excited about this, as most of the ones I've used are either older than I am or extremely overused. After tons of research (and the help of the Energy Star rebates and sales) we picked some out! We went with the Whirlpool Cabrio set - the washer is a top loader HE with a low agitator. The dryer... is just awesome. =0)

We originally scheduled a delivery date in mid June, as this was our closing date. The sellers wanted to move up closing by two weeks, and we agreed. N called and changed our delivery date... or so we thought. We realized on the day that they were to be delivered that we hadn't heard from the company. N started calling around, and found out that not only was the date not changed, but that the washer and dryer hadn't arrived from the warehouse yet! The store was pretty backed up from the rebate, and we nor the sales guy anticipated this.

After two long weeks - we finally have them =0)They are so pretty and awesome.

We did not know, however, that the fridge would need to be replaced sooner rather than later. We knew it was an older model and on the small side, but figured (and hoped) that we could get a year or two out of it. We've quickly learned that its REALLY small and is rusting through on the underside of the fridge compartment.

(That's marinating meat, not a science project)

The offending rust spots, after Dad filled the holes with caulk. Its better than the water pouring out, but it does still leak

Due to wall placement a larger traditional fridge is not an option. This leaves us with french door or a side by side. I am NOT a fan of side by sides, but N finds the additional price for the french door style to be a bit much. We're still hashing it out for now and trying to deal for at least a few more months, but this is the one that I like and will fit. =0)

In a white finish, the white in the pic doesn't show up as well. Its a 22.2 cubic ft GE Profile.

Hot Hot Hot!!

Our original plan this weekend wasn't to work in the yard, but thanks to our dog Peanut and his Houdini antics, our plans changed.
This is Peanut: And this was the problem: The yard slopes here, and the previous owners used a mesh screen to keep their larger dog from digging out. However our 20lb dog could squeeze under the mesh. N decided a patio/walkway would be the best solution so that the gate could still open but not wash out from the front yard drainage.

After 1+ hours in Home Depot finding blocks that go together and a pattern that gave us the right size, we had our plan.
Stringing out the form:Laying the pavers:All done! The plan is to extend it as a walkway in the backyard to the deck, but we're going to hold off until it's a bit cooler out. =0)

My job was to work on the mess in the front planting bed...but after battling 1000's of baby spiders I unearthed and trying to keep N from overheating not much progress was made. We also worked on cleaning out/cleaning up the old house. I will be so glad when we can stop going back and forth!

Our First Home!

On 5/28. N and I purchased our first home just outside of Raleigh, NC. Its a 1600sq 3bed/2bath with a 2 car garage. Moving day was on 5/29, and for the most part was uneventful. We did discover that it would be ~2 weeks until we got our washer and dryer. Luckily we still have access to the old townhouse and can do laundry.

We were so excited about having our own place and wanting to make our "mark" on it. So... we decided to paint the master closet the first night. =0) It looked like it had never been painted and was scratched up and damaged. The previous owners left a can of paint in there that matched the master bedroom. Considering N free-handed around the trim, I'd say that we did a pretty good job.
It took only 24 hours of owning the house before we had a laundry list of both supplies we would need and things we wanted to upgrade or fix. We've quickly learned that Home Depot will become our new favorite store. We started out at Lowes, but in our area the HD has a better selection, better help, and in most cases better prices.
Most of the first weekend was spent moving in and getting situated. My parents were gracious enough to get us a lawn mower as a housewarming present. N was really excited to try it out. For now he's loving the idea of yard work - we'll see how long it lasts.
N also purchased and installed our over-the-range microwave. The place we were renting had one, so we no longer owned a microwave. And with limited counter space in the kitchen we decided to put one in instead of clogging up space. N doing the installation is a fairly big deal - as we are both just learning how to be handy and fix things ourselves. There were a few times I thought he was going to drop the microwave, and I definitely heard a few "uh-ohs" in the process. When I found out that he was going to have to add an electrical outlet in the cabinets over the stove, I was fairly nervous. He admitted he wasn't sure what he was doing, but we'd "see what happens". With the help of Google I can say that all was successful, and we saved the ridiculous installation fee of $140.

Blurry,messy before pic:
Completed!

All in all a good first week, even if it was insanely busy.