Snowed (Iced) In

Don't get me wrong, I like snow, but geez, 15 inches in December! KC weather has gone crazy and this morning I had the lovely experience of finding out that my garage door was frozen shut. The real kicker is that the temperature is expected to drop even lower over the next few days. Hopefully de-icer or a hairdryer will do the trick.

A white Christmas came and went. You know you're a homeowner when many of your Christmas gifts are for your house, not yourself. "I could have gotten shoes." Really want some Hunter Boots! I received some great gifts - my most exciting being a new TV. Out with the Tube
TV and in with the Samsung flat screen. The picture is so much clearer and the TV takes up less space - much better.

Other home accessories included a rubber mat for putting hot dishes/pots on (another reminder of how little I cook), a light switch pull (exciting, I know) and a Wuesthof knife. My mom thought I needed a new knife after realizing I still had college knives that were worthless. This knife is supposed to be good and my mom swears by them!

Oh Christmas Tree, oh Christmas tree...

My first Christmas in the new house has arrived. Lights up outside (check), Christmas tree up - but not decorated (check), decor around the house (check).

I bought my first Christmas tree at a Boy Scout lot at a church up the street. Geez, no one told me how expensive they were! Of course, I did get a Fraser Fir, which apparently is pricier than others. It's the perfect size and I can't wait to decorate it. My mom was more than happy to have me take the boxes of ornaments and Santa figures I have collected over the years from their house.

I wrapped white lights around my posts on my porch, but after careful review, have decided to remove them because I didn't think they looked sophisticated enough. But, now that I think about it 90 percent of houses with lights look tacky - who am I to worry about this? I think I'll stick to just lights on the bushes this year - that's nice and simple.

I recently bought a scented Trapp holiday candle, which I'm excited to burn and my sister bought a Ralph Lauren holiday candle that smells amazing. I love, love, love the smell of holiday candles! Come to think of it, I haven't burned a candle in my house. I think I better replace the batteries in my smoke detectors first :)
It's finally feeling like Christmas and the weather is getting cold - I can't wait to see my heating bill next month...

Voila!

I have to give credit to my sister, Courtney. She not only helped me put those massive rugs down, but she helped me accessorize my home. I thought I was a master at accessorizing. You know, with purses, jewelry and shoes. Apparently accessorizing a home isn't as easy.

Courtney manages a fabulous shop in Fairway, Kan. called Sharyn Blond linens. They have fantastic decor and tabletop accessories for the home. Sharyn, herself, was so generous to give me linen cocktail napkins as a housewarming gift.

Before I knew it Courtney was in my house stacking books and displaying things in a way I didn't even know possible! She took a basic rattan divider basket (which I planned to use in my office for post-its and such) and made it in to kitchen caddy, holding my EVOO, salt and pepper and my cocktail napkins. (photos below) Genius!

Then, she went to my office again, grabbed a stack of books and put a candle on top. Genius again! I will, however, have to replace the books she grabbed with more intellectual reads. Right now Emily Post's Etiquette book is joined by a 'beach read' and a book about shopping. Doesn't quite 

peg me as the most sophisticated homeowner. 

I think I'll get some design books so it looks like I actually know what I'm doing :) She made it look so easy, but she is surrounded by accessories all day and knows what looks good. Below is an arrangement at her house and a photo of Sharyn Blond Linens, where she works. 

Injury #1

Yes, I finally did it. Those who know me well, know I'm clumsy, so it was only a matter of time before I injured myself at the new house. I played the moments in my head and expected to do it either:

1. Falling down my basement stairs with a laundry basket full of clothes
2. Getting shocked by one of my extremely outdated outlets
3. Dropping something really heavy on my foot (ie: TV, hammer and really any household item)

Nope, not even close.

My 'leaf decor' in my front yard got to be too much, so I decided to rake. Plus, I didn't want to be "that neighbor" that let the leaves pile up and blow into other yards. It was getting late on Sunday and I decided to rake as fast as I could. I got a really great start and thought I was doing well. I made decent sized piles in my yard in a short amount of time.

And here comes the bomb – I kneeled down and reached out to scoop up the leaves to put in the bags and OUCH!!! I pulled what I think was two different areas in my lower back. Seriously, I'm only 28 years old, how could this happen? So, like an elderly person, I stood up in pain and slowly hobbled back into the house. And, what really bothered me was that I had  three big leaf piles I had to leave in my yard. So, Monday rolls around and my back was killing me. It hurt when I was sitting or bending in any way. Needless to say, I was a little embarrassed when I called my boss to tell him I wasn't coming in because I pulled something in my back...raking.

Clearly, I need to stretch before doing my next round of strenuous raking. I really wish I had read this http://www.ehow.com/how_2056989_stretch-before-raking-leaves.html before raking...

Let's make a deal

Side Note
First off, for those of you following this who have not purchased a home, you're in luck! CNN announced today that the Senate reached a tentative deal to extend the $8,000 first time homebuyer tax credit. And, it gets better for you current homeowners - they're considering offering $6,500 to those who purchase a home by April 2010.

Onto today's topic: Rugs...
Minus the bathrooms, my entire house has hardwood floors. They're everywhere: living room, kitchen, dining room and all three bedrooms. I briefly considered carpeting the bedrooms, but decided against it. I'm not quite sure why I went the all hardwood direction. Probably because my last two apartments were covered in wall-to-wall nasty carpet and I missed the idea of hardwood floors. I never thought I would take such pride in my floors - but they're beautiful. Before moving in I had them stained a very, very dark color. Since moving in, I've learned they're a little bit more work than I anticipated. They collect dust easily (yeah for Swiffers!) and I had to put pads on every piece of furniture to avoid scratching the floors. Although, within the first few weeks I managed to scratch them by sliding boxes across the floor and made tiny indents in the floor with my high heels.

Despite the work, I love them. After moving in, I began looking for basic seagrass rugs, nothing too fancy, just neutral ones that would be a good addition and 'warm' up the dark floors a bit. Pottery Barn has some great ones, but they're a little pricey for me.

Meet Natural Area Rugs, a Web site with a wide array of fabulously economical seagrass and sisal rugs. I chose a the basketweave pattern for my living room and the herringbone for my dining room. I was pleasantly surprised when my herringbone rug came with a free 3'x5' seagrass rug, which is now in my kitchen. What a deal! They're constantly having specials and sales. Just sign up and you'll be notified when those are going on. Warning - these rugs aren't particularly soft. However, they're fine for bare feet and my dog-niece loves rubbing her tummy on her seagrass rug. They're great for the time being, get the job done for me and are a perfect addition to the hardwoods.

Also, a big, big thank you to my sis who helped me put these rugs down and arrange my furniture. The 8'x10' rugs are a beast to carry and unroll by the way.

* Photos coming soon...

Dog Duty

Weirdly, my parents are in Vegas with their friends right now and I'm here babysitting their dog and house sitting for them. It's actually been okay dog sitting and really has opened my eyes to what owning a dog might be like.

One of the perks of owning a home is having a yard and being able to get a dog. "Are you going to get a dog?" has been a common question since I bought my house. That must be the single person's version of "When are you having kids?" right after you get married.

My old apartment allowed dogs but I just couldn't bring myself to raise a dog in an apartment. You could tell some of the dogs in the building were overweight and didn't get the proper care living in an apartment. More specifically, I'm talking about one tenant who let his Westie get really fat, and poor thing, had the most matted coat I've ever seen. Not to mention one night the owner got so drunk, he forgot his dog and it some how ended up walking off the elevator by itself in the lobby. That's another story...

Gracie, my temporary dog, is about two years old, very small, and verrrry needy. She's become spoiled by having my mom around all the time. She constantly wants to be held or have her tummy rubbed all the time. Here's a photo of our afternoon nap yesterday. As you can tell, she likes to get very close :) I've found myself offering her many 'puppy treats' to keep her occupied, since I can't hold her 24 hours a day. Maybe I need one of those Baby Bjorn carriers for her. I've actually seen the dog version of it. This dog looks absolutely ridiculous: http://www.pampered-dog-gifts.com/product/WP-SS007-OH00644.



At least during these next few days I can pretend what it's like to have a dog. I'll probably wait a bit to jump into the dog ownership, considering I'm still in the process of understanding home ownership. Until then, I'll keep looking online for my perfect dog. (http://www.kansascity.com/classified-ads/Pets/classification/DOGS/) (www.petfinder.com).

Halloween

The weather is getting cold and rainy here in Kansas City and that means one thing - Halloween is right around the corner.

I have some great memories of Halloween as a kid. My sister and I would get all dressed up and we'd head over to the Sagamore area in Mission Hills. This is one of the best areas for trick-or-treating in KC. Almost every house hands out candy and the street is bustling with kids. Following a busy night on Sagamore, we'd head
home and separate our candy by grouping all the same kinds together. Oh, to be young again...

I'm actually really excited for Halloween. It will be my first year having trick-or-treaters! I went out a bought a cute little basket for candy.

I can't wait to see the little kid costumes. Some of them are so cute. Much more creative than when I was a kid. My white "Ghost" pillowcase costume with holes for eyes and arms constitutes as a pretty 'blah' costume.

My costume for this year has yet to be determined, but knowing how many little kids are in my neighborhood, I probably shouldn't pull out the "sexy" bee or pirate costume I've donned in the past. I'll keep it classy this year. Maybe one of these will be appropriate for the burbs: http://www.countryewe.com/category.cfm/117. Kidding.

I received a flier in my mailbox last month encouraging homeowners on my street to put a seasonal decoration in their front yard during the month of October. Most of the "yard art" on my street hasn't been too bad. It consists mainly of straw scarecrow-type figures.

I don't plan on putting art (crap) in my yard this year. For now, I'll consider my leaves I haven't picked up as my festive decor. In addition to my fall "leaf display" I'll probably add a few pumpkins and hang these jack 'o lanterns from my porch.

I'll post photos of my non-festive house once I put my pumpkins out. Speaking of photos, check out this disturbing lawn display...

For Sale By Owner

I had never heard of "Fizz-Bo" until my friend Hillary went into Real Estate. I think it's realtor lingo. Am I sure glad I heard about it. That's how I purchased my house. I had been casually looking online. Side Note: I find it really fun to look at houses online - especially the really tacky ones. Then I dream what I would do to renovate them if I had a million dollars. Anyway, I found my house on Zillow.com, a great Web site and one of the only ones that advertises FSBO houses. This makes it much easier than driving all around town looking for signs in yards. It worked out well because I didn't use an agent and obviously they didn't use an agent. What does that mean? Of course, no commission!

My aunt recently listed her house as FSBO (photos above!). She's really technologically saavy and made a fancy flier. You can see her Waldo house (and fancy flier) on Craigslist, http://kansascity.craigslist.org/reo/1405783054.html . She's had a few nibbles and even had a guy come to the door and ask to see it right then.

That's the freedom of FSBO - you're the agent and can show it anytime you want. I'm not knocking agents, they do a great job and have more time to invest in selling a house than the average Joe. FSBO worked out great for me as a first time buyer. And a major plus, the contract was only four pages long and so easy to understand. That was a definite perk. You want to know what you're signing off on, right? So, if you're in the market for a FSBO home, I recommend taking a look through Zillow or Craiglist. Here's hoping your For Sale By Owner experience is as simple as mine!

Neighbor Etti-cat

I have to admit, I've never been one to go out of my way to meet neighbors. Maybe it was because I was in an apartment... no, that's probably a lame excuse. Now that I have a neighborhood, I thought I should probably review good neighbor etiquette.

I scoured the internet and found some pretty obvious neighbor etiquette. You know, things like not making too much noise, keeping up my lawnwork, not speeding down the street at 90 mph. I did, however, find some "different" neighbor advice:
1. Invite your neighbor over for a leisurely cup of coffee to discuss any problems you may have, or to share good news. (Seriously? Not everyone lives on Wisteria Lane)

2. If your neighbor has a pool please don't think it's ok to invite yourself for a swim. If your neighbor wants you to come over he will certainly pick up the phone and invite you.

3. AVOID THEM AT ALL COSTS!!!! Don't become friends with them. Don't let them know what you have. Don't let them know anything about you because they're simply looking for a reason to dislike you. (I swear, this is really someone's advice)

4. Be neighborly and put up with the noise for an hour before calling the cops.

5. Move to a very remote area where you don't have to deal with them!

6. Train your cat not to go into a neighbor's home (this is my piece of etiquette)

Yep, number six happened to me last weekend. Meet my newest neighbor "Bear." Bear sauntered onto my property like he owned the place, made himself very comfortable, and wouldn't leave (check out pics of him sunbathing on my porch and walking through my plants). That certainly doesn't sound like good neighbor etiquette to me. In fact, during my attempt at gardening, he actually snuck into the house through my open front door. Thank god I noticed. That would have been soooo not cool waking up to a cat in my bed.

It really could be worse, he's not that bad. He's kind of cute actually. Just as long as he doesn't decide to mark his territory on my house, then we'd have a problem...

Craigslist isn't just for crazies

So, I've become a little obsessed with Craigslist recently. I check it daily to see what "bargains" I can get. In fact, I got my first bargain last week when I purchased a floor lamp for $10! I went to the seller's house to pick it up and much to my delight, the guy was cute. We chatted and I found out that he's moving to San Diego - bummer.

I will admit I was a little leery about Craigslist after hearing about that psycho "Craigslist Killer." My dad insisted I call him when I left the cute guy's house, so he could put out a search if he didn't hear back from me. And my mom wanted me to talk to her on my cell the whole time while I was picking up the lamp. Well, mom and dad, I survived my first Craigslist pick-up.

On that note, I'm now on the reverse side and decided to post my first item on Craiglist this morning. I'm selling this oversized "Edith Anne" chair (as my mom calls it). I posted it at 8:30 a.m. and already have three queries - Craiglist actually works!

I've gotten responses from two women and one man. I think I'll see if the women are interested - they'll take much better care of it. Plus, the man's response was a little creepy: "I saw your item placed on the CL for sale.I hope it is in good shape and still available because am really interested." (He apparently doesn't proofread)

So, my words of advice for the day:
If you're interested in furniture or other items for your home, visit Craigslist. You might find something worthwhile. Also, keep an open mind about furniture - you can always repaint or change hardware.

The beginning of it all...

I recently decided to start this record because, in the short amount of time owning a home (a little over a month), I have learned a boat load. From how to measure blinds to what kind of swiffer to buy, it's been an entertaining and enlightening learning experience.

It is my hope that other first time, young woman home buyers will get a kick out of my mistakes and maybe learn a thing or two. And of course, the title of this blog sums up my thoughts over the last few months....I could have bought shoes instead of ______ (fill in the blank). Ah, yes, the economic factor of home owning has been interesting as well :)