Self-cleaning toddlers

Well, LittleBit surprised me yesterday. After a couple months of very laid-back "do you want to sit on the potty chair?" (we haven't pushed, because she's had constipation issues for so long, and hasn't seemed interested).......

Yesterday morning, when she woke up, she told me "no more diapers, I want panties". So I put her in panties, thanking the powers that be for hardwood floors, since she would surely be soiling them any minute.

She has been using the potty and staying dry ever since. Yep, LittleBit potty-trained herself. All on her own. Not too shabby. Her sister was trained at 2 1/2 as well, but it had been after several months of trying.

Can it really be this simple???

I LOVE MY BATHTUB - and I haven't even used it yet!

I can't wait to use my bathtub. I ordered it Friday. It will take about 4 weeks to make it, and then I have to wait until my house is built, to actually use it, LOL. The company that makes it will hold it for up to 6 months, before shipping. My house should be done by the beginning of August, and my builder has promised me two-weeks lead-time, to notify the tub company (to ship it to his plumber for installation).

This is not just any tub. I have ordered a Sanijet. If you've stayed in luxury hotels, like the Mandarin Oriental, Ritz Carlton, and various others, you may already know about Sanijet. They are the ONLY PIPELESS whirlpool baths on the market. Why pipeless? Well, if you are a germ freak, like me, you already know that most whirlpool baths (water, or airjet, it's the same issue) CANNOT ever be totally clean. Mold grows in those pipes. Even if you clean them all the time. even if you run bleach through them.

Having been a germ freak forever, I have never enjoyed jacuzzis, whirlpool baths, etc. And I am very tall (and not too skinny anymore), so I don't enjoy your average tub/shower combo. My sweet hubby was surprised to learn I would actually LOVE to take baths - if only there was a bathtub that could be kept clean (and still have the jets, so I could use it for arthritis therapy).

My sister V told me about Sanijet. She is doing a house remodel, and hoping to put one in the new bathroom. I was skeptical, until I visited their site, and saw their Pipeless technology in action. Be sure to watch the videos. They are priceless.

So sweet wonderful Hubby of mine, told me I could order whatever I wanted. He specifically said NOT to get the cheapest (but please not the most expensive, either), because he wanted it to really be a bath I would love. He wants me to sleep at night (which is hard, when your legs hurt so badly), and to have the bath be my Oasis - my break from the stresses of the world, noise of children, etc. Plus, he knows that a long hot soak before bed is the best thing for arthritis pain relief.

Hubby is a WISE MAN. He knows a Happy Mommy makes a Happy Home. He spoils me a little rotten. I had to make him SWEAR he will tell me "NO" when I start asking for new furniture, for our beautiful new house!

His reply? "No".

We have a CONTRACT

We signed a contract a couple weeks ago. Those "similar floor plans" I mentioned earlier? Well, I decided to contact the builder, just for grins, to see what a new build would cost. I wanted to have some negotiating room, if I ended up putting an offer on one of those houses.

Turns out, the cost to build is less than these sellers are asking for a resale! We took the stock plan, and customized it: bigger kitchen, large covered patio, larger garage, third bathroom on the main floor, separate laundry room (instead of the washer and dryer in a hall closet - the large laundry closet is now an over-sized coat closet), and slightly larger master bath, to accommodate a special-order tub I want (More in another post).

So we found a lot (These are not building tracts - you have to find a lot somewhere, then hire a builder to put a house on it. Suits us fine - then we aren't living in cookie-cutter land!), and signed a contract with the builder. He negotiated the lot price, for what we were willing to pay for it, and added it as a line item to our house contract (with no markup on land). We cut out a few things we could do later (namely solid-surface counter tops), in favor of keeping things we want NOW (you can't change the size of a kitchen after it's built, unless you REALLY like throwing money away).

We're so excited! 2400 square feet, all on one level. 4bed/3ba/4car garage. On a full acre. And still less than what the re-sale house would have cost.

The best part? We have not had to compromise ANYTHING on our "needs" list. It has seperate living and family rooms, etc....

Our builder closed on the lot last week, and is ready to break ground! I'll be down there in a couple of weeks, to register MiniMe for school. I promise to take pictures of the progress!

So, we're hosting Thanksgiving this year. And you're all invited.

Walked away from the house

Well, we started having some concerns, after putting in the offer. Info that made us rethink it, and want to keep looking.

Luckily, they countered so high, we wouldn't have agreed anyway. Pretty house, but we really want separate living and family. And the grout lines of the white tiles everywhere would be a pain to clean!!! I'd forgotten about my nanny days I had to bleach those white tile counters daily, to keep the grout from staining!!

So we're back to square one. Several houses we are going to look at. 3 with the identical floor plan (one of which we've already walked through). Priced all over the place. But one is a foreclosure, so maybe we can get a deal??? (Also happens to be the largest of the three).

Time is on our side. We are in no hurry, and want to be sure we'll be really REALLY happy with this purchase!

I'm gonna be sick!!

We are putting in our offer on a house tonight!!!

It is just right for us. Some minor compromises (I wanted a separate family and living, but will make due with a great room again, because the floor plan works SOOOOO well!!). It's big enough to work for now, and for 10 years at least into the future. It is BREATHTAKINGLY beautiful, and it is on the lower end of our price range, without being in any way a fixer upper. On just over an acre, the only thing we will do (and not right away), is fence in a larger part of the yard, and do some low-maintenance, kid friendly landscaping in the back. It's even decorated the way I want it!!

So keep you fingers crossed (and toes, and eyes, if you can) that all goes well!!!!!!

We're not mentioning it to our families, by the way. We are doing this completely on our own, and want to just invite them over for dinner, when we move (target close date means we'll move at the first of June).

I think I'm in LOVE

with my new Realtor, that is.

In just the last few days, he has given me not only the list of 11 houses that fit my criteria, but a few more that are new listings. He has listened to EVERY WORD I have said, even the ones I didn't think I was saying. For example, I mentioned the reason I am looking for a ranch, with 4 beds and laundry on main level, is because I have VERY bad knees, and cannot, CANNOT do stairs, or I will have trouble walking for several days after.

So what does Casey the Magnificent do? He LISTENS, and finds me listings that I want to see, but is sure to exclude RAISED ranches, because he knows I will have to walk up too many steps to get in my house every day.

THAT is the way a Realtor is SUPPOSED to behave!!

Ahhhh......... dh keeps teasing me that I'm in love with another man, whom I haven't even MET. LOL.

The joys of househunting

With an impending move, we thought we'd start house hunting. Should be easy, right? We have a referral for a realtor in the area we are moving to, several conversations back and forth, trying to get her to understand what we're looking for.

She doesn't listen. She sends me listings that are NOT what I asked for. Back and forth several times, then I had my agent here (who refered me to the one down there) talk to her, and set her straight. I put up with strange things, tried to give her chance after chance.

She then appeared to do what I asked, get the listings I asked for, etc. But told me there was ONLY ONE house for sale with my criteria. ONE HOUSE. So I lowered the size requirement. Still only one. So I asked for fewer bedrooms, and she came up with three more. Well, actually *I* came up with one of them. And the ONE she said was available in the higher bedrooms, which I'd also come up with. Out of 4 houses she showed us, I came up with 2 of them.

Wow, what a strange market it is, to not have what we are looking for.

The same nagging feeling that I've had every time I speak with her, was telling me she wasn't being honest. So I called a random Realtor, and asked him to pull all the 4 bed and laundry (all on the same level) in the area.

He came up with 11. In 5 minutes they were emailed to me. 11 houses I would love to go see. One was "the only one", but that still left 10. And that "ONE" is listed by a friend of hers.

That realtor has been fired.

When you LIE to me? It's over, we're done.