Tuesday, May 27, 2014

great weekend, changing some things around, and a hot, sticky mess

 Hello, friends! I hope those of you in the US had a wonderful, long holiday weekend.
It was a quiet Memorial Day weekend around here. One of my aunts visited
on Saturday for a few hours and then Tim came home on Sunday. Brian grilled
fresh bratwurst sausages from the butcher and I made potato salad. It was just the
three of us and it was perfect. Monday was hot and humid and our AC wasn't working
so we hung out in the basement family room and watched movies. Then we went out
to dinner and sat there for two hours having a great conversation. It is so cool to
be at the point in your life where you can have an adult conversation with your child
on a variety of topics. I'm so thankful we have such a close relationship.


 I moved some side tables in the house. I had a black cabinet next to this ladder
bookshelf, under the home sign. I replaced it with a lighter arrangement. Not too
sure what I think of this yet...you know me, constantly rearranging things! It might
be different later this week. Sometimes I just have to play with things and live
with it awhile to see how I like it. Other times, I know immediately if an arrangement
doesn't work.
 

I put the black cabinet next to the couch as an end table.


 And then the black spindle table that used to be the end table, got 
moved into Tim's room.


Speaking of Tim's room (that we're still updating), I found a red rug at IKEA...


 and ordered a masculine winter comforter from overstock.com. It's cotton
and very thick - great quality. But obviously too hot for the summer. So the red
and white checked thin cotton quilt will stay on the bed for the summer.


Back to moving tables around...this black table that you see in the corner of my
office was previously in front of the living room window topped with a lot of plants.



 I then moved those house plants out onto the front porch for the summer.


 So I mentioned at the beginning that it was hot and humid (my bare feet are sticking
 to the hardwood floors and even my kitchen cabinets are sticking to the frames!) 
and that our AC isn't working. We thought it was an electrical issue in the basement
 so we had an electrician come out to the house today. He did fix some loose wires in 
the basement light fixture that Brian recently put in and then we had him install a new
 outlet in Tim's room on a wall that didn't have an outlet. But the electrician said that 
our AC and furnace not working was not an electrical or circuit issue. The weird thing is,
 the furnace and AC stopped working exactly when Brian was installing that
replacement light fixture. We are crossing our fingers and praying that we don't need
 a new furnace or air conditioner - or both! But we also realize that we've been living
on borrowed time...


Both the furnace and central air conditioning unit are the original units of the house ~
25 years old! The electrician said it might be something as simple as that we need
a new thermostat - which is also original to the house. So now we have to have a 
heating and AC man come and check things out. Frustrating and nerve-wracking,
especially with having financial constrictions.


I am now heading out to my air-conditioned yoga class. Good thing I
don't practice hot yoga!

30 comments:

  1. I hope that you can work the AC/heat thing out fairly quickly. I know what you mean about moving things around, I do that too, it is nice to make a change every now and then! Glad you had a good weekend. xx

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    1. The more people we talk to, the more we think it's just the thermostat. We're going to be replacing it this weekend and see what happens!

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  2. Where did you get the red and white quilt? You know me and red and white. Hope you get it fixed soon.
    Brenda

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    Replies
    1. My mom found it at a thrift shop! The other side is colorful butterflies. I will send you a photo. :-)

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  3. I have to say that I find the whole idea of hot yoga horrifying, haha. Yikes, I don't know how they stand it. I hope it's nothing serious with the heating and cooling systems in your house. I hope it's just the thermostat. It sounds like you had a very nice weekend! Tim looks like you in that photo. The house is looking really nice. I always think your house looks nice. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We'll find out if it's just the thermostat this weekend. You're the second person lately who said Tim looks like me...if you saw Tim and Brian in person, you'd probably think Tim looks more like his dad. Thank you for saying you think my house looks nice, that's very sweet.

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  4. Hot and humid in northern IL? Isn't it kind of early for that kind of weather? I've been to Chicago in the summer as a child, so I know it can get hot and humid then, but I thought you'd still be having nice weather now.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Definitely not too early for it to be hot and humid here. May is the type of month where we have all kinds of weather - cold and snow, tons of rain, dry spells, heat and humidity, and then a few perfect days in-between!

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  5. My worst nightmare. Living without air. Our unit is old too from the 90s so I know it is coming. Hang in there and hope it isn't too spendy.

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  6. Liked your whole family Melanie. Loved the way you have elegantly decorated your house and the way you have completed that porch. - Bespoke Kitchens remodellers in Kilsyth

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  7. I feel your pain, Melanie. My car is in the shop right now for a new condenser and compressor and lines for the AC. I get physically sick with the heat, especially in a car, but the $2,000 to have the AC fixed in my 2001 car makes me equally sick. I'm glad you had a great Memorial Day weekend and love seeing all your rearranging. The Polish God Bless Our Home piece is not a family heirloom, but it reminds me of my Polish dad. I don't remember where I picked it up. I've had it for a while now and hope to get my office rearranged soon so I can start hanging things on the wall!
    Donna

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    1. $2000 to have the AC in a 2001 car fixed?! That's crazy. My car is a 2001 also. I don't think I'd bother to have the AC fixed in mine at that price. The car isn't even worth much more than that! lol

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  8. Sounds like you had a nice weekend. Up until today it has been hot and HUMID. Now I don't do why in humidity, and begged Mr. C to put the air in the bedroom (one that sits on the floor) and he did. He woke up saying he was freezing, I told him if he didn't shut up I would be sleeping in the space bedroom. He quickly said the air on was OK. We woman just have to resort to anything that helps us achieve our goal!

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  9. Hi Melanie,
    I know exactly what you mean about having wonderful adult times with our kids. We just spent Memorial Day weekend with ours and it's always such a good time now that they're older and we don't see them often. Our daughter, Megan, was showing me some yoga moves...she does the hot yoga! Funny you mentioned that at the end of your blog...so I just had to mention that. :-)
    I really enjoy the nature of your blog, Melanie!
    Mary Alice

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    Replies
    1. I'm assuming your daughter is young and in very good shape! That hot yoga is brutal.

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  10. You have been busy moving things around - everything looks good.

    I quite agree with you about visiting with your children. It is wonderful to both love and like your kids.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I just moved things around again, hee hee. I know that you love to do that, too. I agree that it's wonderful to both love and like your kids...it's almost like being a parent and a friend at the same time.

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  11. Busy lady (handsome son who looks so like you!) and as always, and for most of us, things around the house need fixing, replacing and we all dread the expense and upheaval don't we? Hope things work out for the best - our house is getting older too, like us, and HVAC will probably need replacing soon, dread that! Meanwhile we're running away, crossing the pond, and sailing the Baltic sea next week - all those niggly little house chores will be on our back burners for a few weeks! Oh, we do now shut the water off at the street - learned our lesson there when away in Europe on a trip, we apparently 'watered' the entire street for 3 days until the city came and shut it down - a broken pipe under the front lawn!!!!

    Happy day dear - Mary

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    Replies
    1. Ah, another person who think Tim looks like me! I've always thought that Tim looks so much like Brian (my husband/Tim's father). With all the expenses of owning a house, now I can see why some people choose to rent instead! I wish I could run away, too...I guess I'll have to live vicariously through you. :-)

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  12. Your son does favor you. I like the IKEA rug. I hope your furnace and A/C make it. We just had a new roof put on the yellow house and we certainly did not want to pay that kind of money. I am in week ten (I think) of PT on the shoulder and my range of motion is greatly improved. I still have pain-hope to avoid surgery this way. xo, olive

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    1. Brian just called a friend's son who does HVAC on the side...left him a voice mail. I hope that he can come out and look at it and that it won't be anything major. We had a new roof (and gutters and flashing) put on our house about 8-9 years ago. Another huge expense. Like you, I'm on about week 8-9 of PT and my range of motion is much better, too. My pain just now went away. I only get some achiness now and then.

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  13. I'm always amazed at how much Yusef has matured in the past year since being away at college. It's great, but also a little strange. When did the little boy become a man? Gosh how time flies. Sorry to hear about the a/c problems. Around here, it's easy to blow a fuse -- happened recently when I plugged in a faulty iron. Hopefully your problem is something that can be simply sorted out and doesn't cost an arm and a leg. I like Tim's room -- and the fact that you are always moving things around. Have a great weekend. Tammy

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    1. I think they mature quicker when they're on their own!

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  14. Your container of lettuce looks so good and that rug is cute!

    We had our ac/heat unit replaced and I must say that although it was a huge expense, our heating and cooling bills have gone down considerably. I hope you're able to figure out what happened. Maybe you need more coolant?

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    Replies
    1. It's awesome to be able to just step outside on the front porch and pick your own greens! It'll be interesting to see what the HVAC guy has to say...to be continued.

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  15. Hi Melanie,

    Love the photo of you and Tim, makes me miss Liberty just looking at you two! Don't get me wrong, I am thankful for Skype, but, as you know, being right there beside them, sharing a meal, a laugh, there's nothing like it. And, that happy smile on your face says it all!

    While reading about your furnace/ac issue, I was immediately reminded of my sister! She had both replaced this past week, since the a/c is not working up to standard, and even though the furnace is satisfactory, they are both going. I guess they're connected in some way, right? It's completely different here, in Greece, where they are independent of one another. Anyway, hope you only need a new thermostat, since, as you said, the whole process can be quite expensive!

    The changes look great and your pretty front porch is where I'd be all summer long, sipping on some icy lemonade and appreciating the freshness of the early morning.

    Have a wonderful weekend, my friend!

    Poppy

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    1. So true that there is nothing like being with your child in person! Not the same as Skype, that's for sure. I'm thankful that Tim is only a 1-1/2 hour drive away. Well, we replaced the thermostat and still no luck. :-( I don't spend too much time on my front porch since all the neighbors have a good view (I hate living in a fish bowl). I tend to spend more time on the patio - it's much more private. I hope you have a wonderful weekend as well!

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