The Man, The Houses, The Renovations

Sometimes things happen that we know nothing about, until years later. Then when we hear the story, we marvel at the blessing we received and the concern we were protected from.

We don’t know why, but the realtor gave us the keys to the house, on Thursday before the sale was final. There were no keys to the other buildings, because they were falling apart. They were open for anyone to get in and we were sure kids had parties in the barn. We saw the aftermath.

We had to go to the building department at city hall to sign some papers and when the clerks found out we had just purchased Abram’s Farm we were greatly congratulated. Then one of the clerks said, “Do you know that Abram’s Farm is a Twinsburg Historical sight. You must restore all the buildings. If you do want to tear any of them down, you will have to pay $3,000 for each building.”  Wow, that was a shocker. The realtor sure told us a different story.  Anyways that didn’t matter, we had full intentions of restoring the farm.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Saturday morning Hubby and I went to the farm, we wanted to spend some time looking the place over and start making plans. We wanted to figure out where to start first.  

As we drove in, we were surprised to see a car in the driveway. So, we went looking to see who was there. We didn’t need to use our key, to enter the house. The door was already open. We heard voices on the other side of the house. We made our way over to the stairs. We could hear men talking upstairs about floor plans. Hubby called out, “Who’s there?”

“Who wants to know?” was the reply.

“We’re the new owners.” Proudly announcing.

“No, you’re not! The sale is NOT finial!”  Was the loud remark.

At that point, two men showed their presence and started to walk down the stairs. I can’t tell you how my heart almost wanted to stop. Believe me, I just knew I lost my dream place.  The death of a dream?  Is this door closing? Then the discouragement made my heart beat faster and faster. How dare they try to take our house? Who were these people anyways?

I can’t tell you what Hubby was thinking but that was his next question. “Who are you?”

“I am the president of the company who is selling this farm. Even though we accepted your offer, the sale is not final!” He ordered.

Now I had a lump in my throat. I just wanted to cry, but I had to be strong! Hubby and the Recently, scientists have discovered a mutation responsible deeprootsmag.org sans prescription viagra for disease, localized in the gene HOXA-1, which regulates early development of the brain. Whenever cheapest levitra deeprootsmag.org there is a discomfort or abnormality in the penis-Men with a weak heart or a cardiovascular condition, -Men suffering from stress, anxiety, or hyper tension-Men who experienced an eye condition that blurred their vision for a long period of time, the touch control panels of the microwave stop working. http://deeprootsmag.org/category/departments/sky-above-earth-below/?feedsort=comment_count cialis 5 mg Hence, avoid using the medicine if you are also using a nitrate drug for chest pain or heart problems. Do you know that there was no effective treatment existed at that time in order to avoid the adverse reflection of this drug get more information in detail about its advantages and disadvantages. cialis 5mg (Tadalafil Chewable ): Use this chewable form of viagra containing considerably less undesirable reactions. president had a few more words and then we left. During this whole time Hubby was confident and calm and he told me don’t worry about it. It’s our call, not his. We even had the keys to the place.  

We contacted our Realtor and told him what happened, he said, “Don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of it.”

It was true the sale was not final, but they accepted our offer and the papers were on Hubby’s desk waiting. All we had to do was sign the final papers and give them a check. So, we did that the following Monday.

Unbeknownst to us, things were still underway with the company strategizing to get the farm away from us. Even though the realtor told us everything was taken care of.

The next day our realtor asked Hubby to please take down the for-sale sign, because they were getting way too many calls and he wanted the calls to stop bothering him, since he felt the farm was sold.

We never heard any more from the president and our realtor never told us about the strategy that was going on at the main office. Apparently, he knew what he was doing and was not going to let the president back out of the contract. 

 Years later we had a garage sale and a woman came up to me and told me this story.

“I couldn’t wait for an opportunity to meet you and tell you the story about selling this farm. First, I want to tell you I am so glad you got this place.  I worked for the company who was selling the farm. We had many meetings trying to figure out how they could get out of your contract. I was always on your side. What happened, we put up the for-sale sign on Friday. Monday you called to see the place. Tuesday, you bought the place for the asking price. The president thought that something was wrong because there were so many calls with people interested in seeing the place.  The farm sold way to fast. They thought it would be hard to sell, because of all the work it needed. He also thought they had made a big mistake and had it way underpriced. He wanted out of the contract, so they could increase the price, but legally they couldn’t do it.  I am so glad things worked out for you and thought you would like to hear this story.  I just live around the corner and I drove past your place every day and saw all the work you were doing over these past years.  I am so glad you got this place. “

I gave that dear lady a hug and offered her a tour. She accepted.   

I can not tell you how thankful we are. God protected us from knowing what was going on behind the scenes. He also protected us by not having the place taken away from us. Then to top it off, we only paid for the value of the land.  I have no doubt that God wanted us to have this place. We did have to wait for years, but the blessing we have received was a miracle. The company wanted this door to close for us, but God didn’t. He opened the door and then held it wide open. All the doors that closed before, were blessings in disguise.

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That is a well-known saying I have heard many times. I had many doors close behind me over the years, especially when looking for our dream home.  It never really bothered me, because I didn’t want to settle for second best.

We had an appointment that was just another place to see on our journey of house hunters. We went anticipating nothing. Stepping into the house, was a little scary because it needed lots more work then I wanted to even think about, but it had so much potential.  We had a few priorities in purchasing our house, high ceilings at least nine feet and character with something unique.  It had the high ceilings throughout the house and beautiful woodwork in the parlor.  The door trim was unique, especially for a farmhouse. What amazed me, the living room was green, and the front porch had the perfect burgundy color tile that matched my rug. I thought it was sort of strange that it had the perfect colors for my dilemma.  It made me smile, even though I knew everything needed to be replaced.

I had a different feeling about the place after leaving the house, a little hopeful. It was a beautiful, warm, sunny August day, so walking around the property was a delight. My spirit was lifted even with the broken down mess. There was a moment as the men were talking that I was gazing and daydreaming, taking in the whole view. It was inviting, peaceful, quiet. We explored the rest of the buildings on the farm and was told by the realtor that the buildings have no value, they all needed to be torn down.  The purchase price was the value of the land.

At one time when the realtor was not looking, I did a happy dance. Yes, I really did a happy dance. I think it was the doors in this house. I loved the doors. Even with the overwhelming work, something inside of me just sang, this is the day Naomi. This is it! This is the day you have been waiting for. A couple of times I would ask Hubby, “Do the buildings really need to be torn down? Can’t they be restored?”  He would whisper to me. “I’m sure they can.” Remember Hubby and I have looked at houses for years and when he was without a job, he took a course on Home Inspection for Certification, so he knew what it would take to restore the four buildings.

Finally, after 14 years, both Hubby and I agreed on a house.  Wait! Not just a house, but a farm with four other buildings? Really? We bought the place about an hour after we looked at the farm. We were the new owners of an old rundown farm.  The purchase of the farm was so fast that it was like a miracle. It’s unbelievable, but we never had second thoughts or regrets. I had thoughts that it was way too much work, but Hubby was ready for the challenge.

After all the excitement of the purchase, my mind was in a whirlwind with all the thoughts of planning, restoring, and decorating that the thought of the two green sofas that didn’t match my burgundy and blue Karastan rug didn’t matter anymore. The discouragement was gone. Just like that. All gone!

God knew all along what He was doing, and I was just so hung up with the decorating disaster. Would God even care what color my sofa and rug would be?  I don’t think God cared about the colors, but I think God wanted to show us a miracle and that He was giving us this place.

If you think this is the end of the story, you are in for a big surprise. Trust me we were also in for a big surprise.

“Sometimes our disappointments in life can become God’s appointments, so don’t let closed doors bother you. The things we think of as failures and problems can often end up being blessings in disguise.” David Dykes 

 

 

One of my hobbies is going to garage and estate sales. I love to seek for beautiful treasures, broken ones, old or tattered ones, restoring them to full beauty. My whole family knows me well.  That is why my brother-in-law calls me and tells me about his neighbor having a big estate sale that weekend.  He said, “You don’t’ want to miss this one because it will be a good sale.” I went and of course, I saw lots of things I would have loved to buy, but we were living in the little Depot rental house. 

They had two beautiful leather sofas that just wanted to go home with me. But we just didn’t have room for them.  I dreamed of a big beautiful living room that would be just perfect for the two green sofas.  But it was just not meant to be. Anyways we had just bought a burgundy and blue Karastan rug, green would never go with it.  

The evening after I went to the garage sale I couldn’t keep my mouth shut and told Hubby about the green leather sofas that were for sale. He said, “Why didn’t you buy one, you know I want leather furniture.”

Hubby prefers leather furniture because he doesn’t like dust and he thinks leather furniture doesn’t collect dust or it can easily be dusted off. Cloth covered furniture he claims collects dust. Sometimes to make his point he would say, “Naomi, the furniture needs vacuumed, look at all the dust!” as he slapped the furniture you could see the dust flying all around. Dust doesn’t bother me. Clutter bothers me.  There can be dust on all the furniture, but everything must be in perfect order. Now, on the other hand, clutter doesn’t bother Hubby at all, but dust is another subject. As you can see, we sometimes have conflict.

Then I said, “You know I would have loved to buy one of them, but we just bought a burgundy and blue Karastan rug. Trust me green will not go with that rug.” No more was said.

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The following Monday, after the sale, I get another call from my brother-in-law. The owner told him that he needed to get rid of all the left-over stuff and everything was half price. He knew I liked the sofas and they were still available. Those leather sofas are now two for the price of one. I couldn’t believe it, I liked the sofas, but I knew they would not go with the rug we had already purchased and couldn’t be returned. Decorating my home with treasures gives me great joy every time I look at them.  But looking at those two combinations would not give me great joy. In my eyes it was a decorating disaster.

I was reluctant when I called Hubby, because I knew he would say just go and buy them. That is exactly what happened. He convinced me to just buy both and said, “We will deal with the color and where we will put them later.” I knew what that meant, and I wasn’t crazy about that idea. Deal with the color later?!?  Yet I knew it was a great buy. The excitement just wasn’t there for someone who was getting two new sofas and even a color I loved. Who knows how many more years we’ll be hunting for our dream house?  With mixed feelings I went and bought them anyways. Then I went about my day wondering what a decorating disaster I had gotten myself into.

After buying the sofas I had some errands to run. On my way home, I drove past a deserted, run downed farm with a for sale sign. I pulled in the driveway and took down the number. I called Hubby and told him that I found another place for sale. “It really needs a lot of work and it looks like all the buildings are falling down. It might be too much work, more than we want.” I should have said, more than I want. An Optimistic, renovation addict never thinks it’s too much work.

He said, “Call the realtor anyways and make an appointment. I’d still like to see it.” So, I did. I made an appointment for the next day.

After I made the call, I sat in my living room agonizing over the purchases of the sofas and rug we had just made. The colors would never go together, and I knew I would never like it no matter how hard I would try. 

Plus, the farm that we were to look at the next day was way too much work.  All that came up in my mind was dismay.  Then I heard a gentle whisper, “Naomi, be content!”  I have learned to put my trust in the one who holds my future, and once again I try to be content in my uncontentment.   

Hunting for our dream house was getting a little daunting.  Every week when the local newspaper came, I would search for the new listings. If I saw one that I thought would fit our requirements, I would take a drive past.  If it was something I liked, I would call the realtor and make an appointment to see it. If I liked a place, Hubby didn’t. If he liked a place, I didn’t. Those years were very difficult, not only because of not finding our dream house, but it was the sandwich years. Caring for 4 children, a dog with an attitude and having very ill parents. Now add all of Hubby’s rental renovations during this time. So, a lot was going on in my life. Sometimes I felt like it was chaos.

We had been house hunting for over 12 years before we moved to the Depot house.  While living there, we searched for two more years, which means we searched for 14 years. If there was an award for the longest “House Hunters” I think we would have won. It was getting a little discouraging, that is if I let it discourage me. 

My favorite saying was, “One day I am going to go around a curve and there it will be our dream house.” I just knew God would provide. Another phrase I would say was, “I am content, in my uncontentment!”  Uncontentment isn’t even a word, but I used it. Even in all my searching and longings for a new house, I knew God was in control. Is it possible to be content in the midst of hard times, aggravating times? Yes, if you know God is in control.

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I was very excited when we went to see a house that was for sale on Bissel Road. I loved the house and how it was decorated, but it was just not quite what we were looking for. What a bummer.  I was so disappointed. It didn’t have a basement, just a cement crawl space. It didn’t have an attached garage. It was not handicap accessible. We wanted to make sure if we ever needed it, we would have it available. Plus, the house was perfect. No renovations needed. So that meant it didn’t qualify.  That’s because I’m married to a renovation addict.  Trust me, I would have loved to buy a house that was ready for immediate occupancy.

I just couldn’t get the little house out of my mind. So, one day as I was driving past, I decided to take a picture with my 35mm film camera.  Don’t really know why except during this time, I would cut out pictures from magazines of houses, bedrooms, kitchens or of anything I loved and put them in a scrapbook.  That way I would have idea’s how to decorate, once I got my dream house.

It seemed that Hubby had to buy rentals. It was his passion. He enjoyed it. Many times, he would say, “I would much rather be working at fixing up something, than going golfing.”

When Hubby lost his job, he went on unemployment. To do that he had to try to find a job. Yes, apply for a job. Something he never had to do. He didn’t do very well at finding a job, but once again things worked out for him. When he didn’t show up for clients at his old job, they wondered what had happened to him. So they called him at home. Well, he started to work from home. Eventually, he started his own computer business.

Renovations are his outlet. Sitting at a desk all day, he needs to get out and do something physical. So, he enjoys renovations. 

As much as I didn’t like that Hubby bought rentals, I am the reason he bought the Tavern rental.

I had just left him at the Bedford rental and went to the drugstore to pick up a prescription. I was talking to the cashier.  Somehow, we got into a conversation about rentals. Probably, because I was apologizing for my construction appearance. She said that she was dating a man who was living in a place that was for sale.  It was a rental and it had four units and four men were living there. I said, “I hope my husband does not find out because I’m sure he would want to buy it.”

Then I asked, “Where is the house?”

“It’s the big white house across from the Victorian house.” She replied.

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“Really? The Victorian house? That big beautiful Victorian house, that I once had a chance to buy?”

“Yep. The only Victorian house in town.”

Why I didn’t keep my mouth shut, I’ll never know, but I had to tell Hubby about the rental for sale with four units. Probably because if he was going to buy rentals, I wanted him to buy them in the town we lived in.  Plus, he just bought the rental in Bedford, so I didn’t think he would buy two in one year.

Well, guess what? Hubby investigated the rental and sure enough, he bought the rental. The rental across from the beautiful Victorian house.  Six months after buying the Bedford Rental. Really? What was he thinking?

When he would leave in the evening, he would say. “I’m going to work on the rental.”

I Would ask, “Where? Which one?” Not knowing which rental, he was going to. We came up with a solution. We named our rentals.

This house was once a Tavern and we decided that the Tavern was a perfect name.

I’m sure there were times that people heard him say, “Honey, I’m going to the tavern for a while.” And wondered what he was up to.

Trust me, he was always up to something.

I did not think it was a good idea to buy the Bedford house, because it was not in the town we lived in. If Hubby had to buy rentals, I wanted him to only buy rental houses in the town we lived in. There was a reason for that.  So, he wouldn’t have to go far to fix things. Trust me, renters call all the time for things or problems that come up.

The house in Bedford needed lots of work, but at the time of purchase, the house was full of renters. Five units. So, the only work that could be done was the outside. When a renter moved out then he could renovate the apartment and I could help.

One of the big projects was painting the house. The picture above has all new vinyl siding and windows. Back in the 90’s the wood siding needed to be painted.  Hubby decided that he could do the job himself. Guess who became his helper? Yep, me. One day when Hubby and I were out on the porch roof painting, a man was watching us. When we came down for lunch he approached us. He said, “I see you guys sure know what you are doing. I was wondering if I could hire you to do some painting for me.”

“Thank you for the offer, but no, we can’t do that.”  Hubby answered.

“Why not? Don’t you do this for a business?”

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“No, we own this house and we decided to do it ourselves.”

I chimed in and said, “Yes, we are doing it ourselves and I am the lucky wife to be his helper.”

“Well, I’m surprised. You’re a great helper. I actually would have hired both of you.” He replied.

“Thanks, but no thanks. As Hubby’s helper, he has me doing enough construction, without taking on other jobs.”

I was pleased that I could help Hubby with that big painting job and glad I was able to be “great” help. Sometimes I wondered if I really helped or made more work for him.  There were times I felt I didn’t help him enough. There were times I didn’t feel like helping at all. There were times I felt very guilty for not going with him and helping.  

Renovations became our way of life. I never thought that it would be our whole married life.  I remember a friend said to me, “You will be doing this the rest of your life.  He will never be done.”

I said, “No, once this place is done. We will be done!”

She was right, and I think of her statement many times, as I wonder what other husbands do on Saturday’s and evenings. I wonder what other wives do who don’t have a renovation addict?

The Depot house was on two corners, with roads on three sides of the house.  Right across from the front of the house was a working train track. In the past there was also a train station.  This was Hubby’s first rental with two units.  He always worked out a deal with the sellers so that we could afford the place. I was always apprehensive and just didn’t think we could make it. He always was optimistic and said it will work out. If there were renters in the house, we were fine with our finances.  

• This house did not have a garage, so he built the attached garage to the house. There is also an attached single car garage and driveway on the other side of the house.
• He installed the white railings on the front porches.
• He put in new windows and doors.
• A new roof.
•  All new electric.
•  All new plumbing.
• He took out a steam boiler and replaced it with two new furnaces.
• He cemented the two driveways.
• Scraped and painted the house.
• And who knows what else.  

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He had the place around fourteen years when it just so happened, all the renters moved out and the house was available. So, we decided to move to the Depot rental house. Three of the children were gone so we decided to downsize.

We had a realtor come to sell The House He Bought Without Telling Me. She gave me a list of all the things I had to do before we put it up for sale.  Like, take down all the wallpaper. Put in all new carpet. I couldn’t understand how Hubby could buy all these places that needed lots of work to fix them up. But when we sell them, realtors thought we had to make them “picture perfect.”Really? Something was wrong with this deal.

After she left, I said to Hubby. “I will not do anything to this house. You bought this house a total wreck. We worked hard to fix it all. The buyers will have to fix up the place if they want to.”  “Sounds reasonable to me.” He willingly agreed. So, we didn’t use a realtor and we put The House He Bought Without Telling Me up for sale. It sold within a few weeks. Yep! A few weeks. We were very happy.  

Before we moved into the Depot house we renovated the inside. Notice I said WE. Total new kitchen and bathrooms. Which meant a lot of decorating work for me. We moved in July, 2000. I loved living in this house. I loved that neighbors would come around and visit.  I loved to hear the train whistle and would try to watch the train as it passed by our house. It was the first house that we had trick or treaters, a new experience I really enjoyed.  I have many fond and special memories.

During the time we were living there, we were still searching for our dream house, but thought this would be a good place to move to while we were looking. We lived in the Depot house for about five years.

In 1987, we moved our four young children into a house with no kitchen, and a bathroom with only a toilet and tub. It was also a house my hubby bought without telling me. This house was supposed to be temporary. I’m glad I didn’t know then I’d live there for the next twelve years. This is how it happened.

“Oh Honey, by the way, I just wanted to let you know I put a bid on that old house down the road from us. It’s the one on the corner. I don’t think I’ll get it, because I put a real low bid in. It’s a real fixer-upper, and it could make a great investment.” My Hubby informed me as we were on our family trip to Florida.

“WHAT? Are you kidding me?” Totally taken by surprise. “Don’t you think you are busy enough?” I tried to muster up in my mind, what or how was he thinking? But that’s not possible.  I cannot think like an engineer. They are a breed of their own. I was silent and then he said.

“Look, I’m sure I’m not going to get it because someone else bid higher than me and he was turned down. I just put the bid in just to see what happens.”

“If you do get it, how can we afford it?”

“Trust me, we can afford it with the low bid I put in. Don’t worry. It will all work out.”

Sure, my optimistic Hubby is always up for risk-taking. I’m not. I want my money in the bank, not in some questionable investments.

“You were supposed to go to the real estate office to get some ideas about selling our home and also have the realtor start looking for our new house,” I uttered.

“Well while I was there, the realtor told me of this great rental investment opportunity, I just couldn’t pass it up. I didn’t want to bother you with the details. Anyways, I don’t think I’ll get it.”

“So, I take it your hobby has become renovating rental houses? And why didn’t you at least say something to me?”  I asked.

 “It’s easier to ask forgiveness, then to ask for permission. Plus, I wanted to save the agony of explaining it all to you. Actually, I didn’t think you’d care. That’s why I just went ahead with the proposal. Anyway, it is just a rental home. You will never have to live in it.”

Well, to our surprise the low bid on the fixer-upper house was accepted, and we were the proud owners.  What Hubby and the realtor didn’t know was, the next bid that came in, that would pay for the back taxes, had to be accepted. So now we owned a rundown fixer-upper.

Hubby called the realtor and said, “We want to put our house up for sale.” So, he did. A group of real estate agents came to view the house and one of them had a buyer that same week. They didn’t even put up a for sale sign. Never thought that would happen. We thought it would take at least a couple months to sell.

“Well, NOW what are we going to do?” I ask.

“I guess I need to call the realtor and make an appointment for you to see the house. Sorry honey never thought this would happen. Trust me, it will all work out.”

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“We may have to move in that house, so now my wife needs to see it. When can we go?” Hubby asks the realtor. The realtor was embarrassed; he didn’t want to take me to see the house.  He couldn’t believe I was leaving such a beautiful home and going to such a wreck. He apologized when he met me, and I knew I was in for a rude awakening. I can’t really explain how the house looked except that it was close to a chicken coop and smelled like one.

When our house sold so fast we asked the buyers of our beautiful house if we could have more time. It all worked out that we could stay in our home until they sold their house. Hubby started to take the rental house apart, gutting the whole house.  He put on a new roof, hauled out semi-loads of trash, and worked into the wee hours of each morning.

The only consolation for me was that this was only temporary, and as soon as this house was done, I would be out of there. We would rent it out, and we would buy our lovely new home.

I did things that I never in my life thought I could do or would even think of doing. I will not say that this time of my life was very pleasant or that our marriage was bliss with happiness. But I married him for better or for worse.  This might classify for one of the worse times. Let me clue you, being submissive to an engineer who can fix anything, is the worst. Black is black and white is white. “Of course, you can pick up that bag of cement and patch the holes in the garage wall. Just read and follow the directions.”

My parents came faithfully every week to help us with this huge project. How fortunate that my father picked up that bag of cement and knew how to patch the holes in that garage wall. God always leaves a way for an escape, when it’s more than you can handle.

One day, Mom and I worked on a big job, taking down a bedroom ceiling. Dust, dirt, and debris were falling on us, while we were pulling the plaster down. As we were cleaning up, Mom said, “What is that peculiar smell?” Then we noticed that the heat ducts were all corroded, rusty, and awful smelly. Mom concluded that the heat registers were used as a temporary upstairs bathroom.

How can a princess like me (that’s what Hubby sometimes calls me) be in a situation like this? I wanted out of that house before I even moved in. It  was a good thing I didn’t know how long  we were really going to live in that house.

It was moving day, a beautiful summer day, and our house was far from done. We moved into a house with no kitchen and a bathroom with only a toilet and a tub. Not the one pictured above, but all new and clean.   The only rooms finished were the living room and the basement. The children set up their bedrooms in the basement with two sets of bunk beds. It was a long time before it could be finished so we sent the children to camps, grandparents, trips to relatives and any other event that kept them from needing to be home. That gave Hubby and I time to get things looking more like a house by the time school started in the fall.

Yes, we lived in the house for twelve years and lots of things happened while living there. Our children grew up, went to college and our son left for the Marines. Lots of good memories and some sad. It was the sandwich years, taking care of my aging parents and taking care of my family. Some years were very difficult, but all in all, the house became a home we learned to love, and it was perfect for our growing family. It was better than we ever thought.

While living there, Hubby was working for GE when another company, LDI, offered him a job. Once again, he didn’t apply for a job.  Well, within a few years LDI sold and the new company didn’t want Hubby, because he was overqualified. It also just so happened Hubby injured his back. He was in such pain, that losing his job sort of didn’t matter. He could hardly walk, and he couldn’t work on anything. He just laid on the living room floor. He went to a specialist, but he kept saying it would go away. After pleading, the doctor agreed to do more tests and he was scheduled for myelography. It can detect if there is a spinal cord injury.

The day of the test they found out his spinal cord was pinched. He was rushed into emergency surgery. The nurse came out during surgery to tell me that there was a possibility that he would be paralyzed. What a shock! News that I didn’t want to hear. When I went to see him after surgery, I asked, “Can you move your toes?”

He said, “Of course, I can move my toes!”  He’s always positive.  He walked out of the hospital the next day. He was in less pain, then when he walked into the hospital for his test.

We lived in that house on the dangerous corner where we received lots of knocks on our door at any time of the night and day for four years. It was always something that brought them to our door. Accidents, they ran out of gas, or their car broke down. Whatever the reason, people would come to our house for help. Many times, when I was alone at night, they would come knocking at my door and fear would grip me. I didn’t like the house we lived in, I was tired of being home alone with now three small children. Hubby traveled a lot with his job.

Let me tell you a little about my Hubby. When we first married, he went to United Electronics Institute, a two year program. He graduated with two honors and was offered a job with Honeywell. I was surprised to find out as a young bride, I had married one of the best. Cream of the crop! I had no idea what an engineer was, but I would soon find out that they were a breed of their own. He was always positive and calm under pressure. He could fix anything and thought I should be able too also. Which he soon found out that was not so. 

A few years working for Honeywell, he was approached by General Electric to work for them. Have you noticed, he has not applied for a job. He was offered his second job. Well, he became noted for being the best trouble shooter with computers and traveled all over the US. That left me home alone with three small children almost every other week.

I really disliked the house on the corner and had nightmares about my children running Are you gaining weight gradually? And are you eager for effective solution? There are many efficient methods which can help you to shed additional fat viagra uk sales and rebuild the muscle mass of your body. This happens because of a stretch, wellbeing, and physical issue or restorative response. levitra free samples With the changing civilizations and modernization, the number cialis professional generic of people has gone high up and everyone has taken up a rather secluded lifestyle; but fortunately, technology has solved this issue by creating telephones and mobiles. Best Sexologist will treat with the help of Ayurveda, which does not have http://raindogscine.com/?attachment_id=93 viagra stores any side effects. out on the road. So Hubby, in his spare time, started to work on drawing up plans. On our kitchen table he drew up the plans for our new house. No, not a Victorian house, just an 80’s comfortable house, on a five acre lot in the country, away from traffic.

He took the plans to an architect to have blue prints drawn up. The architect checked over the plans and said. “You can just get them printed. They are perfect blue prints.” Really? Like I said, I hit the jack pot when I married him when I was eighteen years old. I didn’t know much, coming from Amish/Mennonite background, and I didn’t know the adventure that he would also take me through.

It took Hubby nine months to build the house. He was the general contractor and hired out the things he couldn’t or didn’t want to do. He worked hard and long hours. The house turned out perfect. I got to decorate the house, which was lots of work, but I loved it.

We lived in the house for eight years. It was perfect. The three bedrooms were on the lower level. The two girls shared a room and our son had his own room. Until, one day someone asked us if we would care for an eighteen-month-old little boy. To our surprise we had a child in one day. Yes, a child in one day!  It is a story of it’s own, for another time. 

There was a seven-year age difference with the two boys. It was a difficult adjustment.  So we decided to start looking for a different house for our growing family.

Searching for our perfect “last” home took over 15 years. Once we found the perfect fixer-upper we knew it had hidden potential, but we never imagined the wonderful adventure we would have. Our historical farm entertains family gatherings, garden club events, weddings, hen parties and all sorts of hootenannies. 

I was going to only blog about our home on the farm, but as I was telling my daughters about the blogs, they encouraged me to start at the beginning. They knew what their father has put me through and knew I had some great stories. I may not have great pictures of all houses, or the process of renovation, but wait till you get to the end on the two farms. So, let’s get started with our first house purchase.

The big beautiful Victorian house was our first stop on our search for our first home, back in 1975. The asking price was $25,000. It needed all new updated plumbing and heating. It also needed a new kitchen and bathrooms.   The turret (tower) needed renovated, because of some water damage. Other than that, it was beautiful.  The rooms were large with woodwork that was elegant and just perfect in my eyes.       

“Honey, if we buy this house, we will never have to move anywhere else.  I will be satisfied to live in this house the rest of my life. This is my dream house. It’s perfect!” I pleaded my case.

“It’s a little over budget. We could afford the house, but we can’t afford all the things it needs to renovate it.” He responded.

Disappointed, but still hopeful, we went to see another house. In was a regular non-expressive house, on the corner of a very busy intersection.  It was in our price range of $20,000, with no renovations.  (So, we thought.) 

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Hubby decided that the non-expressive house was the best deal. My hopefulness for my beautiful, Victorian house turned into only a passing dream.

Fixing up a few things in the bathroom, Hubby found the floor was all rotted out. Digging in deeper he found out the house had termites. Yes, TERMITES!  Not only that, we found out the kitchen cabinets needed to be replaced.

Both of us were soon overwhelmed. Hubby, more than me, because of all the work he had to do to the house. I was pregnant with our second child, so I wasn’t much help, and I was really concerned about living on a busy corner with two small children. So, we had the added expense of putting in a chained-linked fence.

So here we were, putting in a new kitchen and bathroom.  That is what the Victorian house needed.  I could have had that beautiful Victorian house, probably for the same cost.  OK, maybe not. But I wonder, would we still be living in that Victorian house if we had bought it?  I don’t think so. But I still love that house and for over 40 some years, that Victorian house still comes up in our conversation. What I know now, that I didn’t know then. Hubby would have talked me into some new adventure anyways. Also, I would not have had the wonderful experience of getting myself in all sorts of construction work that Hubby felt I could handle. Needless to say, I will not be satisfied to live in the house on the corner the rest of my life.

Hubby, only twenty-four years old, thought he was over his head with problems. He was discouraged and thought to himself. What in the world have I done? I don’t think I will ever do this again!  What happened to his attitude, for he would come to build and renovate nine places in his lifetime? Blogs to come will only tell.