With being a homeowner, suddenly you don’t have anyone to call when stuff goes wrong except for the repairman. So I can’t tell you the delight that I felt when I saw that my water main was leaking. Joy of joys. Thankfully my seller Realtor rocks and got a plumber for us. He simply tightened the pipe, told us that our water is very hard, and that it would need to be replaced in the near’ish future. And it still leaks.
Next, we have no hot water. Our water heater keeps throwing a circuit, and the plumber that was here said “Sorry, I’m not an electrician.”
…
Yeah. So we get cold showers. The kids have been bathing by swimming at the pool. *snicker*
And, oh glorious day, our washing machine pukes up water out of the floor drain of the utility room. It’s really pleasant to have nasty black water and what I’ll hope is merely wads of lint (no, it’s not poo folks) regurgitated onto the floor.
I don’t know who set this next little mess up, but it’s probably the dumbest thing I have seen: The dryer exhaust blows out a tube, just like any other house, but someone decided to tie in the bathroom fan’s exhaust into the same pipe, so now the dryer vents into the bathroom, so I have to run the bathroom fan while the dryer runs to avoid moisture build-up in it. I need to get a pipe cap to cap it off. Whoever did it was really pro: They tied the flexible hoses on with cable ties and duct tape. *eye roll*
Oh yeah, and our dishwasher doesn’t work, and I’ll assume that it’s new, because there was a manual in the cabinet above it. So we’re scrubbin’ by hand until we can afford to have someone out to give it a look.
Who chops the telephone off at the line into the house and drywalls over it? The previous owners, that’s who. So we had to have AT&T come out and install a whole new line from the box (which is actually better for our DSL) then tie it in to our existing wiring.
Aside from these complaints, the house has been absolutely fabulous. The boys are enjoying their own bedrooms, we’re enjoying the added privacy of a master bath (even with the cold showers), and the extra space is really good for everyone. Did I mention it’s 3000 square feet? Yeah, it’s pretty nice. Not looking forward to the electric bill, though.
There are also several kids in the neighborhood that are near my kids’ ages, ranging in ages from five to 15. It has been a godsend to have the kids out of my hair while I try to get stuff done, and the neighborhood kids are enjoying having the additions to their group. We live on a dead-end street, so there’s no through traffic to worry about; the traffic consists of the neighbors, and they know to expect the kids around in the streets. Of course the kids know to get out of the street when a car comes, but it’s still nice to know that there’s a low possibility of dorks racing down the road running the kids over. The neighbor adults are all really nice, and we have two police officers: one across the street from me, one just around the corner. The one around the corner works in our city, and he will occasionally sit outside his house while on duty and cruises the neighborhood a lot.
Overall I am more than thrilled with our new house, and I can’t wait until it’s all set up! 
I am currently at my mother’s house to borrow her truck, then we’re loading the truck tomorrow to donate some things to Goodwill, then loading it up with stuff to move. Then Friday is closing, we start hauling stuff over, and the adventure begins! It’s going to be 100 degrees, it’s going to be miserable work (have you ever moved a piano??), but it’s going to be all good in the end! I just gotta say…. WOOHOO! 
So, like a lot of people, we’ve wanted to own a house for quite a while. We’ve been looking at several houses in the Eureka area, but none fit our needs. But finally, our dream is coming to fruition! This is the house that we have signed a contract on, and if all goes as planned (you know, financial stuff, etc), we will be closing on July 22nd. Hooray! Allow me to give you a virtual tour… Just please don’t tell MARIS that I borrowed their photos.
A Facebook update from a friend:
So I have finally come up out of my mental hole. I have been dealing with depression for many, many years, since my early teens. I just didn’t want to come to terms with it. I have always been against “pop a pill and feel better” mantras that the big drug companies throw at us with every commercial, but this funk had gone on long enough.
I felt like the Pristiq wind-up woman. I’d have to gather all of my strength just to get up and make supper. I’d rather fall asleep on the couch watching TV than go to bed… Wait, doesn’t everyone? 
Okay, so I hate to ask for help. However, I know the power of the interwebz and I know that people read my stuff sometimes. So here’s the deal. I live in St. Louis Metro East, Belleville area. I have a degree and certification in computer repair and networking. I’m in dire need of money, so I am offering you a service in exchange for some. For $50 an hour I fix your computer. I come to you, within reason… I don’t want to go any farther in Missouri than, say, within the 270/255 loop (trying to keep money in my pocket, you understand), no farther east than Shiloh/Scott… I don’t know anything farther out than that, not more than 20 miles please. I don’t have AFB clearance. I can even work in an office, I have nifty polos and khakis, so I won’t look too much like a broke bum. Sorry, I don’t have a tax ID (or any other tax stuff, for that matter), so a receipt will likely be useless to you, but I can make a purdy one on your printer if you really need it.
Now if only I could get my cat to run in the hamster wheel.