Well, today we spent almost all day driving around looking at houses. We found the first house in Gary a couple of weeks ago and just loved it - Actually our Pastor saw it first! We were supposed to see the inside of it today but after we got there and waited for the lady for over an hour, she called and said that she got tied up and couldn't show it today. The only problem with the house is its location - and a few repairs that we could see on the outside. It's in Gary and though it's a nicer part of town compared to the rest of it, it's still Gary. It's a bit farther away from this area that we are in right now and also, Gary isn't the nicest town. It has a slate roof and it has a small balcony on the back of it. We aren't sure how big or how much - something we were supposed to find out today - but I will tell more after we get inside and I will post pictures of the inside also.
The second house is in - well, I'm not exactly sure, I don't remember and all these places just seem to run together, separated by the street. But it's uninhabited and for sale and has a relatively large back yard that is fenced with the 2 front garages that you can sort of see in the picture and there is a single detached garage in the back. I don't know the price but again the area isn't the greatest - thus the reason that we could consider looking at a house like either of these two houses!
I guess back in the day, Gary, IN was a very prevalent area but over the years it has been rundown and very deteriorated. The money moved out in most areas and the crime moved in. I guess that's the way it goes in most places when the money moved out, isn't it?
Anyway, these are only 2 of the houses that we have been looking at - most of the other ones were pretty normal, these 2 were just so out-of-the-ordinary and beautiful places that I thought I would share them with you all.
Saturday, June 25, 2005
A Day of Houses!
Friday, June 24, 2005
Jozie lost her first tooth today! She's growing up too fast! So it sits in a glass of water on the kitchen cupborad, waiting for the Tooth Fairy tonight! :) 
The House Hunt Continues...
Well, we are still looking for a home. After talking to almost EVERY appartment complex within 30 miles from here, we are still at base one. The reason being is that we can't find a place that will rent month to month like we were renting in MI, so when we DO find a house - which we would MUCH rather live in - we can move there immediately instead of committing to a whole year to a place that we don't even want to be in. Besides that, every apartment complex that we have talked to has an application fee between $25 and $60 - which we can't afford to spend at every place that is a possibility. Who can? Esp. when it is non-refundable, even if our application doesn't end up being accepted.
So, we are currently renting from my mom - basicly paying her to sleep in her basement. At least it is basicly finished and it has a bathroom in it. We have our computer down here and we have a router so we are just hooked into their cable modem. Through this we are hoping to save some money and pay off some bills and keep looking for a place of our own in the mean time.
The Great Mulberry Fiasco!
It all started one warm afternoon in the kitchen...The Suspect was bring in handfulls of Mulberries off the tree in the yard. He was going to have them for dinner with his watermelon - or so he said. I went out to check on him, knowing he always eats more than he brings in and not wanting them all over the porch, and found some pretty incriminating evidence! There were mulberries on the deck, on the deck railing (see clue #2) and there were some on the mat (see clue #1) plus it was all over his face (see The Suspect)! After playing all afternoon in the pool, he didn't have his sandles on so I fould later that night the place that was stained even worse than anything were the bottom of his feet! Purple from walking on the mulberries on the ground! I hope we find a house WITHOUT a mulberry tree in the yard! Jozie doesn't care for them much but once in a while she will also come in the house with purple lips and fingers!
Luke's Day With Daddy
Bob had a good time at the races for Father's day with his boy. They ate lots of food - Luke ended up with an allergic reaction from the pizza that they took the cheese off - and way more candy than any little boy should have!
When they got home, Luke told me all about his favorite car - the number two, two - it's NOT twenty-two! - and about the crash that required two "Hook Trucks". He was still talking about it the next day, I think he had a better time than Daddy!
And They're Off!
Luke at the Races (in his camo hoodie - which the hood is NEVER removed from his head when it is on!)
Saturday, June 18, 2005
Here are my first pictures!
Here is my first attempt of pictures - I haven't put up one of myself yet because I haven't found a good one yet - I will have to experiment when nobody else is around sometime! :) We went to a church picnic today at a pretty park that has a small lake in it. The kids had a good time playing with their new friend Joe - the pastors son - and some of the other kids there that we didn't know. Auntie Daune is ALL of the childrens' auntie, and they were both wearing pink shirts today so they said they were the "Pink Girls" and had their picture taken together. Siearra - sp? - is the pastors daughter.
Levi is coming to see us again soon!!!! The kids are extremely excited about and he is bringing Jaclyn, so I will get some better pictures of her then! :) These aren't that great because they were scanned in at the same time and they were matte finish so they didn't scan so well - the top one is Jozie hugging her around the waist:)
Well, Bob is getting his father's day gift early this year. He is at the races with John and they took Sam and Luke. Luke was pretty excited about it but did't get a nap in today - and we were up until almost midnight last night! We will see how things went when they get home! I will keep you posted and write again tomorrow with more pictures - I'm sure - of what they got to see!
Here's Jaclyn!
Levi and his soon-to-be Mrs.! You can't see her that good but here's Levi's Jaclyn, for all of you who are wondering what she looks like - these were taken at Christmas time in MI.
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
"Just call me if you need me, Dad!"
Luke is such a sweet boy - when he wants to be! A couple of weeks ago Bob was leaving for work - driving the motorcoach for a Christian rock band called Skillet - and we were giving him our hugs and kisses and saying our good-byes when Luke says, "Just call me if you need me, Dad! - Anytime!", in the most searous face and voice that a 4 year old can have. We tried not to chuckle and asked him to repeat it, so we could make sure that's what he said, and sure enough he did. So Dad complied and asked if he called when he needed Luke if he would talk to him (Luke doesn't talk on the phone much - he's way to busy!) and Luke said he would. The next day Bob called and I talked to him for a few minutes, then Jozie had her turn and it came back to me when Bob asked to talk to Luke. I told Luke that Dad wanted to talk to him and he says, "Does he need me?" Of course I told Luke yes. And Luke actually sat still for a decent conversation for once! :) I guess we will have to remember that for future use!
Okay, Okay...
So it's been awhile! You guys found me out so I guess I will get my act together and try my hand at blogging again. :) I had to change my title because we are in the process of relocating to Northern Indiana so Bob can be closer to his job. And let me tell you, house hunting in the Chicago area is no piece of cake! We have been looking for almost 2 months now and with no success. So, we are now trying to find a place to rent :( but hopefully we can get a month to month lease so that we can continue to look for a place to buy.
Things are definitely different here than the UP! We are starting to get used to the traffic and having a little easier time finding our way around but it's not like living in little Houghton where everything is within a few close miles! With only a fraction of the traffic here.
In our almost 2 months within 30 min. drive of downtown Chicago, we haven't been there once! No museums, plays, concerts, or zoos! I might as well live in the UP! :) Hopefully once things get settled down and we have our own place, we can make a point of doing those kinds of things with the kids. We did make that all important trip to Chuckie Cheese's last week though! Luke loved the monster truck and went on it about 5 times - until something happened to it and didn't work anymore! Jozie liked the spider stomping game - she hates spiders so she thought the screams and squashing sounds that the bugs made were great! It was funny when she went on the flying bicycle, she's afraid of heights and even with the seat belt she screamed every time it came off the platform - I don't think she even got it to it's fully extended height of about 5 or 6 feet! :)
We are hoping to go to a zoo or two sometime this summer and maybe leave the kids with my mom and go visit the Amish country just south of MI.
Speaking of MI - it's strange that we moved out of MI to Indiana to end up being closer to my dad who now lives in Flint, MI - and we live in a completely different state! In the UP we were about 10 hours away from him and now we are about 4 hours away! I don't think some people realize how big MI is.
