New Car Part I

If I had to buy a car at a lot 15 years ago, it would have been a dismal failure.  It wasn't that I was a naive, innocent little girl, just didn't have a clue how to stand up for myself.  I knew the things car salesman said were not worthy of my trust....hence, I purchased my first three cars from family members.  The next 2 cars were brand spankin new and I purchased one through a wholesaler and got a stinkin good deal.  Of course, that is easy to do when you are paying cash for your car.  Next, was the Tahoe.  Great car.  We leased it and yes, we payed way too much.  That has since gone the way of the repo man and entered the Hippie Van.  We were trying to be all Dave Ramsey and pay cash for a car.  Also, going into a chapter 7 bankruptcy states that you can own a car but it's got to be worth less than 3 grand.  So  here I was, driving my money pit.  Every time I turned around, this car was in the shop.  It's a roomy car that my kids loved and can transport a ton of crap, but the previous owner had let it sit for too long.  That is like THE major no no!  All the rubber gaskets basically disintegrated.  That meant our car leaked from every possible point imaginable.  Basically, we spent 2 grand just potty training this van.  So we have $4500 in this van and all the major systems are working swimmingly and the water pump gives out.  To fix this, the timing belt has to be changed as well and the cam and crank seals need to be changed too.  I have no idea what this means only that it will cost $700 and I just want to say ENOUGH!  So while the van sits at the mechanics, I consult with my husband.  We have owned the van for 8 months and basically, it's cost us $562 a month to own this car....Holy CRAP!  Shouldn't I be driving a nicer car for that price?  I can't afford this car and how in the heck is this, Dave Ramsey, financially sound?  If ever there is an exception to a rule, I can find it and be the poster child for it.

In the past 2 months, life has changed considerably for the Laing household.  Patrick's income doubled and we were no longer able to declare a chapter 7 bankruptcy (we made too much).  This started a series of events that forced us to make financial choices now, or wait for 5 years.  That's right folks, if you didn't know before, chapter 7 gets all your debt forgiven and you can start rebuilding your credit right away.  Chapter 13, which is what we will be declaring the moment we move into our new home, is basically a restructuring of debt and a safety net for lawsuits.  Which, for my husbands business, is necessary.  But the unfortunate side effect, is you basically can't do squat for 5 years.  Yes, that's right, your credit is penalized for paying back your debt?  How screwed up is that?  Anyway, we can have working cars...not $3000 dollar money pits...so guess what this means?  Mommy gets a better car.  Continued....

Home

A house is made with Bricks and Beams...A home is made with Hopes and Dreams...

Once upon a time, a little girl lived in a  red brick town-home in between a lake and a river.  

It wasn't a fairy tale but her 3 year-old memories were fond.  She clearly still remembers the time she had to get stitches in her head and hoping the Marcus Welby would be on staff at the hospital.  She moved but remarkably ended up back in the town with the lake less than a year later.  As a 4 1/2 year old girl, her home was paradise.  She had a friend down the street and was tormented by her older brother's friends often.  Oh the memories of swimming in that lake and bluebird meetings at her house!  Her family moved down the street in this same little town a few years later.  By this time, she was walking to school and spending her pennies at Rosewood market.  As a first and second grader, she always walked to her friends house alone.  Oh the horror!  Somehow she survived without being snatched.  She still remembers the banana seat bike with the flag attached.  She could fly!  And of course her house had an enchanted backyard filled with fairies and flowers.  What 6-7 year old doesn't dream of a fairy castle amongst the ivy and fir trees?  Life got really complicated, so right after she turned 8, they moved away from the little town by the lake.

Then as luck would have it, her family (minus a few members) moved back into the very same house in the town by the lake when she was 15.  The fairies were gone and walking everywhere had become  torture.  But the magical kings, queens, prince and princes, were still living there.  Living in the little town by the lake was like wrapping up in a warm blanket on a cold night.   So for 3 years, she lived here until she was old enough to be on her own.  She gained life long friends, and several surrogate parents.  But it was time to leave the nest.  No sooner than 2 years later, she was working in the little town by the lake teaching dance while she went to school and worked.  She lived in the next town over but still went to church in the little town by the lake.  She decided to serve a mission for her church and left the little town by the lake but came back after her mission and decided to live, once again in the little town by the lake although her family was gone.  She needed all the support she could get at that time in her life and thankfully, the little town by the lake provided.  While attending church there, she met her husband and they lived happily ever after in a different town.  But happily ever after exists only in fairy tales and life threw this little girl, who was now a mother, a few curve balls.  She was used to it by now though.  She didn't move to the little town by the lake.  But she loved the big town she was in with her three kids.  And as time went on, the little town by the lake provided her with yet another husband.  He was going to church in the little town by the lake  and they married and moved far far away.  

8 years later, they are moving back to the little town by the lake.   It’s been a long, hard road to come back here.  She had to try every other town to finally come to the conclusion, that a house is just a house and a town is just a town, unless it’s home.  This town that held her hand when she got her first set of stitches, where she got to hold her newborn brother, where she fell in love several times, where she got her heart broken several times, where she graduated from school, where she found her husbands, where she mourned the loss of her "mother", where she learned to love nature, where she became independent, where she discovered her talents, got to know her God, and now where she is going to raise her own babies...in the little town by the lake.   

Home is not a house for me, it's a town filled with people that have raised me into the independent, free thinker, with a heart as big as a mountain.  I cannot give my own children a greater gift than being raised in this little town that can never be removed from me.  It will always be my home.

(hope you enjoy the pictures of our new home...on July 10th we will be moving)

City of Roses

We've had 3 sunny days in 3 months...literally. It doesn't seem to affect the roses that I love so much. Not a fan of hybrids but love a good garden variety shrub rose or cabbage rose. Can't get enough of these beauties.

Brighten's Room

This is a great room. Obviously, the inpiration was the drapes, which we will leave when we move. So goodbye pink and brown. You were good to both of my girls. Hopefully the new tenant will appreciate Kim Mager's cool design. I really like the randomness of it all. By the way, the colors in these photos are so muted. The yellow is as bright as mustard on the rugs and the paint!

Brighten has picked out and payed for a new comforter that will go with the yellow, pink and white stuff she already has. So we will have to get our friend to make some vinyl stickers of flowers to spice up her white walls soon. (The "red" isn't red. It's hot pink. I got it at Marshalls for a steal. It's a Tommy Hilfiger design that suites my Brighten to a tee!)

Madeline's Room

Sad to see it go, but we will find a way to incorporate color into the new house...

Honoring Patrick

I love my husband. He is not perfect. He works too much. He’s got a short temper. We are both very different people. But who would I be without all his little quirks?
I’ve learned so much being married to this man. He’s driven and engaging. He has no fear to speak his mind and stands up fearlessly for the little guy. He has an amazing power to motivate. He can convince people to move mountains. He’s a great missionary and holds his religion sacred. He will give you the shirt off his back. He delights in spending money on his family. He sees the positive even in a fiery furnace. He’s a powerhouse. He constantly tries to perfect himself. He will give me anything I want. He survives on very little sleep. His pride is his family. He loves to give the kids experiences. He supports me in all that I want to accomplish. He gets out of my way because you all know, nothing can stop this woman. He is learning to listen to me. He respects my unique gifts and doesn’t shrug them off. He carries me when I’m not strong enough to carry on alone. He’s a father to all his children, not just the biological ones. He is fiercely protective of me. He honors his priesthood. He’s really good at making me feel beautiful. He’s not inhibited at all. He helps me let loose and not follow all the rules. He excels at his job not just for himself, but for me. I know he’d rather be self employed but is sacrificing his dreams for his children and his wife. He does the dishes. He folds his own laundry. He works alongside his kids and tries his hardest to solve problems even if he has no clue how. (I mean its kinda cute that he tried to drain the pool with a sawsall...) He’s ok with my independent nature. He wont quit. He never gives up. He cries at movies. He has a sophisticated palate.

He does this all and does not have the firm assurance that I will be his for all of eternity, and yet still he gives his all. What more could a woman ask for?

Happy fathers day Patrick!
Love you...

BooHoo for Bread

It's official...and I have the blood tests to prove it. I have Celiac disease. I've suspected it for months, but wasn't 100% sure until today. I've been off gluten for at least a good month and a half with 3 contaminations that have sent me reeling. Something as small as crouton crumbs on salad made me sick for 3 days. I often wonder how I survived for this long but have come to understand that wheat is like an opiate for me. That's right people, it attaches to the receptors in the brain simulating an opiate response....things that make you go hmmmmm!
Anyway, it's completely treatable. We are in the process of testing Brighten, who probably has it, and figuring out if there are other allergies at play as well.
As a side benefit, I've lost 13 pound in less than two months just by eliminating wheat and dairy. Now comes the hard part...how to incorporate "normal" items into my diet that don't have gluten. I've found a good cheese that is soy and dairy free, a good tortilla wrap, a good wafer cookie, a good ice cream...so if any of you have any hints, feel free to share them with me. It's going to be a journey.