The Need to Knows...

Today is our 2 year anniversary of signing the papers to our first home. Believe it or not, it's only been 24 months. We've accomplished a lot in only a short time of being homeowners and experienced more than we ever thought. With the help of both our parents we have been able to include several different improves to give our house our own personal touch. And along the way, as new homeowners, we have discovered some very valuable knowledge:

1. Even though you drive to the same house everyday, when all the houses look the same, sometimes you can drive right past it. We've found that black lights which glow a very RECOGNIZABLE purple is very helpful in this situation. Plus they are excellent Halloween decor.

2. Despite the fact that your dog can leave horse piles in the backyard, the neighbors will still walk right through your yard, so a fence is absolutely essential. And to think we thought that we just had to have a fence to keep our dogs in, rather than the neighbors out.

3. Don't get me wrong, I think they look very nice and it's definitely considered an upgrade, but I'm a little upset that nobody told me that rounded corners are a BEAR to paint!! Thank GOD for angled brushes and Aunt Flo's HGTV secret tips.

4. There's probably a reason why people don't paint their houses bright and vivid colors...besides the fact that they don't like them I mean. Red, Green, and Chocolate Brown take several coats of paint. We still love our bright happy colors though!

5. Fertilizer and actually putting it down is a good thing. We've grown from new, weenie grass to thick summer grass back to winter/drought crunchy grass. But yet, our yard still looks good. Miracle Grow is our friend!

6. Speaking of summer grass....a push mower in Florida is NOT a good thing no matter how old you are and how much cheaper it is. So thank you to both of our fathers!!

7. I have learned that Kurt REALLY DOES NOT like spiders - especially the black widow that set up camp in our bath tub. And there is such a thing as a pregnant spider...

8. And although I really don't like him, the black snake (that probably has a friend) that lives on and under my deck is probably the reason why I don't have spiders in my house anymore. If only he could eat more of the lizards so it doesn't seem so much like Jurassic park out there.

9. One would think I would know better, but NEVER EVER walk down the stairs with lot of stuff in your hands without holding the railing. It really hurts when you fly up in the air and land on your back like in the cartoons.

10. Always screen your front step before answering your door on a Saturday or Sunday to avoid the old women and Asians that try to force their religion upon you. Therefore, our next house will have a solid door so they can't see us on the other side.

11. Don't park on the road and block your mailbox or anybody elses for that matter or you will get hate notes from the mail lady - she doesn't even drive a mail truck. A Durango is hardly a suitable vehicle for the USPS!

12. It is essential to have at least one large vehicle that can fit large items...go figure. It can be very embarrassing to stand in the parking lot of Lowes and/or Home Depot while trying to fit a simple set of 4 patio chairs into lets say a Mazda 3 for example. Equally irritating to have to rent a giant truck to bring them home.

13. Even though you park your car in your own driveway, it's not exactly safe. Be sure to remove all valuables and garage door opener or you will suffer terrible lose like our neighbors.

14. Sulfur smells REALLY bad and causes a huge downward spiraling chain of events whether the stench is coming from your house or not.

15. Some kids are just plain stupid. We have come to this conclusion by witnessing the inhabitants in our neighborhood that stand under 5 feet tall.

16. For those of you that didn't learn it when you were children - never run into the street or stop your bike directly in front of my car intentionally and start yelling at me. I am driving a giant metal death machine - clearly you are missing brain cells! FYI for those of you visiting us... beware of these people!

17. You should never RUN up to a dog and yell at it or try and pet it. You should never try to sneak up on a dog either. If they are 2 giant white dogs, you are likely not to be bitten, but rather crap themselves instead. Please try to avoid this as it is very difficult to handle as their owner.

18. Kurt has learned that nearly all women, not just his mother, carry the trait with the need to frequently move furniture to re-arrange the room. He still hates it.

19. Collectively, we drive 300 miles a day, that's 1500 a week and 6,000 a month...I won't keep going. And no matter how much we think it will be okay, sooner or later, it gets old and logical reasoning kicks in.

20. No matter how much you plan, things always come up, totally unexpected and never how you plan it to be.

Despite all the valuable and invaluable things we've learned and shared with you from owning a home, making life altering decisions and simply just trying to make it in this world, it's all one big adventure. I can't say that it's easy, but we never want it to be either. Everyday we are better, stronger people from the experiences we have. Although having a house is a huge responsibility and demands a lot of work, sometimes that work doesn't really seem so much like work. Even after years of pulling weeds and mowing yards while growing up, hating every minute of it...it just doesn't seem so bad anymore when it's your own yard. No, we didn't think we'd ever say that... but I guess that's all part of it, life surprises you too. We drive 300 miles a day to be able to have a house like we do and see each other everyday. That alone is worth the sacrifice of driving those many, many miles. We frequently make dinner together and take it out on our back deck to enjoy the breeze off the lake while we eat.