One down, about 23 to go

A few weeks ago, Justin mentions that he has been researching windows and wants us to replace the windows in our house. I kind of laugh and think, "Yeah, like we can do that!" He says new windows will help with heating and cooling costs because they will be much more energy efficient than our current windows. If our new windows meet certain criteria, we'll also get tax credit.

The next weekend, he drags me to Lowe's, Home Depot, and a window and door store. I realize he's not only serious about replacing all of the windows, but we're going to do it ourselves. Justin and I are no novices when it comes to DIY home improvement, but replacing windows seemed a little out of our league. Windows keep the outside from coming in. Windows keep burglars from coming in. Windows keep bugs from coming in. Windows can even keep snakes from coming in.

After researching nearly every window currently on the market, we decided to use American Craftsman windows from Home Depot. American Craftsman is owned by Andersen, and in my opinion, Andersen makes quality windows. We spent quite a while playing with the display windows and learned all about them. We got some quotes for the windows and learned about all of the options and features the windows offered. We were walking around the window and door area of HD and found their window sale bin. We rummaged through it and found three windows that were the size we needed. Someone ordered them and then decided not to purchase them. They were pretty much exactly what were were looking for, except these were a nicer series than we were planning to buy. We thought about buying them, but decided to wait.

The next weekend, Justin said he really wanted to go ahead and order a couple of the windows and attempt to install them. We went to HD and got them to run a few more prices for us, including those sale windows. We decided to go ahead and buy two of the three sale windows since they were so cheap. We ended up saving $300 by buying them instead of ordering windows. We loaded them in the trunk of the Honda and headed home. I never thought the Honda would be hauling windows around Atlanta. The Honda has also hauled seven tires for Justin's car. Yes, you can fit seven tires for a Mercedes in the trunk and backseat of a Honda.

Due to the expense associated with new windows, we're going to do a few at the time. Those windows will cost several thousands of dollars and we just don't want to spend that much at one time. We also don't have room in the house to store that many windows.

Yesterday, we decide to install one of the windows. Justin has watched many videos online and knew exactly what to do. We had printed directions from HD to refer to. We gathered all of our supplies and started removing the old window. It was actually very easy. We decided to install these first two windows in our bedroom since they would be very slightly different from the ones in the rest of the house. We cleaned the opening and prepared the new window for installation. This was actually very easy, too. We put the window in the opening and it fit perfectly. We were amazed. After shimming it and making sure everything was level, Justin screwed it in place. Then he caulked the inside and outside. We still need to paint and install the new stop moulding for the inside part of the window, but that won't take long. The new window looks fantastic! We're also surprised at how much outside noise the new window blocks. We can barely hear those naughty chipmunks chirping at daybreak now!

This is the window before we started working.

Another view of the old window.

Justin is removing the stop moulding. The stop moulding keeps the window in the opening (actually, the nails/screws in the tracks do that, but the moulding helps) and helps "finish" the window. It makes the window pretty.

Justin removed all of the stop moulding and was about to remove the bottom sash.

The bottom sash is removed and Justin is working on removing the tracks and springs so the upper sash can be removed.

Justin is removing the metal tracks.

After both sashes and the old track have been removed.

Justin caulking the opening, preparing it for the new window. With his mouth open, Justin looks like a woman applying mascara, doesn't he?

Yay! The new window in place!

There was a very small space between the window top and the framing, so Justin sprayed a small amount of insulating foam. A little bit creeped out. After it dried, Justin trimmed it and caulked around it. The new stop moulding will cover it.

My man and his caulk gun...shortly before we ran out of caulk.

I promise I did help. Justin did do most of the work, but I handed him tools when necessary and I helped lift the window in place. I was also the official project photographer. I'm not going to quit my day job.

We installed a second window Sunday after breakfast. We aren't sure how long the first one took since we stopped a few times to do other things. The second one took a little over an hour. I'm sure that time will be shortened as we continue installing windows.

I'll post pictures after we install the painted stop moulding next weekend.

FYI – Atlanta has snakes, too

I mentioned in a previous post that I am scared of snakes. I know there are snakes in nearly all parts of the southeastern US. There are some big snakes and there are some even bigger ones. I was hoping to not see any in Atlanta.

After seeing the one on Mama’s porch a couple of months ago, Justin mentioned that there was a dead one in the road in front of our house in Atlanta and it was the largest snake he has seen in person in a while – about four feet (definitely not the biggest one ever, but not tiny, either). I was very scared after hearing that. Where did this ginormous monster come from? Luckily, it was gone before I arrived that Friday evening.

Last Saturday afternoon, the plan was for me to mow the yard and Justin was going to edge and use the weed eater. He went inside for a second and I began mowing. I had barely made one pass in the yard and I saw IT! IT was slithering into the bushes! I squealed and then decided I was hot stuff with that lawn mower, so I tried to chase it down. I should mention that we have a push mower, so me not abandoning the mower and running to the tallest object I could climb was a big deal for me. I pushed that mower into those bushes and kept trying to chop the snake into tiny pieces. Lucky for the snake, but not so lucky for me, the blade on the mower was set too high, so I doubt I could have killed him even if I had gotten a direct hit. Geez he was fast!

I gave up after a minute and ran (carefully) into to house and yelled for Justin. He ran to the storage room to grab a shovel and went to work. He plunged that shovel into the snake-hording bush and all the ones nearby. He searched for it for a while and eventually gave up. In the meantime, I kept mowing. Justin had to stand guard near the bushes and keep the shovel handy in case the snake decided to make another appearance. It didn’t, naturally.

Every time I left the house after that, I had to quickly stomp to the car. Justin asked me what was up with the “marching” to the car and I told him that was to scare the snake.

When I told him the snake was probably about eight inches long and the diameter of a pencil, Justin said my description of this massive snake was a little exaggerated.

On a positive note, the weather in Atlanta this weekend was fabulous! It was breezy and cool enough that we opened a few windows and let in some fresh air. I couldn’t believe how wonderful the weather was. After mowing, we sat out on the back patio and just relaxed. It was nice.

How Not to Have a Good Day

Yesterday morning started off kind of normal. After Justin got up, we decided to head to Ikea for lunch and some candles. I got dressed and was attempting to spray my neck with perfume. However, I managed to spray the right side of my face. My right eye took a direct hit. After the burning subsided, I decided everything was ok.

We arrived and were really shocked to see that we were the first people to park in the lower parking deck. That parking deck level was completely empty and we were wondering if they were even open. The upper parking deck was fairly full, so that's why the lower one was empty. They were open so we headed to the cafeteria. We received our food and headed to the cashier. After paying and heading to the table, I realized that I was charged for a combo when all I wanted was the entree. I went to the closest cashier and explained the situation to him. He said they do sell the pasta entree that I ordered as a combo OR entree-only but I would need to return to the cashier where I paid. I went to her line and waited. When it was my turn, I explained to her what I needed and she said they don't sell the pasta as entree-only. I told her that I had gotten the pasta without paying for the combo before and she somewhat politely informed me that I was wrong.

Since I had paid for the combo, I went to grab a salad. After finding the dressings, I pressed the pump lever to dispense the Italian dressing. The pump was obviously not working properly. It shot out and not only sprayed my bowl of lettuce but my shirt, my arms, and my face. This time, my left eye got sprayed. I'm not sure what caused my eye to burn worse, perfume or Italian dressing.

Covered in dressing, I walked back to the table, still carrying my now dressing-soaked salad, and began crying - "I think I need to just go home!" Justin asked me what happened and I told him. He left the table and came back with the cafeteria manager. I briefly explained to him what happened at the register and he said that they do sell the pasta without the combo, but because it's nearly the same price as the combo, people complain when they do it that way. I said that I understood that, but the cashier told me that they DON'T sell it like that and I knew they did because I have ordered that way before. He said he would discuss it with her and make sure she knew. I went on to tell him that their dressing dispenser was not working properly and he said he would check on it. He also said "Wow! You're not having a very good day are you?" and I said "No, it hasn't been all that great."

We headed downstairs to grab the candles and a gift card. We waited in the self-check line for a while. An employee comes up to us and says that the self-check bay has two separate lines and we would need to get in one or the other. She didn't say this to anyone else in the line, just us. This didn't make us happy and we just kept standing where we were. Naturally, when we tried to purchase the gift card, the register informed us that we would need to wait for an employee to continue. After waiting for a minute, another register opened, so I moved to it to pay for my candles. Justin got the attention of an employee and explained to her that he thought it was ridiculous for them to have two lines in each self-check bay because it's unfair if you end up in the line where there is a problem at the register. She looked at him like he had just sprouted a second head and said "I agree. That's why we only have one line at each self-check bay." Justin told her what happened with the other employee and she said "I don't know why someone told you that because that's not correct. We deliberately put product along the sides of each bay to force you into one line."

We grabbed our stuff (minus the gift card) and left. We headed to H&M to look at clothes. I found a shirt I wanted. Several were tagged with a "$5" sale tag, but the size I needed did not. I figured it had fallen off so I grabbed the shirt anyway. Justin found several shirts he wanted and we headed to a register. Naturally, mine rang up full price. We told the lady that the others had sale tags. She tried calling around to other employees to get someone to check the price. No one responded so I ran downstairs to grab one of the others. When I finally made it back upstairs, she had gotten the correct price and Justin was finishing the transaction. This transaction wasn't terrible, just annoying.

We went to Forsyth Fabrics to look at fabric for master bedroom curtains. I won't go into great detail, but Justin and I decided that he and I had inflicted enough damage on that side of town so we headed home.

I should mention that my shirt still had quite a bit of dressing remaining so I no longer smelled like the lovely perfume I had coated my face and eye with; I now smelled like Italian dressing. The red chunks that remained on my now-stained shirt were also an unwanted reminder of the day's earlier activities. I looked like I had baby vomit down the front of my shirt. I had to wrap my seatbelt with napkins to prevent the dressing from coating my seatbelt. So, not only was my shirt stained and smelling like dressing, I looked like an idiot driving around with a poof of napkins shoved between my chest and the seatbelt.

After all that, my day never really recovered, so July 3, 2009 will be tagged as a day from hell in my book.

Annabelle's Teeth Cleaning (Part 2)

I picked up Annabelle from the vet this afternoon and she was very happy to see me. Her tail never stopped moving. After I got her settled in the car, we headed to Chick-fil-A for some chicken nuggets, water, and diet lemonade (for me!). Annabelle appreciated the food and water since she hadn't eaten since 10:00 p.m. the night before. That little doggie LOVES chicken!

Annabelle's Teeth Cleaning (Part 1)

At her yearly check-up, the vet told me that Annabelle needed to have her teeth cleaned. It was somewhat amusing to me - cleaning a dog's teeth?! However, I love my two doggies very much and will do whatever is necessary to keep them healthy and happy. From what I understand, the cleaning is similar to a human teeth cleaning. The worst part was that my sweet Annabelle would have to be put to sleep for the cleaning, which means I would have to stop feeding her the night before.

Annabelle and Pete have a morning ritual of going outside while I clean their overnight pads and prepare their food. After exploring the yard for a few minutes, they come back in and expect a treat. I knew I wouldn't be able to give Pete a treat and not give one to Anne, so I decided to keep them inside this morning. They didn't seem too upset until I got the carrier ready and only put Annabelle in it. Pete was not happy! She looked so pitiful and hurt. I hated to separate them, but Pete didn't need to spend the entire day in a carrier at the vet.

After loading the carrier in the car, I returned to the house to love on Pete for a minute. She really wanted to go with me. I gave her a treat, which she ignored, and left. My niece happily agreed to spend the day with Pete so she wouldn't be alone.

Annabelle travels really well in the carrier. The longest she's ever spent in the car is under two hours, but she sleeps most of the time on car rides. On the other hand, Pete whimpers most of the time. The ladies at the vet were so happy to see Annabelle and shocked that Pete wasn't with us. We were greeted with, "Oh, my goodness! You brought one without the other one?" I had to explain that I was such a bad mother and left Pete grieving at home.

They told me they would take care of my sweet Annabelle and I could pick her up at 4:30 this afternoon. I cannot wait! With the exception of grooming days, I hate having to leave either of them at the vet for the day. The day I dropped them both off to be spayed, I sat in my car in the parking lot and cried. I hated doing that to them. I know it was necessary, but I still hated it. I called the vet several times to check on them that afternoon. They both had to spend the night at the vet. I'm glad I will be able to pick up Anne this afternoon.

I'll try to update later tonight. Maybe I can include some pictures of Annabelle's clean teeth!