Saturday, April 24, 2010

Wait-listed!

I realize this blog has become a LOT more than just the "Adventures of Noel"...maybe I should change the title!

Anyway, I found out this past Monday that I was wait-listed for the Nursing program. I was not surprised, since the nursing program is pretty competitive.

Last year they had 300 applicants for 100 spots, and this year they had 535 applicants. I received my letter today stating that I was placed "57th" on the waiting list.

Needless to say, I'm not holding my breath! I will spend this year preparing for nursing school, and taking my two other science classes. (Anatomy & Physiology II, and Microbiology) It might actually work out better this way, because my semesters won't be SO jam-packed. I was worried about my time management!

House Closing is still on!

Despite all of the issues we've faced with the whole home-buying process, closing is still on!

We're scheduled for Wednesday, April 28th at 10 AM.

WOO HOO!

In 4 days, if all goes well, we will finally be homeowners!

And with any luck, two days after that, we will be the proud owner of a new...vehicle yet to be decided upon. ;-)

We are looking at Ford Escapes, due to their larger size, cargo area (for canine transport) and relatively high (low?) gas mileage.

Stay tuned!

Bye bye, car

After a month and half of advertising my car like crazy on several craigslists in the state, I finally sold my car last night!

It was my first new car and it was very sad to see it drive away with its new owner. I bought it in Charleston, South Carolina which was the closest Acura dealership to where I was living, in Myrtle Beach. I researched for months on end, trying to find the perfect car. I really liked the VW Beetles at the time, but my dad advised me against it because they have a lot of electrical problems.

I also considered a Mazda RX-8, which has a rotary engine and was much more expensive. But after realizing that it would NOT work well with a 70-pound dog, I decided to go with the Acura RSX-S, which has a hatchback. I used to fold down the seats and travel with the dogs back there.

Ever since Noel was born, it's been difficult to get in/out and to tote around all of our stuff when we go on trips. In fact, when we go to Roanoke, Tim and I have to drive separately because there is no way for both of the dogs to fit in the car.

Regardless of how impractical it was for our family, I LOVED my car and I will miss it dearly.

Goodbye, old friend. I hope he babies you and treats you better than I did!

Monday, April 12, 2010

House update

I always thought that the acceptance of an offer was always the hardest point during the whole house-buying process. But perhaps that was because we had never made it past that point.

I now realize what a HUGE can of worms we have opened. "Our" house seems to have quite a few issues, the biggest being that there is substantial mold growth in the basement. Adding on to the never-ending list are...

-Broken Water Heater (or perhaps just repairing the existing one)
-No Stove
-No Fridge

These are items that one MUST have in order to live in a house, so these are at the top of the list. Other smaller items include new carpet and paint, obviously.

So apparently the loan we're getting requires that the property is safe to inhabit (no check), and has a working kitchen - specifically running hot water and an oven (no check)

These items would need to be taken care of before the closing date, which if it's for the mold remediation, that would be impossible. The bank is refusing to pay for ANY repairs to the house. We're not sinking the big $$ into a house that we don't even own yet!

SO at this point we've ordered an appraisal, and we're hoping the appraiser will not see the mold growth. Well, maybe it would be for the best if he did, because then this whole thing would be over with!

Regardless, we're already into it, and we're going to try to make it work. It really is a good house, it's just that it has been closed up since the fall, with no air flow, which caused the mold growth. The water heater would also be in working condition if someone had lived there recently.

I think we would move on to other possibilities if we had the time, or if there was anything else out there in our price range that was worth buying. If this one falls through, we're renting!