Feeeeeeding My Addiction

A very friendly fellow blogger was kind enough to allow me to change the design of her site (Here in Panama ). **I have mentioned that this has become an addiction for me, right?** She simply asked me how to do something & I practially begged her to let me try a new design. Yes, I need to start a Bloggers Anonymous. My addiction to blogging is consuming me! I admit it.

Her name is Christy and she is an American living in Panama (which is pretty similar to Miami). I check her site out practically everyday. She has great stories about life, traveling, and a very cute baby. Go check out her site for the stories. You already know she is nice. She actually let me mess with her blog, even though I am sure she knows I'm crazy...

Tags: Here in Panama, blog designs, cute baby

Drama Momma

The weird ones came and picked up their furniture, but there is no drama to report. The pajama lady didn't even show up. Her niece came with 4 guys. Actually, two of them were about 13 years old. They cleared out our house and we now have an echo.

I realized last night, that I was so occupied with the drama the weird women were causing that I completely forgot to mention the strangest thing that happened on Sunday. Another woman pulled up to our garage sale in a little Honda. When she got out, we could tell that she had just come from church. She had a black floral dress on and high heels. She sifted though some clothes and asked about the microwave.

She began chatting with one of my friends who stopped by and was holding Lexi. She asked if Lexi was her daughter and she said no. Then, the lady proceeded to announce in a very loud voice that she had an abortion 4 months ago. She said she has 4 kids already and didn't need another one. What do you say to a stranger that has just announced something like that? The answer was nothing. We all froze. She didn't skip a beat though, because right at that moment she saw what she really wanted... the best pair of hooker shoes your money can buy.

I was given them as a gag gift about 5 years ago. They were red with a thick band around the ankle and 4" spiked metal heels. They came out of the Victoria Secret Catalog. I got them for Christmas from an 80+ year old rich man that was working on a development project with me. He told me that I work too much and I need to live it up more. I think they were over $50 and had never been worn, but Ms. Announce the Abortion got them for a mere $5 and will probably be wearing them to church next Sunday.

Tags: Victorias Secret, drama momma, garage sale

Move is On!

We got the letter today. It looks like this weekend we will officially become South Beach Residents. I can hardly believe it. Thanks to all of you for your finger crossing & well wishes. Good vibes always come in handy.

Tags: South Beach Residents, SOBE, moving

Closer to What???

For the past week, the Daily Review (a Miami paper that focuses on the law and real estate) has had numerous front page articles about the housing market. Of course, all of them were dismal. Yesterday, the clip above was in the paper. All this makes me want the sell to go through even more.

Yesterday was the official day that we were supposed to get the letter that I can't stop talking about (buyer's proof of financing). I called our realtor around noon, after my husband called me. Of course, my husband is dieing to know when they will give it to us too. Our realtor called the buyer's mortgage broker who said they would have the letter tomorrow, which is now today. She also wanted to know if we could close this week. What??? They want us to be moved out right after they provide the letter? As it is, it would have been smarter for us to wait to put a deposit down on an apartment until after they provided us the letter. I just told her that we will be happy to close next week like our contract states.

What can I do? Life marches on. I am hoping for the least stressful way, which still involves packing and moving. Oh & I can't forget another visit from the garage sale weirdos who showed up last night in a little vehicle stuffed full with 15 kids to pick up the furniture. Needless to say, it is still sitting in our house so they will be coming back to create more drama.

Tags: Daily Business Review, house for sale, housing market

Welcoming all kinds of Weirdos

We were sitting in our driveway when her Escalade swerved in. She stumbled out wearing silk pjs and closing her top, but not before exposing her sagging chest. She turned to shout at the million kids in her car to stay there. She frantically shuffled around glancing at our items for sale while clutching her purse, probably trying to hide the fact that her buttons were missing. I told her that we have furniture inside if she was interested. She nodded that she wanted to go in, so I asked Steve to handle it. I was taking care of Lexi and helping some other buyers. They were in there for about 2 minutes when she comes rushing out practically yelling that she would be right back with her niece who just moved into an apartment and would be buying everything we had.

We didn't see them again until they knocked on our door 6 hours later. This time she was wearing a short black wig and clothes. Steve didn't even recognize her until I told him she was the pajama lady. Once again, their car was full of about a million kids. Her niece gave us cash for our living room set and then she said she would be right back with a big red truck. We haven't seen her since. I hope she comes and takes it all quickly, but part of me is dreading the ruckus that they will cause with their noisy ways. I just hope they don't show up after Lexi is asleep.

The garage sale was very successful. There were many odd characters besides this lady (including a crackhead woman on the bike), but that is to be expected when you live a few blocks away from the hood. This weekend, we met more of our neighbors than we had in the year and a half we lived there. The ones from our little subdivision were all very nice. I guess we should have had a garage sale when we moved in. They all mentioned that we are lucky our house sold, because many have been on the market longer without any bites. The more I hear and read about the market, the more I hope this sales goes through.

We only have a 2 big items left and a few people said they would be back during the week to buy them. No real commitments, but I can always have a little sale next Saturday. Plus, I put the items on craigslist. Now, we just have to pack the rest & cross our fingers that everything goes well with the buyer's financing.

Tags: garage sale, house for sale, neighbors

Freakin Friday

Actually, today is one of those RARE times when I am not ready for it to be Friday. We are having a big moving sale this weekend, and what have I done to prepare? Practically NOTHING. The only thing I did was post a moving sale announcement on CraigsList, which I need to do again now that it is tomorrow.

By now, I should have unpacked our China Cabinet, dresser, night stands, etc. I should have bought garage sale signs from Home Depot. I should have bought stickers to label prices and figured out what to ask. I should have picked up the stuff from storage that I want to sell. I was also supposed to get my husband to sign the apartment lease agreement and the condo association's review application in order to mail it out today. Shoulda Woulda Coulda...

So, the fact that today is Friday is not a good sign. The worst part is that I don't even feel like doing it tonight, but deadlines loom & and I need to get steppin. Do you know what I really feel like doing??? -Redesign my blog. I love this time of year when holidays are looming (even though it still is 90 degrees here) and I want to be cheesily festive. Must fight the urge.

Tags: Freakin Friday, Moving Sale, Too Much To Do

Tagless Tees

For the most part, I like tagless t-shirts and other clothing items. They do have a downside though. When I get a chance in the morning (meaning the baby is still sleeping), I like to go through the morning rituals half asleep. I keep the lights off to take a shower and get dressed. We have Glade Plug-Ins with the little night light, so there is only a soft glow around. When I wore shirts with tags, I could easily feel the back side and slip on my clothing. Now, it isn't that easy and I have to move closer to the night light or turn on the blasted blinding room lights. OUCH!

Tags: tagless t-shirts, morning rituals, tired

Wife Kissing

Our morning ritual includes a hug, a kiss and saying, "Have a great day." This morning a few minutes after Steve left, he called to say, "Thank you." The DJs on his favorite radio station were discussing a poll. Apparently, men who kiss their wives before heading to work generally make more money than those that don't. That is true in our case; Steve's salary has jumped quite a bit since we met. Mostly, because he is more interested in his career, but we'll say it is simply because of the morning kisses.

Realistically, many people aren't career driven unless they have a reason to be. The responsibility of a family is probably the main reason men are afraid of commitment. I don't blame them. A happy family life only makes them want to do even better. That is my opinion anyway.

Other News: There is some confusion between the realtors. The letter was due in 15 days. One realtor thinks that is 15 calendar days and the other thinks 15 business days. Unfortunately, after thinking about it, 15 business days makes more sense to me. So, we probably will not be getting the letter until next Monday. However, the buyer's realtor/mortgage broker is extremely confident because he has excellent credit. We decided to tell the apartment lady we'll take it. Now, we have to continue to cross our fingers that everything works out.

Tags: wife kissing, salary, couples

More Time in Limbo Land

As you know, I am on pins & needles waiting to see if we get to become South Beach residents. The day is dragging on and on while we wait for the letter. I will probably end up calling my realtor to make sure that someone else is going crazy waiting with me. Cruel right?

My urgent condition was increased this morning with a news broadcast about the real estate market in South Florida. Apparently, the market in Miami-Dade County is down 37% since last year. I don't like those odds in case this falls through. I will keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best. I think the worst thing that could happen (besides not selling) is that they ask for an extension of time to provide the letter. That would mean that we would probably lose the apartment. It would really suck to lose it over a few days of waiting.

Waiting Game

I don't have much to say today because we're in a state of limbo. We found a GREAT apartment in the best part of South Beach. It is a 2/2 with a washer and dryer in the unit. The price is right and it is only a 3 block walk to the beach. My husband's commute will only take 5 - 10 minutes and I'll be traveling opposite of traffic. Sounds wonderful right? In a way, it is almost too good to be true.

Now, we are just waiting for concrete proof of financing from our buyer. He has until tomorrow to provide it. Isn't it horrible to be waiting for something to happen so you can get what you want? I feel like I am impatiently putting my life on hold to the point of being practically handcuffed. I don't know if I should start packing or making arrangements. Everything seems like a waste of time. If it all goes well, I will have to hit the ground running very soon.

Realistically, I will not be crushed if this all doesn't happen. I will be fine if the sell falls through. Just yesterday, we had a couple stop by that really wanted our house and were disappointed that there was already a contract in place. It was appraised for $5,000 more than our selling price, so we could probably get a little more. Plus, we can always find another apartment that we will like, even if it is not as great as this one. I guess mostly, I hate waiting to find out our fate.

Tags: waiting game, house for sale, fate