All You Need is Love: an offsite, non-Disney PTR (counting down to May 2018)

[Mrs Doubtfire]

Love the picture Gina, the cold weather is so wearing at times!! Roll on the sun

 

[pigletto]

Ack.. I have alot to catch up on. I didn't know you had been moved over here so I thought maybe you had just been too busy to post. Glad I finally searched in here!!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Looks like your weather is a bit like ours in Ohio. We enjoyed our two beautiful spring days last week and now we have a high of 39 tomorrow...brrr. We also had quite a bit of water in the last few weeks, we joked that our backyard was a pool at one point.

Whereabouts in Ohio are you? I have (so far) only been as far as Toledo (to the zoo, the Great Lakes Museum, and Tony Packos), but want to check out Sandusky this summer. There's a Kalahari there that's calling my name!

We've had copious amounts of rainfall, too......as a new homeowner, I will admit I was a bit nervous. Then, on the back of the rain, we had a winter storm on Tuesday and another is to hit us overnight. Hopefully you're far enough south that you are missing this April snow. On a happy note, the weatherman says 50's for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.......I sure hope they're right, because I ordered 3 yards of topsoil today to be delivered on Friday so we can do gardens this weekend.

Our agenda includes a day at MK, a 3 day Sea World/Aquatica pass, Showcase Citrus monster truck ride (both bought off groupon woo hoo!!) A day at Port Canaveral/ Cocoa Beach where we are hoping to show the boys cruise ships to get them excited for our upcoming cruise in October. I am so excited for this trip. Crazy its only 23?? days away. We haven't told the boys and think we will keep it a surprise. Although I love that this trip will be so soon, I also enjoy the excitement that comes with waiting for a trip to arrive.

I am starting to get things together. I finally bought a swimsuit today...such an exhausting process. Still would like to get a few new tops. Starting to look into restaurant choices. I know my favorites Sweet Tomatoes and Twistee Treat will be visited multiple times, but hoping to find something new and fun to add in the mix. Might add in a trip to Wonderland Cookie dough, I love me some cookie dough.

Your trip itinerary sounds awesome!! They will LOVE the monster truck at Showcase of Citrus!

If you have never done the Outta Control Dinner Show, I saw that its currently on Groupon for a good price. Its a very family friendly show with decent (albeit basic) food: popcorn, salad, pizza, and cake. Alcohol is included and unlimited. Ebates is currently offering 9% cash back on Groupon purchases, and usually there's a discount code rolled out every weekend, too (if you're a T-Mobile customer, next week's T-Mobile Tuesday includes 30% off at Groupon). Just a thought!

I am so glad that the pet nanny seems promising. My mom actually owned a boarding kennel while I was growing up, such a fun experience for a kid to get new pets to play with all the time. Hopefully your kitties take to her and its a great fit.

I will be interested to hear how your owners meeting goes. I am alot like you that while I applaud salesmen effort I am not easily bent and often
come our feeling like I have frustrated them. Hopefully they read the signs and let you out quickly and you can enjoy that extra spending as a fun bonus on your trip.

Honestly we have found the Vistana's owners update to be VERY easy and low-key. We've NEVER been kept longer than the promised 90 minutes, and last trip were in and out in less than an hour. Of course, I'm also pretty good at saying no in such a way that it doesn't leave room for discussion . I expect the presentation this time to be as quick and painless as the others .

Now back to all the updates I missed. I am so happy house hunting all worked out for you and it is feeling like home. I am exciting to see the before and afters. I love me some HGTV..haha. I am glad you have been able to spend some time with Jake. Im sure your heart aches everyday. I know my boys will eventually leave the nest so I am soaking in every moment I can with them.

Ah yes, I forgot that I promised y'all some photos! I will post those later tonight, for sure. I put some on my Facebook page and totally didn't think about posting some here, too.

I'll have to go back and find the itinerary, but I'm sure there is a day that works

Awesome!! I'm so excited!

If you're going to Disney Springs, you can easily spend that gift card. Go to Basin - they have all kinds of yummy scented things.

May mother nature be kind to you! Because she is currently a bi-polar, hateful wench. Hmmm, maybe if I stop calling her names she might be nicer to me.

So, my dear Ruthie, it's YOU that has annoyed the mighty Mother Nature? Well darlin', start whispering compliments in her ear for the next two weeks so she smiles on Florida from the 4th to the 12 of May, please and thanks .

Was it Basin where you bought the Bear Breath soap, or was that at Epcot only? Call me weird, but I'm intrigued by that .

Love the picture Gina, the cold weather is so wearing at times!! Roll on the sun

Amen, sister . Spring has just GOT to be around the corner......doesn't it????

Ack.. I have alot to catch up on. I didn't know you had been moved over here so I thought maybe you had just been too busy to post. Glad I finally searched in here!!

A little bit of both.....I haven't been the best trip reporter this past month, and this darn thread has been on the move so often even I forget where to look for it .

Glad you found us again, and welcome back! I was thinking that I hadn't heard from you lately, and hoped all was well .

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Hey there crew,

Finally popping in for a quick update. The countdown's getting smaller!!

7 more work shifts before our vacation starts. I'm quite looking forward to a little break from the office .

Earlier this week, I was able to snag a standard SUV (versus the intermediate reservation that I was currently holding) through Costco with Alamo for $203, so I'm quite thrilled that we were able to get the larger vehicle for our target price of $200 (well, its close enough to call it even!!). While I will continue to check rates daily just in case, I'm virtually sure that this will be the best price that we will see for an 8 day rental. I must make a note to ensure our Alamo Insiders account gets updated soon so that we can skip the counter on arrival and go straight to the garage.

I have a reminder in my phone to submit our Diamond Lane requests on Friday, and I have organized the printed copies of all the documents that we will need to take in hard copy form into a neat and tidy package that can just be popped into one of our carry-ons. Other than packing (which I generally don't do until a day or two beforehand.....after all these trips, I'm pretty efficient and can accomplish that task surprisingly quickly), there's precious little left to do.

Okay, well I guess I don't quite have THAT much time on my hands . But, I feel good about our level of readiness at this stage of the countdown.

With the two weekends we have left before we travel, we're going to do our level best to accomplish some outside work at the house (assuming the weather cooperates.....this weekend is looking favorable, but the following weekend is too far out to tell). We plan to do some grading along the house, and breath some new life into the very tired gardens along the front. I'm anxious to get some shrubs and hostas planted, though I think it may be a touch too early for either. That may have to wait until the weekend we fly home.

Since I completely forgot that I promised you guys some before and after pics of our house remodel, I'll post those in the next entry. Thing aren't completely finished, but the inside is pretty close. We've actually accomplished a few things since the photos were taken a week ago, but you'll just have to use your imagination on the stuff you see that's still undone.

One house tour, comin' up!

 

[Joanna71985]

Can't wait to see the house!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Alrighty, I'm not sure which room to start with. Maybe the one that was the ugliest? (hmmm, that might be a toss up ..... there was a lot of 'ugly' initially ).

Let's kick it off with the master bathroom. It's metamorphosis was pretty dramatic.

Here we are with the "before": Pretty In Pink? I think not.

Thankfully, all that pink tile and the blue sink, tub and toilet are all but a distant memory. Here's what it looks like now:

The tile work is really, really lovely. This is the some of the tile in the bathtub:

And this is the tile in the shower:

I'm not sure why, but the tile pictures end up looking more brown than grey, and while they do have both tones, the grey is much more prominent. You'll just have to trust me on that .

The living room is coming up next.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

The living room: one of my favorite rooms of the finished house. Here is the "Before":

That wrinkly carpet gives me the heebie jeebies .

Here is the living room now post-reno, with our personal touches :

I managed to get ONE picture without a cat in it . Dash was determined to get his photo taken!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Our house is a tri-level, so we have a big family room in the lower level. Steve claimed it as his man-cave the moment that our offer was accepted.

Before the remodel, it was gold. Oh, so gold.....a la 1970.

Here is what it looks like now:

Much as I was happy with Steve calling the shots on the furniture placement and decor in this room, I did insist on the cat pillows . He knew enough not to argue .

 

[Joanna71985]

Wow! The updates look great

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

The original kitchen featured blue metal cabinets and matching carpet.

It also had a banquette in the corner, and was largely closed off from the living and dining rooms.

The walls came down, the banquette is gone, and the both the blue cabinets and carpet are now long since gone. There's now a breakfast bar in the place of the banquette.

The dining room, which was also a gold color (to match the family room, maybe? ) has also been reborn. This is "before":

And here's the dining room now:

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

And finally.....a few other remodels:

The lower bathroom, before

The lower bathroom, after

The guest bedroom, before

The guest bedroom, after

Bedroom #3, before

Bedroom #3 (now my home office), after

The master bedroom, before

The master bedroom, after

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Wow! The updates look great

Thanks Joanna .

 

[I-4Bound]

Gosh, can you imagine having to clean up the carpet in a kitchen? Mine would be a nightmare! Thank goodness they got rid of that. Your house is so beautiful. I can't believe how put together it is in such a short time. You guys have really worked your butts off!

 

[MommyinHonduras]

Can't wait to see the house!

I was not wanting to wait either!

Pretty In Pink? I think no

Well Millenial Pink is in, you should have been able to get someone to take these! I love the way it turned out, great choice on that tile, love it!

That wrinkly carpet gives me the heebie jeebies

Ewww.....why?
Love the dark wood floring you chose to put throughout the living and dining room.

I did insist on the cat pillows . He knew enough not to argue

Oh My GOsh, I love those pillows on the couch. It would be even better if you got some glow paint and added it so at night they glow...hahaha.

matching carpet.

Why, why would a kitchen ever have carpet? But I love the metal cabinets. I would want them in a craft room though. Did they get throw away or hauled off by someone?

Very nice. I would want a realtor to give a walk through as see what the house would sell for know so you can but a number on all that hard work. And also I wanted too much HgTV.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Gosh, can you imagine having to clean up the carpet in a kitchen? Mine would be a nightmare! Thank goodness they got rid of that. Your house is so beautiful. I can't believe how put together it is in such a short time. You guys have really worked your butts off!

I can only imagine how that carpet smelled as they pulled it up . Gag.

We have definitely been a pair of busy beavers over the last 3 weeks. Our goal was to have the house set up and every box unpacked before our trip, and we met our target with 2+ weeks to spare!

I was not wanting to wait either!

Well Millenial Pink is in, you should have been able to get someone to take these! I love the way it turned out, great choice on that tile, love it!

Ewww.....why?
Love the dark wood floring you chose to put throughout the living and dining room.

Oh My GOsh, I love those pillows on the couch. It would be even better if you got some glow paint and added it so at night they glow...hahaha.

Why, why would a kitchen ever have carpet? But I love the metal cabinets. I would want them in a craft room though. Did they get throw away or hauled off by someone?

Very nice. I would want a realtor to give a walk through as see what the house would sell for know so you can but a number on all that hard work. And also I wanted too much HgTV.

I'd like to take credit for the finishes, but they were all selected and installed by the people who flipped the house. They were very tasteful, though, and didn't cheap out on the tile, appliances, and other fixtures. Quite surprising for someone trying to make a tidy profit.

The dark wood floors are incredibly attractive, but OMG do they ever show little specs of dirt . And cat fur (which, Lord knows, I have a lot of in our house ). I am vacuuming regularly to keep them looking bee-you-tiful.

I am told that someone purchased the blue metal kitchen cabinets for $500, and were beyond thrilled to get the vintage pieces. As my mom always said, "One person's junk is another person's treasure" .

Our realtor was actually over for a visit today for a tour of the finished house. She had only ever seen it in its natural state, which was renovated but completely empty. It was fun to show her how it looked now that our "vision" had been carried out .

 

[MommyinHonduras]

Ah, ok. I want to flip houses, if I lived a different life that is. Now I just want to be able to buy a house. Do not like renting but the challenges of international living do not make possible for us to buy at this time.

 

[J'aime Paris]

WOW! The transformation is incredible!
Enjoy your new home

 

[pattyw]

Beautiful home! I wish I had the $$ to transform a few of my rooms, but my vacation budget keeps getting in the way!

 

[goofygal531]

Earlier this week, I was able to snag a standard SUV (versus the intermediate reservation that I was currently holding) through Costco with Alamo for $203, so I'm quite thrilled that we were able to get the larger vehicle for our target price of $200 (well, its close enough to call it even!!). While I will continue to check rates daily just in case, I'm virtually sure that this will be the best price that we will see for an 8 day rental. I must make a note to ensure our Alamo Insiders account gets updated soon so that we can skip the counter on arrival and go straight to the garage.

That’s an amazing price!

I’ve got a Car Rental situation going myself for February. We’re flying to Miami then driving to the keys. The car prices are insane! $100+ per day. When you find a lower rate, do you cancel and rebook? Any tips or suggestions?

I prefer Alamo thru Costco but right now my rate for an intermediate SUV is $500+ with them. I found a code with Budget for $250, but for four days I’d still prefer it less than that.

 

[dalmatian7]

What an awesome transformation! It looks like it is out of a magazine. However... that man cave is missing something..... MINIONS perhaps? tee he he he. Love love the cat pillows. So fun but still classy with the decor.

Personally, I love the pink bathroom but I am a retro person. I would have just toned it down some with paint and accessories. While I liked the blue metal cabinets (and am happy to hear they went to a good home). The carpet, blech and the booth did not work at all. The newer design is so much better. The flippers did do a great job of choosing nice fixtures/finishes. It looks like a new build. You have lived there 2 months and 1 year less then I have been in my home and I have nothing that looks as put together, except maybe DDs room because we had to buy her new furniture.

Your bushes may be okay to plant this weekend, but I might hold off on the hosta. They are hardy but this weather has been so horrible. We put some apple trees in two weeks ago and the wind sunday-monday here has one tilted to a 45 degree angle. It will have to be redug this weekend.

With the way spring is going, it may still be snowing when you leave. We had snow in NEPA again this morning.