by Claire
I had absolutely nothing to do yesterday. The kids went to their Dad’s house for the first time in a month and I had nothing to do. I needed to clean my house but instead I watched television all day! I did workout in the morning but was back home by 9 am and in pj’s for the DAY! Wow. I don’t know when I did that last! It felt great.
I got sucked into a few television shows via Hulu and the internet. Some were truly mind-numbing (did you know there’s a reality show called “Pregnant and Dating?” Don’t judge me for watching that one!) while others were very informative! I watched House Hunters (both domestic and international) as well as “Love It or List It.” I think I’ve seen one episode of House Hunters before and “Love It or List It” was new for my TV watching list. There were a couple that caught my attention but two stand out. The first was the family from Houston who was transferred to Brussels for the husband’s job. I tend to watch things now with a “pre-blog” and “post-blog” take. I could relate to so many things about this family under my “pre-blog” brain. They were trying to make Europe fit their very American (and dare I say very Texan) ways. The wife kept saying she had a vision of what their European house would be like but then kept including very American aspects to that vision. And they had SO MUCH STUFF that I don’t know how they walked around the final set up of their home. The second episode was the single, female Dallas lawyer who up and moved to Rome. She had a business idea it seemed for consulting on American legal issues for European businesses but the show didn’t go into exactly how that worked. She had an $1,800 budget and decided on an apartment that wasn’t her top choice (the top choice was $2,400 per month) and she recognized that she could not overextend like that until the business was more stable. I have a secret little dream that after my kids are grown and I retire, I will live at least part time in Europe–so it was fun to watch that one.
Then there was “Love It or List It.” The premise of this one is a family’s home no longer meets their needs and one spouse wants to sell while the other wants to stay. So the show brings in a design/remodeling team to convert the current home into what the couple says they need and also brings in a real estate agent to find the couple a new home to buy. After all of the renovations are done and an available for purchase home is decided upon, the couple decides to “Love It or Leave It.” This show is fascinating from a relationship perspective too. The spouse who wanted to leave (in one episode the husband, in another the wife) really went to great lengths to not like their current home. It was as though the designer was dealing with children who did not like the clothes mom picked out and nothing was going to change their minds. The wife even got hostile with the designer insisting on a wall coming down that the designer knew was going to take too much of the budget–but the wife was insistent. In the end, both couples decided to “Love It” because the renovations were remarkable but it wasn’t without a lot of angst once they got a taste of the shiny new house.
It is neat to watch these things now with no envy or jealousy. I used to watch those things and “ooooh “and “ahhh” and want the same. I’d get the “design bug” and go do something random to my homes (when I owned my homes) just because I was sparked. Completely impulsive behavior. Now I still “oooh” and “ahhh” but the prominent thought in my mind is how much everything costs! I did not walk away from this marathon television day and look at my little apartment with disappointment. Instead I was grateful for what has become a simple life.
Born and raised in Texas. I’ve at least driven through every state in the US courtesy of a roadtrip loving Dad.
I’m single with two children and a good parenting relationship with their father.
I am a “life is just half full of funny” kinda gal. Humor is my saving grace and I am thankful for it every single day. I have a strong Catholic faith and am thankful for that foundation.
I read a lot for a living but still enjoy a good book. I love biographies but in recent years have found the need for fun fictional books–sadly, for a long time I just didn’t enjoy fiction!
I love live theatre of any kind–from local productions to Broadway.
I love to scrapbook and pride myself in my kids’ albums.
I love being a mom but also love my career. I’m blessed to have found a balance allowing me to be at everything my kids need and want me to be at–while also having a career.
Favorite Quotes: Well behaved women rarely make history.
Behold the turtle. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out. -James Bryant Conant
Lol! I did a Love it or List it marathon yesterday too! I really like that show. Most of the time, the couple decides to love it and I assume it mainly comes down to money. We had a new home built and got to choose everything (though not a custom build) and I’m so grateful for that. It should fit our needs and tastes for a long time, but this show gives me hope that there are ways of changing things if you do ever fall out of love with your house. I don’t want to move again!
I used to love House Hunters, but the attitudes of the people they choose is a turn-off now. It seems no one takes a practical approach and everyone wants the house with the pool, granite counters, high-end appliances, the list goes on. If it’s not move-in ready with all of those things, it’s off the list. Whatever happened to buying a “starter home” within your budget and changing a few things out to better suit your tastes? Our neighbors remind me of this. They’re a mid-20s couple, pregnant with their first child, and bought a home that took hubby and I nearly 20 years to afford. It blows my mind. I don’t assume they’re strapped for cash, but she does talk about coupon clipping as though their lives depend on it.
If you really want to get annoyed, watch Property Virgins. Those people are insane. Reminds me of children stomping their feet because they can’t get everything they want at their price. Then the low-ball offers they go in with makes me see red. If I was the seller, it would be hard not to use profanity in my response.
Anyways, glad you’re maintaining a positive attitude about the apartment and just enjoy your maintenance free lifestyle for awhile. It frees you up to focus on your finances instead of worrying about what’s going to break.
I had a period of watching the various house hunting shows also. I enjoyed the going-abroad ones very much but shook my head over the others and the enormous expectations of young couples. I never bothered to find out who financed these shows. The real estate profession, I am sure as almost all were newly built houses So many of the couples bought over their planned limit or right at the top of it–really frightening.
I now wonder how many of them were foreclosed on? (I was watching ca 3 years ago)
I agree, the real estate profession must fund these shows, along with the bank, because the loans are never straight-forward conventional ones. The buyers always finance things like closing costs – hello, if you can’t pony up $10k, maybe you’re not ready to buy and maintain a house! And then they go on and on about seller’s concessions, and the seller giving the buyer back money or some weird deal. Why would a seller ever do that? The asking price is the asking price, end of story.
Oooo… A pajama day!! Those are the best (as long as you’re not in your PJs because you’re sick) 🙂
House Hunters is sometimes a hoot. Several times I just stare in bewilderment at the TV when a young couple reject a home because the perfectly fine looking and perfectly functional white appliances aren’t stainless steel :/ Honey, I’ve got stainless steel appliances (bought by the developer, not me), and they are a royal pain to clean. You do not want stainless steel, especially if you’re planning to have kids. Oh, and granite countertops? Make sure you don’t spill any grease on those or you will be stuck for days applying a flour poultice to the spot to draw out the oil.
And then there was the Indian American couple where the fiancee wanted to Live Large. Like, whining and pushing her fiance to buy a $600K home with less than 20% down!!!! OMG, are you nuts?!?
But, every now and then there’s a wonderful couple who is grounded. There was the husband and wife who were fine buying a home without all the bells and whistles. The only thing they had to have was a large garage so the hubby could work on remodelling cars, which was his business. I loved them – they were sensible about their money and didn’t need the latest and greatest. As long as the house wasn’t a money pit with truly hideous 60/70’s decor they were fine with it.
And I like Love It Or List It, but I can’t always watch it because the homeowners get sooooo ridiculous with the designer. I mean, really, you’re going to whine and pout that you won’t get a powder room because they found out your basement needs major fixing to avoid massive damage to the house? Really? On the plus side I now know I need to “underbudget” for any renovation so I have extra to fix any structural issues found along the way.
(Oh, and btw, not only do I have stainless steel, my stovetop is black, so I have the worst combo!! The first time I cleaned my stovetop it looked WORSE! Shiny black surfaces are awful to clean without any streaks showing. My saving grace was discovering microfiber cloths. They’re the only thing that will clean the stovetop without massive streaks all over. If I ever renovate my kitchen I am buying white applicances. I never had a problem cleaning those, ever. So my free advice for the day is go with boring all white appliances, unless you enjoy cleaning challenges.)
The microfiber towels and a teeny bit of stainless steel cleaner do the job quickly on stainless appliances. It’s really not difficult, but then I don’t have young kids with grimey hands touching them.
As for the granite, as long as you’ve sealed it every couple years, grease is a non-issue. Of course, to be safe, it’s better to go with a darker granite than a really light one to minimize staining.
I agree! I absolutely HATE our stainless steel appliances. They look nice……..ONLY if you just LOOK at them, don’t touch them!! But once you touch them, they look disgusting. NEVER AGAIN! I prefer black appliances.
I’m with you on the Property Virgins – I’m amazed at what these young couples buy for a “starter” home! The money they spend is crazy! Nobody wants to have to put in any hard work anymore. Pathetic.
My wife and I watch both LIOLI and HH. We really like those and are about the only things on tv we find interesting enough to watch besides the NBA playoffs that is. We are looking at moving internationally as well and though about Rome or Spain. Not sure what we are going to yet those. Its always nice to work from home in the Pj’s.
House Hunters is staged anyway. They already bought one of the three homes they are looking at. Once I found that out, I stopped watching the network as much. Most of the people are nutters though!
Also, I had two dogs and no kids and the stainless fridge was not what it was cracked up to be. The dog hair and dirt would stick to the oil I used to clean the darn thing. It also dented. I was so happy when my buyer didn’t ask me to buy replacement fridge doors.
Love it or List it is a great show! It actually inspired me to clean out a few closets and… well make room for stuff that I actually love. What would we ever do without all our stuff?!