Rats, Mold, and Mildew- oh my!

What do rats, mold, and mildew all have in common??  They have all infested the cottage.  Nasty- yes, we know :)  The mold/mildew started last week with a busted pipe under the cottage (requiring a 3 ft hole to be cut in our kitchen).  And the rats- they just started coming out one night.  They aren't the massive NYC rats, just field rats.  But still, a rat is rat.  

Our landlords have been amazing, and totally supportive of us.  They would not want to live there, either.  We are currently living at Danford's Hotel and Hula is at the kennel (she was going there for Thanksgiving, anyway).  

I (Amy) spent the day looking for our new home.  I saw about 7 today and there is one that I like. It's a 3 bed, 1 bath ranch.  A bit on the smaller size, but it will work for the next few years. The best part is that it has a real kitchen with a dishwasher and a washer/dryer.  We are really hoping we get it!!

After Matt gets home from work today, we are starting to pack up.  I won't go over there alone- I need him to defend me from the rats :)

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This Happens on a Semi-Regular Basis

Somehow, between the two of us, we have a tendency to forget our keys. It's a good thing Matt has become an expert at breaking into the cottage...

Step One: Remove the screen and open the window. Ellen- don't worry; this was a random day when the window was unlocked. I promise that we are safe!!

Step Two: Have Matt hurdle the window sill... shouldn't be too difficult for a track star, right??

Step Three: Actually make it into the cottage- go Matt!

Step Four: Greet Hula who has been going crazy with all of the noise!! Aren't they cute??

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The Cottage

You have waited patiently, asked kindly, and stopped asking because it never happened. BUT, here are pictures of the cottage!!! As you look through them, make sure to count how many chairs/sofas we don't have :)

This is our "sitting room"... the first room you enter when you come in the door.

This is our kitchen... why is it purple?? Glad you asked :) When we learned we could paint the walls however we wanted, I went a little crazy. I thought about the people I know who can decorate so well with bold colors... my good friend, Christine, has an orange sofa- orange!! And, my sweet friend, Sally, had a wall in her old home that was martini olive green. So, I went to Lowes, and bought purple paint on a whim. Granted, I didn't realize how purple it would turn out... I was hopeful for a more subtle, but richer color. I obviously got it wrong!

More kitchen... yes, I only have 2 drawers, 6 cabinets, and no dishwasher. Oh, I have about 1 square foot to prepare meals :) I will never take a kitchen island for granted again!


The bedroom... it's the only place for a TV. Note the Wii we have in here. There is absolutely no room to play it. And yes, I painted this purple, too. Matt installed the blinds.

My parents were sweet enough to give me my favorite lamp!!

Our dining/living/catch-all room.

Hall-way to the bathroom. I love my little benches!!


Bathroom... it's TINY!! But, we are amazingly making due :)

The rest of the bathroom.

And, that's our home!! If you counted, we have 4 dining room chairs and 1 big chair. Why don't we have a sofa?? It wouldn't fit through the front door. We rented this place as a transitional space for us. It's in a great location and it works for now. But, we'll be moving into a "real" house in the spring. We'll have room for guests, so we hope to actually have visitors! Now that I have more time on my hands, I'm learning on how to make this little place more of a home (http://amyfranck.blogspot.com/).

Note: Also missing is a washer/dryer... yes, I go to the laundromat :) Oh, and if you look closely, you can see that I store things underneath every piece of furniture!

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Baby, It's Cold Outside!

To keep our little cottage warm, Matt and I purchased a Vornado Heater. Hula LOVES it and sits in front of it all day. She gives us this look of "oh I'm so sad and cold". But really, she's warm to the touch and a happy puppy :)

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Buddy Went Home

We are happy to say that we were able to locate Buddy's home this morning! His real name is, "Surf" and he lives about a quarter mile down the street from us. He was scared by the Stony Brook fireworks last night and somehow ended up in our back yard. Surf's family was so happy to see him again! He is 16 years old and their son's favorite dog (they have 3 dogs).

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Stony Brook's First Football Game and Our New Friend

We went to Stony Brook's season opener against Colgate tonight, and we blew them out of the water! The Seawolves won 42 to 26. It was a great chance for Amy to meet everyone and be introduced her to the Stony Brook culture. All of Matt's colleagues are extremely nice and the venue is very intimate and family-friendly. We have season tickets, so we're looking forward to an autumn full of college football!





When we got home tonight, we found a new friend. When Matt looked out our back window, he yelled, "Amy, there's a HUGE dog in our back yard!". Indeed there was! Somehow, this old golden retriever found his way into our completely fenced backyard. We called animal control, but they didn't answer, and he didn't have any tags with an address or phone number. We have decided to name him, "Buddy". Buddy was starving and thirsty, but is now fed, hydrated, and relaxing on our sleeping bag in the back yard. He is such a sweet guy... a little nervous, but incredibly sweet. Buddy will go to a shelter tomorrow; we hope his family finds him!





We have no exciting plans for this weekend, but are hoping to relax and maybe drive around the island a bit. We'll let you know if anything exciting happens!

Buddy

The old guy was thirsty

He was very friendly

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