As most of you already know, I come from a home of love and DIYers *for those of you that aren't DIY-ers (Julia) that means Do It Yourselfers*. My pops owned a very well respected plumbing business and my Papa a well respected AC business in San Antonio for the majority of my life. It was with this knowledge that I stood face to face with the inspector we hired to check out our new home and told him I wasn't worried about 97% of the things he told me needed to be fixed on the house.
Fast forward to conversation with dad where we are reviewing the inspection report and he's *sighing*, taking deep breaths and asking me to explain why we decided to purchase this home. *Sigh*. Fast forward two weeks when we are finally in the house, and I, as the dutiful wife that I am, have set up appointment after appointment with Bug guys, Electricians, Tree removers, Yard guys, Pool Guys, you get the picture. Learned after about half a day that the going flat-rate quote to get anything done in Dallas is $1000. We had an electrician quote us $500 to put up two beautiful wall sconces in the living room. Really? That's more than the sconces cost. No thank you. So what did my strapping young stallion of a husband do? You guessed it kids, he wired and hung them HIMSELF! See Exhibit A below as reference. *I am offering up Toms sconce hanging talents to anyone in the Dallas area for a small fee of a dinner with good wine.* Good job, Tom!
So, as one might guess, with a house full of projects to look forward to, Tom and I instantly became the world's biggest fans of Lowe's. Next item to tackle - the guest bathroom. Here's the scoop -- when we moved in, the guest bathroom had no vanity/sink - nothing. Just some pipes coming out of the wall that looked like they might connect to something that water would come out of. A bit embarrassing when you have guests staying at the house. So as the plumber's daughter that I am, I decided to devote a day to learning the tools of the trade *or enough to get me by until my dad came for his next visit.* Dad spent an hour and a half on the phone with me taking me through exactly what needed to be done. * Bless him.* Thorough instructions with precise directions on exactly what to buy from Lowe's. A trip to Lowe's, some latex gloves and some plumber's putty later, and I was tackling that sink like it was nobody's business. 3 hours and LOTS of plumber's putty later and we were in complete working order. No leaks. Fast forward to yesterday - somehow the plumbers putty that was holding everything together last week wasn't working as well as the warranty said it would. I took a step back and had to laugh at the fact that my first venture in plumbing resembled more of a 7th grade clay art project than plumbing. See exhibit B below *note excessive plumber's putty usage*:
But look how pretty the top part of the sink turned out!!
So I've accepted the fact that a.) plumbing is harder than it looks b.) my dad was right - there would be leaks and c.) I should stick to the aesthetically pleasing things in the house like decorating.
So, in short, if you are one of the many people that Tom and I have invited to stay at the house in the next month or two, we still welcome you with Grananan's welcome mat and you will have an exquisite sink to look at, but unfortunately you will be brushing your teeth next to me in our bathroom. Looking forward to having you!
Now I must depart for the night as I have my Cheeseburger Club to attend. More on that later.
xxxx
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