Weird Things Up North: Installment #2

I took these two photos driving down our road to get to the cabin last week:

No, it's not a burning cross, just a neon-lit red one.  This is the first thing I saw when I turned the corner on our road last Monday night.  SO BIZARRE! 

It's right across the road from a church (obviously) but I find the fact that it's across the street a little odd.  There is nothing around it, it's just standing there all by itself like a scary beacon in the night.  Clearly the church people put it there so it would be seen right as people turn the corner but I still find it strange.  Not to mention the fact that it's red.  Why not white?  or even blue?  Pretty sure a cross that looks like it's burning doesn't give people warm fuzzies...

Bijoux's Crazy Dance

Bijoux hates getting baths and like most dogs, does what I call the "Crazy Dance" when she's done.

I'm not sure if this is her trying to dry herself off or what but it's hilarious and I believe deserves it's own special post.  Yes, I am a crazy Dog Mom.

Week #1

Well I've officially spent one full week in PR...yay me!  Things are coming along albeit much more slowly than I would have liked...obviously.  Here are the highlights:

• I cooked!  Yep, more than once - it was epic.  I used the crock pot, chopped things...amazeballs.  I made a veggie lasagna (decent), potato leek soup (semi-fail but better the next day), legit split pea soup as in used ham hocks and everything (delish), chicken and dumplings...I think some other stuff but it's escaping me.

• We started reno on the downstairs bedroom and bathroom!  We're turning the weiner small bedroom into a weiner small "gym" with a Murphy Bed.  So far we removed the carpet and carpet pad and scraped-off  the ugly popcorn ceiling.  We also bought the paint and hardwood flooring so we're ready to rock.  Here are a few "before" photos: 

I know what you're thinking, "Why would they want to remove such beautiful carpet?"

It's actually worse in person if you can believe it.

• As for the bathroom, I stupidly didn't take any before photos but I assure you, it was disgusting.  This project will take some more time as we need to do some actual construction.  We need to take out the vanity/counter top, remove the sauna (yes, I wrote sauna,) put in a jetted tub, new shower, tile, and pedestal sink.  You know, just a few things.  My humble beginning yesterday was to take down the sweet floral/metallic stripe wallpaper.

•  Mark channeled his inner lumberjack and started trimming trees in the yard.  He cleared away some pine tree branches that were interfering with my clothesline [see #4] as well as beginning to take down the random tree in the middle of our yard.  I was hesitant at first because I'm not generally an advocate of taking down perfectly good trees, but I have to say, our view of the lake is much improved.  Mark also agreed to plant 2 trees for every 1 he takes down.  I have a not-so-secret desire to have a mini apple orchard lining both sides of our property...we'll see how that goes ;)

• I hung laundry on a clothesline...outside...with clothespins!!!  Yep, I was all LHOP (Little House on the Prairie) it was awesome.  My sheets really did have that "dried-in-nature" smell!  And here I thought that was just a marketing gimmick...

• As I mentioned in a FB post I let Bijoux play outside by herself for awhile.  She came back soaking wet and smelling like dead....something....maybe fish?  It was gross.  So I had to take matters into my own hands and give her a bath.  I like to leave this task to the professionals but it was mandatory.  Of course she rolled in something else dead two days later so I had to give her another bath...gross.  Needless to say Bijoux loves it here and is certainly a country dog at heart.  Of course I had to take some photos of bathtime because it's hilarious...and sad...but mostly hilarious.

She looks like she has a mullet...she'll fit right in at Wal-Mart!

Rubbing her head in her towel.  This is part of her Crazy Dance.  I'm trying to upload a video of this...it's hilare.

 

• Oh, I also haven't yet mentioned that we totally live in a dog neighborhood...yay!!!  My favorite is Cooper - the sweetest Golden Mix I've ever met...I love him.  He is super mellow, loves affection, and puts up with Bijoux's neurosis.  I think he can tell when I'm up and saunters over into the yard to say hello.  I've also met two German Shepherds (unsure of the names) and I've seen Cooper's sister Nia.  Nia is a Yorkie and definitely gives Bijoux a run for her money when it comes to barking.  Unlike Bijoux she seems to hate people as well as dogs so I haven't been able to get close to her yet...I'll wear her down I'm sure :)  Here are a couple of pics of Coop, my new buddy:

• Lastly, I wanted to post some photos of the neighborhood.  I have to say, it's pretty cool that I get to spend a good chunk of my day outside in all of this beauty - it's gorgeous up here!

Weird Things Up North: Installment #1

So I've decided that periodically I am going to post odd/strange/random things I discover at the cabin and in PR.

For my first installment I have quite a doosy for you...  Both Mark and I missed this gem during our final walk-through and I didn't discover it until I was up here last week.  Feast your eyes on this!

That's right, you are looking at a hand-painted, Flinstone-themed toilet seat cover straight from our downstairs bathroom!  What the hell?!?!?

This would be strange anywhere but most certainly odd in a house that was inhabited by an 88 year-old woman with grandchildren.  So many questions; "when was this put in?", "did Shirley do this herself in her younger days?", "is this some kind of odd inside family joke?", "what is the reaction of guests upon discovering Fred Flinstone's penis in the restroom?"  I did a double-take upon my discovery and sat there for a minute in shock...I still just don't even know what to say about it!

To answer your question, yes, we will be removing the infamous bathroom artwork but of course we'll have to keep it to tell the tale :)

First Time at the Cabin

I think the term "cabin" has been confusing some...let me clarify.  Mark and I will likely always refer to the PR house as the "cabin" just because it's on a lake, in the middle of nowhere, etc.  It is, however, a fully-functioning house and where we will eventually be living full time for the next 2ish years.  It's got 3 bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, central air conditioning and an attached garage...not a bad little set-up.

So, with that out of the way...  This past Monday my Mom and I headed up to the cabin for the first time while Mark was in Chicago for work.  On Monday I was having Internet installed and on Tuesday the dish.  Also, the movers were finally coming to deliver our Seattle stuff on Tuesday as well.  In addition to all of that I rented a giant UHaul truck (which my Mom drove - thanks Mom! :) and moved a bunch of stuff from the Hopkins townhouse.

First impressions...holy cats there is a LOT of work to do!!!  I still love the cabin so that's the good news but I quickly became overwhelmed with everything that needs to be done.  All of the floors need to be updated, every room needs to be painted, ceilings need to be "de-popcorned", bathrooms re-done...the list goes on and on.  For those that know me well I'm not really good with things being works-in-progress, I like everything done immediately if not yesterday.  This cabin may teach me some much-needed lessons in patience.

Internet was installed and it's not as bad as I expected although still not where I'd like it to be, (there's that patience thing again...)   The movers unloaded our gimoungous TV which was AWESOME and later that day the Direct TV guy came and installed cable.  Sad but true, I almost cried when the TV and dish were set up...oh how I've missed you my 55" HD friend!!!  The Dish thing appears to be awesome but is still TBD.  I will say that I'm going to miss TiVO but hopefully we can survive :)

My Mom and I got a lot done but somehow didn't even make a dent in the massive sea of boxes and crap that are everywhere.  We also went into "town" (downtown PR) and to the Super Wal-Mart in Detroit Lakes (no, there is not a Target within 40 miles of the Cabin...sad.)  I will post more on that as well as photos soon.  Mental note, post photo of the hand-painted Flinstones toilet seat tomorrow...yes, you read that correctly!

Ciao

So this is it....

I talked about doing it and now it's time to put my keyboard where my mouth is....welcome to my blog!

I'm new to the world of blogging so bear with me as I navigate this uncharted terrain.  The plan is to use this blog to entertain friends and family with the adventures of Meghan, and occasionally Mark and Bijoux, as we embark on our new life in Pelican Rapids, MN.  You'll come to find that I have a penchant for incorrectly formatted ellipses, smiley faces, and parentheses...I apologize in advance :)

Here's the skinny.  I was a Buyer at Amazon.com for 4 years....I loved it, I hated it, I wanted to slit my wrists, I loved it again, and then I quit.  I like to think I left on a high note :)  Mark and I found a townhouse in Hopkins, we packed a trailer and drove back home to Minnesota.  Then Mark got on a plane and left me to fend for myself...he, he.  The move was a catalyst for a promotion that would move Mark home to Edina after a short while.  For those of you that don't know Edina is right by Hopkins....as most of you know that plan did not quite work out as expected. 

Instead Mark got promoted to the Branch Manager of Moorhead, MN.  Awesome!  Mark got promoted!  Boo, we have to live in Moorhead! (no offense to those from Moorhead!)  So instead of renting some craphole apartment we decided to buy a cabin in Pelican Rapids, MN.  PR, as I will refer to it often, is 3 1/2 hours NW of Minneapolis.  It's not far from Detroit Lakes, MN which is a hopping cabin town so you would think there would be modern conveniences such as cable television and high speed internet...you would be wrong.  The pink balloon on the left is our cabin, the one on the lower right is civilization:

I'm a bit of a city gal so many friends and family members find it high-larious that I will be living in what I would deem the "country".  I have many, many lofty dreams about what this little experiment might yield including: honing my DIY remodeling skills, learning how to garden and planting something that doesn't die, learning to drive a boat, getting my business up and running, getting Bijoux to stop being an asshole, the list goes on and on....

So we'll see how this goes...both the blogging and the country-living situations.

Hang on Bij...we're not in Kansas anymore...