Back to work......
I accepted a job this week (as I said in the last blog) and was going to start on Monday morning. Today I got a call from another one of the companies that I had interviewed with last week. They called to offer me the job for a few dollars more an hour than the first place. I accepted the position. Not only because it was more money but I think it will be a better fit for me. I'll be working with someone that I worked with at Fairpoint too. He also thinks I'll be a good fit for the job. This is going to prove to be interesting for me seeing that I haven't worked outside of my house since I left Maine. It will be an adjustment to say the least. Of course we are still staying with Dana and Ann right now until we close on the new house so things will be a little bit crazy for the next couple of months with me adjusting to working again and getting settled into a new house. I'm kind of feeling like we've just gone in a big circle (or curcle as Dave would say...lol) over the past 5 years. We're kind of right back where we started it seems. Money was a little better when we left but oh well, you can't have everything and believe me, I feel extremely lucky to have been able to settle back into Maine so quickly and still be able to afford a house and just live the simple life that we used to live before we left. It's really all I've wanted anyway so we just took a little bit of a different route to get back here. It's been tough but we've learned a lot from it.
I think December will be a little tough to move into a house but I'm ready for the challenge. I can't wait to see all of my stuff again! I miss my bed and my big double chair! Since Danny will be traveling quite a bit, I'll have plenty of time to put things away and organize (not that he's getting out of it!). I'll be calling on all of you wonderful friends and family to help us :-) It can be your Christmas present to us! We'll be renting a truck and hopefully not making more than two trips. We're going in on Sunday for an inspection of the new house. Since the house is so new, we don't think there will be anything that comes up for us. Danny's friend Tim will be helping us out with the inspection. I'll post some pictures of the house soon.
For those of you who we have not been able to visit yet.....be patient with us please. It's been kind of tough to keep up with everything and then have time to visit everyone too. I have lots of people that I really want to see and promise that as soon as we get settled in, we'll be visiting you or inviting you to visit us. Thanks for understanding and thank you also for following my blog. It would be nice to see who is following it on a regular basis too so feel free to leave a comment so I'll know who the audience is these days. I think I may have pissed a couple of people off over the past couple of months too but as the song goes: "You can't please everyone so you've got to please yourself"
I'll post again soon!

Back in the real estate game.....
Well, we've found another house! I am sooooo excited about this one but afraid to get too excited just in case something goes wrong again. The house is in Scarborough which is also a great location for us to live. It's a ranch style house with a finished daylight basement. It's 5 years old and has been meticulously maintained. We won't have to do a thing when we move in! Of course we'll still clean it but the paint colors and the floors and all of the fixtures are in great shape. The closing is scheduled for December 4th. It'll be an early Christmas present!

Besides house hunting this past weekend, we went out to eat with Deidre and Dave and then like the old people we have become, we walked around the mall for something to do. It actually turned out to be quite entertaining. Dave got his Yankees hat, got some Lindt chocolates and then pretended he was a cowboy! See proof below!


I've now gone on several job interviews. I must be doing something right because I've been called back for a 2nd interview for each job. I have been offered one of them and accepted it but it doesn't pay nearly what I'm looking for so unless one of the other places offers me a job this week (they are making their decisions this week), I'll be starting this low paying job next Monday. Hey the way I figure it, money has got to be made and it's a lot better than nothing so I'll take whatever I can get at this point. I'll keep you updated on that front......it'll give me something else to blog about later this week!

What's the opposite of Under Contract?
Well whatever it is, that is what we are right now. After taking another look at the house in Gorham and having an inspection and radon test done, we are no longer buying that house. The list was very long as far as outstanding issues and the radon test numbers came back well above an acceptable level.......so........it's back to the drawing board. I looked at a bunch of houses on Wednesday but didn't have a whole lot of luck. I'll be looking at a few on Friday too so let's hope for the best.
In between everything else, I've gone on a few different job interviews this week. For not having gone on an interview in many years, I've done quite well. I guess I'll know next week just how well the interviews went. It seems that they'll all be making a decision next week so maybe I'll have a choice. That would be good!
Dan will be traveling for a couple of weeks beginning Monday. He's off to Texas and Colorado. He continues to learn a lot and is really feeling great about his job. While I'm at it, for those of you who care (because apparently some people keep talking about this), Dan DID NOT get fired from his position in Massachusetts. He left on his own.....his decision, nobody else. They were quite surprised so I guess you can take that back to the people who seem to have an obsession with the rumor mill at TW. Find something else to talk about, will ya? We're so over it and you should be too.
We'll probably have a busy weekend looking at houses on Saturday and probably going to open houses on Sunday. Saturday night we're having dinner with Deidre and Dave....that'll be fun. Keep your fingers crossed for us on the house hunting! I'll keep y'all (geez, am I still in Texas?)updated.

ANOTHER Birthday............
Dan Sr. turns 45 today! Since there is only one day between, we celebrated both birthdays on Sunday. He doesn't look a day over......ummmm......45. This will prove to be one of the most interesting years of his life, I'm sure. He is adjusting well to his new job. He'll be traveling next week to Texas and then on to Colorado. It will be pretty quiet here without him. He's an awesome husband!! Who else could put up with me?! I'm very proud of what he's accomplished over the past few months. I never had a doubt that he'd land back on his feet! I love you honey!

Happy Birthday...... Okay, you be the judge



to my favorite son! He turned 27 years old today!!! I cannot believe I have a child that old. It seems not so long ago that I was up all night with him rocking him in a rocking chair. I could not be any prouder of the person that he has become. He has a huge heart and is always willing to help anyone in need. I hope you had a great day.....now.....cut that beard that you've recently decided to grow! I HATE it!!!!!! I want to see you looking like the picture above! That's what you can give your mother for Christmas and it won't cost you a thing. I love you very much and am beyond proud of the person you've become!

Okay, I'll keep playing.........
For a little while longer. I've looked at some good blog homes but I've been too busy to investigate them fully. I'll stick with this. The pictures are loading so I'll catch up with some pics from the Mall Of America (look out Deidre!) and from our day of apple picking.

We continue to be busy with things. Dan is finding his job to be pretty interesting and he really likes it. He is under a LOT less stress which makes the whole thing worth it in my opinion. I'm still on the hunt for a job. I'm not really being all that fussy either. I've applied for over 30 office jobs. Now I know that I have a little problem with low self esteem but one other thing I know is that I'm not stupid and I'm a hard and dedicated worker. I've got a lot of experience in a lot of different areas so I guess I'll just have to continue being patient on the job front.

Baylee and Ella got their first "Maine" haircut. Oh boy, I really wish I could post pictures on here. They got hacked!!! They looked as bad as I've ever seen them look. We couldn't decide if they looked like bats or some kind of rodent. I had to take them to another groomer the very next morning to see what they could do to make them look a little better. She did a pretty good job but they're going to be cold for a while!

We went out house shopping over the weekend. We saw several houses on Saturday with our real estate agent and then Dan and I went out to some open houses on Sunday. We found a perfectly located home in Gorham which will be a very short commute for Dan and hopefully me when I figure something out. We'll have to go into the house and do some work but are overall happy with our choice. We'll make the changes and it will seem more like our home. The kitchen will probably be the first to be changed which will make a huge difference. Other than that, it's mostly paint and trimming overgrown bushes. Hopefully we'll be ready to move in just before Thanksgiving. I guess that'll give us something to really be thankful for! I'll post again soon!

After this blog, I'll be trying to find a new blog home because I'm unable to load pictures anymore. I'll let you all know the new "spot".

Jobs, Houses, Apples and Bruises.......
Danny's job is going well. Since this is a totally different line of work for him, there is a learning curve but he likes it and is excited about learning new things. I am still working on a couple of prospects but so far, nothing solid. Keep your fingers crossed for me! The sale of our home in Rochester is now complete. We are now in the process of searching for a house. So far, things have been a little disappointing. Like I said in an earlier blog, I wish I could have picked my house up in Rochester and moved it here. I cannot even begin to compare so I'll spare you and won't! We've teamed up with a realtor and will be out on Saturday searching for the day.

This past Saturday we went apple picking in Cornish with our kids (when I say kids, I mean Dan, Tiffany, Melissa and Gavin) and Deidre, Dave along with their daughter Nicole. It was a beautiful day. We parked in an area below the orchard and jumped in a bus that took us up to the orchard. The bus was pretty unique because it had a few bus seats but mostly couches and chairs that probably came from someone who was getting rid of their living room furniture. The very last seat was a small cot that was opened up. I guess if anyone got tired during the 3 minute drive, they could go back there and rest. When we got to the orchard, they had a bluegrass band playing and a chicken barbeque. We didn't pay to eat but still was able to listen to the band playing. The background was beautiful with the mountains and the trees just starting to turn. I would have liked to bring chairs and just sit and enjoy that....maybe next year.
Gavin has a terrible memory when it comes to people he has met in the past. Melissa said that before we met up that day, Gavin didn't remember who Deidre and Dave were. Once we met up, he remembered them. We picked a bag of apples and wandered around the orchard, kidding around. Melissa decided to have Gavin throw an apple at me (I used to do the same thing to her when they were younger). I will first say that he was aiming low...........but.........he obviously flipped his hand upward at the last minute and the apple went higher than expected and shot past my shoulder and hit Deidre squarely in the eye! It was pretty shocking to Deidre (and painful) but maybe a bit more shocking (and embarrassing) to Gavin who really doesn't know Deidre very well. Her eye turned red all around it and looked like she might have a good shiner later on. Gavin apologized over and over. I guess not only did he learn a lesson about throwing things but now he'll remember who Deidre is. We went over to the part of the orchard where you can put an apple into a slingshot and aim at a target across a pond. If you get the apple through the hole, you get free fudge (which by the way, is awesome!). Everyone had fun doing that. We then jumped on the bus and headed back to the car. We picked up sandwiches at the store and went back to Dan and Tiff's house. It was a nice and relaxing day and as usual, it wasn't boring with Gavin around.

Great Cause.....

Hey Everyone,

Roy (Danny's brother) and his fiance Kathy are participating in a Breast Cancer walk this month. They have asked me to post a link to the following site:
http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR?px=1615475&pg=personal&fr_id=2196&et=0VEKOzswQU1NTBaDQ-mJ7A..&s_tafId=4916
Dear Friend,
This year I am participating in the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk. Making Strides is a non-competitive 5K walk that takes place in 28 cities across Florida. Making Strides has no registration fee and no fundraising minimum, which means that more people can participate. However, the many breast cancer programs of the American Cancer Society depend on the generous donations collected by Making Strides Participants, so I'm asking you to please support me with an online donation of any amount. Whether its $10, or $500, every bit truly does help.

Kathy and I will be participating in a Breast Cancer walk on October 21st. This is especially important to Kathy because of the passing away of her Grandmother at 57 of Breast Cancer.

We truly appreciate your help.

Roy & Kathy