Unimaginable...

Just imagine you're sitting infront of the tv, and you accidentally flip past one of those home-reno shows (or perhaps deliberately, if you're like me) only to see the worst excuse for a house you've ever seen... of course you'd be tempted to see what becomes of it but you're skeptical. "There's no way they can make this look even half decent" you think, but continue to watch, betting against the unfortunate home owners as they begin the unthinkable task of turning crap into.. well, something a little less resemblant of crap. That's what I thought as we drove up for our first glimpse of a cabin which was advertised in the paper for a price which was actually within our budget (he was asking $94,000). My first thought was an automatic - "no way - that can't be it - what's the address again?". My second thought was "oh my gosh.. ...", followed by "you've GOT to be kidding", and last of all, complete hysterical laughter. Let's just say this "cabin" is a bigger piece of crap than the picture of the little green house (which is actually kinda cute and has become rather appealing in my opinion) in my post entitled "A New Dream". On Sunday we headed out to take the grand tour of the cabin. We brought our friends Devon & Ethan b/c Ethan has been a journeyman for a few years now and has a pretty good idea of what to look for as far as structural "musts". Before we had a detailed look at this thing, we actually contemplated the idea of turning this 800sq. ft. little shack (only about 600 sq. ft. is usable, the rest is storage space along the walls) into a much nicer 2-storey cabin. "WHY?" you are asking. Well b/c the location is the supposedly the next big real estate bang and the property & reno-costs may be within our budget - plus, Kevin is a carpenter and could do the labour for free, along with some help from a few friends. We came up with a reno plan. We would add a second floor, new roof, new walls, possibly expanding outwards and adding on a deck in the front/back and a litle outter balcony off the master bed on the top floor. We'd have 3 bedrooms instead of 1, and with an added shed/garage and some basic landscaping (to hide the akward triangular shaped lot) we would be attracting potential holiday-home buyers (which already currently own 2/3 of the homes in the Invermere area). Tada!! A cute mountain cabin. HOWEVER... after getting the grand tour, we really didn't know whether to laugh again, or just cry. It was unbelievable! We all went out for coffee afterwards to discuss the possiblities, and unanimously decided that we should offer the guy $40,000 with the cabin - or - $50,000 if he would burn it down and just sell us the lot. Anyway, there's some pictures in the post above. My appologies for not getting a good overall shot of the place - the batteries died in my little digital. Rrg. I just have to add my disgust at the sudden burst of greed here in the Eastern Kootenays. I realize we have rich neighbors living 3 hours away who are well able to afford a 2nd home for a million bucks, and I appreciate the boom it creates in our economy. If it wasn't for them Kevin wouldn't have as much work as he does, making as much as he does (not that it's an astronomical amount or anything). BUT, it is infuriating not being able to afford to live where you live. Gas, insurance and groceries alone are way above what they should be, not to even mention the possibility of purchasing a home. A lot which cost $10,000 5-10 years ago now costs a minimum of $110,000. There are people who take one look at their neighbor who happens to be selling for $800,000 and thinks, "hey! if he's selling for that much, why can't we sell for $900,000?" ... and on and on ... until you get guys like "buddy", who own a piece of crap shack on an akward sized lot in the middle of nowhere in an area which hasn't even boomed yet, asking flippin $94,000!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT THE HECK?! What is WRONG with people!? I can't seem to express my disgust enough. It almost makes me want to deliberately stay away from purchasing anything in this area, just to show my lack of support for the money hungry thieves trying to make more than they need to. Of course this is a rediculous idea b/c: 1) if we had the opportunity to buy something which is guaranteed to go up in value we totally would; and 2) if we don't purchase the small 2bed condo from Joe Blow for 250,000 someone else will. So what's the point. It's real tempting to say, "If you can't beat em, join em."

My Valentines gift from my wonderful husband :) :) :) This Valentines we had four friends over (and two more little ones), Devon & Ethan and Jen & Adam. We figured since our evenings weren't about to be romantic with 3 little ones anyway, we'd all get together and make the most of it:) It was dinner and a movie. A good time too! Happy Valentines Day!!! Atalie got all dressed up for Valentines. Her friend Zack was the special man. He was also looking quite spiffy, but we didn't get a picture in time before bed... shoot. Atalie and her new friend Gabriella Ann Koenig. Gabby was also dressed for the occassion:) She was born December 24th... maybe some day they'll be best of friends:)

Fettuccini & Mischief

Mmmm! Atalie has her first taste of fettuccini alfredo... ...it's a hit! She ate just over half this mound of pasta.

Little monkey! Tisk tisk. This is what I get for letting her entertain herself while I email a friend. Guess who had to put all the bags back? Yup.

Well, the hunt is on for another place to rent/buy by the time mid-May rolls around. It's tough to find something 3 months in advance, as most landlords who are currently advertising are trying to find renters asap. We have placed an ad in the local paper for "wanting to rent" and have had a couple calls - one good call so far. I thought I'd post the website of one townhouse we're looking at renting (what the heck aye? if nothingelse, just for interest sake). It looks really nice(!) and is in Radium Hot Springs, which is a 15min. drive North of Invermere. The bonus of Radium is slightly cheaper rent and slightly fewer tourists in the summer. Speaking of which, here's a good fact for you who are unfamiliar with the area. Invermere has a population of about 5,000 people in spring/winter/fall (only 1/3 of the houses are occupied) and 30,000 people in the summer - which also makes finding rent just before summer very very difficult. (the other 2/3 of the houses are vacation homes owned by Albertans, mainly Calgarians). And if you have been through Invermere you'll know there's one main street and that's it. There isn't room for 30,000 people - literally. So I would be happy to have a little more space. Anyway, here's the site if you are interested. We haven't discussed the rent$, as the landlord is unfamiliar with rent around Radium. Up until now, he's been using this property as a nightly/weekly rental for tourists, but seems very interested in having us rent longterm. It is furnished, just like our place we're in now, so that would be hastle free as far as packing/unpacking. Yea! Here's a peak: http://www.highcountryproperties.com/feature.asp?code.x=5&propcode=RR137

pancakes & showers

Our little monkey looooves pancakes with syrup! But who doesn't??? She has recently discovered the joy of flowing water, combined with gravity... SO much more exciting than sitting pools of water!! Daddy & Attie cleanin' up after a hard days work! (and play)

Random snaps

Here are some recent, random pictures of Atalie, just plain bein' herself:) Her personal favorite: soup and grilled cheese sandwiches (minus the crusts - which will only last until she can chew!) If you ask, "How big is Attie?!?" ... she'll raise her arms and you have to say "Soooooo BIG!!!" Waiting for Daddy to come home from work:) Trying to grab the camera. Looking up at Mom, talking on the phone.

Begging to also talk on the phone... ...finally! She gets her chance. If you tell her to "Say hi!", she now says "haaaaa!" (but Grandma could have sworn she heard her say "Hi Grandma!")

...more cuteness to come...