Birthday Weekend Movies

I let Randy pick the movies we watched together.

Friday (actual birthday):
Better Off Dead... (1985)
To Sir, with Love (1967)
Amélie (2001)
Untraceable (2008)

Saturday:
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
Ocean's Thirteen (2007)
Hugo Pool (1997) - I picked this to help me sleep;
except there were too many great actors in it.

Newer Homes

This week we checked out some NEW homes. These homes were constructed with radiant heat. The houses have a nice open concept but they were poorly located - there was a heavily traveled road yards from the houses. Now we can exclude these from our search.

The four above we have yet to see in person.
They are all three bedroom ranches.
Upper left: 1967, 1 bath, 1,288 sq feet, 3.5 acres
Pro: hardwood in most rooms - Con: garage under
Upper right: 2007, 2 baths, 1,344 sq ft, 2.7 acres
Pro: Deck/Water frontage - Con: not level ground
Lower left: 2005, 2 bath, 1,536 sq feet, 1.0 acres
Pro: open concept, low taxes (nearby town) Con: ?
Lower right: 1975, 1 bath, 1,142 sq ft (above), 1.1 acres
Pro: two tiered deck - Con: full finished basement

Interesting: the older homes only have 1 bath
while newer homes are built with 2 baths
oftentimes one bath is part of master suite.

Lower right is pretty much excluded when comparing
high price tag with limited positives and major negative.
I have difficulty using stairs so basement would be off limits.
Lower left is sounding more interesting ...
as I could not come up with a negative to include.
It is in nearby town which adds a little extra to commute.
Upper right may be excluded too. Price tag includes
water frontage which we do not really care about.
Also having no level ground for me to walk is not desired.
Upper left just on the market 2 days now.
Also has a deck. And familiar heating/water setup.
While moderate sq footage (in comparison) - price reflects that!!!

Not expecting to see these this week.
We need a little break from all the trips.
Trusting God to guide us to the right house ...
Everything in His timing (like our marriage)!!!

Happy Birthday Randy

Happy 47th Birthday, sweetheart.
I let him pick all the movies this week.
I also cooked/cooking some of his favorites.

At the beginning of his birthday "week"
I made him Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake.
It's very moist and he liked it just fine.

For brunch a couple of days we had
Impossible Tuna Pie (quiche like).
For snacking I made Macaroonies.

For his birthday meal later today with parents:
Sicilian Meat Roll and Banana Custard Pie.
On the side: beans, coleslaw and lbuttermilk biscuits.

New Recipes Tried

We've been so busy with house hunting ...
I've spent much less time online ...
not even posting new recipes made.

For the time being I am just posting ...
this summary post of new recipes tried.
I'll link to location I found recipes.

Impossible Kielbasa Pie -
similar to Impossibly Easy Bacon Pie

Impossible Tuna Pie -
similar to Impossible Ham Pie

Easy Mashed Potatoes and Corn
Philly Beef Squares

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake -
very moist - recipe from my mother.

Birthday Week movies

I let Randy pick the movies he liked.
Some he'd seen before and some new.

Monday -
Ocean's Eleven (2001)
The Matrix (1999)

Tuesday -
Ocean's Twelve (2004)
Sin City (2005)

Wednesday -
The Mist (2007)
Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium (2007)

Thursday -
No Reservations (2007)
Great romantic comedy movie.

End of week movies

Wednesday -
Live Free or Die Hard (2007)
The Mothman Prophecies (2002)
Both were pretty okay in my book

Thursday - no movies today
was out looking at houses again
need some lighter viewing to relax ...

Friday - fun stuff
Night at the Museum (2006)
Feds (1988)

Saturday - AFI pick - Giant (1956)
we both fell asleep during it

Sunday - comedy/fun
Man of the House (2005/I)
D.E.B.S. (2004)
Oscar (1991)

Home Hunt continues

Our house hunt continues.
But really we are looking for a "home".
A place we can both feel comfortable for some time.
I'd like a comfortable kitchen to do all my cooking.

Our newest possibility has a visual tour available.
More info in our entry Three Walk thrus.
We were pre-approved for a home mortgage
and somewhat understand Credit Report Info.

AFI Movie Date Night #18

Giant starring Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean was tonight's viewing. This 1956 film was #82 on the list. I'm not sure why it has such hoopla, but it's probably because of Dean. I didn't really care for either of the male leads performances and I thought Taylor was just ok. Maybe this long film was welcomed in the 50's but I thought this long film was mostly boring! B-.

After reading more about the movie, I realized I didn't notice that was Dennis Hopper! It looks like I'll see him in Rebel Without A Cause also.

Credit Report Info

380 is the worse and 850 is flawless
680 is average and 750+ is a+ in their book.
My current rating is 783 slightly down from 800 range
due to required inquiries when we got new credit card.
Chris discussed ways of even bettering our scores.
He had only pulled the Experian credit report to review.

He pointed us to the official Annual Credit Report site.
Everyone is allowed FREE credit reports ANNUALLY.
There are three different credit reporting companies:
Trans Union, Experian, and Equifax
It's good to review them comparing results.
Not all companies report to all three of them.

We found another site which charges for reports but has
helpful Credit Report Information and Explanations:
Tutorial on Equifax Credit Reports
Tutorial on Experian Credit Reports
Tutorial on Trans Union Credit Reports
Posting these here not to lose valuable links!!!

We were pre-approved

We headed to our bank aka credit union this morning.
We sat down with loan officer to get pre-approved.
Chris, the guy we spoke with, was great.
He pulled up our credit reports and explained them.
Being newly married I still have old credit cards.
I was going to get rid of them but he said keep them!
As long as they are kept paid up they are helping.
Especially the one I've had forever with a huge limit.

Closing costs range from 1,500 to 2,000
with 375 upfront to get the ball rolling.
An appraisal will be requested and title search.
A down payment of 5% is required.
The bank will finance 80% of wood frames
and 65 - 75% for double wide mobile homes.
It usually takes from 30-45 days to closing.
FYI: Current interest rate is 6 1/4

Three Walk thrus

We went back up to Augusta to look at houses.
They were all in the Mayfair neighborhood.
That is where I use to have my previous house.
There were three to walk thru to check out.
I have difficulty doing stairs which meant ...
hubby had to do the initial walk thru.

At the first place Randy came out and got me.
It looked very promising - large master bedroom.
We have been spoiled with a large bedroom in rental.

At the second place there had been a tenant living there.
It was obvious it had not been well maintained as of late.
The third place was listed as needing TLC and it did.
It also had a spider infestation., I believe, is what Randy said.
I believe it was the second place that he said smelled badly.
From the outside I could tell they both needed exterior work.

We are scheduled for a second look at the first place.
Will take my parents to consider personal modifications.
Definately need a ramp built and some bathroom changes.

LL Bean

Cathy sent me down to LL Bean in Freeport to spend some of our wedding gift certificates. I probably spent nearly 4 hours there. It is quite an adventure! I ended up getting a pair of shoes from the Outlet store!

Horror Flicks

Today after the third Bourne movie ...
we switched over to the horror genre.
Horror movies often include sci fi and action.
Undead (2003) - meteorites create zombies
Slither (2006) - alien plague creates zombies
Planet Terror (2007) - bio weapon creates zombies
Death Proof (2007) - scarred stuntman stalks women
The Gathering (2002) - it's a mystery!!! (so not telling)
PS - I really do not get the allure of zombies!

Bourne Trilogy

We watched one a day Sunday thru Tuesday.
Randy was anxious to see the third installment.
I agreed to watch all three "action" flicks.
The Bourne Identity (2002)
The Bourne Supremacy (2004)
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

Weekend Viewing

Saturday we "chilled" with family animation:
Happy Feet (2006) - it's a musical!!!
Ice Age (2002) - reminded me of Jungle Book
Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006) - environmental awareness

Serious Sunday: The Song of Bernadette (1943)
similar to The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima (1952)

Trueworthy

This week we started looking at houses in Augusta.
The above house on Trueworthy we saw the inside of.
Looks decent enough on the outside but little space inside.
One of the bedrooms did not even have a closet and the
others were tiny - bedrooms all about the same size.
The "family room" was just the breezeway/entrance area.
After our visit we noticed the price went down by 10,000.

Some others we excluded with just a drive by:
South Belfast double wide on hill
Outlet Road double wide on unpaved road
Old Belgrade double wide on hill and multi-leveled
Eight Rod Road ranch on hilly driveway
Tiffany Road ranch on unpaved road and neighbors too close

AFI Movie Date Night #17

Tonight was Platoon, the Oscar winner from 1986 and #83 on the AFI list. Oliver Stone's anti-war film starred Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe and a bunch of others that were probably just getting their starts before becoming famous. Best scene is Willem Dafoe's iconic scene that graces the cover. And by the end of the film, you'll think war is stupid too! B+.

Augusta Real Estate

Yesterday we stopped by Sprague and Curtis.
I used them before to both purchase property ...
And also to sell my house a couple of years back.

There are some exciting things happening in the area.
Huge economic steps and some new "communities".
It would be an ideal place for Randy to find work.

One of the new "neighborhoods" is Fieldstone Place.
They use Brookewood Builders in Manchester ...
Said to be "Maine's Premier Modular Home Builder".

Weekend Events

Mom and dad come over for dinner Saturday.
I made Hearty Chicken and Noodle Casserole,
Blissful Ambrosia and Chocolate Cream Pie.

We finished watching about two dozen Buffy episodes.
Then we started watching season one of The Closer.
Movies we watched were Fargo (1996) - AFI Pick
and Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970) - computers.

AFI Movie Date Night #16

We waited until Saturday to see Fargo (#84 on the AFI list), but truthfully, I think we could have waited longer. I'm trying to remember why this movie was so funny the first time around. It has a few funny moments but mostly it's kind of annoying. Maybe it was just easier to laugh at anything back then.

Visit Maine

I found the Maine Office of Tourism Visit Maine site.
The Where to Visit section includes Mid-Coast
and Kennebec & Moose River Valleys.
Other sections include Where to Stay, Where to Eat,
Things to Do, Plan Your Trip, and Event Calendar Search.

Buffy

When I think of "Buffy" I think of the cute little girl on Family Affair.
I even had a Mrs. Beasley doll growing up. My age is showing!!!!!

Nowadays "Buffy" invokes thoughts of The Vampire Slayer.
Randy has been showing me select episodes which includes
creator Josh Whedon's 10 favorite episodes and Randy's.

For the ultimate Buffy/Angel fan there is Buffy World.
"A complete guide to all of the “Buffy...” and “Angel” episodes."

Italian Flatbread

I made this yesterday afternoon just for myself.
Since I was making it mainly for myself added garlic.
Okay - not all recipes are worth saving to use another day.
This one simply tastes a little too much like bisquick biscuits.
I cut off the edge - only ate the part that had other stuff on it.

From Betty Crocker site: Italian Flatbread

DIY simple table

I would like to build my own simple console table.
It will be multi-purposed: desk and buffet useage.
I found instructions at diynetwork for The Rustic Table.
I already have the table top from a previous project.
So all we need to do is go pick up the legs and railing.

Monday Tuesday Viewing

Monday:
The Thirteenth Floor (1999)
Aftershock (1990)
Fierce Creatures (1997)

Tuesday:
Wedding Crashers (2005)
"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" - pilot episode

Randy enjoys Buffy so wanted to share that with me.
Expect to watch a few more select episodes as we ...
await the final season of 4400 in the mail anyday.

Weekend Viewing

Friday:
Duck Soup (1933) - AFI pick
The Handmaid's Tale (1990)
Children of Men (2006) - good

Saturday:
Final Destination (2000)
Final Destination 2 (2003)
Final Destination 3 (2006)

Sunday:
Unlocking DaVinci's Code (2004)
and associated video (need to grab title)
Gattaca (1997)
Evolution (2001)

Tuna Noodle Casserole

Mix together:
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
1/2 cup milk
1 cup frozen peas
2 cans (about 6 oz. each) tuna, drained and flaked
2 cups hot cooked medium egg noodles

Bake at 400 for 25 minutes

Original: Campbell's Tuna Noodle Casserole

Blueberry Muffins

Mix together:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups fresh blueberries, (may use frozen)

Bake at 375 for 20 - 25 minutes

Original: Blueberry Muffins with Cinnamon Sugar Topping

Main(e) Street

My mother sent me a link the other day to
Visit Bath.com regarding this weekend's Mayfair.
It is Bath's Citywide Yard Sale to partially benefit charity.
It was the first time I had seen that site and surfed around.
I see there were some other Maine "main street" cities ...
including Gardiner and Waterville (both around Augusta).

Visit Bath Community Links
Gardiner Downtown Business Links
Waterville Area Links (includes state orgs)
State Link: Main Street Maine Program
National Link: National Trust Main Street Center

AFI Movie Date Night #15

Tonight was Duck Soup, said to be the best of The Marx Brothers movies. This 1933 classic is #85 on the AFI list. I think I expected it to be funnier (or maybe I remember it as being funnier), but mostly I didn't laugh too much. Maybe my funny bone is getting old. Still, it's a good movie of the period.

Impossible Ham Pie

Into baking dish:
2 (5 oz) cans of ham, crumbled up
1 cup shredded sharp cheese (4 oz)

Separately mix up:
3/4 cup Original Bisquick® mix
1 1/2 cups milk
3 eggs

Pour over ham-cheese mixture

Bake at 400 for 35-40 minutes.

Mostly Sci Fi

Wednesday:
Americanizing Shelley (2007) *
Queen of Outer Space (1958) *
Princess (2008) (TV) - ABC family - very cute

Thursday:
Puzzlehead (2005) *
Cypher (2002) *
Idiocracy (2006) - ridiculous!!!

*movie rentals from B&G