he told us to leave immediately…

September 23, 2015September 24, 2015 • by admin • In How Mold Took Our Stuff, Where We Walkers Are • 0

If you haven’t read the previous two posts – go back and do so now…

Three or four hours after we found the mold, called our landlord – a cleaning company arrived put in several LARGE dehumidifiers and air filtration systems… the guy installing them told us to leave immediately and to not be in our 2B, 2 Bath any longer until the air was fine for us to breathe in… with the mold being black mold we had to wait until the air was safe to be in it… (which is usually 48 hours after he put in the devices)

Yes this is not a cookie – it is black fuzzy mold.

Bathroom sink in our Master Bath… mold doesn’t photograph well

So we went and stayed at our friends house for two nights as they were out of town…. we felt like zombies all day on the Sunday – not being in control of the situation or knowing what to do was so strange, difficult and hard to be patient. We went to see a movie, grieved ‘our things’ with the understanding from the specialists mold shouldn’t just grow that fast in 3-4 days (from the last time Becky had cleaned up the water condensation/leaks from the AC Unit) unless it was underneath the wood floors, in the walls, underneath the carpet… it would cost thousands of dollars to clean make sure that there were NOT ANY spores left in any of our belongings… unless it was glass and could be washed with bleach…

I remember saying to Cordie, “I do not know how Hannah’s family (my beautiful sister in-law who lives in Australia) went to the location of their house being burnt down and not able to save ANYTHING” Slowly, remembering everything they had or the generational things that were now gone.

We felt fortunate that would could grab a few things but very confused about what to do with the rest….we had clothes in a suitcase from our trip to MN and didn’t need to worry about them having exposure

3 months of waiting…

July 5, 2015July 5, 2015 • by admin • In July Home, Where We Walkers Are • 0

AND we have our COUCH now!

Having a desk in the living room is nice so we can see the ocean while we work. :)

We sure are happy to have this view while sitting on couch.

We love love love our couch, but would NOT recommend for ANYONE to purchase furniture from West Elm unless you walk out of the store with it as they are a lot slower than they commit to AND the customer service is HORRIBLE!

Side View – Opened door goes into our bedroom.

We are sooo happy we picked this lighter gray to lighten up our place and it matches all of the white shutters/kitchen perfectly!!! Also that the lines are clean and so straight!

It couldn’t have arrived in more perfect timing as we had been planning on having friends over for the 4th for a couple of weeks and needed the extra seating! You never really realize how nice it is to have a place to sit and just be in your home with the ones you love until you are sitting on the floor a lot and in separate chairs while watching movies

On our way home after a large Costco run for the 4th supplies. <3

Showing my American Pride.

We HAD perfect spots to see the fireworks from our balcony! So much fun!

Unfortunately it rained and STORMED most of the day so we hung out inside, played card games, watched the rain crash over the ocean and then got to ride our bikes when it stopped later in the evening! Per Cordie’s request I made pork shredded tacos with pineapple coleslaw for everyone and guacamole, pico de gallo and Becky brought her famous chip dip! It felt like what Floridians call a Hurricane party but thankfully there wasn’t one because we would have been the first to get hit being so close to the water!

We hope you had a wonderful celebration wherever you are!

the happenings of May

May 29, 2015 • by admin • In May Flowers, Southern Living, Where We Walkers Are • 0

This month like the previous ones just seem to have flown by… Today I feel really blessed that our hard work continues to pay off so that we can live and be in a place that we want to be in. We may seem ‘really really busy’ with work but the mornings looking out over the ocean, lunch walking around the neighborhood, or an evening swim in the pool below us really makes everything else worth it. And the TIME we get to spend together is more than either of us could ask or hope for.

Sunrise from the pool area

The pool beneath our balcony

I got to see TWO of my FAVORITE people in the world for a hot minute at the very beginning of the month… It had been 2.5 years since I saw Gillian last and Ciara almost 5 years!!! Way too long – but it was as if we hadn’t missed a beat and could just pick up from wherever. I met both of them in Australia in 2006 – we all lived together for over 7 months including in Egypt…so will always have some amazing memories with them and hopefully more to come in the future!

Ciara, Gillian and Myself

The first full week of May it gets busy in Jacksonville as THE Players PGA Golf Tournament is hosted here every year… This year we went on the final day to see the players live – was in the 90s with the humidity index bringing it to well over 100+ degrees so our 13 miles of walking around with little to no shade was quite exhausting this year!

Ernie Els in the Pink

Rickie Fowler – Winner of the Tournament

Adam Scott – Australian

Tiger Woods – A lot of fun to follow

Famous 17th Hole

With that said it is very enjoyable to be there and see everything right in front of you and for Cordie to get to connect with others in the Golf Industry.

We are THRILLED to have balcony furniture now!!! We picked up these chairs and outdoor pouf at Target and received this amazing lounge chair in the mail a week later! They all match perfectly, look great, are comfortable and just what we’d be hoping for…

Selfie Stick Pic

We spent two days up in Amelia Island for a Florida Golf Qualifier… such beautiful golf courses in that area.

Hanging out in Becky & Judd’s new backyard

We spent Memorial Weekend with our good friends the Clarksons.

He loooves the car

I am still helping out my friend Jordan with her puppy Dante a couple days a week…

Hope you had a beautiful month and are looking forward to june!

The thing is though – on here we have our highlights of the month our life… not the days when we are slammed for 36 – 48 hours working straight on projects and not doing much more than working, eating, sleeping, all week (like this last one) maybe sitting outside while we work (like I am doing now writing this post so I can be outside) so our pictures and posts aren’t too discourage you with where you are at but hopefully encourage you to be thankful for what you DO have and where you ARE —->

April…

May 18, 2015May 19, 2015 • by admin • In myaprilbirthdaymonth, Where We Walkers Are • 0

…went by way tooo fast! We moved to a new condo on the beach… had a great week celebrating my birthday… friends (basically family) were near by for over two weeks…Easter with my best friends inlaws…their 40th Anniversary Party…it was a very full month of spending time with people… unpacking… reorganizing and enjoying life in our new location!

Living Room

Dining Room

Kitchen

Our Bedroom.. yes we can see the ocean from bed.

Looking into our Office (smaller than our last place but we gained a lot of outdoor work space and a larger living room!)

Just over a month in we are loving our decision to move onto the beach instead of getting a larger house in the suburbs!

Judd is my bff’s husband and he and I share the same birthday!

We enjoyed our house warming gift from Cordie’s father… the ‘Selfie Stick’ there will be plenty more pictures taken with it and from our balcony!

Above is from the first morning we woke up here!

We took HUNDREDS of pictures while the Cass Family took their holiday nearby… We really do miss seeing them on a regular basis but cherish the moments we do get to see them here in FL and in MN
(planning on visiting family and friends this June/July)!

Other highlights from the month of April:

– Cordie loooves our beach walks together, walking to a variety of coffee shops to work every Monday

– We both ride my Birthday Beach Cruiser present at least 4-5x a week to the grocery store… literally anywhere within 5 – 6 miles here on the beach

– I am watching a friend’s puppy a few days a week (since he was 8 wks now almost 12wks old) his name is Dante

– These are my nephews Eddie & Walter – Golden Doodle Brothers and I hang out with them every once in a while They are about 5 months old now

–Opening of the Beaches Parade is always a blast!

–Mostly just so blessed by our new home and that our lifestyle has changed dramatically! We are up before 7AM everyday and are both trying to be very active whether its swimming, walking, riding the bike or going to the gym!