And the New Year has begun

As usual, my university starts the long spring semester early. On Monday the 5th to be exact. No sooner have we all recovered from New Years celebrations than we all have to have syllabi and classroom preparation ready. At least the good Mr. Dr. gets a few more weeks to work on his book before his semester begins.

The construction of our parlor and bedroom ceilings will commence this week. Today we had a pre-construction cocktail with a few friends so that a few people will be able to see the difference once it is complete. We still haven't figured out what colors to paint either room but there was much volunteering of assistance once we are ready to make holes in the walls, sand, primer, etc. That may have been the wine talking though. :) Nonetheless, we are hoping to soon have that room put together, at least as much as it can be until we can afford really good furniture.

In order to prepare for the bedroom demolition and rebuild, we will have to move as much as we can out of the bedroom. We're pretty sure that the bed will probably have to stay. Possibly even the dressers. We are expecting to have to sleep in the guest bed downstairs for a night or two while that is happening. We'll see how well this all goes. With any luck, it will just be a straightforward process. We must count ourselves lucky that these are the only problems we've really encountered. One of our friends today recounted the story of sewer backups into their house. Yes, it was that gross.

We are still trying to decide on a roofer. We've had 3 quotes so far and one is wildly different, but he's teasing us with copper flashing. He must have known that Mr. Dr.'s eyes light up when he hears those words. We also still have to apply with the city, which I will do on Tuesday.

Other than that, I'm trying to work on the dissertation as much as possible. I've passed a major milestone and am now in the process of writing up the final draft. It will take a good month, but I am sure I can get it done. Hopefully.

Oh, and we made our first mortgage payment. So, this is what is what it feels like to be a grown up.

And finally, congratulations to my mom for passing her citizenship test. Now we are just waiting for the date for the oath ceremony. You go mom!