Parrot on a PorchA Journey Toward the Little Mansion Dream

We went to Batasan yesterday and visited LM.  Glad that I didn’t set my expectations high because still…no water line.  The foreman said that he’s been waiting for a week now for the Maynilad Water Services staff to arrive and work on the excavation.  But alas, LM remains water-less.  Upon presentation of the payment receipt and contract that the foreman will be presenting to the Maynilad representative, I think I’ve discovered where the lag is and what caused the tremendous delay.  :sigh:  It’s really peeving us already. 

How I wish we can transfer real soon.  The bedroom’s a big mess because we’ve started packing things in boxes.  See, we’re really prepared to move out anytime. (Water..water..water..water na lang talaga).  On Monday, we’ll also transport the bed frame we’re currently using along with some boxes containing trinkets and other abubots that we’ve packed.  We’ve been transferring our things on installment since the last four weekends so that everything we’ll just be light and easy come Move In time.  We’ll just lay the mattress down on the floor so that’s where we’ll temporarily sleep on. 

Packing things, I can say, is one of the most grueling tasks.  But what I like about it is that I tend to discover and unearth stuffs that I’ve not seen for quite a while like my all time fave books, letters, bridesmaid gifts, tokens, and other knick knacks stored in the farthest end of the storage box. It’s always a fun time reading all those notes and cherishing where those mementos came from.  There are still some more stuffs to go through so some more cherishing moments will take place. 

Most of the big stuffs are already in our Little Mansion except for the ref and the bed we’re using.  The smaller stuffs we’ve shopped in the past two months are also already there.  The house is fully constructed, too, except for the additional installations that we’ve just recently requested like the screened doors.

As for the housing loan, we’re pleased to share that our application in a bank was approved by two weeks ago. Thank God! Even though the appraisal’s a bit low (which is actually expected of banks), we’re still happy that we changed our mind at the last minute.  If we pursued our application at Pag-ibig, we would still have to wait 2 months or more for the status.  The application process in the bank was a lot easier and faster.  It took us just five days to know the verdict.  Also, they offer much lower interest rates compared to Pag-ibig.  There are still a lot of documentation details to work on but at least, we can now breathe loosely.

Everything’s almost ready, including us, to move in.  Since we live with my parents-in-law and we only have a few old things to bring with us as we start anew, packing would be totally easy.  The only thing that’s preventing us now from moving in is the water line.  Yep, no water line still. But according to the developer, Maynilad representatives have already inspected the area last week.   I heard that water installation should just be easy (as easy as acquiring an online degree) and fast.  So I’m hoping to see a favorable result by this weekend. We’re really itching and excited to be welcomed by the Little Mansion’s door.

These were the pictures taken during the first Move In wave.  More stuffs have been transferred after that and LM’s a big mess now. We can’t start with the cleanup yet since, as mentioned, there’s no water still. 

After meeting up with our kumare Ena to hand Yui’s swim diapers in their condo yesterday, we passed by Handyman Home Center which is located at the building’s ground floor on our way to the parking level.  We actually have no plans of shopping but the Multi-functional ladder which is on sale and conspicuously displayed at the front lured us to enter the store.  Then suddenly, Paul and I remembered the other small home devices we failed to buy last time.  There is an ongoing sale so all the more that we got enticed to shop.  Then later we found ourselves leading 2 baskets and a couple of huge stuffs to the cashier for checkout: 2-in-1 rechargeable light and fan, flashlight, self twisted dry fabric mop, a pair of shelf brackets and screws for the altar, dustbins, toilet brush and 2 dozens of toddler hangers.  There was a discounted weighing scale which I almost snagged for the husband (because I know that he’s really committed to share a weight loss success story after all those gym workouts he did) but decided not to since the brand and quality is just so-so.  We also had another impulse buy: a 5 layer shoe rack.  I instantly liked it because the size is just perfect and I’ve pictured already where it should be placed in the room.  What I like best about it is its cover that has a zipper closure making it appear as a shoe closet.  And so, our meet up with our kumare ended up with an unplanned splurge of home stuffs.

Earlier, I have focused my mind and anticipated how tough our LM (Little Mansion) Project could get.  Financial wise, that is.  But, honestly, I never thought that it’s much worse and every time I do the math of our expenses for the last couple of months, I really want to faint with all the cashout and the credit card charges we currently have.  Suffice to say that acquiring and moving into a new house can really be pocket draining.  We’re just thankful that we’ve been constantly provided with means to earn through my online work to cope up with the expenses.  My kind of work is seasonal but I’m glad that the timing of it’s outpouring is just perfect.  Truly, God provides and He knows when you need it the most.  The likes of deferred 0% transactions in credit cards and payday advance are also life saving facilities.  They’re indeed very helpful in these major life turning points.

I hold back myself from regretting the purchase of washing machine we did two weeks ago.  Having a limited budget, we just bought a dual tub semi-automatic washing machine.  That’s the type that we’ve been using in my folks’ and in my in-laws’ houses so practically, that’s the only type I was exposed to all this time.  How I wish I’ve done my research first.  It’s just recently that I learned about Fully-Automatic Washing Machines.  Although, I’ve heard a bit about it from friends in the past but I did not pay attention to them.  Also, I cringed when I learned that it costs about 12K and up.  I guess the impression on the price shut me off from researching about it further.  And so here I am, after learning how effective, fast and a lot convenient a fully-automatic washing machine is, I feel like wanting to sell the one we bought and buy the more advanced one.  I believe that albeit it’s more expensive, it’ll be worth it.  Again, another lesson learned, not all cheap and inexpensive things are practical. 

In a nutshell, a fully-automatic washing machine lets you soak, wash, rinse and spin dry clothes in a jiffy.  All you just have to do is stuff in the clothes then just take it out for further drying.  While a semi-automatic one lets you soak and wash, manual rinsing then back to the machine for drying. 

But on a second thought, hmm no..I’ll give the semi-automatic one a chance.  Besides we have so much expenses and credit card debt settlement to take care of now.  Once we get fully settled and adjusted, then that’s the time I’ll upgrade the appliances and stuffs of our dear Little Mansion. 

Priorities!

My apologies if I have not been able to update this blog about our so-called Little Mansion in the past few days.  Well, the reason is that, we’ve been busy over the last couple of weeks moving to our new home!  But we can not move in permanently yet since the water line is still in the process of installation.  We’ve started transferring stuffs though and just the same, the excitement is killing us.  We really can’t wait to sleep there for the very first time.  It is our long time dream, our biggest goal to date and we’re really, really close to attaining it..finally!  It may not be as huge, as grand and as luxurious as the Tamarindo Real Estate in Costa Rica (Tamarindo is a small, peaceful beach town where hundreds of condos and homes are being developed) but we are so much in love with our little crib, our very own little piece of heaven.  It’s the fruit of our hard work and we can’t just be prouder for being able to fulfill it.

Hmm..this is so tempting and I must say, very timely.  We’re set tomorrow to buy the last big ticket items in our To Buy List for the Little Mansion.  That includes the fridge, water dispenser and washing machine.  I think the husband would also like to look for a digital frame for the living room.  He just likes the functionality of this gadget..being a decorator at the same time, an album.  I heard that there are mall wide sales this weekend so here’s hoping we’ll get to snag some generous discounts or cool deals from our favorite appliance store.

And oh, tomorrow, we’ll transfer some more stuffs to the new home. 

And just like that, our housing loan application has just been placed this morning.  But no, not with Pag-ibig just like I’ve been blogging about but with a bank.  The Seller (who’s our Ninong) suggested that we try inquiring in a certain bank after he got irked by Pag-ibig’s demand for a few extra requirements.  So this morning, we visited the referred bank and after discovering that 1.) we can get approval advise within 5 days 2.) they offer lower interest 3.) maximum term is 25 years 4.) we have all of their required application requirements and 5.) the approximate monthly amortization is within our set budget….without second thoughts, the husband and I agreed to give it a go.  For now, the husband can puff some cigars in nervousness as we have one week to pray for a reasonable appraisal which can consequently lead to a higher approved loanable amount.  We’re keeping our fingers crossed and we’re keeping the faith.

The Little Mansion I’ve been blogging about will very soon open its doors for us. We’re still fixing the necessary loan documentation (actually, the most grueling part in acquiring a home) but we’re now given the go signal to carry on with the much awaited Big Move! Woohoo! So that also explains why I rarely can be caught online these days. Aside from the fact that Yayie hasn’t returned from her vacation yet, the husband (who is on a one week work leave) and I are multi tasking, trying to accomplish all these things while attending to a robust toddler. Albeit stressful, the husband’s loving it though because, as he puts it, the physical activities actually makes a great exercise for him and can even be considered the best ab workout, he says. On the other hand, I really can’t wait for Yayie to get back so everything will be less exhausting and we can transfer smoothly.

One of the things I am excited about in our new home is the new air conditioner that will be installed in our bedroom. The heat and humidity are really too much to bear these days that it will make you want to stay in a cooled room all day long. However, you can’t do that unless you’re game to be surprised on how much your electric bill will balloon up to. Speaking of electric bills and consumption, I’m glad to have kept in mind these tips when we shopped for our aircon. Unmindful of the brand, we got the perfect aircon at the best deal. Perfect meaning great features and the most important of all, has a high Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) as tested and certified by an energy auditing firm. We can have peace of mind using it for extended hours without having to worry about our electric bill.