What do you mean the kids go back to School next week!

I can't believe how fast the summer has flown by.  The last post I wrote I told you all about how busy we were during our 2 weeks in Florida.  What I don't want to do is leave the impression that our visit was all work and no play!  We did manage to squeeze in some fun. So without a big into a summary of our FUN!

Well I will say that Windsor Palms itself provided tons of fun for the family.  The kids wanted to try out everything. They didn't manage to do that but they did do a lot.  The resort pool was a big attraction. I would have thought with their own pool at home they wouldn't be that interested, but I was wrong.  For Sarah the big draw was other girls. She managed to make a new friend every time we went up there. Both kids had to check out the hot tub, they thought it was to hot, I thought it was amazing! 

Since we knew this would be a working vacation we let the kids have a little fun we might not have done otherwise.  We let them go a little crazy with the arcade games.  Christian had tons of fun racing cars and Sarah found every game that gave a prize, and she wasn't shy if the machine didn't cough up what she was owed. Off she'd run to the concierge to get what was due to her.  There was also ping pong and pool tables but we didn't get to that. 

The next big adventure was booking a movie in the theatre.  The kids poured over the selections and settled on Bolt, the regular version, not the 3D version. Neither of our kids are wild about 3D movies for some reason.  The told the concierge and he put it into the computer for the next day and later that night we looked on the TV at the community channel and there was their movie on the screen! They thought this was great.  So the next morning we headed up and they went to their movie and I headed to the gym.  I managed to squeeze in that one workout.  Not my normal routine but better than nothing at all.

We wanted to try our hands at tennis or basket ball or volley ball but time did not permit.  We saw lots of other people enjoying the amenities though and that is great to see.

I told you about our trip to LEGOLAND so I won't bore you with another recap of that adventure. We also went to Mini golf, the exact name of the one we actually went to is escaping me right now as it wasn't the one we were planning to go to.  The good thing that came out of that miss direction was that they had some baby Alligators and for a mere $3 the kids got to feed them, which was a big hit.

My cousin and his family came to stay for the last few days and it was a great distraction for the kids.  They'd never met these cousins as they live far away so it was fun for them.  And it was great that they weren't complaining about how bored they were.  We had planned to hit Disney, Magic Kingdom to be specific during our second week but we were so busy we didn't think we'd be able to do it. So as a surprise for the kids we extended our trip by a day and booked a night at the Caribbean Beach Resort. 

So we got our tickets (park hopper passes for the first time) and headed to Epcot, met up with Mickey, hung out with Figment (Sarah's favourite) and went to school with Nemo.  We then checked into our hotel, cleaned up, left the car and headed over to the Magic Kingdom.  Toby and I were so tired I think we fell asleep waiting for the bus and on the bus (to and from the parks, we were good if we were moving).  We first headed to New Fantasyland and I must say it is impressive.  We got our fast passes for Under the Sea with Ariel, which was a great ride. The animatronics are pretty impressive.  The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is an immense presence and I can't wait to see it finished. Another first was seeing the Electric Parade at Walt Disney World and seeing Wishes fireworks!  It was an action packed and very long day. 

In the morning we had some breakfast and then let the kids burn of some steam at the pool before the very long drive home.  In addition to all the above fun we also got to meet our Property Managers, John and Elizabeth and our Realtor Shaun. After talking and emailing Shaun for over a year and a half it was great to finally meet!

In the end the kids told us it wasn't the 3rd worst vacation ever, it had moved down and was now the 6th or 7th worst. Next time can only be more fun! Thanks for stopping by. I hope to update the blog with upcoming events in the area and any changes to the property.  Enjoy your long weekend!

Time Flies When You're Having Fun...Right?

Whew! 2weeks in Florida can certainly fly by when you're busy.  With 5 sets of guests already having stayed in the house since we took possession it was our turn to head down to sunny Florida and attempt to make some of the changes we were planning a reality.  It was certainly an eye opening experience, one that I'm glad we won't have to tackle again any time soon.  At one point our kids had dubbed it one of the worst vacations ever!

Prior to our arrival we had arranged for some contractors to come in our first full day to quote for us the big kitchen reno. That went as planned and by the second day we had made our decision and moved forward with other tasks.  What we hadn't anticipated was the amount of clearing out we had to do.  The previous owners had kept all the old TVs, damaged linens and even personal items from the owners prior to them. We threw out a lot of stuff. The carpets had been cleaned prior to our arrival and next the tile floors had to be tackled.  We are happy to report that the floors are very clean and look great.

It is amazing how little tasks can take up so much time and energy. We truly wanted to have the house feel comfortable and welcoming to anyone renting it. This way everyone can enjoy their vacation in their own home away from home. For the benefit of our kids we had to squeeze in some fun activities, this trip was not the usual busy take the theme parks by storm vacation that they are used to.  As reported before we went to LEGOLAND, we tackled a mini golf course (that also had some gators the kids could feed, lots of fun!), Downtown Disney and on our last day after checking out of the house we went to Disney. 

We left the house in the capable hands of our property managers, who are great people and crossed our fingers that the guests arriving later that day would appreciate our efforts.  The kitchen looks so much different than it did before.  In addition to changing the counters and adding a back splash we have new dishes and cutlery, glassware and small appliances. We hope if someone needs something it will be in a drawer or a cupboard.

In other areas of the house we put all new linens and towels, 3 bedrooms got new paint and the hallways which have seen a lot of traffic got a new coat of paint as well.  Outside we cleaned and scrubbed the pool deck, cleaned the sides of the house and scrubbed the tile on the pool.  It was like spring cleaning in July.  We replaced the front door which had been badly mistreated over the years and installed a new deadbolt, handle and event a matching door bell.

It is hard to believe that all of those things took up so much of our time. I'm sure there was other things we did that I am missing in my list, but this will have to do for now.  Next post I think I will focus on the fun stuff we managed to squeeze in while in the Sunny South!

And the Drama Continues!

It was a beautiful day today. Although, between work and getting some phone calls in for the house in Florida we didn't get to enjoy much of it.  Today brought another element of drama to this process. Let me set up the situation for you....

• Thursday we finally get the call that the banks have said yes to our offer and we need to pick a closing date and get the inspector organized. We ask that our Realtor find out if there is anyone renting the home or scheduled to rent the home.
• Friday we get the word that the house is vacant and we can close anytime between now and June 7th. Fair enough, and we settle on the 22nd. Inspector called and agreeable to do the inspection Monday morning.
• Late Friday we find out there are actually guests in the home right now.  Some organizing is going to have to happen to get the inspector in.
• Saturday-the powers that be have agreed to the inspection on Tuesday at 9:30am. Woo Hoo! Now we are still hesitant to finalize to many things until we get the inspection report, but we move forward with a few things.
• Monday-not a lot of action.
• Tuesday-inspection completed and lots of little things. And some things that really should be taken care of or compensated for by the seller as they were in working order when we put the offer in on the house.
• Wednesday, now this is things start to get interesting (if you want to call it that).  We talk with our Realtor about the inspection and the outcome and the issues we would like to be compensated for or fixed. But here comes the unexpected news.  The current property manager for the home, calls and demands that we honour a booking he has for the house starting on the 24th for 2 weeks.  As much as I feel for the guests, at this point I'm thinking this isn't my problem. Harsh maybe but it's the way I feel.

So where do we go from here, do we end up changing our plans, does this guy back down and just find his guests a different home to rent. I don't know, but we need it decided by Friday. If we are going to change our plans then it would be nice to have a little notice. Not to mention that we have to deal with bank transfers and that needs some planning.  Such is the story of this house purchase.  Just when you think things are going smoothly, you hit a bump along the way.

On the bright side, we've at least gotten the inspection done, we've talked to the soon to be new property managers (who seem great, nice, easy to talk to!) and we've made our to do list. Tomorrow I'll work on the insurance policy, already quoted, I just need to get pictures to the agent and clarify the policy.  Phew! I'll be glad when we get all this stuff done and we can just get down to business. We are excited to open up our new home to vacationers looking to relax and enjoy all that Florida has to offer.

The Cart before the Horse

So it's been a couple of weeks since the papers have been signed. We've decided on a property management company for when (and if) the sale goes through! http://www.houseproudflorida.com/ They seem like really nice people and all the other homeowners that I talked to who use them had nothing but great things to say. 

I've got my quotes in from 4 different inspection companies, so that is off my list. The only decision we need to make is whether or not to get a wind mitigation inspection. That's what I was working on today, quotes for insurance and if the wind mitigation inspection will help to decrease our premiums. Decisions, decisions:)  Hurricanes can be a pain in your pocket book!

I can't help but think that I'm getting ahead of myself (hence the title). I'm just hoping that by being prepared, we'll be able to jump into action once we have a closing date!

So as I sit here writing down my thoughts, I can't help but daydream about warmer weather and exciting changes. Our 2 kids have been making a list of all the things they want to do when they go to Florida again. This weekend is the beginning of Mardi Gras celebrations at Universal Studios (http://www.universalorlando.com/Events/Mardi-Gras/Overview.aspx). , it sounds like a lot of fun and we'll definitly have to add it to our "to do" list.