Decorating For Less... WAY Less!

This is my second time decorating an entire house all at once, so "new to this" I am not.  And while I really wish I were in my home, sitting at my desk, relaxing, I am not,  I am now in decorator mode.  After agonizing over wall and floor colors, we have, I had finally narrowed them down, and ordered the ones we liked the most.  I think the majority of thought goes into wall and floor colors because we want to make sure what we pick out will stand the test of time.  We ask ourselves the following questions:

1.  Will we get tired of this color in 6 months?
2.  Will it hide dirt well?
      ( I ask this, because if I don't want to vacuum one weekend, it won't look like I didn't.)
3.  Is it easily washable?
4.  Are there several accent colors that will go nicely with the base color? 
     (So when I do get tired of a look, I can change some accents & get a whole new look.)
5.  Is it a color that the entire family likes?

If I can answer yes to all of these questions, the color becomes a contendor.  We have now ended up with 5 colors.

A winter white, for all the trim, doors and ceilings.  2 Greys, and 2 Browns.  A dark and light of each color.  Darker colors will be going into larger, brighter rooms, while the lighter colors will go into the smaller, less lit rooms,  yet the entire house will flow nicely together. 

I have to admit, I was truly dreading having to go out and purchase 12 rooms worth of home goods, again; however, I had one thing on my side.

Experience.

That, and that alone steered me in the right direction. 

Enter T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and Home Goods.  We have been making weekly trips to as many of these stores as we can in Rhode Island, and hitting the clearance aisles. 

I think I have purchased nearly half of the items we are needing for a quarter of the price we were anticipating.  Here's some of our recent finds.

With the girls having such different tastes when it comes to their own style, T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and Home Goods has been a God send!  One of the things I love, besides their prices, is that on their price tags, you always see a "Compare to" price. 

Comparing the "what I paid" prices to the "Compare to" prices was a shocker.  I had savings totalling alomst $500, and I am not done purchasing items. 

Why do I go each week?  Well their clearance aisles are constantly changing.  Constantly.  Take the bird cage pillow.  One of my girls spotted this a few weeks ago.  The regular price was $19.99.  The compare to price was $35.00.  That alone was a great savings, but we waited.  Last week, I spotted the pillow in the clearance aisle for just $15! 

106 Days After the Fire

February 17th, 2012.  The day that forever changed our lives.  We have discovered that, together, my husband, myself, and our girls are much stronger than we have ever thought, even though the loss is still very raw, and extremely difficult to talk about without crying, we are strong.

We are on day 106.  We have dealt with the insurance company, the insurance adjuster, the mortgage company and the contractor.  ( And really the only one I truly love dealing with is the contractor, Ron at C&L Builders has just been amazing.) 

We have had people ask us, as early as 3 weeks after the fire, if we were back in our house yet.  This always amazes me.  The look on my face when they ask, you would think that I was trying to do some 9 digit multiplication mental math problem in my head, like 485,539,429 times 274,395 is ???  I'm not really sure why people think that in three weeks you get your entire house rebuilt and furnished, but for some reason, they do.

The house had been demo'd down to studs...

We have ordered kitchen cabinets, which have been delivered, we have purchased lighting, furniture, tubs, toilets, vanities, appliances and mattresses. 

The plasterer's came in and did their thing, and now our house is looking very white. 

Did I mention, VERY white?

Today we will start to see some colors going on the walls!  I am very excited to see this.  To me, color is the sign that there is in fact a light at the end of the tunnel.  The guys are working very hard, trying to get the bedrooms and bathrooms finished so we can begin to move furniture in and decorate. 

So that's where we are right now.  Next week should really be exciting and rooms will really begin to be transformed!

Updates. Where We Are 4/6

April 6th, 2012.  It's been exactly 7 weeks since our lives were turned upside down.  5 weeks since the demolition has been done.  35 days of looking at bare studs.  We began to make some phone calls last Friday, as we have not been happy with the lack of progress being made with our 3rd party insurance adjuster. 

Monday came, and it looked promising.  We had found out that by Wednesday there should be an agreement in place.  We had some hope.  Wednesday came and went.  The flicker of light from that hope had been blown out.   At our wits-end, my husband made another phone call.  This time to our insurance company directly.  Not getting a warm and fuzzy feeling, my husband pulled out the one word that we were holding back. 

"Lawyers".

Lo and behold at 3 pm yesterday, we received a phone call from our contractor.  The phone call we had been hoping for.  It's not exactly the amount that it should have been, but as our contractor put it, it's do-able.  We will be able to put back everything we had in the house.  We will be able to have the same quality that we had.  As. It. Should. Be.

There is no question as to having enough insurance, the biggest obstacle here and is always getting the insurance company to pay out.  This has always amazed me.  You have insurance, go years and years never putting in a claim, or maybe never put in a claim, and in your time of need, the company does little to nothing to ensure your taken care of.  Infact they have adjusters that try to lower the amount that the company has to pay you, and will take weeks to give you what your entitled to.  However;  turn the tables, and try not to pay your premiums on time, and now you can be left high and dry.   When they call to collect their premium, I defy you to tell them, that you're going over their policy, and really don't agree with the price and "we'll get back to you in 5 to 7 days with a counter-offer.  You'll be dropped quicker than you can blink.

Okay, so now that I'm off my soapbox.  I am pleased to announce that construction will begin on Monday.  Finally. 

Here's hoping that construction moves along quickly, smoothly, and without any hiccups. 

Working Around a New Schedule

After a 9 hour round trip ride up to Vermont to bring our new little boy home, we are all getting used to a new schedule.  A new schedule that revolves around him.  His wants, his needs, and his playtime schedule.  I am loving it.

Ironically when we were picking up our boy, whom we named Otter, there was a family from Massachusetts, picking up one of the puppies, who asked us if it was our Mastiff that we lost in the fire, that wouldn't leave our eldest dog.  They knew the story well.  Sadly, I just shook my head and said yes.  I could feel the tears well up.  The wounds of that day are still so fresh, and deep. 

However, this new chapter with Otter in our lives is a nice diversion from looking at the house with nothing getting done right now, as the adjuster seems to just be taking forever. There is no question as to if we have enough insurance to cover the repairs, it's a matter of the insurance adjuster trying to, of course get out of this with our insurance company paying as little as possible.  We are not looking to get more than we had, we know, unfortunately that that's not how it works.  We only want back what we had, as far as monetary costs and items go.  I took steps on Friday to, let's say, light a fire under the adjuster, (pun intended) and get the ball rolling so we can get back into our house. 

 I really feel that there should be some sort of pre-requisite to becoming an insurance adjuster.  I think in order to become one, you should really have had gone through a house fire, tornado, major flood or disaster of some sort.  Maybe then when you would say "I understand", well maybe then you really would understand that your life has been turned upside down and inside out, and all you really want is to get back to a little normalcy. 

Normalcy is still a long ways off for us right now.  Continuing to look at our home stripped down to just studs gets depressing rather quickly.  The scent of burnt wood still lingers throughout the house, flooding back the memories of the morning of February 17th, still too fresh to think of without crying. 

So for now, at least for the next few week's working around Otter's schedule will be taking priority....

....and I'm going to love every sleepless minute of it!

Couponing & Rebuilding Our Home

Over the last month I have not been couponing, haven't really been to the drug stores, and only been purchasing groceries that have been needed for the week.  Being in the trailer, there really is no room at all for stock up items.  Passing up great sales has really been tough to do, but somehow I have been handling it well.

Though currently no construction is taking place, we are still waiting for the contractor and insurance adjuster to come to some sort of agreement on the price of rebuilding, we have made several purchases for the new home.   We are purchasing many of the items that they will be installing like tubs, fixtures, vanities, cabinets etc.  so of course being the couponer and deal seeker that I am.  I have been watching home store sales, and coupons very closely. 

Each week I will be updating the total at the top of this page as to what are total savings are to date.  Here's a break down of what we have done so far.

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Grossman's Bargain Outlet - Bath & Shower + Surround = $398.00

 Spotted an upcoming sale flyer so waited until following Sunday to make the purchase

Saved 20% and paid just $318.40 (plus tax)

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Lowes purchased a 24 inch bathroom vanity, 2 tub & shower faucets, and a bathroom sink faucet = $651.00

Used a 10% off purchase coupon and paid just $585.90 (plus tax)

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Home Depot Purchased a Whirlpool Bath, and Drain Plug for bath = $638.99

Used a 10% off purchase coupon, received when I signed up for Newsletter & paid just $575.10 plus tax

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Lowe's Purchased 2 Dual Flush Toilets and a 49 inch Granite topped Bath Vanity = $1078.00

Used another 10% off total purchase coupon & paid just $970.20 plus tax

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Lowe's:  did some research to find an Oiled Bronze wide spread sink faucet on clearance, went to the store and talked to the manager to see if they would honor the online price because it was $116 in store and just $53.70 online.  Also bought a tub drain.  = $155.00

Used anotheer 10% off total purchase coupon, & got the online price = Paid just $83.43 plus tax.

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Lowe's bought the following, Frigidaire Gallery Fridge, Microwave/convection oven, Electric Oven/ Convection Oven, and dishwasher, Granite composite double basin sink, garbage disposal, 2 bathroom medicine cabinets, an over the toilet cabinet, drains for the sink, and a kitchen faucet = Total cost $5584.15 used a 10% off total purchase coupon and paid just  $5102.99

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Home Depot designed and purchased the kitchen cabinets total price was $13849.45.  Since we were going with Thomasville Cabinets, I asked about what specials they were running, and asked for additional discounts, also they were having a "Buy More Save More" event.  =  total paid after all discounts =  $9563.76

Total Savings so far = $5155.01

Fire Update (3/23)

So where are we?  I have been getting lots of emails lately as to where we were as far as how the house was coming along.  Well, for the last two weeks now things have been at a stand still.  All the demo has been finished.  Our contractor, whom I just love, has gotten his estimate off to the adjuster, and the adjuster, who, let's just say isn't my favorite person in the world, has taken a very long time to go over everything.  We have just gotten back a huge packet of papers, outlining where the insurance company is compared to where the contractor is, concerning dollar amounts.

The two parties are so far off from one another, that my husband and I pretty much are assuming that at least the next two to three weeks will be spent coming to some sort of agreement, during which, my husband and I are preparing for no work being done. 

So for now, we are trying to make the best of a bad situation.  We are heading up to Vermont in the morning to go and meet our new little guy who will hopefully will be able to come home to our trailer in just a few short weeks.  People have asked if we were crazy, saying there really isn't enough room in a mobile home for a fast growing puppy.  Sayings like "As if you didn't have enough to do."  are common. 

And I say to them, "You just don't understand."  Having a dog in our lives, isn't a bother, it isn't a hassle.  It isn't hectic.  It's our life.  It's fulfilling.  It's a joy.  It's who we are. 

So where are we?  We're waiting. 

How We're Rebuilding... Making It Easy

There are so many different colors, different hues of colors, and different tints of colors, how do you know what you're choosing will fit with colors you've already chosen?  Are you the type of person that wants your whole home to flow together?  Or do you want each room to reflect a different type of personality? 

I'd like to think that I am a little of both.  I like fluid in my home.  I have multiple tastes when it comes to colors.  I am also one that gets bored with colors after a short period of time.  How do I pull it all together, and choose a color that will stand the test of time? 

I start with something that has struck my eye.  In this case, I have found several pairs of curtains that I just fell in love with, for a couple of rooms.  And yes, I have already purchased them, they're hanging in the closet in the mobile home right now as I speak. 

Secondly, I find the colors of the curtains in those color charts you find for free in the paint stores, and grab a few.  Why?  I put together a color scheme  inside a small notebook to bring with me, everywhere I go. 

(This color scheme is of our kitchen.  We have the color of the floors we have chosen, cabinets, and furniture in the adjacent dining room, as well as a couple of choices that we like for countertops, and wall color.)

Lowe's has a great free kitchen design on their website, that can really help you to visualize your ideas.  Whether you're doing a complete remodel, your just have an idea to change a few minor things, this tool can really be a huge time and money saver. 

( Here we have put together our Master Bedroom, including the curtains we have purchased, furniture color, carpeting color, and some accent pieces.)

In addition to the color schemes that I have put together, I have also joined a site called Polyvore.  This site has really helped me to put together pieces of furniture, colors, and accent pieces that I have found either in the stores or online.  Here's what I have put together for our Master Bedroom.

Being able to see all the items together as a set, really helps me to decide whether or not I will like the item or color, especially for items that aren't easily changed out like flooring, big ticket items like a bed frame, and wall colors.  I can also add in other accent colors that I like, to make sure that when my tastes change, they will go with the major colors that I have put into the rooms. 

Want to see more rooms and ideas that I'm thinking about?  Follow me on Polyvore! 

A Close Knit Family ~ Dealing With "Close" Quarters

We are going on just about a month since the fire, and just about three weeks living in this 500 square foot trailer.  The trailer is taking quite a bit of getting used to.  The kitchen is just about the size of my last fridge, counter space is non-existant, and the living room, well let's just say that our 10 x 14 foot shed, is actually bigger.

The mobile home has two bedrooms, one bath, and a kitchen/dining/living room, to which a stackable washer and dryer are located as well.  The girls are stacked in bunk beds to give them a little bit more room to move around in, and our "full" size bed, just about fits into our bedroom.   Aside from my ramblings on the lack of space in the kitchen, my biggest gripe is having just a single bathroom.  Let me elaborate...  Having just ONE bathroom and TWO teenage girls.  Enough said?   I thought so. 

Tight.  To say the least. 

As tight as it is, I am thankful that we are able to stay here, close to our home, and not in a hotel across town.  If the contractor has a question, we are right there.  We are right there to see things being done, which is always nice to see. 

If we weren't a close family before this, (which we were, anyway)  we would have no choice but to be a close family now!  The girls are calling it camping.  I am calling it a temporary detour. 

And even with the little amount of space we have, we are all looking forward to the craziness of adding one more to the mix... 

In just about 3 weeks, we will be welcoming "Otter" into our home, and getting even more "tighter"! 

A Bright Little Light

We received news yesterday that just gave us all a huge smile.  In a few week's time, we will be welcoming this super adorable little guy into our home.  We know full well that our home, just isn't a home without a Mastiff... or two. 

Yes, we are living in a mobile home trailer in the front yard, and yes it's a bit cramped, but it's quiet.  Too quiet.  We have no problem making room to accommodate him either.  While yes we will be super busy putting our home back together over the next several months, I do believe this little guy, whom has already been named "Otter", will not only make us smile, but also force us to sit back and have some fun while this whole home renovation is taking place.  He'll even be going to the home stores with us while we pick out colors, and flooring too. 

It was Boon, our first Mastiff, that really sealed the deal, and made us all realize that the Mastiff is, hands down, the perfect dog for us.  Losing him was and is one of the most painful, heartbreaking losses we have ever experienced.  We are not replacing him, as there will never be another "Boon", however, we cannot wait to have the Mastiff experience once again in our home. 

We're heading to Vermont later this month to go and see him, then a couple weeks later, heading back up to bring him home.  (Leaving him after we meet him will be pure torture for me!) 

It's news that has made us all smile, and we are looking forward to new chaos, puppy training, and everything else that a puppy will bring! 

Picking Up The Pieces

The sun room.  This is where in less then 13 minutes our lives were changed.  Again.  We received news late yesterday that this room was released from the investigator, and cleared to be demo'd, as the rest of the house has already been done. 

After we were allowed to go into that room, we put on some gloves, and headed into the room, to see if there was something to salvage.  Anything.  Anything at all.  We have been looking at this room for just about 3 weeks now.  I know full well what it looks like. 

I remember what it once looked like. 

We heard those unimaginable words.  Un-Determined.  This fire was undetermined.  Undetermined.  The word echos in my mind.  I can't believe it.  No answer as to why.  No reason why I do not have my boys here with me today.  We have some thoughts, and voiced some concerns to the investigator, but it seems as though nothing has come of it. 

We now realize it is up to us, and only us to ensure that we protect our home, protect our lives, and the lives of our future animals, by looking into some home items that will help to ensure against fires, contain fires, and even animal accessible only doors on both floors of our house.  I will be seeking out as much information that I can over the next few weeks, and when I come across something worth posting about, I will be passing all the information onto you, in hopes that maybe I may save someone else from going through this anguish.   

As much as we have been gazing into the room from afar, nothing can quite describe the feelings that rush over your body as you sift through 8 inches of ash.  Ash that, just three weeks ago was furniture, photos, walls, windows, and a ceiling.

As we walked through the room, the memories just became completely overwhelming.  The memories of sitting at my desk working, while my boys lay under my desk, keeping my feet warm, and sighing when I tried to move.  Memories of Family Wii night with the girls, and trying to play "around" the boys, and still manage to win the game, even though they made it near impossible. 

Memories of snacking on Oreo cookies, and sharing a few with the boys, while JP, re-iterated, "You spoil them."  ( and then watch JP share his crackers with the boys five minutes later!)

As tough as it was last night, it's even tougher to hear the rubble beign tossed away into the dumpster. 

We will once again begin to pick up the pieces. 

Murphy's Law Strikes Again

It seems that Murphy's Law rather enjoys visiting us.  It's not like I put out coffee and cookies for him.  But, for some reason he likes it here, so much so, that I am really starting to look for some alternative, homeopathic, superstitious items to try and change our luck around, because I am really sick of dealing with emergencies, catastrophes and the like.

Yesterday after we spent spent the better part of the night at the ER with Jennicka.  Seems she has become a trampoline statistic.  Though she was not jumping, she did in fact lost her footing, and down she went, right onto the metal frame.  Face.  First. 

After waiting for the x-rays and CT scans to come back with no breaks or fratcures in the jaw or chin, I could breathe a little better.  She did however have to get 11 stitches in two places on the inside of her lip and gum, as well as have the outside of lip glued shut.  This morning we will be heading to the dentist, to see what we can do about her two broken front teeth. 

Through it all, this is one tough girl.  Not a single tear, not a single complaint.  She was a rock.  Joking about the time she went face first into the pavement when she was younger.  Reminding me what she said when she was 5,  " You think I look bad?  You should see what the road looks like!"  Tougher than I could have ever been.  She amazes me.  More and more everyday. 

So, to Mr. Murphys Law, if you're listening, I would appreciate if you would go elsewhere for your next cup of coffee, because I really do need a break from you, and if you should run into Mr. Luck please let him know where we are living.  Thanks. 

Your's Truly,
Brandy

Trying to Move Forward ~ Fire Update (3/2)

So we have been in the trailer now for a little over a week, today marks 2 weeks to the day of our second house fire, and we are all still trying to cope with the loss of our 2 four legged boys, and one of our cats.  Going from a 3000 plus square foot home to a 500 square foot trailer, is taking a lot of getting used to.  The words "sorry" are thrown about hourly, as someone is constantly bumping into someone else. 

Unfortunately, we have been through this before, and although it was devastating, we didn't lose any pets in the first fire.  The first fire really taught us about the value of material items, and that pretty much everything can be replaced, and I often think that, maybe it had happened to teach us exactly that. 

This fire.  I don't know what it was or is supposed to teach us.   I have always been a believer that "Everything happens for a reason." and I just cannot wrap my head around this one.  I cannot wrap my head around the fact that I do not have my boys here with me.  The quietness of each morning without them has been deafening.  To walk down the hallway in the morning and not have 2 dogs basically up my butt is uncomprehendable.

I am at a loss.  While I am deeply saddened by losing the three animals, I am most saddened by losing my Boon.  By no means am I discounting anyone's relationship with a pet, and I have had many different pets growing up and in my adulthood and loved every single one of them; however, there is a special bond with a Mastiff, and unless you have owned  one has owned you,  it is difficult to describe.  When people speak of their human-like traits,  guilt complexes, and their big mushy smiles, you really don't fully understand unless you have experienced the "Mastiff Experience" first hand. 

Through all of this, my daughters came home from school yesterday, with some papers.  They were both nominated for the National Junior Honor Society, and we couldn't be more proud of them.  They are the reason my husband and I continue to move forward each day, and try to once again rebuild our lives from the ground, up.  For a second time.

And....  After talking with my husband, we both know that our house is not, and will not be a home without another one of those goofy Mastiff faces running around it, enlightening all our lives, which is why, once we are able to move back into the house in several months, we will be looking for....

TWO new Mastiff additions.  (Because they are like potato chips, you can't have just one!) 


and yes, just thinking about what it will be like, has given us something to look forward to, and begin to once again smile.

Fire Update (2/28)

As much as I would like to say that the days are getting easier, they're really not.  The loss of my dogs and cat is just so immense, and the sadness comes in waves at this point.  I know that it will get easier as time passes, however, time can't pass quick enough at this point. 

I guess if there is a silver lining here, it is that since the entire house is being gutted right down to studs, it may infact be put back together quicker than the first time, as there really isn't anything that is being cleaned.   There is still so much work that needs to be done, but the crews that have been here yesterday and today aren't fooling around, and are truly getting more work done that I would have ever imagined. 

Yesterday was a rather an emotional overwhelming day.  To see all of our contents, that we worked so hard on, in the full light of day in a dumpster, covered in soot, charred, and beyond repair was tiring, sad, and depressing.   It made me thankful that our daughters were not seeing it, and were in school. 

So demolition has begun.  The electrical investigators are due to come back this week, and we are looking for answers to why, and how this fire started.  I want to know why I do not have my boys here with us today.  I want answers, and don't want to settle for the words in a report that show "undetermined."  Not a second time. 

We are looking into some improvement ideas as to what we can do if this turns out to be an electronic item that was plugged in.  Though we are not sure if that's what this was.  At this point we are just pulling on straws. 

Friday Update on Fire (2/24)

Today marks one week since our 2nd home fire, and it still feels like I haven't woken up from this nightmare.  To be here again is just completely unbelieveable, and to be here without 3 of our 4 - four legged children is the most painful. This is a photo of our sliding glass door going out onto the new deck that we spent last Spring building together. 

We can't help but to compare fire 1 with fire 2, and try to make sense of it all.  I know that fire moves quickly, but we were gone for, at the most 13 minutes.  The room where this started, is the same room that the first fire started nearly 2 years ago.  This room had been completely torn off the house and rebuilt.  The internal wiring looks good, and they have ruled that out.  There was much more flame damage than before, and I still can't comprehend that. 

 13 minutes. 

They still have no answers for us, as to why this happened.  We have heard that possibly some electronic device that may have been plugged in, but nothing that was definitive.  The only way I can describe the Sunroom, where it started, was it truly looks like a bomb exploded in there. 

I can't thank you all enough for the kind words, and condolences.  We are just trying to take everything moment by moment, and get a little normalcy back into our lives for our daughters.  Really I think it it wasn't for them, I would be a complete basket-case. 

Tuesday Updates on Fire

I just wanted to give everyone a quick update, because I know many of you have been checking for updates here and on Facebook.  Sleep for us, is pretty much non-existant.  And the little sleep that we are getting are interupted by nightmarish body jolts. 

Yesterday was a pretty tough day for all of us, even though we have been through this once before, and kind of know what to expect, it is no easier.  We began to start phographing and documenting all of our belongings, and managed to get through the bedrooms yesterday.   

The boys room was definitely the hardest. Taking their beds and bowls out of there was pure torture, and the pain, palpable. 

Today will be another long day of cataloging items, photographing charred remains of what used to be, and just plain draining. 

I will try and get some deals posted tonight. 

Update on Fire

As far as what exactly has happened.  We have no idea right now.  We have been running through the morning's events in our minds over and over and over.  Our insurance company has brought in an Electrical Engineer Investigator, and we spoke with him for more than an hour yesterday.  We are trying to get some housing set up on the property, and hopefully by the end of next week, we will have a mobile home set up.  The firemen have allowed us to go back into the house and the insurance adjuster has given us the go ahead to start cataloging our personal contents. 

I never, in my wildest dreams worst nightmares, ever thought I would be here doing this again. 

I know that many of you have been sending texts / emails / calls / etc asking if we need anything, and I am truly grateful for each and every offering.  We have, right now, everything we need, we are just waiting for an emergency advance which hopefully will be available sometime next week.  And as far as my coupons were concerned, I actually had my coupon binder with me.

This fire was so much more devastating.  Again, I never thought in a million years that I would ever have to compare house fires, yet here I am comparing house fire number one to house fire number two. 

We were gone for a maximum of 13 minutes, when we received a call from our neighbor, crying that our house was on fire.  When we arrived back home, fire trucks, were already in the house.  My boys.  My four-legged boys did not survive, as well as one of our two cats did not survive.  No words can describe the intense heartbreak that we are experiencing. 

Our lab, Byron, could not get down the stairs any longer, and our Mastiff, Boon, would not leave him alone.  They were found together side by side.  When we arrived home, they had just gotten the boys out, and the Warwick Fire Department tried so hard to resuscitate them, and when they couldn't, cried on our front lawn.  (I could not watch this.)  Our cat Stach, was found on our bed, and honestly don't think she ever woke up. 

I know that fire moves quickly, but we cannot comprehend this.  Not at all.  We have no answers as to why or how this happened as of yet.  We can only hope right now, that we may have some answers by the end of next week. 

I have a few good moments among the countless bad hours. 

We began cataloging our items yesterday afternoon, but had to rest today, and just try to decompress.  There is no "making sense" of this.  The only way to describe where the fire started, is that it looks like a bomb exploded.  ( I have yet to take photos of that room.)

Tomorrow will be a day of more cataloging, and with that comes countless more photos, and thanks to some great friends and family, we have borrowed cameras to get this horrible task done.  The insurance company has offered to bring in people to do our cataloging, but I need to keep myself busy, as it's the quiet moments that are the most excrutiating right now. 

I will continue to keep everyone updated as things happen.