Our Haunted House

Our house is haunted.

Okay, maybe not but some weird things have been happening.  These ghosts just like to throw stuff around.  That's really it.

About a week ago, Nick and I were sitting in the living room and we heard this loud crash in the garage.  We go out and find that a lot of boxes and tubs have fallen over.  I blamed on Nick for stacking things too high.  I mean, it seems like a good reason they'd fall over.

But as if to prove us wrong and because they were pissed 'ghosts' weren't our first thought, not even 10 minutes later, we hear a crash in the front guest bedroom.  We head back there to investigate and a lot of stuff has fallen off the top shelf of the closet.  Things that were NOT hanging off the front and shouldn't have fallen.  So we jokingly said "Maybe we have ghosts!!!"

Later that evening, we notice the dogs staring at nothing.  Staring at the ceiling, then their little eyes moving across the ceiling.  We look up and see nothing.  They stare at the corners of the vaulted ceilings yet we see nothing.  I have no proof and have not even heard this anywhere, but I bet dogs can see ghosts.  I mean, they have other heightened senses.  So maybe they can smell/see/sense ghosts' presence in a room????

The girls staring at the top of the wall....where we see nothing!  

Vino watching...nothing?  Ghosts?

Vino barking and staring at nothing/ghosts

Here is a video that shows there is nothing there.  You do see some shadows from the fan, but I promise it's not that.  Even when the fan isn't moving and there are no shadows, they're watching something.  And it's in every room they're in that they do this! (click the little box in the bottom right corner to enlarge the video):

Our latest episode was yesterday.  Nick and I were sitting on the couch and we hear this loud crash in the laundry room.  It sounded like the lid to our top load washing machine came crashing down.  I go to  inspect and see this:

Our huge and new, meaning FULL and HEAVY, laundry detergent fell off the shelf above the washing machine...

And as you can see, nothing fell over on it or against it knocking it over.  There is NO reason it should have just fallen.  MAYBE if it was light, and something (other than a ghost) pushed against it, yes.  Not as the situation is here.

This was taken today to show how the detergent was sitting on the shelf.  Not hanging off.  Nothing pushing it.  It should NOT have fallen off!

Ghosts...it's our theory.  BUT if it is, why now?  We've lived here a year as of September 11th and nothing like this has happened until now.  Nothing falling over that shouldn't.  No weird stares and barks from the dogs.  Nothing.  I guess they want us to leave?  Sorry ghosts, the military gods have a plan to keep us here as long as possible so you're stuck with us for at least another year!

So....maybe we have ghosts who just like to knock shit over??  Or something else???  If you have a better explanation for all three falling events and the dogs weird stares, I'd love to hear them!  lol

Decorating the Tree

Decorating the Christmas Tree is always one of my favorite Christmas time activities.  Actually, it's probably my absolute favorite. 

In the Dickens household, we have a "personal" tree.  From now on, it will be referred to as "The Dickens Tree". 
It's full of 100% unique ornaments.  No balls.  No colored theme. 
Every year Saint Nick brings us a new ornament.  And it's personal to each of us.  Whether it be a hobby we love, a character we love, or something relating to our life or an experience.  I have an ornament from just about every year since I was born.

While I was home over Thanksgiving, we decorated The Dickens Tree with all our personal ornaments.  Before heading back to Florida, my mother asked if I wanted to take some of my ornaments back home with me.  My answer was a firm "hell no!"
This tree has so much meaning to me.  To my family.  It would not be the same without my ornaments on it.  Plus, I WILL continue to decorate this tree with my family every year.  It might not always get to be on the tradition of Thanksgiving night, but it WILL happen!  I refuse to let this lifestyle end those things that mean so much to me.

I want Nick and I have to this same type of tree.  And he agrees.  Sure, we don't really have many ornaments but I was surprised by how many we do have!  We have a few from the year 2009 (our engagement year) and quite a few "Our First Christmas" ornaments.  We've already received a few from family members over the years of dating.
 
We set the tree up before we left for Thanksgiving in St. Louis.  We did so so that when we returned, we could get right to decorating it!!!!  I was so excited!  I LOVE Christmas time and refused to let one day go by beyond Thanksgiving without our house being Christmas-fied! Here are just a few pictures of us setting up the tree:

Vino inspecting the tree

Spreading out the branches

Ta-Da!

Our First Tree, all set up!

Tonight, we decorated our tree.  It was fun to go through all the ornaments we collected over the years and talk about who gave it to us and for what reason. 
We had to add in some boring ball ornaments to our sentimental tree to fill in the spaces since we do not have many yet.  But in a few years, those balls with be gone!  If you refer to THIS post, you'll see it won't take long before we have tons of ornaments!!!

Nick putting his Weimaraner 'First Fur Baby' ornament from "St. Nick" on the tree

I'm putting my Belle ornament from "St. Nick" on the tree

Star topper!

Wedding Ornament from the Melissa & Aunt Janet at my Bridal Shower
Complete with our names and wedding date

Penguins are our thing =) 
"Our First Christmas"
This one is from my mother

"Year of Remembrance" from Nick's Family
2009: Engagement Year

Ornament from our Honeymoon
(can we go back, yet?)

Kelli & Susi got us this one as a gift for our Engagement Party

Ornament from my wonderful sister

"First Christmas in Our New Home"
Perfect ornament from Brooke for our USNA Ornament Exchange

"Our First Christmas"
"St. Nick" (Nicholas) picked up an extra ornament for us for St. Nick's Day
Have I mentioned how much I LOVE my husband?!

In the future, I would LOVE to have more than one tree.  It's not that I don't like the "boring ball" ornaments.  But on a sentimental tree, they are definitely the boring ones.
But I do want a few trees in the house and each have a theme.  Nick would love a ice blue tree and I would love a maroon and deep gold tree.  I love the elegant looking trees with ribbons and gorgeous ball ornaments.  [I also wouldn't mind adding a black and gold tree....repping my Alam mater compelte with lots of Mizzou ornaments!]
One day....hopefully soon we can start adding more trees to our Christmas Decor. 

But for now, it's our sentimental tree...this tree that will ALWAYS be my favorite tree in our household no matter how many we add to the bunch.

Finished product with the lights on

Finished product with the lights off

standing beside our beautifully decorated First Christmas Tree

To see many more pictures of setting up the tree and decorating it, please click HERE.

Florida: Our New Home

Well, today marks one week since we've been in our new home.

I love it.  The house is better than I expected it to be.  We're still trying to set things up and make it more homey.  There's a lot of wall space so we're trying to figure out what all we're going to do with it.  On one wall, (the hallway wall), we're going to do a wall gallery of various framed things.
We also have a giant plant ledge and I'm not sure if we'll put anything up there.  I'm not a huge plant person so although it's made for plants, I don't think we'll put those up there.
If you all have some suggestions for things that would take up a lot of wall space, send them my way!
The other issue is money.  We aren't the richest people so we don't want to go out and buy a lot of new things (especially because we've had to buy various new things we NEEDED for the house).

Here are my current thoughts on the house:

It's great having a separate room for an office.  And even better having two extra bedrooms.....just because of the two extra closets ;)  (Nick and I both have a lot of clothes and shoes)

Yadi loves her yard.  The first two days, she wouldn't go more than 10 feet away from the patio.  But now she roams all over the thing.  The only bad thing about the yard, which is apparently just a Florida thing, is we don't have dirt. There is sand with grass growing in it.  Which really sucks because it's tracked into the house SO easily.  And our entire house is hardwood and tile.  So it constantly feels like there's a light layer of dirt/dust on the floors.  I'm going to be sweeping almost every night it appears.  BUT I'd rather be sweeping every night than vacuuming.  We're more than likely going to buy a vac & steamer in one appliance.
The sand also stinks because Yadi has discovered her love for digging.  And sand makes it so much easier for her to dig =/  So word to the wise....or really just anyone who might walk around our yard, watch out for holes.  I'm warning you, so don't blame me for broken ankles.

We've met a few neighbors.  The couple across the street from us are really cool, but unfortunately are moving to Japan in 3 weeks =(  The guy is a Marine recruiter and he was nice enough to help Nick carry in the furniture that was just too heavy for me.  He also gave us great advice on things and places.
We also met the old man next door.  Our first evening in our home, he came over with a tupperware full of dinner, some dessert bread, and things to eat it all with. How incredibly nice!

The neighborhood is perfect.  It's very quiet and all families living here.  There are about 40 houses in the neighborhood, and easily 7 cops or Sheriffs living here.  Which is reassuring for the days/nights when Nick will be away from home.  One of the Sherifs actually lives DIRECTLY behind us...we share the back fence.  He is really nice and has a wife and two small children.  When standing on our front porch looking out, another Sheriff lives directly to our left AND diagonally across to our left =)  I like that!

I've only had three complaints with the house thus far (well 4 if you count the sand issue).

• One being, we were told this place had a washer and dryer.  And it does.  But they look as if they were the first washer and dryer ever made.  We haven't used them yet.  I'm scared.  The washing machine doesn't close properly and it has a lot of rust at the top on the inside.  I'm nervous to wash our clothes and have it ruin them!  We're thinking about purchasing our neighbors when they move in 3 weeks.  They're MUCH better and they're selling them for $150 (together, not each piece.)  This will also help when we move and don't have to search for places that have a washer/dryer.  Now we'd have our own.  But what do we do for these next 3 weeks??
• Two being,  we don't have a garbage disposal.  Not a HUGE deal but it's hard to break the habit of rinsing food down the sink, to then remember and have to fish it all out.  Gross!
• Three being the tile.  We only have tile in the kitchen and bathrooms.  But the look of it, it's like a beige with splotches of gray in it.  It looks dirty all the time!  Anyone who enters our house, I promise you that our kitchen floor isn't dirty, it's just the dumb coloring/pattern.

Now the review of our town:

We live in Milton, which is a little ways away from Pensacola.  We chose to live here because Nick will spend much more time at the base close to our house as opposed to the shorter amount of time at the base in Pensacola.  

Pensacola and all the surrounding areas, such as Milton, are very country.  It's definitely more of an Alabama feel than a "Florida" feel.  But I like it.  It reminds me of a home a little bit.  It's redneck but not white trash redneck.  It's a good down home southern country feel.  There's really not a lot to do in the area.  There aren't many bars or things of that nature, but at the same time, even if there were, I don't see Nick and I doing that a lot.  We're almost 27 and a little out of that party stage.  Yes, every one in a while would be fun, but we're totally over the going out every weekend and partying.  We're more of the go out with friends and have some drinks as opposed to partying.  And there's plenty of bars/restaurants to enjoy a great with friends =)

And obviously there's the beach....of which we've yet to visit and I am HIGHLY upset by this.

Milton actually doesn't have much.  There are a LOT of dollar stores, pawn shops, and coin shops.  There is also an insane amount of churches.  Seriously.  There is easily 3 churches on EVERY single corner.  And most of them are Baptists, Church of Christ, or Assembly of God.  I havet yet to see a single Catholic, Methodist, Lutheran, Protestant, or non denomination Christian churches.  However, there are two Catholic churches near me, and one was highly recommended by two friends so that's where I plan to go.
My county (Santa Rosa) does not sell alcohol on Sundays.  LAME!  Nick had to run to the store tonight and when he came back, he said he tried to get us some wine to drink tonight for our first week in our house (surprised he thought of that) but wasn't able to buy it.  (But the county over, just like 10 minutes away sells it.).

Overall, I love it here.  The people are ridiculously friendly!  In our 9 weeks in Annapolis, we met 3 people in our apartment complex...who we lived so close to.  We met two neighbors in a matter of 5 hours of being here.  And we've met more since.  The cashiers are so friendly and strike up a conversation with you.  Strangers smile and say hi.  THIS is what I'm used to and what I like.  

I think I will enjoy my time here, but I know after about 2 years, I will be ready to leave this small town and experience something new.  Like I said, I like it here, but couldn't do it for more than a few years.

Stay tuned as I will eventually take you on a tour of our home =)