No good very bad day

I called maintence last night because our sink obviously is beyond messed up and wouldn't drain. While I was at it, Gabe asked me to have maintence change the THREE light bulbs that are out - see photo! I think it's hysterical that we didn't even notice a few lights in the guest bath were out untill we only had one to work with!  The office was closed, so I wasn't planning on getting a response till the following day ... but an emergency occurred (read further down for details lol).

I woke up this morning and the water had all drained, so I thought it was fixed and just super slow. With that being said, I thought it would only make sense to run the dishwasher .... big mistake. I noticed the sink was clogged again, so I took a photo to send to Gabe as an update while he was at the office. Not sure why, but I randomly opened the cabinet under the sink mid-email and see everything soaking wet with the pipe gushing water.

Thank goodness for intuition because I would have just gone on with my day, and I can only imagine how bad it could have been.  It was a nightmare as everything was in a half inch of standing water, AND the office was closed so I couldn't get hold of anyone except by calling a 1-800 number.  I made very clear that it was an emergency and water was gushing.  It only took 25 minutes, which gave me plenty of time to turn this kitchen around and make it at least manageable.

Did my husband even think to look at the pipes last night, no. Be sure to zoom in on the photo above, it was a mess!!!  See all those big cups .... Yup I had nine filled to the brim before I had the bright idea to grab the bucket from the garage.  Then, I called Gabe to see what I should do and all his only suggestion was call maintence (as I already did, duh)!!  Thank goodness for renting as I would of been in deep water (pun intended) calling an emergency plumber as Gabe isn't the handiest man of the house.  A fantastic man, but handy wouldn't be anywhere close to a characteristic of his :)

Maybe I should never by a house .....

I'm beautiful again!

Jenn from Munchkin Land Designs has outdone herself once again ... but did I expect anything different?!?!  She keeps stepping up her game, and the process keeps getting easier for a blog re-do.  Exactly why I keep going back for more.  LOL -- This is my third layout designed by Jenn, and it is BY FAR AND AWAY my most favorite.  She sent me my first draft, and I approved it right away with just one font color change.  
With fall just around the corner ...the colors, the warmth, and the tones get me even more pumped for the chilly days ahead.

Google Image
Thank you Jenn for making me beautiful :)If you are looking for a little change, contact Jenn and let her know I sent you.  She loves a good referral or two, I am sure!

Holding Out

I'm BACK!!!!!

Almost.  

Sadly, life didn't stop or even slow down while we were away, which equates to a TON of catchup with work and reality.  Blogging on the back burner.  BUT, I will be back soon as I am so anxious to upload my favorite pics from Australia and share a few stories.

AND, a little teaser for you all ... A new look for us all :)  

Stay tuned tomorrow or so!

Aussie Espresso

Coffee in Australia has been one of the biggest things to get acclimated to. For starters, they don't serve drip coffee. YES, you read correctly. After six days, I am still shocked. Even McDonalds and 7-Eleven advertise lattes and don't serve drip coffee!!!!!! See photo :)

Secondly, they call all of their drinks different names, so Gabe and I are comedic relief when ordering, and we got in the groove after the 2nd or 3rd stop. Common drinks: Cappuccino (steamed milk beneath with frothed milk), Latte (steamed milk below a layer of frothed milk), Flat White (espresso and steamed milk), Mocha (chocolate syrup, espresso and steamed milk), Short Black (Single espresso shot), Long Black (espresso and water).

Thirdly, all espresso drinks are priced the same, and are served in VERY small servings. We have found 9 times out of 10 for the large to be the size of a Starbucks Tall beverage. Haha, so much for Venti .... It's not even served in the country except at Starbucks, which are few and far between. The culture is to go to a cafe as they are all throughout the city and country. The barista even said they wouldn't serve the 16oz espresso except for American influence, as they prefer less milk in their coffee. And, if you were wondering about the $1 advertisement at 7-Eleven, that's for a short beverage, 8 oz!!

Another difference, cafes charge an additional 50 cents to $1 more per item to eat it there otherwise you must say "Take Away." We made the mistake of ordering it to-go so we could walk around but decided last minute to sit down, although no one said anything they were probably thinking silly Americans! They serve lattes in a glass that you and I would grab from the cabinet to put ice water in, I find that interesting!!

I might as well come home poor after spending more money than I could have imagined on coffee and gelato in Australia. They are a value added commodity in hubs book, so frequent stops are definitely part of the itinerary. Plus, with them being so small, we have to get an espresso multiple times a day at $5 a pop, and we enjoy every.sip.of.it!

We are having the time of our lives, soaking up the culture, and more importantly recognize what a blessing this is to experience together. I will always cherish this gift.

Glide for rent!

I decided to forgo bringing my CHI to Australia after reading the warning label and advice from most of ya'll that have studied abroad. Life goes on right :)

After arriving to Sydney and dropping our luggage at our hotel, I popped into the lobby restroom to find a straightener very similar to the CHI for RENT! Omg - What a brilliant idea ... Can't wait to review the hotel with this as an added plus as I have never heard of such a thing. $2 would get a minute and a half use, which is plenty for my "kitten" hair. I just can't imagine how many token turns would be necessary for my best friend with her head of hair! LOL!

Has anyone else seen this in the lobby restroom of a hotel? As my cousin shared ... The only downside is getting ready outside of your guestroom.