when it rains, it pours

I went to work early this morning and took the afternoon off using "vacation" hours because the air conditioner repairman was scheduled to arrive between 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. While waiting, I did a little picking up around the house and bill paying. He arrived around 2:30 p.m. and I showed him where everything was. He checked it all out and told me I had multiple problems. #1) guess who chewed through the electrical wiring that runs from the outside compressor to the interior portion? (THANKS RILEY!). Cost for wire replacement $250. #2) The coils are rusting and are dirty. Can clean them, but it's only a matter of time before they rust through and have to be replaced. #3) system needs freon. Can recharge. Total repair estimate: $900. My system is 16 years old. At this age, the recommendation is to replace it with a new, energy efficient model rather than putting money into repairs this year and probably next year, etc. I know this is true from lunch-and-learns at work about conserving energy, and not just a sales tactic.

So, the repairman calls the salesman who comes out and shows me options. Since my neighbor had done a lot of research before selecting this company, I didn't bother shopping around. I looked at their options and selected a 16-seer energy star heat-pump system with a UV-light, whole-house humidifier, 5-inch filter, and duct cleaning. This qualifies for a $1500 rebate at tax time! And hopefully the whole-house humidifier will help Kyra's nose bleeds in the winter. The by-the-bed small humidifier helps a little, but I'm hoping this will be much better. They can install it tomorrow morning. But this presents a problem... I have to work tomorrow! I have to give a presentation tomorrow morning. I asked if they could install in the afternoon and he said it's an all day job. So we settled on me just leaving the basement door unlocked for them to get started and I'll return home around noon. My only request is that the outside portion is puppy chew-proof...

I had locked the dogs in my bedroom while the men were here. I should have known better... Riley destroyed a pillow sham. At least it was an older one that had a small hole in it anyway... After seeing his latest destruction, and the price tag for a new heat/air system, I was stressed. So I changed clothes and got on the treadmill. I wasn't really into it, though. I eventually found "What Not To Wear" on TV while running and this got me through it. Kyra called me around 7 and said they were through with their project and I could come pick her up whenever I was ready, but no rush needed. She wanted to stay later and said that was ok with Terri. So I told her that I would run a little longer and then pick her up at 7:30 p.m.

The catapult that the girls made was way-cool! Colleen's adult step-brother helped them by drilling holes in the wood. It turned out that the wood pieces that Grace had brought already had hinges on them so my frantic trip to Home Depot last night was for naught... They had painted it and put each girls first initial on it. They did a great job designing and building it.

So, guess what fun we came home to? We walked in the door and Riley greeted us with Kyra's horse riding boot in his mouth!!! Kyra told me that when Katie returned home from swim lessons that she said she saw Riley in our yard with a brown shoe in his mouth. ARGH!!! Those are expensive!!! It's a good thing they were worn out anyway or I'd be livid. I had bought her a new pair a few weeks ago, but she's still wearing these half-torn-off-soled ones still.

Why didn't I buy her a horse for her birthday, like she really wanted, instead of a puppy? At that time, I thought that a horse would be way more expensive than a puppy. But in hindsight, I think a horse would have been less expensive...