I usually dye my hair with the intent of covering the gray I have tons of hair so I usually need 2 boxes of dye. Unfortunately, dye is expensive and these days we are scrounging every penny we have for our $10,000 move. Lately this has prevented me from enjoying the luxury that is coloring my hair…

When I do color my hair it is a treat and I usually feel all good about myself for a few days after, plus my hair just feels better and less coarse after dying it.

While browsing the local discount store  a few weeks back I saw a bunch of hair dye that was marked down. N and I thought buying a lighter color might be fun for the summer so I grabbed some “excellence cream” dye for a great price.

This weekend I thought I wold spent some one on one time with my hair thanks to the discount dye. I was super excited at the prospects and when I entered the bathroom to begin the project I was greeted by an usually squishy rug.

First reaction was “ewe, did the cat pee on it?” so I grabbed it to check the overall wetness and odor but this wetness was not cat pee. Did 30 cats pee on it all within the same time frame cause this rug was completely drenched. I am talking soaked sponge like wetness!

I call to N, did you get the rug really wet when you showered? He claims he did not and we ponder the drenched rug. He was on the way back to playing X box when I commented that the mystery soaking was probably NOT a good thing to ignore.

So he goes in to the laundry room to find that the washer’s drain hose was disconnected from the wall and emptying water on to the floor. Apparently the water oozed UNDER the wall and right in to the bathroom where our trusty round bathmat soaked it all up.

Freaking awesome, water leaked under our wall. I don’t think that is normal but N assures me it is for a manufactured house. So we sopped up the water and went about our business but not before capturing it for the bloggosphere.

Like I said before, right about moving time (every time) we have some sort of domestic drama that is rental house related.

I don’t know if we are especially needy tenants or if we just have terrible luck with rental homes. Either way we always seem to have some craziness right before our lease I about to expire as I have mentioned in earlier posts.

You may recall the recent the kitchen flood we had then the stove fire and way back in the day we even had a psycho neighbor who was set on making us crazy. I could actually find drama for every rental we have lived in if I felt like going back through my 500+ blog entries. Every place we have ever rented has left us with a drama filled story. It seems the flooding is just the drama for this rental I guess.

The post House floods and hair dye… appeared first on Updates from Ryder Family Farm.

We are fleeing poverty with a view! A well known Flagstaff personality is leaving Arizona… Come buy our stuff and see us off!

This sale will take place on Moenkopi Trail in Kachina Village just south of the Flagstaff airport. July 26th & 27th. Sale starts @ 7am on Saturday and @ 8am on Sunday, come early to get the best selection (but not before 7 please). This is not a “regular yard sale”, we are selling so much more! Buy our stuff so we don’t have to take it with us! Bring your cash and swing on by, we hope to see you there!

The following stuff is up for grabs:
A dresser, Bookshelf, Television, Radio, Singer sewing Machine w/ table, Computer desk, Loads of Men & woman’s clothes, Camping gear, Tents, Gift baskets, Purses, Working washer and Dryer, Stuffed animals, Toys, Kitchen table set w/ chairs, Movies, Music CD’s, Books, Magazines, Live plants, Snow shovel, Holiday decor, garden stuff and much more!

We have one more weekend to get our yard sale crap all gathered and priced. There isn’t too much stuff left to go through! We even compleatly cleaned out our storage unit over the weekend so we can cancel that service and save some money over the next month and a half.

We have almost filled one entire walk in closet with packed, inventoried and sorted boxes… I think we are on box 50 now. Thursday we will have the Winnebago here at the house, we’re picking it up and keeping it here after the mechanical inspection- I am excited! Things are progressing nicely and I am feeling much better about it all today.

A plumber came out yesterday to take a look at our flooding kitchen issue. He claims it was only a loose pipe, he didn’t investigate the “under the foundation” work the other contractor did on Friday. We have no idea if the flooding will return but I have cleared all our stuff from under the sink and now a bucket is down their under the pipe, just in case!

The post I feel good! Are we ahead of the game? appeared first on Updates from Ryder Family Farm.

Sometimes renting an actual house is better but finding them is never easy! I thought it would be helpful for others if I complied my rental home resources. This is not a sponsored post but I have had the opportunity to to business with several companies on the list and will link you to the posts made when I lived in homes under the particular company’s management. Hopefully this list is helpful to some and our experiences can aid you in finding the right property management company for you!

Flagstaff, AZ Rental House Resources:

• Pollock Properties (http://www.pollockpropertiesinc.com/rentals.html) – We leased a home out in Kachina Village through them. Ann Pollock was very good to us despite the unfavorable situation we got ourselves into. We rented a home on a month to month basis, it was on the market and we had to show it whenever a Realtor had an interested buyer. The home owners were sneaky and shady but Ann was honest and helped make things right. We lived in one of their managed properties from about September 2007- February 2008. You can read about our experiences by checking the pollock properties tag (click the link).
• Coldwell Banker Narico (http://www.mattbrydenthal.com/ or http://www.flagstaffrentals.com) – Again we leased a home out in Kachina Village through them, we signed a 6 month lease, 3 months later we were told the owners wanted to put the home back on the market and that we would be forced to show the house for the remainder of our lease or until the home sold. We lived in one of their managed properties from February 2008 to September 2008. You can read about our experiences by checking the coldwell banker tag (click the link).
• AZNorth (http://www.aznorth.com/rentals.asp) – We had never used this company.
• The Ginsburg Group (http://www.theginsberggroup.com/rentals.htm) – We had never used this company.
• Levitan Properties (http://www.flaglips.com/) – We had never used this company. Specialized (when we were looking for rentals 2004-2008) in pet friendly apartment communities. No additional pet rent, deposits are fully refundable and often utilities are paid. Great for families with pets looking for apartment living in Flagstaff, AZ.

Evansville, IN Rental House Resources:

• Evansville Homes For Rent (http://www.evansvillehomesforrent.com/search.php) – I called them and they seemed very friendly and accommodating, I told them I had emailed them and would like an email response. I also emailed them prior to calling them to ask if anyone would be able to assist us by taking photos of homes we are considering renting since we wont be able tour the home prior to move in. Nobody has responded to me via email or phone.
• Fetter Property Management (http://www.fprent.com) – I emailed them to ask if anyone would be able to assist us by taking photos of homes we are considering renting since we wont be able tour the home prior to move in. I also called and left a message asking for a returned call or email. Nobody has responded to me via phone or email.
• Lowe Realty, Inc. (http://324125ji.topagentsites.com/all_listings.html) – I emailed them to ask if anyone would be able to assist us by taking photos of homes we are considering renting since we wont be able tour the home prior to move in. Nobody has responded to me.
• Given & Spindler (http://www.given-spindler.com/invenrn1.html) – I emailed them to ask if anyone would be able to assist us by taking photos of homes we are considering renting since we wont be able tour the home prior to move in. Nobody has responded to me.
• Corrier Press Newspaper (http://www.courierpress.com/realestate/) – Displays listings for rental properties and contact info but did not have property photos or extensive property information. Not a good resource for those looking for rentals from outside the state.
• F.C. Tucker Emge (http://www.fctuckeremge.com/propertymanagement/index.htm) – Displays listings and property info on their site. Homes are nice and the staff DOES respond to your emails, they are willing to help.

Hopefully this list provides some help to those searching for rental homes in Flagstaff, Arizona or Evansville, Indiana. If you have a site you want to add please do so in the comments field!

The post Finding rental houses (not apartments) online… appeared first on Updates from Ryder Family Farm.

The showing was fairly quick and cordial so it was no huge inconvenience for me (other than having to wrangle the animals and clean the place). Yesterday we got a call from the landlords office to schedule another showing for this week, on Friday.

Then N calls me and says he just talked to J, our landlord, and it seems like the house is going to sell. The couple that came through last week made an offer on the house so it looks like we may not have to show it much more once it all becomes official.

Our lease is still valid through August so the new owners will have to let us stay till the end of our contract but it looks like ball will be rolling come August regardless of job prospects! We will be moving from this rental and hopefully to a new town where N is making more, we will buy a home, settle down and perhaps have a baby. Oh, yeah a wedding might fit in there somewhere but if it doesn’t we’re legally tied anyway.

Speaking of moving, we are toying with the idea of RVing the pets and ourselves to our new location when it is time to move. I am set on getting a beater RV, conversion van or similar that we can drive with the animals in it. We will sleep in camp grounds or parking lots on our way and it will be quite the journey! I’ll be blogging the experience of course and I expect it will be quite the adventure!

So we are looking for an RV that we can buy for under $2300, it will cost about $2300 to rent an RV and make the drive so I figure if we can buy something that will get us there that we will also own once it is all said and done it is a better investment! Here are some of the options we have found on craigslist phoenix, what do you think?

LOL… I love this one simply for the cow spots. I love cows so this is right up my alley!

Here is a cheap 1976 Ford Motor Home N found online:

The options are endless!

So, what do you think? Know any insider tips on buying an RV/ Motor home? Got one you want to donate or perhaps some money for the cause? He, he..

The post 3 months to go till we move, again! appeared first on Updates from Ryder Family Farm.

Yesterday I mentioned that our landlord informed us that the home we are renting was being put on the market and that we would need to show the house to potential buyers, this is not good news to us!

We looked over our lease and had a family member and real estate expert, Jerry, look over the lease. Nowhere in the lease does it say that we are obligated to show the home to potential buyers and agents (like it did in the previous lease we signed for another home) but it does state the landlord must provide 48 hours notice of intent to enter.

We only have 3 months left on this lease and we would prefer to not be showing the home in addition to trying to plan and research a cross country move. Plus we have a medium sized dog, who is not friendly to strangers and we have inside cats who have to be prevented from escaping the house so allowing strange people into the home when we are not present isn’t really an option. It is barely possible when we are home!

So I went online to do some research. I found this page which outlines that in Arizona according to A.R.S. § 33-1343
“the purposes for which a landlord may enter a rental premises are to:

• Inspect the premises
• Make necessary or agreed repairs, decorations, alterations or improvements
• Supply necessary or agreed services
• Exhibit the dwelling unit to prospective or actual purchasers, mortgagees, tenants, workmen or contractors”

So it seems like we are going to be forced to show the home we are renting even though it was not agreed to when we signed the lease. Apparently that is the crappy law here in Arizona that favors the f*&kers landlords.

I emailed the landlord about how this is an inconvenience for us and I warned that our dog was not friendly and that entering the home without us being present was a very bad idea for them since our dog is not nice to strange people. I also stated that we were not agreeing to anything at this time because we were waiting for more information about our rights.

The landlord responded that we had nothing to agree to and that the only right we had was the right to a 48 hour notice of intent to enter. He also went on to say that after the 48 hour notice was given we could not refuse the showing and that they could enter whether or not we were home.

Then my phone rings and it is our landlords secretary stating that they were trying to schedule a showing for Saturday, which is 2 days/ 48 hours away. We wont be here for the showing but I am sure they will just do what ever the hell they want to!

I am now wondering if the landlord can “check keys out to possible buyers and their agents” and allow them to show up here unaccompanied while we aren’t present, I was under the impression the landlord had physically to exhibit the dwelling under this law, can they just give keys to anyone who comes by and allow them to enter after giving us notice? What if we aren’t able to be home, can they enter the home anyway? What do you think?

If they do enter the home they will be unpleasantly surprised and possibly bitten in the ass by our very protective dog.. Maybe we will leave some sex toys out around the house! Bet that would cut the visit short huh? I am so flipping MAD!

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