Monday, July 8, 2013

When life happens, just add vinegar!

I've been avoiding  post for this simple reason:  life has been happening!  We have had so many stressors lately, including a move after only being in a rental for 6 months.  In addition, we had friends coming for a visit for the 4th of July holiday.  Whew!  My heart still flutters thinking about all that work to do. I really felt the bitterness in my mouth over this situation, much like vinegar.

We spent the final two months in that rental trying to find housing for our family of seven.  Nothing could be found!  There was nothing larger than a two bedroom in the paper, on Craigslist, through friends, and even advertising in the paper for a rental.  We really were afraid we'd have to resort to moving into our Airstream with five kids.

Now, I know, what an adventure to live in a camper, but the cost of doing that were far greater than renting a home.  This might be a great, cheap adventure for a couple with no children, but we couldn't weed through the cost..  It would cost extra to grocery shop every other day or so, instead of shopping for a month at time, and the laundry!  Fifteen loads of laundry a week, at about $8 a load in the laundromat, would have been a huge expense.  So we prayed and prayed and then prayed some more.

Then on the first week of June (we had until the 30th to get out), we got a lead that actually panned out.  In fact, that week, we had three different offers for houses to rent.  Unfortunately, this house was a mess, but seemed like the best option for us.  It had dogs living in it before we came.  There wasn't a room in the house that didn't have fecal matter in it, not to mention the horrid smell. The landlord, hadn't even begun to clean up the house.  We negotiated a lower rent in exchange for the labor of clean, painting and fixing the house back up.

Well, it's almost been a month, since we've started, and I have to say, I'm not exactly sure it was worth it.  I am extremely thankful to have a roof over our heads and we were even able to keep our chickens.  I have spent countless hours trying to get dog urine and poop out of carpets, walls, and decking.  My best find for all the cleaning?  Vinegar!!!!  I can't believe after all the different things we tried, spraying everything, including carpeting with straight vinegar has been the solution!
 Here is just an example of what my decks look like.  These stains are actually in the sunroom, that enters into the house.  It has no ventilation, so when you would walk into the front door, you almost passed out from the stench!  Be thankful, this isn't scratch-n-sniff!  It was so bad my kids would cover their faces with their shirts to get in the house!
We borrowed a power washer from a friend and spent an entire 8 hours spraying all the decks down.  It got better, but it was still pretty smelly!  I honed it down to this area by the front entryway, poured a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water on it and scrubbed it in with a brush.  Then I waited for it dry.  Miracle of all miracles!  It doesn't smell anymore.  Don't mind our clutter, but you can see that is much better.  I can't help those spots where the boards have been damaged, but it looks and smells a hundred times better.  I found this great rug at a rummage sale for $9, so I put that to cover some of the nasty look of it.  
 
I can't begin to tell you about the plumbing problems and other projects to do in this house.  It seems like when one thing gets fixed, another breaks.  Oh well, such is life I guess.  I'm just thankful to be with my family under the same roof.  The moral of the story is when things seem really bitter and bad, just add vinegar to clean it up!

How have you handled less than desirable rental properties?  How do you get landlords to bring them up to better standards?  I'd love to hear your ideas on the subject!.

3 comments:

  1. Oh, so sorry that you have had to deal with all of that... How awful!!
    Have never had a bad landlord, (only rented early in marriage, from my dad :) & he was a perfect landlord : ) so I can not give you any tips.... but Thanks for the vinegar on the deck tip. Great tip, that I will use this week as I am cleaning our front porch.
    Stopping by from BTNOTP : )

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  2. Glad things are getting better! I agree that vinegar is a great cleaner and has disinfectant properties. God can work all this out for your good. Keep smiling.
    Have a great weekend!

    Jeannie and Linda at The French Hens Nest

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  3. You have had a lot of trials and tribulations. False friends are the WORST. But -- now you know. They are NOT true Christians. Maybe that's too religious, but it's the truth, for goodness sake! True Christians would never treat anyone like you were treated by your supposed friends. Geez. I hope things will get better for you. I don't believe that these things that happen are trials sent to us by God to test our faith. Nope. They are things that just happen and test how "good" we are inside, and our trials and tribulations are visited upon us by the actions of our fellow human beings, not by God. It is so sad that so many people fail -- and then hide behind "well, it was God's will." God doesn't operate that way, at least, not the God I believe in, who is merciful and loving, all encompassing and all forgiving of those of us who try but don't quite reach the mark. Your 'friend-landlords' failed to reach the mark -- by a long chalk -- and I'm just guessing here but seems to me they weren't really trying to be such good friends. Fortunately, God sees all, including what we try to hide in our deepest parts of ourselves, not even admitting to ourselves, mostly. Keep up the good fight. You're sure a brave family!

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