Bringing Back Sligo

Category: Life

• Excitement

  Posted at 10:11 pm by Lauren Tepaske, on August 26, 2018

  We had a little excitement over the weekend when ADT called to inform us of a potential break-in at Sligo.  As luck would have it, we were close and able to meet the police at the property.  Also as luck would have it, I was about three beers and two glasses of wine into the afternoon (before you judge, it was my girlfriend’s birthday and I don’t drink like that all of the time…I mean, I might do that every other day, but definitely not every day) and was looking especially cute.  I only mention that last part about looking cute because, as it turns out, the responding officers were extremely good looking and it was just really a nice chance to meet the friendly neighborhood enforcers of the law, possibly exchange numbers, find out if they’re single, and overall get a really nice sense of community.  I should mention that I did not drive myself, Marcus was with me and he was sober and even he admitted the police were attractive because he’s that confident in his masculinity and our relationship.  Also, my going on and on about exactly just how cute these police officers were had nothing to do with my alcohol consumption.

  

  I’m not saying the officers looked like Channing Tatum but they looked like Channing Tatum (at least in my drunken mind).

  To get to the real meat of the story (see what I did there?), it turns out it was a false alarm or, if someone had been trying to get in, they were gone by the time we got there.  Unfortunately, someone shattered a storm door on the Cottage House, I’m guessing in an attempt to get in.  The best part about that is one entire side of the Cottage House is covered with a tarp and the perpetrator(s) could just as easily have lifted the tarp and entered that way but, I suppose criminals aren’t always known for their common sense.

  It isn’t surprising that people are still coming onto the property.  It has been vacant for so long and the Cottage House was clearly a place that squatters would frequent.  From day one I have been concerned that as work starts, people will come along and trash what we have done.  At the moment, one or two more broken window panes won’t hurt but once the real work starts and they start messing with my home, well, then I may have to send a petrified British soldier after their asses.

   

   

  Posted in Cottage, Grounds, Life, Main House | 6 Comments

• Our Girls

  Posted at 10:59 pm by Lauren Tepaske, on August 15, 2018

  I think in an effort to keep you all entertained I’ll continue writing about things other than the house.  For one, there’s nothing to write about and two, write what you know, they say.

  We are in major limbo right now hence the lack of any new and exciting information.  Marcus and I have been slowly getting our current house pulled together so we can put it on the market while at the same time we are getting the girls ready for moving and starting at a new school in just a few short weeks.  The “new” house has not started any renovations because we are waiting to hear back from the Virginia Landmark Registry and we are waiting for quotes from the contractor.

  While the house is under renovation we will be staying with my mom, God bless her.  We lived with her in between houses once before but it was for about two months.  Who knows how long we’ll be here this time because we don’t know how long the renovation is going to take.  Plus, the last time we stayed with my mom we were less one puppy who is ADHD in dog form and the girls were much smaller and more easily contained.

  As I mentioned in a previous post we have two little girls:  A is 7 years old and J is 5 years old.  Both of them were born in Fredericksburg but neither of them remember living there.  We have made frequent trips back since leaving in 2013 so the girls are aware of the more important things that Fredericksburg has to offer:  Carl’s Ice Cream, Paul’s Bakery, and KD’z Kidz World.  I too am familiar with all three though I could do without that last one (it’s a bounce house for those who don’t know and my own personal hell).

  Speaking of the girls,  they are currently outside screaming at each other because one of them licked the other and the other kicked the other and the other hit the other and I truly believe the whole neighborhood will feel lighter when we leave.  I can just hear the collective sigh of relief as the noise level drops and peace and quiet returns once more.  Though, if the neighbors are anything like me then they’ve learned to tune out the chaos.  It’s a good thing this new property will have all of that land so the girls can scream their heads off and I can continue to ignore them.

  Both of the girls are sad to be moving and leaving their friends.  I’ve tried to impress upon them how much easier it is to make new friends as kids.  They then asked if it’s easy to make friends as grown-ups which I thought was a very clever question.  I explained that sometimes it’s a little harder to make friends as adults.  Unfortunately, adults can’t just run up to another adult and ask if they want to play.  I mean…we could…but someone might call the police.  So, after explaining that I like to think I put their minds at ease.  Kind of like the time they asked me how babies are born and I told them they come out of the mommy’s vagina or are sometimes cut out of the mommy’s belly.  They definitely did not ruminate on that for a while because I definitely did not give them too much information for their age and I definitely did not just keep going on and on about the topic.

  Well, that certainly went off in a different direction.  Till next time, folks!

   

   

  Posted in Life | 1 Comment

• Debbie Downer Post

  Posted at 4:37 pm by Lauren Tepaske, on August 12, 2018

  I can’t lie.  I’m feeling overwhelmed, stressed, anxious, and just generally farklemt.  There is so much that needs to be done in our current house before we can put it on the market, the number one project being the master bathroom renovation.  If anyone knows our track record for projects then it should come as no surprise that we’ve been working on this since February.  Also, it should come as no surprise to anyone that the “our” in that previous sentence means “Marcus.”

  There isn’t much I can do at this point with the bathroom.  I’m only mildly handy with a paint brush (at least that’s how I like to play it) and I know the difference between a Phillips and a slotted screwdriver although, full disclosure, I had to look up what the actual name is for a slotted screwdriver.  With that being said I definitely cannot install a toilet or hook-up the sinks.  I could maybe install a light.  Maybe.

  This is all to say that I have just completely lost my mojo.  Even the most basic of stay-at-home mom duties have fallen by the wayside.  The laundry is piled a mile high, the floors are disgusting (though the dog is very diligent in keeping them crumb free), the dishes regularly sit in the sink for a day or two before I even bother, beds are left in a state of being slept in…the list goes on.  The overwhelming stress of this current house and the move back to Fredericksburg has brought me to my knees and all I can do is sit on the couch and stare into space.  So, I’m sorry.  Posting and keeping everyone informed is definitely important to me…I just have to get through the next few weeks.

  

  Posted in Life | 3 Comments

• Sleeping

  Posted at 7:47 am by Lauren Tepaske, on August 9, 2018

  Marcus travels a lot.  It’s become only slightly easier to deal with as the years go by but, with that being said, every new house we move into brings with it a period of time in which I have to readjust.  Mostly the readjustment period is me dealing with irrational fears of being home alone with the kids and something scary happening like an intruder or a fire but it has definitely resulted in a few sleepless nights.

  I may or may not have mentioned the fact that I’m a worrier.  Someone needs to be in this family.  For example, I am the type of person that takes the tornado warnings seriously, gathering the children and pets and huddling in the bathroom.  Marcus is the type of person who sees the warning and rolls back over to sleep.  So, I don’t know if that’s a worrier problem or just a protective mother problem but either way I suppose it’s a problem when it affects my sleep (’cause Lord knows I love my sleep).

  So, now I find myself having sleepless nights worrying about how I’m going to fall asleep the first night that Marcus is gone and I find myself alone in the new house.  For one, the house has been vacant, and the whole area knows it, and I’m worried someone is going to try and get in.  Secondly, I’m worried that the house is so old the wiring will set it on fire.

  I’m also worried that the ghosts are going to get me or are going to mess with my girls Scratch that, I’m more worried about them messing with me…the girls can fend for themselves in this case.  If something sits on my bed in the middle of the night, I’m out (and there’s a very real chance of this happening because we have a cat and I’m more of a react now ask questions later type of person).  It’s every man for himself in the night if ghosts are involved.

  There you have it.  I can’t sleep for fear of not being able to sleep.  That could be the very definition of crazy.

  Posted in Haunted, Life, Main House | 3 Comments

• Fluff Post

  Posted at 8:53 am by Lauren Tepaske, on August 6, 2018

  I’m not going to lie, this past weekend has left me reeling.  My mom’s dog barreled out of our front door as we were pup-sitting and eluded capture for about 10 hours.  Since the plan is to move-in with her it was kind of important that we find him.  That was Saturday.  On Sunday, as we were getting ready to head to the beach, I realized my oldest had lice which I’m not too proud to admit (also, I had an epiphany when I realized where the term “nit picky” comes from).  Anyway, that led to a day-long scouring of the children and house and my brain doesn’t want to function this morning (plus “Orange is the New Black” has new episodes on Netflix…priorities).  So, my apologies, but today is going to be about what’s going on in our lives rather than about Sligo.

  Things are starting to get hectic around our current house.  The game plan is to pack the essentials and move-in with my mom while Sligo is being renovated.  We thought it would be best for the girls to start the school year at their new school rather than switching schools half-way through the year so we have a self-imposed move date of two weeks from now.  Plus, we are putting the current house on the market and hope to sell it quickly.  However, before we can sell the current house we have to get the master bathroom put back together so, the word “stress” is being thrown around a lot and alcohol is being consumed at an alarmingly fast rate.

  Along with the master bathroom and packing the essentials we need to purge of the items we don’t want, or need, to move with.  Naturally, I can attribute the unnecessary, larger items to the hoarder in disguise, Marcus.  Currently, there is a boat that has been parked on the side of the road for a few months that needs to go, and an ICEE Machine in the garage that has been sitting for a year, untouched with the exception of the times I’ve had to move it to get to something else.

  Here’s hoping the next few weeks go smoothly and I can come up with some more posts about Sligo to keep you all interested!

   

  Posted in Life | 1 Comment

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