by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 14, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home
Once our new stairways were installed, we needed to add handrails to pass code. The lower stairs were easy, needing just a single, long handrail, attached to the wall. The upper stairs were more problematic. One side was open, about half way up, so the banister would...
by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 13, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home
Selecting products for the two staircases was more involved than I had imagined. On our first semi-custom build, the stairs were fully carpeted. On the second, they were carpet with wood on the open edge. These experiences taught us an important lesson: we never want...
by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 9, 2010 | for Good, for Money
One of my biggest complaints about Obamacare is the designers (and proponents) seem completely unaware of the actual purpose of insurance. Insurance is designed to pool risk. Insurance companies gather people together who fit a particular profile, assess the...
by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 8, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home, for Money
Just got a “congratulatory” letter from Washington Federal. In part, it says: It's hard to believe the construction phase of your new home should be rapidly approaching the finishing stages. Key words: should be. In other words, since we've given you more...
by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 7, 2010 | for Fun
I admit it. I have never understood golf. Football (in the stands) is grand. Softball (on the field) is great. But I can't stand golf from either perspective. Even mini-golf is enough to make me pass out from boredom. I figure I'll take it up when I'm 85, give or take...
by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 6, 2010 | for Money
I'm a big Dave Ramsey fan. No nonsense, common sense financial advice without fluff and coddling. And without stupidity. Good financial math, instead, is really very simple. And Ramsey lays it out plain and simple. On his radio show last week, Ramsey recommended three...
by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 5, 2010 | Design Your Own House, for Home
Over the past couple of weeks I've received a number of emails asking when we are going to move in. All I can say is that I wish I knew! After moving out of the rental, we've just been hanging around my dad's house with minimal supplies trying to keep our lives in...
by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 3, 2010 | for Fun, Yea Big
[Samson (10) and Caleb (6) in the backseat of the SUV on a family drive, amusing themselves playing Simon Says. Better said, Caleb amusing himself at Samson's expense.] Caleb: Simon says, “Slap your face very hard.”
by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 3, 2010 | for Fun, Yea Big
Caleb (6): Mom, I needed to pour you this pop because I need the bottle to plant a popcorn plant. Grandpa said whenever he's lonely he watches movies and he's running out of popcorn.
by Alison Moore Smith | Oct 3, 2010 | Design Your Own House
Building a custom home has meant a constant stream of purchases. Almost daily I'm swamped with parts and pieces to select and order. After a while it loses its charm, but the goal has always been to get the most for our money. One of the ways we did this was to...
