Bite. Chew. Choke! I Bit Off Too much!!

There comes a time in the life of every person where you realize you're in a real big pickle.  In regards to this 107 year old farmhouse in which we live, we have been in many a pickle.  You know those GIANT pickles you can get at sub places or delis?  Yeah, those are good. 

This isn't like that at all. 

We came across this problem before when we were renovating our 1st floor powder room; multiple layers of badly applied wallpaper.  Wallpaper itself is just bad to begin with.  I mean, if you've put it up once, chances are you are so scarred for life that you'll never attempt it again.  If you've ever removed someone elses wallpaper disaster, you ARE scarred for life enough to never even consider wallpaper an option.  We're pretty well-rounded over here in the wallpaper-experience department.  As it turned out, our 1st floor powder room not only had a couple layers of wallpaper, but at least one of those layers had been painted over and new wallpaper applied over it and at least one layer was done with no sizing.  Of course.  And no amount of Basic H2 can touch that (yes, you can use it to remove wallpaper, and it works just as good as DIF.  Maybe better).  Once we realized the situation was hopeless, we ended up knocking out the walls.  Using a sledgehammer is actually quite exciting, I highly recommend it. 

Here's Bathroom Demo Bonnie.  You can't say I don't look excited.

In a house full of wallpaper horrors, we scraped our way down to one last wallpapered room.  My future creativity room.  After pulling off the top-most layer of wallpaper and border combination very easily, we were feeling pretty dang positive about how this room was going to go.  Both kids rooms were a piece of cake, and this room is in close proximity to theirs, so by association it should be cake too, right?  Here's a tip:  if you're going to remove wallpaper, remove it from plaster walls, not drywall.  Drywall stinks. 

My future creativity room is drywall.  And the very first layer of lovely pink and green floral striped wallpaper was done with...drumroll...no sizing.  It appears as if wallpaper layer applier #2 (keep up, here) attempted to remove layer #1, quickly abandoned that idea, and just wallpapered right over it.  But not before painting over some of that lovely stripey wallpaper with a gorgeous shade of country blue.  Wallpaper, paint, more wallpaper, with a border on top.  Sounds awesome, doesn't it?!  Yeah, it totally isn't. 


 

 It's a disaster.

What I thought would take me a couple days of H2'ing and scraping, washing, and repainting, will now involve a trip to Sherwin-Williams.  TO LOOK AT WALLPAPER.  My future creativity room is now my WTF DO I DO NOW? room.  But hey, I guess I can look at it this way;  I never thought I'd be putting up wallpaper again and now I will be.  Wait, that was supposed to be a 'glass half full light at the end of the tunnel' statement.  Shoot.

Oh well.  I've decided I'm going to try (very hard) to find something positive of my room every time there seems like there couldn't be a single damn positive thing about it.  So, have you seen my pretty hinge?

 

Oh, right. I posted that last time. 

Well...if you were a cat it would be GREAT!  

The view is like cat t.v., look at that action shot!

 My fingers in the picture are a total bonus for you, dear reader. Photographic proof of my mad skills. Yahoo!  

We're off to see the wizard Sherwin-Williams!  Later gators!

My Future Creativity Room

Installment one! 
I have been working on cleaning out this room of toys and toy shelving, and other kid-related items.  Obviously I am not done.  Here's a shot of me clearly not quite being done...

I've made more progress since I took this picture, thank goodness.  

That's dog-body in the lower right corner, in case you were wondering.  

The room sure isn't pretty (yet), but hey, 

check out the cool hinge on my door!

This room is getting cooler by the minute, dont you think?  Next step is stripping the wallpaper backing, which is gonna be a blast.  I couldn't help myself yesterday, and started picking at corners and edges, which is where I discovered that part of the wall is painted-over wallpaper that I'm going to have to remove.  I love that.  Oh my God I love that SO MUCH.  Here's what I accidentally did...

Awesome, right?!  I know.  I'm awesome.  Hey, it's progress!!

I'm Kinda Junky

I've been thinking a lot lately about what direction I'm going.  Both of my kids are in school all day, and I don't 'work'...outside of my house, that is.  Of course I still run my Shaklee business, as it is near and dear to my heart, being all about nutrition and health.

But I've been feeling...unoccupied.  Like my brain may not be getting enough stimulation and parts of it aren't working correctly anymore.  My ridiculously awesome sister-in-law says it's mommy-brain, but I don't think so.  Maybe I could blame my airiness on mommy-brain in the sleep-deprived days of infants and the 'can't stop to think of anything else but what my toddler might be getting into' days, too.  But not now. 

I'm a fairly creative person, that is, I like to make things.  When I say creative, I am definitely not saying that the things I make are necessarily good or original or artistic like so many that are really worthy of the title 'creative'.  I just like to make stuff, especially sewing and crafty type stuff.  And being a greenie, I tend to gravitate towards projects that have something to do with recycling, reusing, repurposing, whatever you want to call it.  Surprising, I know.  And I can really thank Pinterest for a lot of my inspiration lately, as there is no end to the fabulousness of remade junk that you can find on the internet and pin.  (Yeah, thanks a lot Pinterest, cause what I really need to do is spend MORE time on the internet.)  In fact, I've created a board of just the type of projects I'm talking about and I add new things to it every day.  You can follow me on Pinterest if you'd like...the little link is over on the right of this page. 

So now that my kids aren't babies anymore I am taking over their playroom, which was once filled with many colorful specimens, playsets (many of them vintage), and other now-neglected toys.  I'm reclaiming this space.  God, I'm so GREEN, how can you all stand it? 

When I die, this is what heaven will look like.

I have a number of projects lined up already, whether they are items I never finished or items on the to-do list, and many of them are using items that I've either bought not knowing what on earth to do with it but out of pure covetousness (is that a word?), or things that we no longer like or have use for that are just 'too good' to throw away or give away.  I have {conserve} very deeply ingrained in me, what can I say.  I also have quite a collection of wonderful items that I have collected to use in some un-pre-determined way, put away for a rainy, yet inspired day.  I call this stuff treasures.  My husband, though, calls it something else...when he talks about it it sounds a lot like...'hoarding' or maybe 'junk collector' or 'collection of crap'.  I don't know, but I think there must be something wrong with his mouth. 

At any rate, I do believe I will be using my time a little differently in the days to come, and I hope that I make things worthy of an Etsy store, or if they're not too hideous I'll keep them for myself.  I'm kind of excited!  I'll undoubtedly be blogging about it, which will involve many pictures.  I have a feeling some of those early blogs may have quite the comedic factor as my skill level builds.

Hey, everybody loves a good laugh, and I really don't mind it being at my expense...usually.  I know how to laugh at myself *wink*.  So stay tuned, or if you get bored waiting, check out my Shaklee store and buy some healthy, green stuff to help fund my creative process. 

See you soon!

It's Easy Being Green! Your Eco-Friendly Guide to Discrimination

You know what I'm sick of?  Racism.  Sexism.  Descrimination against sexual orientation.  Bigotry of every kind.  Holier than thou, superiority complexed, small-minded sheeple.  I have come across so many examples of people being hateful lately its really makes me angry.

And you won't like me when I'm angry.

I said that to a misbehaving Beebs the other day, and she laughed so hard she cackled.  She laughed and I laughed and it's hard to be mad when you're laughing.  You know what she didn't do?  She didn't get all high and mighty and in my face about how I wasn't being sensitive about the color of the Hulk's skin or his giant body.  Maybe he's aNgRy cause he's green and humungous...?  Nah.  I don't think that's his problem at all.

 

For some reason, discrimination topics have really been catching my attention lately.  I don't know if its because there has been a higher instance of them lately, or what.  Articles, Facebook posts, conversations.  Even GH went through a 'sensitivity' course recently for his job that had more than its share of ridiculousness. *The examples I am posting have nothing to do with any particular group, it just so happens that these were three very different sources I wanted to use. 

"A (random non-description human being of unspecified race, religion or sex) walks up to an African-American man and asks 'Do you know what Fo Shizzle means?'."  In some way, shape or form, the correct answer ended up being:  The A-A male gets offended that the other person would assume that they would know that definition just because they are A-A, and goes to their manager to complain.  The A-A employee is then fully encouraged to take the issue to human resources and make a formal complaint, where it is then decided that the 'other person' should be reprimanded for racism and insensitivity and potentially lose their job.  

If the 'other person' didn't know what 'fo shizzle' means, is it right to assume that they approached a black person thinking that they should know because they are black...? 

An African-born teenage boy of caucasian descent enters a competition at school specifically for African-Americans.  He wins.  Chaos ensues.  Should he be allowed to keep his award?

One of my favorite sayings ever (thank you Javonda):  'Opinions are like assholes.  Everyone has one, and they all stink'. 

Word.  And now, my man Morgan Freeman:

How are we going to get rid of racism?  STOP TALKING ABOUT IT.  Hallelujah!  Of course, here I am talking about it. See the thing is, GH and I don't teach our kids that other races or religions are special just because they're a different race or religion than us.  We're all f*cking special.  They are learning that what makes a person good or bad or right or wrong or whatever is what is inside them. Where it should be.  We teach them to be respectful, and when appropriate, to respectfully disagree.  My kids won't grow up thinking they are entitled assholes that deserve anything they didn't work for, and you won't find them crying in the corner cause they think they have the right to be offended about something dumb.

The same goes for religion.  Live and let live.  If you don't believe in certain actions, then don't do them.  But don't try and make the rest of the world conform to what you think they should or shouldn't do, either.  It's amazing to witness such intolerance from some (notice I said some) of those whose beliefs dictate tolerance.  Very recently I've seen this issue of insurance-covered birth control around.  Should Catholic medical establishments be forced to offer their patients, whether Catholic or not, free birth control?  Does every Catholic believe that birth control is wrong?  I doubt it.  Does every head of every Catholic medical establishment believe birth control is wrong?  I doubt it.  If you're Catholic and you don't believe in birth control, do you take birth control?  Right.  Ok then.  Now, I'm not necessarily saying I want to be the one paying for all this free birth control, either.  Maybe...if you want it, it should be made available to you, but you pay for it just like everything else in life.

Live and let live.  

Let's take a tip from man's best friend...

Wait a minute...what's this about MAN'S best friend?!

I love my dog, but I think I'm gonna settle on this one.

After all, we all know what a girl's best friend is. 

Speaking of dogs, I stumbled upon this horrific Facebook group a couple weeks ago...One Million Moms.  Heard of it?  These assholes are ASSHOLES.  They are discrimination at its worst, breeding intolerance and hate.  They petition to have 'particular issues' removed from whatever media outlet it shows up through, especially anything to do with gays, lesbian or transgender, gay marriage, gay rights, being gay, feeling gay, thinking about gay things, and otherwise general gayness. 

Because this is clearly accurate:    

This group of bigots proudly posts about how they got Whatever AAA Blah Blah Company to 'silently drop public support for the homosexual agenda', or get big sponsors to drop their support for gay pride events by threat of boycott.  They what?!  Maybe I'm gonna find out which companies pull their sponsoring and boycott their asses for being total jagoffs.  One Million Assholes do much lesser damage too, like trying to prevent the Kardashians from having their own line of hoochie Barbie dolls...I certainly wouldn't buy my Beebs one, but the Kardashians are certainly welcome to their right to free enterprise.  I don't give a shit whether they make them or not.  To me, stuff like Barbie dolls or censorship bleeps during prime-time tv are really a waste of time and energy, but you can't attack the whole LGBT community and expect no repercussions. 

You don't like it?  Don't buy it, don't watch it, don't swallow the pills, don't drink the kool-aid, don't listen to it, don't smoke it, don't put it in your butt.  If it hurts your eyes, don't look at it.  See that guy down there on the right?  I wish that was me.

Naturally, I have a solution for everything.  We can all thank the Incredible Hulk for inspiring me on this one...let's just all be GREEN.  Not Hulk green, cause that's not how to get people to get along, but good old environmentally friendly, healthy green.  It's the new...green!  If we all started worrying less about what everyone else is doing, and more about what WE are doing and how our actions impact others and our planet, wouldn't it be so much easier?!  You betcha.  

Dang, I'm good.  Somebody should put me in charge.... somewhere.

Jack & Jill went up a hill to fetch a pail of ...Red #40?? (JAK Version)

For the past two months or so, every time I scold my son, make an unwelcome suggestion (clean your room?) or...speak pretty much anything out loud or breathe, he asks 'Who crapped in your cornflakes?'.  Talk about beating a dead horse!  AND...I don't even like cornflakes.

I've been spending some time at my kid's school helping out in classes, shortly after school starts in the morning.  I've noticed a lot of 'behavior' that is puzzling to me.  Given that these are 6-10 year old children I'm dealing with, expecting perfection is certainly unreasonable.  Though, I find myself expecting much more than I am seeing...

I know there are a lot of legitimate cases of ADD/ADHD, but I also know that there are a lot more that could be helped by simple dietary changes and eliminating certain things from the home environment.  As I was sitting there with a couple of kids, I started thinking...I wonder what these kids had for breakfast today...?  I wonder how many of these kids eat crap at home...?  How many had Froot Loops, Pop-Tarts, or something equally artificial and disgusting for breakfast...?  How many brought a Lunchable today (or every day!), or drink Hi-C or Capri-Sun or some other 'juice'?

Is someone crapping in their cornflakes?

Just to clarify:
ADD: A term given to the condition of children, teenagers or adults when they show poor attention, impulsiveness or unexplained emotional outbursts in normal day to day activities.
ADHD: A term used to describe children, teenagers or adults who have low attention span, exhibit high levels of distractability, are chronically disorganized and are in “perpetual motion”.




According to one source, the average attention span of a child age 6-8 is 15-20 minutes, and age 9-12 is 30-45 minutes.  Now, I am 37 years old and I doubt I have a 30-45 minute attention span.  A more reasonable source says to add 2 minutes to a child's age, and start there.

Taking the above into consideration:  3 to 10% of school aged children get diagnosed as ADHD every year.  That's a ton of kids!  Most of them go on to be treated with drugs that have both minor and serious side effects, like loss of appetite, insomnia, mood swings, suicidal thoughts and psychotic behavior. Neither of my children have ADD or ADHD, so I haven't been in that position, but just thinking about what could possibly happen is frightening.  I, as a parent, would certainly try everything in my power in order to avoid something that would cause these side effects, and if doing something as simple as dietary changes and natural cleaning products could significantly change my child's need for drugs, you better believe I would be ON IT.

Traits commonly observed with ADD/ADHD:
Inattention: easily distracted, can’t complete tasks, does not listen.
Impulsivity: acts without thinking, does not wait his turn, goes from activity to activity without organizing or completing anything.
Hyperactivity: can’t sit still, fidgety, bothers others, always on the go – “perpetual motion”.
Emotionally Unstable: social loner, angry outbursts for no reason, often involved in conflicts or fights, poor response to discipline.

A lot of people may not realize how significant of an impact that food ingredients and chemical exposure have on so many aspects of our lives! Food allergies don't just cause hives or rashes, but can cause behaviors that may fall under the heading of ADD/ADHD, as can exposure to things like bleach or ammonia.  An average child consumes over 10 pounds of food additives per year.  TEN POUNDS!  Of toxins, chemicals, artificial ingredients and colors and preservatives and who knows what else.  Crap. Garbage.  Disgust-o-rama.


Here are some of the conditions that have possible links just to food dyes in particular:

• Cancer, including brain tumors
• Asthma and allergies
• Behavior problems, ADD, ADHD
• Decreased cognitive function and lowered IQ

How many products do you have in your home, that your children consume, that include food dyes?

I bet it's more than you think.

There have been studies upon studies done about this...I'm not just some radical fruitcake treehugger making stuff up.  One recent study by the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics analyzed 15 other studies of the effect of artificial food colors and preservatives on hyperactivity, and found that 28% of the children (who had previously been diagnosed as ADHD) tested had increased hyperactivity after consuming artificial colors and preservatives.  And that's just testing for those two items, not any of the other usual suspects.  Another study took children who had NOT been diagnosed with anything and removed artificial colors and preservatives from their diets for 8 weeks.  At the end of the 8 weeks, the children were given a juice beverage containing some combination of food colorings and sodium benzoate (a preservative).  The results were clear in that the amount of artificial food colors and preservatives found in a typical child's diet is enough to trigger hyperactivity in many of those children.


Studies have also been done regarding chemical exposure.  Typical household cleaning products contain a plethora of dangerous chemicals.  But...they sell them at the grocery store, they must be safe.  Right?!  NO.  Chemical companies don't care if they are making you sick.  They get away with it legally for many reasons that would take me another whole blog to tell you about.

Here are some of the conditions that have possible links just to bleach and ammonia:

• Cancer, neurological disorders, weakened immune system, autoimmune disorders
• Asthma and allergies
• Infertility and miscarriage
  
• Behavior problems, ADD, ADHD, mental retardation
• Decreased cognitive function and lowered IQ 
• Alteration of hormones, endocrine disruption

How many cleaning products do you have in your home that include bleach or ammonia, not to mention the hundreds of other toxic chemicals?!

I bet it's more than you think!

If your child shows signs of ADD/ADHD, there are a number of areas to address:
*Clearly, diet and nutrition:  If you feed your kid sh*t, they're gonna act like sh*t.  Cut out the processed foods, preservatives, artificial colors and flavors, even sugar-free/artificially sweetened items.  Have your child tested for food allergies, including gluten.  Consider nutritional supplements, especially Omegas. 
*In relation to food and diet; bowel health:  Get a ton more fiber into their diet, and definitely add a probiotic.
*Remove toxins from the home.  Replace your cleaners with non-toxic choices.  Choose better laundry detergents and fabric softeners.  You and your children could be wearing chemical residue-laden clothing all day and sleeping in it (think about your sheets!) at night.  You are absorbing chemicals into your skin.   *Consider an air purifier.
*See if hypoglycemia is an issue.
*Eye and ear disorders and psychological wellness can also be investigated.

Naturally these solutions won't pertain to everyone.  It's not going to be quite so simple for every child who has been diagnosed as ADD or ADHD to be 'fixed' by what I've discussed above, but how many does it pertain to?

I'm willing to bet...its more than you think.

There is help beyond drugs.  A lot of doctors would have you believe that pharmaceuticals are the only option, but that is not the case at all.  Nutrition, diet and environment should be examined and appropriate changes made before resorting to drugs whenever possible, especially if those three steps solve or relieve the problem.  If a pharmaceutical is necessary, then it should be used in conjunction with other, natural solutions.  Could you imagine finding out that you had been drugging your child for a perceived problem, only to find out that their breakfast cereal (among other things) was causing the problem?!  Drug your child, so they can eat junk?  I think not.

I have heard many people say they don't care about food additives or ingredients, or whether they use chemicals in their homes.  I have seen a mom hand a kid a pill, then give them a can of soda and chips.  What?!  Noooooo!  Its easy to make better choices!!

Come on, we know better than this.  We can do better than this.  Make healthy changes!  Quit buying crappy cornflakes!  Start caring about what goes into and onto your body and what you bring into your home!  Your children (and their teachers!) will thank you!!

Interested in reading more about some of the studies I mentioned above?  Just aren't taking my word for it?!  Check it out, I did all the work.  You just have to click.  See how helpful I am?!

B*tches Gotta Eat

So I've been pretty good in the food department lately, really trying to be healthy and make good choices (per my commitment in this previous blog).  Yeah, I been working out too, thanks for asking.  You don't get to look like this by doin' nothin' *wink wink*.

One of my sweet-ass girls started a Facebook group where some of us can go to post about what we're eating, what we're hopefully NOT eating, suggestions, tips, blah blah blah.  There have been some pretty damn good recipes posted lately, of which I've tried quite a few.  I've vegetarianized, if not completely veganized, the recipes to stick with my own program, but you certainly don't have to.  They're all low-fat, good for you food that actually tastes good.  Amazing, no?

I figured I would post them for you-all who may also be on the healthy-eating bandwagon, are sick of salads, and think vegan is another word for tofu.

Here you go, skinny bitches:

I veeged this one.  Veeged is a new word, by the way.  I made it up just now.  It's short for veganized, which is clearly way too long.

Point is, I used veggie broth (I used the whole 32 oz carton, which was 4 C instead of only 2 C., then 2 C of water instead of 4.  Yeah, it's good).  I didn't use the cheese or cheese rind, though I'm sure it would have made it even more of a smashing success.  I did use semolina pasta, though at least it was organic.

This soup is da bombdiggity.  My 6 year old totally loves it.  Plus, any food that gives the kids gas is ok in their books...if it makes them fart, they're in.  Moving on.

Unless you really love the crap out of oatmeal, I would recommend cutting this recipe in half.  It makes a TON.  I changed mine up a little bit (surprise surprise) due to what I had on hand, and I also found that it needed a little more agave than called for in the recipe.  Very good, very filling, very kid-friendly!

This next one comes from Hungry Girl, and is the shiznit. Kids LOVE this stuff.  It can totally be veeged but you've got to micromanage your enchilada sauce.  Vegetable broth, tofu if you want it, and obviously no chicken.  The recipe posted as-is is VERY good and very low fat, but it's up to you what you want to do.  Except enjoy it...that's not an option.  YOU WILL ENJOY IT.

Isn't it pretty?  Find it HERE.  And while you're there, check out her other recipes, she's got some good stuff!

Coming up next...

 
I made myself a cute little version of this for lunch the other day, and oh me oh my...it was deeelish.  I posted this recipe cause it was my inspiration, though mine was not nearly as involved.  I had a bag of frozen sweet potato cubes, which I boiled into thaw-ness.  I sauteed half an onion in coconut oil till it was lovely, threw in the sweet potatoes, grabbed a jar of roasted red peppers and cut a few into chunks and threw that in.  Wrapped it all up in a couple of sprouted-grain tortillas from Ezekiel, and man was I impressed with myself.  You can be too!  Either with me, or yourself, whatever floats your boat.

I may be posting more of these types of recipes, so keep an eye out.  And if you've got any you'd like to see in a blog, send them along!  I'll even give you hungry b*tches the cred.  Just like being a celebrity.

Till next time, love yous!!

Three. 3. Trois. Tres. Part 3: The Third Part. Beginning of the End.

I wish I would have saved the little thumbnail pic that came with the listing of this house.  Sitting in the van, across the street from this house, alternately looking from the listing in my lap to the actual house across the street, trying to figure out where we made a wrong turn.  Cause this couldn't possibly be the place, because this... this was straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting.

It was fall, sometime in October.  The leaves were changing, there was a chill in the air and that general festive feeling of anticipation that fall always brings.  The white farmhouse across the street had painted shutters and a front porch with white columns on brick pillars, a big red brick chimney on one side.  The yard was loaded with trees...the leaves of the maples were positively gold and they were falling like snow.  There was an older man in the yard raking these golden leaves into piles. Smoke billowed out of the chimney and the smell of wood fire was in the air.  Surreal.

The man notices us sitting in our minivan gaping, and immediately drops his rake and comes striding towards us.  One of us undoubtedly said 'oh shit let's get out of here, quick', but the man was already at the window, smiling and knocking and asking if we'd like to come and see the house.  Whaaaa?  Really?!  He was friendly and inviting to the point where I started to feel suspicious.  I know it's lame, but it must be some sort of conditioned response.  That's my only explanation. 

The man ushers in the back door, calling for his wife.  I am immediately struck by the charm and originality of this old house, the back porch, the laundry room with one of those white farmhouse sinks, flowers painted on the cabinets, and the smell of apple pie in the air.  Sunny, cozy, wonderful.  This cute little grey-haired woman appears in the doorway with an apron and oven mitts on and tells us to come on in, she just has to take a pie out of the oven and it will just take a minute, and would we like some cider?

A pie?  Cider?  For real? Who are these people?!

The couple gave us a tour and told us all about the house and their family and the area, and charming, charming, charming, blah blah blah.  Since the house turned out to be over a hundred years old, I (sort of) jokingly asked the woman if they had a resident ghost.  She quickly turned around to me, smile fading, and responded with 'Maybe. Why do you ask?'.  Whoa, ok.  Just making conversation, ma'am. 

We spent at least an hour with these kind people, drinking their cider and breathing their pie-scented air.  There was a big garden out back, a chicken coop, raspberry bushes and apple and pear trees.  I started thinking about a compost pile and canning vegetables, backyard chickens and organic eggs.  It was so idyllic, just absolutely picture perfect.  The antique furniture, hardwood floors, wood burning stove complete with shaggy dog laying in front.  The acre of land, underground spring and gigantic ancient trees.  The wallpaper and paint techniques and throw rugs and lacy curtains.  It was a Victorian farmhouse and it was perfect.  We wanted it.  The house and everything about it...we were in love.  Me, who insisted that anything across the state line was a waste of time and a joke...yep, I was sold. 

As soon as we got in the car we started talking about it.  There was a feeling the house had, and we both felt it immediately.  The house wanted us, too.  When we left there we continued looking around the area, pulling up in front of different houses I had listings for and I would immediately compare them in my head to this place.  There was never any comparison, none of the other houses could hold a candle to this one. 

On the way home we talked about everything we had seen, and Steve mentioned my question about ghosts, and the woman's reaction.  We both kind of WTF'd for a few minutes, then, with eyes all big and round, he very seriously suggested 'maybe they were the ghosts'.  Good lord.  We just spent an hour in the Twilight Zone.

And with that, we went home and started to formulate a plan.