HOMEOWNER FIRST

This week I experienced my first natural disasters as a homeowner.  This is a recap of my experience:

Natural Disaster #1: Earthquake - While I was at work during the earthquake, once I got my bearings I was genuinely concerned about my house.  Luckily...the parental unit was all on top of it.  They were able to get to my house before I was to assess the damage.  Thank the Lord the tremor was mild and the impact was a few items that fell off of the nightstand and vanity in the bedroom.

Natural Disaster #2: IRENE! - Irene was literally the bain of my existence this weekend.  And it became even moreso as it rolled through Maryland.  I decided to put my big girl panties on and stay at home by myself (in lieu of going to the parental unit's) once it was confirmed that Irene would not directly hit the area, but just cause high winds and heavy rain.  Around 7:00/8:00 the winds and rains really started to intensify.  Shortly thereafter, at approximately 8:30 my power went out.  My initial thought was "really, this early?"  I removed myself from the couch...grabbed the flashlight and a bottle of water and headed upstairs.  Thank God for the wisdom to have my phone completely charged.

I called mommy to update her on my status and went to bed.  I woke up intermittently to check on Dani, who also decided to hunker down by herself.  During one such moment...I realized no power meant my sump pump would not kick on to keep the water out of my basement and I would inevitably wake up to flooding.  I instantly went back to sleep.

I woke up the next morning to (still) no power and a basement full of about 2 inches of water.  Again I called the parental unit with an update.  Immediately daddy was on it.  A short time later the calvary parental unit was knocking at my door.  Daddy devised an ingenious plan.  He took our electrical cord and the electrical cord of my neighbor across the street (that side had power) and plugged the sump pump up and the water cleared out within a half-hour.  HE IS AWESOME! I honestly believe if I needed a mountain moved he would figure out a way to do it.

As for the power...once we dealt with the water situation I packed up some belongings and headed to their house for the day.  It was a highly productive day.  I got some internet tasks completed, washed and twisted my hair, had mommy and me movie time (we watched Jumping the Broom), and just enjoyed family time in general. 

I was praying hard all day that the Lord would restore my power (I really did not want to deal with the hassle of not having power for another day) and let me tell you...prayer does change things because at aproximately 6:30 PM my power was back up and running.

So...that is a nutshell are my first experiences with natural disasters as a homeowner.

Ms. K

A WARM HOME

HELLO ALL!  I'MMMM BACKKKKKKK!!!! Please excuse the delay in posting...I was on Vacay! :-)

Without further delay...here is the post on my housewarming...

This is really a picture heavy post.  My housewarming was so much more than I could have asked for.  The outpouring of love made my home feel like the warmest place on earth (figuretively and literally, lol).  About 100 people came out throughout the evening and there was plenty of food, libations, and love to go around.  I got some really awesome gifts (almost everything on my registry and a whole lot of gift cards to get other stuff that I wanted...and then some).  ;-)

Here are some of the highlights of the evening and some other snapsots of the house (THANKS JAMES!!!!!!):

My Home!

The balloon wreath I made for the festivities.

The beautiful decorated tent that was too hot to occupy (lol).

These lanterns were the inspiration for my party decor.

My office.

Master Bedroom

Kabobs!!!! (This is the only food shot...I didn't want to make your mouth water anymore than it already is, lol.)

Ash's special touch...practical and pretty.

My nieces...my heart!!!

Who knows what this conversation was about, lol.

PEABODY...she made so much possible that day!

The fancy one making a fancy entrance (and the donkey punch bringing up the rear!

Presents!!! (yes that's Christmas wrapping paper...see below)

Hey ladies!

Jordan and Jaylen...such a cute pic!

Yes...that is Al and yes she wrapped her gift in Christmas paper. Gotta love her!

Napstars!!!!!!!

Me and the parental unit...I can honestly say without them...this day would not have been possible.  They worked so hard and I LOVE them for it.

Ms. K

GUEST POST: Operation 1135

Hello All!  I know it's been a while, but I've been uber busy readying the house for my house warming Saturday after next (amongst other things).  So I figured this would be a great opportunity to feature one of my fav bloggers in a get post.  I asked A (from the henna hair challenge with me to write a guest post on the blog...and she did exactly what I thought she would do...show up and show out.

Without further delay...Ms. A...

I was super excited when Ms. K asked me to do a post for Locs and Keys because this is my first guest post! Whoop whoop! I pondered what to write about since Ms. K’s blog has a very specific theme. Then it hit me!

I recently just purchased a home as well. Operation 1135, as I like to call it, was truly one of the most rewarding, blessed, scary, and amazing experiences of my young life.  I have been in my home for only 3 weeks now and I am in love. As much as I love purchasing a good bag, nice top, and earrings (they are my children and each and every single pair holds a special place in my heart) my wallet is totally a slave to furniture and home purchases right now.

After moving out from under mom’s wings, I notice that I moved into my fabulous new home and I need everything. The ongoing list that I have is quite daunting at times. I want to get pass all of the little items and needs and get to the fun stuff  -- DECORATING!!!  I am ready for the fun stuff – painting, reupholstering, etc.

My goal is to go room by room to achieve the look that I want. I have a modern flair with vintage appeal. I don’t know if that makes sense to you guys but it does to me. My first room to tackle would be my bedroom. I want it to be cozy, sexy, sophisticated, and comfortable all at the same time. I am shopping for the focal point now – THE BED! Of course I fall in love with a beauty from Ethan Allen that made my eyes drool and my wallet cry with a $2,000 price tag!

HERE IS THE LINK FOR THE BED: http://www.ethanallen.com/product?productId=3141818&categoryId=8028

Needless to say that I immediately put my BFF up to a search to find a cheaper option with the same appeal and she totally succedded with this beauty available at Macy’s.

HERE IS THE LINK FOR THE BED: http://www1.macys.com/catalog/product/index.ognc?ID=514774&CategoryID=35420#fn=sp%3D1%26spc%3D586

After falling in love with my bed I instantly thought, wait…my hair! My precious and luscious curls will destroy this light color fabric in no time! Damn you Chaka (my hair’s name)! So now the hunt is back on for the same look in a leathered upholstered option…

Stay tuned for updates as I continue to decorate 1135…