Our plumbing woes continue but we took the opportunity to see the girls play in the final game of the hockey tournament on Saturday evening. The game was at 7:45 so it would be dark driving there and back and it was in Richardson, Texas - very close to the hospital Leah was in for her recent surgery.
Amber graciously invited us to come over early and ride with them to the game!
YES! And THANK YOU!!!
Amber and her girls!
She is a great hockey mom to all four of her children.
It felt good to get out of the house and be around so much youthful energy!!!!
The girls were playing against each other.
Mike is the coach of the Artic Blazers - they are in white.
Trystan is on the Lucky pucks team in blue.
Trystan is #62 and she played her heart out at both the tournament and championship games!
Can you spy Logan?
There she is!
My darling daughter and super cute grandson cheering the all girl tournament on!!!
It was such a close game on Saturday and both teams had already qualified for the play off.
It looked like Trystan's team would win but in the end it was Kailey and Logan's.
SUCH a great game!!!
3-2!
The Championship game was at 9:00 Sunday morning and we stayed home waiting for a plumber but I was glued to my phone and watched it like I was looking at the ice rink as Amber gave me updates on the game.
It was even MORE exciting than the one on Saturday!
They tied 2 - 2!
They went on 5 minutes overtime and were still tied!
It was a nail biter of a game as they did a shootout!
But at the last it was Arctic Blaze who won!!!
3-2!
Kailey!!!
Logan!!!
That's the team Mike coaches so the trophy came home with him!
It is in a place of honor in the Bell's foyer!
In other news - our sweet Tabitha has been exceptionally affectionate lately.
She dearly loves Louis Dean and she's always around when I'm decorating.
I may never have another dog - and I have had several in the past - but I think I love cats best of all.
Especially this one.
Sometimes I call her July - that was Amber's favorite cat and she lived for over 20 years.
I hope Tabitha does, too.
After the hockey game and excitement on Sunday was over, I looked forward to the plumber from Mr. Rooter to arrive. Two of them did but it did not go well.
They would not even touch the job - not even pull up the toilet. They gave me a price of $8,500 and said they had an interest free payment plan for 18 months.
You see, there is a problem with our toilet flange in Louis Dean's bathroom.
I won't bore you with the details but I escorted them to the door while I was crying.
Louis Dean went into a frenzy of working on unstopping the line and took the toilet up and did all manner of things to get it to work - but nothing he could do did.
I developed a terrible headache and neckache and went to bed in the guest room while he wore himself out. Finally, I asked him to clean up the incredible mess he'd made and then just STOP!
This was beyond him and we should regroup and call another plumber.
I was pretty upset and crying still - it didn't help that I had forgot to take my meds that morning.
I calmed down and went next door to Stephanie's who is away right now and she gave me permission to 'hide out' at her house.
I called my brother in law Charlie - who is a retired master plumber.
He calmed me down and assured me the problem COULD be fixed and it would NOT involve tunneling underneath the bathroom as the Mr. Rooter guy recommended.
Praise God for angels like Charlie!
I calmed down and that in turn calmed Louis Dean down and we were back to our normal selves!
We took showers at Stephanie's and watched football and went to bed.
This morning I planned to call Roto Rooter who cleaned the sewer this time last year - and as I was talking to Charlie - he said I needed to find a good local plumber - a REAL one!
That's when I remembered RWD Plumbing - the one Stephanie uses and the one I used when my kitchen drains were clogged!
I called them and Carol scheduled Kevin to come out this afternoon!
I have been so distraught lately that I haven't really made a decent meal since Thanksgiving.
I 'cleaned the fridge out' and we ate mid afternoon and watched a Christmas movie on Lifetime.
Kevin did come out but it was late afternoon and he will need to go on the roof to use the vent to clean out the sewer - as we don't know where the clean out is!
SO - he is coming back in the morning!
Then we will get my bathroom back and and Louis Dean can use his bathtub.
As far as his toilet is concerned - we are on the schedule for the middle of December to have the flange repair done by a master plumber.
Being without Louis Dean's toilet is only a minor inconvenience to what we have already had!
And I am praising God that our kitchen and laundry room has not been affected!
It could have been so much worse!!
I'm feeling better today and took my medicine the moment I got up!
I made stuffed bell peppers for dinner tonight and we used up all the veggies in the fridge.
I'll make 'new food' tomorrow!!!
I love my Facebook memories......
especially the ones of Nita.
They are all happy memoires and what a blessing and testimony to her that they are.
She especially loved Benjamin and would invite him to Thanksgiving MONTHS early!!!
I'll close tonight's journal entry with this photo of our problem flange.
There are no bolts to hold the toilet down.
Last year Louis Dean did a 'fix' for it that lasted until now - but it must be repaired right this time.
I am praising God tonight for PLUMBERS!!!
Mainly for Charlie who gave me such good advice and for Mark and Kevin at RWO!
And for sweet Carol who assured me they could take care of this.
I'm going to get up in the morning and bake a chocolate chip pound cake to share with them!!
Kevin will be here between 9:30 - 10:30!
It should be in the oven by then!
What a distressful time. Sounds like there is a better plan in place now. I hope it all goes well and not atrociously expensively, either. :)
ReplyDeleteI am waiting anxiously for an update on what Kenin finds, and how much it costs. I have never in my life heard of such a high plumbing bill; I think those rooter guys are trying to take advantage of seniors! What an awesome trophy! and it is in a lovely place. I am a total cat person! We have had many.
ReplyDeleteSo sorry for your plumbing problems. I wouldn't ever use Roto Rooter. I always thought they were too gimmick-y. Charlie gave you good advice. So nice that you're making them a pound cake. You always do thoughtful things like that. I hope your plumbing problems are resolved quickly and you can get back to enjoying your home.
ReplyDeletePlumbing problems are the worst. Praying everything works out today and you can get a bathroom back. Thank God Charlie was there for you.
ReplyDeleteGood luck on getting it all fixed. A decent plumber is worth their weight in gold for sure !Sad but true, as long as your own a house there is always something that needs fixing. At this point in my life, I'm glad to be renting and the landlord is responsible for fixing everything. Thankfully I have a a great maintenance crew that is very good. Take care and hopefully all will be well soon !
ReplyDeleteI can feel your distraught self through your words because I went through that for almost 5 weeks and nearly fell apart I think I need to get some of your pills. I thought I would fall completely apart. I hope these plumbers can do it without breaking the bank I know Plumbing is expensive. Hope you get that bathroom back soon prayers and hugs coming your way. I enjoyed seeing your precious quads at their game and that is really some kind of trophy I love it
ReplyDeleteWhat a stressful time for both you and LD. I am glad you have it under control and a plan to get it fixed.
ReplyDeleteThat news and that estimate would have sent me into a tailspin, too, Linda. 😵💫 So glad that your brother-in-law was able to share such great advice. So glad that Stephanie invited you to use her home! May the fix be much more simple than it appeared to those first guys. They were pitiful!
ReplyDeleteCongrats to the hockey team winning the championship and a special "there, there" to Trystan who probably doesn't even need it since she is a good sister who is happy for Kailey and Logan (and her dad)
Keep calm and carry on as you always do...
A few years back the fire sprinklers came on in my son’s apartment. It had apparently started out as a slow leak then the pipe burst. The ceiling caved in - the apartment management called Roter Rooter and the guy was so overwhelmed, that he totally left the scene when no one was looking. The damage was total. They lost just about everything and was displaced for almost 2 months. I would always call a real plumber- they may cost a bit more but will save you in the long run.
ReplyDeleteI’m sure it will all work out. My dad used to say when I was a teenager that we should marry a plumber. Now I understand!
Oh Whew!!! It never seems to stop for you.
ReplyDeleteSo, So thankful for Charlie and his advice and for getting new plumbers to do the work.
Its so hard to get good people to do the work without the price gouging and scaring us to death.
So glad you have wonderful neighbors too. Glad you could use her home when you needed it.
Yay, for the Hockey victory and that trophy is amazing. What a wonderful place of honor for it too.
Happy preparation of "Real Food" today..that makes me smile. We've been doing the clean out the fridge too since Thanksgiving. Time for some REAL food here too.
Sue
I sure hate y’all are having so much plumbing trouble. I’m sure the good plumber will get it figured out quickly for y’all. But so glad you’ve been able to catch the kids’ games! I know that was fun. And your kitties look so cuddly! I’ve only had one dog in my life and he was so hyper and into everything. I much prefer cats myself. 😊
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry for the stress and upheaval of your plumbing problems. I hope they will all we solved quickly and life can resume at a more normal pace. I'm sure that chocolate chip pound cake was much appreciated.
ReplyDeleteWow...I don't know what can be much more stressful than toilet plumbing issues...been there and done that...and I pray the real Master Plumber people will have it fixed in no time and that it won't cost any where near $8500. That's just crazy. Anyway, so thankful God has special people around you who know how to help calm things down. That is an answer to prayer. So just relax tonight and get some rest. God is in control. Amen. And those hockey players...what a great win!!! So happy for them!! How exciting!
ReplyDeleteI am so very sorry for your plumbing woes - that is awful.
ReplyDeleteThe ice hockey girls can't be those little babies just a few years ago!
Oh wow, I can't believe the Roto-Rooter estimate. I would be crying too. Sounds like a rip-off. Hoping these other two guys can get it taken care of for you, for very much less.
ReplyDeleteThe hockey game sounded exciting, and what a huge trophy. It looks like a giant boot. Not sure how that ties into hockey though. I have to read your post again.
Thank God for Charlie! I'm glad it sounds as if a plan is in place and today it'll be taken care of! I'm glad too, that the flange will get repaired and you'll not have to think about that again for a good long time!
ReplyDeleteThat estimate was crazy!
Congrats to the Bells! What fun to have won the championship!
I've loved seeing your photos of Nita.
You guys coped so well - plumbing issues are just the worst. It still feels funny to me that people living in Texas play ice hockey (which is what we call it). hockey here is on a grass field. cheers
ReplyDelete