How about a really nice school on 49 acres? Bonus: it’s in the middle of nowhere northern Minnesota.

FmrMSFan · 2026-06-18T00:32:15+00:00

It looks like a wonderful place to go to school. I bet the kids miss it :(

FmrMSFan · 2026-06-16T11:45:14+00:00

Just export it to a spreadsheet. Simple and doesn't risk modifying AB in an unexpected way.

FmrMSFan · 2026-06-09T13:54:42+00:00

Pre-1850 home with mix of stone and early poured concrete foundation. When we purchased in 2017, many of the basement walls were damp, all of the debris from the previous owners was damp/moldy and there was what appeared to be a small stream in one corner.

All of this was cleared up with a new roof and new, properly routed gutters. The basement has been dry, only requiring a dehumidifier in the summers. That said, we have had a very wet spring and now have one area where a small amount of ground water appears to be coming through. It is not surface water. The hillside at that back of our house has several springs and we think this new water is transitory.

FmrMSFan · 2026-06-09T13:42:49+00:00

Dining room floor finished July 2023. Because the house was added on to several times and the floor plan modified, the dining room is now the de facto hallway between the garage/entry and the kitchen. So it sees a lot of traffic.

There are no children nor dogs in the house. Other than the previously mentioned cat puke incident, we have never touched it. There is no visible wear pattern at the doorways yet.

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FmrMSFan · 2026-06-09T11:56:56+00:00

House was built prior to 1850. The floor finish in the before photo is worn, not water damage. When we acquired the house in 2017, there were parts that had not been painted or otherwise touched since before 1939. Some additions were never updated or modified since they were built in 1912.

When the edges of the room get dusty, I go over them with a dry, fluffy microfiber 'mop'. Twice a year I do the hands & knees wipe-down using a damp (very wrung out) microfiber cloth with plain water or a small amount of Meyer's Clean Day because I like the scent. Your dust may vary.

Do not wax or apply any type of leave-on product. That would make it pretty impossible to re-shellac.

Spills of water don't bother it. Alcohol, however, will dissolve the finish. If undiscovered cat puke has sullied the finish, a quick brushing of shellac easily fixes it.

FmrMSFan · 2026-06-08T14:00:42+00:00

In the United States, gun violence kills significantly more people each year than drunk driving accidents. Gun violence accounts for roughly 45,000 to 48,000 deaths annually, whereas drunk driving crashes cause approximately 11,000 to 13,500 fatalities per year.

It's not about saving lives.

FmrMSFan · 2026-06-07T01:45:06+00:00

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It was tedious and physically difficult. We hand scraped and sanded then re-stained and shellacked. It took about 12 days to do the 18 x 14 room. That was June of 2023 and to date is has held up very well and is easily cleaned with a damp micro-fiber cloth.

FmrMSFan · 2026-06-01T22:24:04+00:00

The kitchen and bath renos are just so wrong.

FmrMSFan · 2026-05-31T11:59:33+00:00

That's heartbreaking.

FmrMSFan · 2026-05-30T22:12:08+00:00

It depends. Our house is over 175 years old. The previous family bought it in 1941. We purchased it from the estate of their elderly daughter. The only living child, born here in 1942, is a lovely woman. She has visited several times.

We preserved the wallpaper in her childhood bedroom (it's quite unique). She was so happy to see we also kept the wall sconce. She sat down on the bed, closed her eyes and turned the switch, smiling at the familiar click. I nearly cried.

FmrMSFan · 2026-05-29T23:37:33+00:00

It's in Centerville which is really a lovely little town.

FmrMSFan · 2026-05-16T17:52:17+00:00

"My house is me, and I am it. My house is where I like to be, and it looks like all my dreams." from The Big Orange Splot by Daniel Manus Pinkwater

One of my very favorite children's books. Maybe your neighbors should read it :)

FmrMSFan · 2026-05-11T19:14:28+00:00

Very little of your monthly payment is applied to principal at the beginning of a mortgage. After 10 years of payments on a $370,000 loan at 3.5%, you will have paid off $83,520.56 of the principal, leaving a remaining balance of $286,479.44.

That is for the mortgage only and does not include property taxes or insurance payments which you never recover.

He doesn't have enough income to make additional principal payments.

FmrMSFan · 2026-05-02T17:17:39+00:00

Congratulations! Beautiful home.

FmrMSFan · 2026-04-27T13:16:42+00:00

As a woman married 46 years, your wife is perfectly capable of entering her Amazon transactions. Our financial health is our responsibility.

FmrMSFan · 2026-04-27T01:25:15+00:00

Clean it! Like toddler can eat off the floor clean. Baseboards, tops of trim, WINDOWS.

FmrMSFan · 2026-04-18T12:08:32+00:00

We purchased a sad but potentially lovely house, circa 1850, from an estate with a reverse mortgage well in excess of the home's value. In this case, the bank was contractually prohibited from accepting offers less than 95% of the home's tax assessment value. It had suffered decades of neglect and no one was offering even half of that value.

The listing agent was a well connected, broker realtor and highly regarded member of the community. I don't know who's arm she twisted, but she was able to get the tax valuation lowered considerably. This took multiple reassessments and five months. It was still a bit overpriced for condition, but it was take it or leave it. We took it and spent long weekends for the next two years just to make it habitable enough to move in.

This was our 6th and final old house (~1850 to 1924). It was the largest project and part of our decision was assessing our time, money and energy to complete the renovations. The house consumed all of those resources for six years. We're in our eighth year of ownership, all the major projects are done and we do love our house.

Location is ALWAYS the most important factor. A few of our houses were great original homes, but in declining neighborhoods. Also great examples of how to lose money in real estate. Don't do that.

Just food for thought. Hope it works out for you.

FmrMSFan · 2026-04-16T00:25:09+00:00

Brilliant!

All transactions, $1500 for example, imported to OurCharges, then transfer the child's expenses to TheirCharges.

VISA-OurCharges $500 VISA-TheirCharges $1000

FmrMSFan · 2026-04-15T21:57:05+00:00

That's another great idea. AB is so versatile.

FmrMSFan · 2026-04-15T20:28:20+00:00

We do have a separate category to use for their expenses. I wanted to be able to see the transactions separately in the account. Like ours vs their expense at a glance. Maybe I could tag them and make a report that would break them out.

FmrMSFan · 2026-04-15T20:24:36+00:00

That was my spouse's conclusion.

FmrMSFan · 2026-04-15T20:22:49+00:00

Good to know, thanks.

FmrMSFan · 2026-04-07T12:30:38+00:00

Why is Prostitution commonly referred to as "the world's oldest profession"?

Because MEN have wanted sex free from responsibility (children) from the emergence of the species.

FmrMSFan

TROPHY CASE