This post was inspired by Brian Block and his post (You've Got) Personality.  Thanks Brian!

Yep, I sell real estate in Louisville, Kentucky. I have been to school just like the rest of us real estate types, learned about the laws, and taken and passed the exam. I take continuing education so that I can learn even more about how to be the best agent I possibly can be and I even take classes and seminars that aren't required because I really want to be able to walk-the-walk and talk-the-talk.

That's just the nuts and bolts that are required to make me a real estate agent. But what about the other stuff?  I bet you aren't interested in just any ole agent off the street, right? Don't you want to work with someone who has personality too? Someone you can work with and feel comfortable talking to about your finances, your family, your dreams for a future home?

Below are 10 interesting (at least I think they're interesting) things about me. These aren't real estate related things, they're just life experiences and personal information about me. A little something to add that "human factor" into the basic information you've probably already read about me. Want to know more? Just ask!

1. My husband and I got married at the Louisville Zoo (http://www.louisvillezoo.com). My husband and all the groomsmen wore kilts. Rumor has it the guests thought it was one of the most fun weddings they had ever been to.
2. I was in ROTC at the University of Louisville my freshman year of college so that I could learn more about my boyfriend and his Army side. I refused to scale off the side of a perfectly good building.
3. I was born in Western Pennsylvania. 
4. My husband and I are part of a medieval recreation group called the Society for Creative Anachronisms (www.sca.org) - Yep, we put on armor, hit each other with sticks, dress up in funny clothes, and all that crazy stuff.
5. I had a secret crush on Cory Feldman when I was in High School - I've out grown that :) 
6. The farthest west I have ever been is to Las Vegas, NV. 
7. I'm terrified of heights, but yet, every year when I go to the Kentucky State Fair, I have to ride the Ferris Wheel. It's nuts, I know!  
8. I'm a graduate of Male High School (if you're from Kentucky, you know when someone asks you "Where did you go to school?" we always tell where we went to High School, not college.  Why is that?) 
9. I went to Canada once when I was 20 with a couple of friends. We went about 15 miles into Canada from Detroit, Michigan for a hamburger. I've never been back since. The only thing I remember, besides the restaurant, is how clean Canada is (at least that 15 miles of it that I saw). 
10. I believe in ghosts and the paranormal. Yep, I do. If you're interested, ask me about my experiences sometime - I don't have many, but I think they're fascinating.

 

Many of the schools in Kentucky started back to school this week, Oldham County Schools included. I spent my morning at Locust Grove Elementary yesterday - I'm on the PTA Board. Our first day of school was fantastic. The school mascot is a Lion, so we set up a safari theme for the kids and handed out Locust Grove bookmarks to each student as they walked into school.

This was a huge deal for us, because Locust Grove is brand new to Oldham County and opened it's doors to students for the very first time yesterday. It is slated to hold around 800 kids, if I remember right, and I know that they were almost at capacity on registration day. The school isn't quite finished - the gym isn't finished, the library isn't ready, and there's no playground, but hopefully all that will change soon!  The playground may not be ready until next year, but the PTA has some high hopes in raising enough money to buy a new playground for the students. As for the gym and the library, we'll leave that to the professionals!

None of that mattered to the students at Locust Grove though. My kiddo was so excited to be at a brand new school! 

How did the first day of school go for you and yours?

Ok, so I waited with anticipation today because it was Kentucky's turn for Land Grab. In all honesty, every time I heard "register for a community" I was thinking City. For example, I live in LaGrange, KY, which is a small city outside of Louisville.  So, I thought I was going to be registering for LaGrange, KY when I signed up.  But instead, I was pleasantly suprised when I realized today at Land Grab that they actually meant Neighborhoods or Subdivisions. 

This is a great thing! 

What this means for you (and me) is that if you live in an area with many small communities/subdivisons, there will be plenty of opportunities for you to register in an area. Sure, maybe the big dollar subdivisions will be gone quickly, but that's ok.  Maybe one of these other neighborhoods is a diamond in the rough waiting to be discovered?

For $9.00 a month (with no contractual obligation to go any longer than that), isn't worth a shot?

Middletown is a suburb of Louisville, KY located on the east end between I-265 and I-64. I have always enjoyed this area of town and find Main Street to be a hidden treasure to many. The street is lined with historic places, quaint shops and cozy places to eat and watch the day go by. If you have never spent much time in Middletown, stop by and give a few hours to the history that is Middletown, KY.

I wasn't going to watch any fireworks last night, but was pleasantly surprised by the fireworks show we got just by sitting on our front porch last night in LaGrange, KY. The show was fabulous and pretty much any direction we looked there were huge fireworks in the sky. I took lots of pictures to share with you. I hope you enjoy some of the show that I saw!

This may not be everyone's Top 5 list, but it is mine.  I run across these things on a regular basis and even though some of them aren't huge, they can be important.  When you're preparing your home to sell, it's always good to look at the home from the Buyer's perspective.

This isn't a complete list of things to do to prepare your home to sell; this is just a small list of things that people usually forget about in the rush to get their house looking "Better Homes & Gardens" perfect.

1. Dust all of your picture frames.
2. Vacuum up all of the cobwebs (that means around the top of your cabinets, at the top of your vaulted ceiling, and any of those other hard to reach places)
3. Clean all of the light fixtures in your home.  This means clean the dust off of the ceiling fans, polish the chrome, and dump out all of the bugs in those lights (yeah, you know you've got em!)
4. Clean behind the toilet! Ewww!  I don't think I need to elaborate on this, do I?
5. Clean your oven, refrigerator, and the microwave (I know, even though these items may not stay with the home, people will look inside)

If you would like a check list of things to do to get your home ready to sell, let me know! I'm happy to help!

I love Thai food, it's a weekness.  I also love Indian food - If you've never tried it, you should.  Granted, I must say that the first time I tried Indian food, I wasn't a fan. But there is something in the food (I swear there is), that makes you crave it.  When I left Shalimars (my favorite restaurant) the first time I was there, I wasn't planning on going back; but over the weeks I started to crave it, so I tried it "just one more time" and have been hooked ever since. Now I go whenever I can.

My love of Thai food worked in a similar way.  The regular restaurant that I went to closed a few years ago, and now if I want to get good Thai food, I have to drive to Southern Indiana to get it.  My quest is to find a great Thai Restaurant in Louisville.  If you know of one, please let me know!!  If you're thinking of opening one - I'd love it if it were in the East End (hint! hint!).

Can you believe that Summer Vacation is almost half over? It's hard to believe that in about a month and a half school will start again.  If you're going to the new Locust Grove Elementary School, you're probably even more excited (or nervous), because the school is brand spankin' new, and there are questions about whether it will be ready in time or not.

According to the Principal, Mrs. Arnold, the school will be open and ready for children on the first day.  Some of the areas may not be ready for use, but the class rooms will be ready.

Registration Day for all students at the new Locust Grove Elementary School is scheduled for July 31 beginning at 9:00 a.m. (I believe that this is probably going to take place at the Middle School next door?)

Open House is tentatively scheduled for August 7.

These dates are tentative and could change. Keep up to date with what's going on at Locust Grove through their website.

Over the weekend I showed a home to one of my buyers. They were so excited to see this house.  It showed well on the MLS - photos were nice and the house looked like it was in great shape!

But, when we got there, we were shocked.  The garage was full of junk (not furniture, like they were trying to make space in the house, just junk) and the house was a disaster!  There were ash trays that didn't look like they had been cleaned out in days, dirty towels hanging off the shower, dirty clothes in piles on the floor and in the closets (so much so that you couldn't close the closet doors), papers scattered over the tables - amazing!

The selling agent called for feedback and was suprised as well.  Apparently, the home usually showed well. Really? Sounds like time for a suprise visit to see how the house is showing.

I recognize that there are times when a Seller doesn't want to sell their home for one reason or another (divorce, foreclosure, etc.), but if you DO want your home to sell, please, please, please, don't leave ash trays out, do your laundry (and put it away), and clean up after yourself.  These things really do reflect poorly on your home if they aren't done and will cause your home to sit on the market longer than necessary.

 

This past weekend was Arts on the Green in historic downtown LaGrange, KY. If you're familiar with the St. James Art Festival held in Louisville every year, Arts on the Green is just like it only on a smaller scale. Vendors from across the state come to LaGrange to share and sell their creations to the public - some are just amazing!  I went to Arts on the Green with my family and took a few pictures of downtown LaGrange to share with you. I hope you enjoy the show!