Update

A quick update.  Doug just stated that taking today off saved us $600.  With a quick consultation with Doug DeWitt they decided to try to change out one part on the freezer (something about a starter).  If that didn't work - then the problem would be the compressor and the resolution would mean a new freezer.  Luckily the part fixed the freezer beautifully. 

In 3's

Do problems come in 3's?  You've all heard that before, right?  Anyway, I just posted about the microwave meltdown and Doug's slow but sure repair.  Just before our mini-vacation the Crown Vic had a dead battery which Doug took care of on Saturday when we got back into town.  And the post will explain the 3rd.

Well for the past week or two I have noticed a faint bad smell when entering the house.  I have looked high and low for the source of the odor but to no avail.  I sniffed and smelled in our bedroom, bathroom, the laundry room, and the living room.  I have been burning a scented candle more often to try to make sure the house didn't smell totally bad.  I usually smelled the odor as I entered through the garage.  So I would set my stuff down and sniff around until either the odor dissipated or until my nose got used to it.  I even asked my mom when she came over if she noticed anything.  She didn't seem to smell a thing. 

But each time I would get that whiff of nastiness - like food spoiling or something like that.  So when I smelled it again just before our mini-vacation I tore into a small end table that is stuffed with an 72 hour emergency supply kit.  I took out all the bottled water to see if they had leaked and caused the wood to stink - but nothing.  I emptied the backpacks only to find that there was no "wet" food to spoil - just a #10 can of dried type nourishment.  Nope - no smell in there.  It was crazy - no source of the smell could be found.

Then when I walked into the house yesterday I could really smell it.  I was sure it came from somewhere in the laundry room.  Isaac had started a batch of laundry and it was in the dryer spinning and spinning (shame on him for doing it on Sunday).  AH HA!  That was the smell - a strong sort of hot rubber type smell.  I called Doug in and he too agreed that it was a burning type of chemical smell.  Finally, at least someone else could smell it. 

He emptied the dryer out and continued to dismantle the dryer.  The reason he started that on Sunday was that Monday is the day the missionaries do their laundry.  So we were hoping to get the problem identified so he could get it fixed quickly on Monday.  He tore it down and even though he found a couple of plastic pads worn through to the metal - there was no odor now and that really wouldn't have caused the bad odor.  So now what?

While working in the laundry room we still seemed to be able to get faint whiffs of the odor.  So the only other option was the freezer.  Our attention turned that way and sure enough when the freezer would cycle on we would smell it.  Then we noticed that the freezer would only be "on" for a couple seconds and then go right off.  So we were sure that the freezer was going out.  The freezer has a high temperature sensor that would go off if the temperature started getting too warm and that was not activated as of yet.  But that only lasted until sometime in the middle of the night.

I let Doug get up to handle it - I think he ended up going out to buy some dry ice.  As I type this I am not sure because I don't want to open the freezer to find out and Doug is still sleeping.  I know he put a call into our family appliance expert, Doug DeWitt, to talk about what we could do to repair it.  But I think the freezer is going to have to go. 

So luckily Doug has already signed off as a vacation day and doesn't have to go into work.  Unluckily it looks as though his vacation day is going to be spent re-assembling the dryer and either trying to repair a freezer or buying a new one.  I think that actually makes it project 3 AND 4. 

And I thought these things only came in 3's. 

Holding my Breath

FYI - I am no longer holding my breath waiting for the microwave to be fixed.  Doug bought the part and installed the part and the microwave is working like a charm!  Thanks Doug!

Four Things

First Thing:  Isaac does not like the idea of a scorpion being in the house.  But to his dismay we have found at least two scorpion carcasses in our house since he has been here.  And when he was asked to remove one of the said carcasses he was a little nervous.  He got even more nervous when he realized the scorpion wasn't finished kicking the bucket.  He had a few slow arm movements left in him.  So when Isaac was scooping up the scorpion up just a sudden simple noise from me made him jump 10 feet into the air.  He hasn't jumped that high since . . . . . . . well, ever!

 

Second Thing:  Sampson Crockett was a beautiful baby boy born way too early.  He lived a very short time.  I wept at the thought of Jill and Jonathan losing that precious son.  I crocheted this little hat and blanket through my tears.  I hope they know how much we all grieve for them and with them.  Sampson is now waiting in Heaven for us all to join him. 

 

Third Thing:  McDonald's Monopoly is in full swing.  Of course, we almost have 3 or 4 monopolies.  But everyone else seems to be looking for the same pieces we are looking for.  Go Figure! We don't usually go to McDonalds - but this year we have a good reason to go.  We go to see our son, SCOTT, on the nation wide Monopoly poster that is on display in every McDonalds restaurant.  It is awesome.  Our now famous son has taken to lounging around in his soccer attire and asking the people around him to "do him a favor" or "get him a drink" or "let him have the recliner" or whatever.  Do you think a little attention has gone to his head?  Quite Possibly.

 

 

Fourth Thing:  Finally, my microwave is still not working.  Doug will order the part we need "very soon".  I am waiting patiently for the - tortoise to finish the race (see earlier post) .  But I am not holding my breath.  I definitely would expire before the finish. 

Microwave

I am wondering, does anyone remember how to fix meals without the use of a microwave?  Our lovely microwave bit the dust.  It gave a bogus error code - failed humidity sensor.  Whatever that is it has made our microwave just ornamental. 

My husband has now turned into an appliance repair man.  He found the schematics, researched how to dismantle the microwave to get to the dead part, figured out how to dis-mount the microwave, got the part out, found a place in town to buy the part (for $10 more), found some online sites to buy the part (less money but longer repair wait time), and is moving forward to finish the project. 

Maybe this will be his "job" after he retires.  He really likes doing things like this.  He'd be more of a tortoise than a hare - but he'd finish the job.  Either way I am hoping my microwave is fixed pretty soon. 

Registration

Does anyone have any doubt as to what the instructions were for the Toyota registration tag?  It seems pretty clear to me. 

But this morning while driving into the garage I noticed that the Toyota that Isaac has care and custody of while studying at BYU-i didn't have a current registration tag on it.  The tag said June 12.  Wait a minute - isn't this October 2012 right now?  Something isn't right here.  So I found the spare key - Isaac was still in sleepy land.  Let myself into the car.  Opened the jockey box.  Found the old registration and old insurance information on top.  I dug deeper and found the current registration and tag nicely tucked on the bottom of the stack.  I wonder if he ever even saw these instructions.  Needless to say I remedied the situation.  So now he is street legal for another year - wait only 9 months now. 

He's really lucky he didn't get pulled over with the expired registration tag and therefore have another reason to complain about the Rexburg Police, or the Kanab Police, or the Springville Police, or the Page Police, or the Phoenix Police, or the Peoria Police . . . . well you get the picture. 

We're probably going to have a little talk about car registration tags when Isaac gets up this morning. 

**Even though the sticker is off in this picture, it was definitely on the paper when I found it in the jockey box.  Somehow the original picture disappeared when I moved it from the camera to the computer.