Rats a-go-go

 The damage to our car is pretty severe. The estimate is around $9500. Fortunately our car insurance covers it, And they are even paying for a rental car, so all we are paying at the moment is our deductible. All in all it could be a lot worse.

However, we did some investigating and found rat droppings in our garage. Our property management company has been good so far, in that they had someone come out and assess the situation. The pest control guy said the situation is in fact not good. There is extensive evidence of rats, and many entry points where the rats can get in. Fortunately they have not been inside the living areas, but they have been in the garage and probably under the house and maybe also in the attic space. So now we are waiting to find out what the plan is for dealing with the rats.

In the meantime, we rented a storage unit and Jeff moved much of our stuff from the garage into the storage unit today. The plan is to park our car in the garage (we have been parking in the driveway) once the garage is sealed up and there are no more rats. If it was up to us we would have a timeline for that, but since it is a rental we are waiting on other people to make decisions. Hopefully soon.

While Jeff was moving things into the storage unit, the kids and I decorated for Christmas. We don’t have a tree and we aren’t done yet, but the house is looking pretty spiffy!

Rats

 On Thursday morning we baked pies, made mashed potatoes, and prepared a few other things,

then we drove to Eugene for thanksgiving. We  had a nice visit with family, and much food.

We went home full and tired 

and slept in and had a sort of lazy Friday morning. However, when we eventually did try to go out our car wouldn’t start. After a little troubleshooting and some phone calls, we were instructed to have it towed to the dealership. Any problem should be covered under the warranty. 

Late in the afternoon we got a call from the dealership, with a surprising and unsettling verdict: rodent damage. We have to wait until tomorrow to get an estimate, and we will probably need to file an insurance claim. Very frustrating to have this happen to our brand new car! Fingers crossed it isn’t too bad 🤞

Brownies

Maren joined Girl Scouts this fall, and last week she had her investiture ceremony. She is now officially a Brownie. 

Maren is third from the right 

Fitting, then, that we found ourselves on a walk in a magical forest today.

At least that’s what Linden said: “It’s like we opened a door to a magical forest!” We went for a walk on a popular hiking trail in the outskirts of town today, and needless to say the kids loved it ❤️

Boardwalks

Friday morning the kids had no school, so I took them on a little adventure to find a playground in a part of town that we hadn’t been to yet. When we parked, we were surprised to find a boardwalk path right in front of us. Even though it led away from the playground, we decided to explore. 

The path led us through a wetland where we saw slugs, ducks, and lots of autumn leaves. It was lots of fun, and Linden especially enjoyed it. And it is another example of how much accessible nature there is in Corvallis. This is the third boardwalk path that we have found so far, and boardwalks are easy peasy for me to navigate on my trike. They will be open all year, so even when it’s really muddy there are places we can go to find some nature, just a few minutes’ drive from our house. 

A good reminder of why we moved ❤️

Rain 🌈

 Rain is not snow. Although it has been rainy this past week, it is still pretty warm. We have gotten outside plenty, and are enjoying the fact that fall lasts a long time here. 

Also, we love the rainbows 🌈