Thursday, July 30, 2009

Oh the blessing of AIR CONDITIONING....and of it not working.....

I've read many posts from others about their resolve to not use their central air despite living in a very warm climate to save money. I have to say that i admire their resolve! Our air conditioner has been on the blink for the last week. Our outside temp has been 95-100, indoor temps 83-89 despite my best efforts to cool this house off using ceiling fans (we have one in every room), regular fans, opening the windows (then closing by 9:30 a.m.). We simply live in a hot house. We have gotten through the week by dipping in the pool periodically throughout the day (get in the pool, make dinner, get in the pool, do the dishes, etc). Admittedly, this is a good thing. It gets us all out of the house as a family, it's free to us, the kids love it, and it cools us off! I use the time to work with the little ones on swimming - though Arihana (almost 2) nearly falls asleep everytime - it really relaxes her. I also hold Arihana and do water exercises (leg lifts, etc) which is good for me. Natasha (3) paddles around with her floaties on and wants everyone to call her Nemo and look at her "little fin." All the while, she is talking to her "scooby-doo" (our dog, a dashund, who won't get in the pool but visits us poolside). I also take the time to notice things in the backyard that i probably wouldn't notice at first glance. Matt actually used the tail on the pool sweep (affectionately called "creepie") to hose down all the sidewalks, fences, and the back of the house the other evening.

We have also swam after dark several times this week. The kids love this and it gives us a chance to talk about and point out the moon and stars.

All the good aside, the heat just seems to make me tired. Or maybe it's the pool that makes me tired? We use a home warranty company, and they were able to enlist a contractor and our A/C was fixed yesterday. I was just ecstatic, though i'm thinking i'm going to set the thermostat higher during the day so that people will get in the pool to cool off, then let the AC cool the house off before bed so everyone can sleep.

We have also decided that should we ever purchase a house again (and we plan to), we will choose a property that faces north/south, rather than east/west. People i know that have a home that faces north/south can take advantage of the fairly frequent breezes we have and avoid the intense sun through the main windows of the house (another one of our problems). I am an Oregon native, having only lived in the Central Valley for 5 years. I love it here about 10 months out of the year - but just don't like July and August...too hot!!

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