My 12 Days of Iowa Hell Has Finally Come to An End

So far my 6 months in Iowa have been amazing. My fiance and I have really settled into our new home and have loved it. It's been a lot of work but it's work that's felt rewarding and it feels like we're working towards something. We don't own some big incredibly expensive house but it's the perfect 3-bedroom home for us two.

We have a two-car garage, an unfished basement that is perfect for storage, a fenced-in yard, and a home we've really enjoyed. We even have a pretty cool little screened-in front porch. For the past 5 months and 2 weeks, everything has been just fine. Until that dreaded day, a little under two weeks ago.

We noticed our AC unit was on and running however the air blowing through the vents and into the house didn't feel as cold as it was supposed to. It was still cool but something didn't seem right. The next day was when we knew we were in trouble. I immediately checked the temperature in the house and the air blowing through the vents and uh oh, no cold air. It felt just like a regular fan blowing, which obviously isn't how AC is supposed to feel.

That morning I got on the phone to have someone come out and look at it and we made an appointment. They couldn't get out that day but said they would be there 2 days later, which let me and my fiance know we were in for a warm few days. We were both hoping it was some easy fix and maybe we just needed a new part but deep down I think we were both ready for an expensive problem.

A gentleman stopped by and asked what was wrong and after inspecting it we got the news...The AC unit is a bit old and you're going to need a new one. *Face Palm* Here was day 3 of sitting in our house while it was mid/late July and temperatures were in the mid and upper 80s.

The good news is we do have a home warranty which covered a massive amount of the cost of getting a new AC unit installed in our backyard. Now, it was still a few bucks. It's not like the thing was free but we were incredibly lucky it wasn't going to make us dive into our wedding fund money. So, we knew we could afford the new unit and were excited to get something new that would for sure be more energy efficient. Here's where the waiting process begins.

The home warranty company has to talk to the HVAC company, who has to order the unit, who has to set up an appointment that works for them, then we have to talk to the warranty company letting them know we can afford to cover our portion, who then has to go back to the HVAC company and say we're ready to go. It's not a tough process but when you're sitting in your house surrounded by fans to keep cool, you're wishing it would go by faster. You're usually waiting multiple days for all 3 parties to communicate each next step with each other.

After 12 and half miserable days of sleeping downstairs, taking our cats on AC car rides just to make sure they were cool, and essentially walking around naked the entire time, WE FINALLY HAVE AC AGAIN!

*I promise this isn't an advertisement for Goodman's company. It was just the best angle for the picture.*

We both have learned we are never taking air conditioning for granted again. Which sounds so pretentious but damn, if the thing ever goes out again, I hope it's not in July. It makes me really feel for anyone who goes through the trials and tribulations with their homes. Everyone wants to be comfortable inside their home.

Thank god this happened during the first year we've lived here and the home warranty was able to help save us a LOT of money. Here's a good reminder now to schedule a checkup for your heating system this fall to make sure it doesn't quit on you in mid-January.

I kind of want to throw a party at my house now just so I can show off an air conditioner I had nothing to do with picking out or even really buying. I'm getting old.