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One of the funny quirks of our home is its age. It was 13 years old when we moved in, and we have been here for four years. The home's age is approaching the point when certain hardware, appliances and fixtures give up the ghost as they near the 15 - 20 year mark. Basically, we are at the "sweet spot" for everything breaking.

The house was in phenomenal shape when we arrived. The home inspector had a difficult time locating any objectionable items, and relied, instead, on routine comments about the life expectancy of various systems, i.e., the heat pump (recently replaced), etc. At the time, I thought he was, well, a little "full of it," as they say, but there has been truth to what he documented.

We noticed rather immediately that the kitchen sink was an original feature. Approximately two months after moving in, the faucet simply disconnected at the base, sending water into the air. We patched it up (crammed it back together) and have allowed it to limp along while we search for a replacement (it is an odd design). My system with the sink has been to never, ever move the spout around (or else prepare to be drenched). I never left the room with the sink running, and the girls were not allowed any unsupervised use of the faucet at all.

We had some plumbing repairs completed a couple of months ago, and I bemoaned the status of the faucet to the plumber. He put me in touch with some replacement options (again, odd style), and I began getting emotionally prepared to make the purchase. (I really had no idea how much faucets cost. No wonder we were staring at the original faucet!) So we raised the money and braced ourselves to spend it. Now, we are enjoying the new set up. Sure, this faucet doesn't have that dangerous edge, always threatening to douse us with water, but the girls are really enjoying increased access. They are really loving being able to wash dishes.