Holiday Progress

It seems like the theme for this last week was "where did the time go?". We spent a lot of time at the house working (3 nights until midnight), but it doesn't seem as though we are any closer to moving in. I spent a whole hour just trying to carve and sand out some uneven patches in the floor so that we could continue the wood floor into the pantry. Chad's biggest project was cleaning up the construction debris from the yard. He spent an entire day picking up and burning trash so that the mess could be contained with just the dumpster.
Another one of our "oops"... Chad and dad spent around 6 hours insulating the new addition. When we wanted to begin drywalling we figured out that the insulation was supposed to be attached to the inside of the rafters and not the bottom. An afternoon was spent fixing the insulation (see picture) so that the rafters would be exposed for the drywall glue to adhere to.... now we know.

Our friend Bob stopped by to get us started with the drywall. He explained the basics and loaned us some useful tools that we had no idea that we needed. An entire working day was spent attaching 4 drywall sections to the ceiling... who knew... I thought we could get the entire entryway done in one day... not just part of the ceiling. So, we still have two big stacks of drywall begging us to be put into place, both downstairs and up. Unfortunately, as spring break ends, soccer begins... so I am not sure when the two Kennys can team up on the house again before the end of soccer season.... Marie is in need of a home renovation team mate for the time being. And Chad would love the rest that a substitution would provide!
We continued the wood floor into the pantry. We used the left over cherry in there. The room was so small that we were sure that we would have it done in no time. Cracks, gaps and an uneven floor.... that is what our opposing team consisted of... and our quick project ended around midnight again ... but it is done!
I got a call that Home Depot had their composite decking on clearance. So, Dad Kenny and I made a trip and loaded up around 24 boards for the front porch. When we got them home and unloaded, I found several had chips and fading (must have been the trick lighting at the store)... and I (acknowledging that I can be pickier than some) reloaded all faded and chipped boards and Chad and I took them in a few days later for exchanges. Chad worked his magic and had the top surface decked after a full day's work.... why it took a full day... don't ask... that has just become the standard for the house renovation. Nothing will be as easy as it seems.

I have come to the conclusion that our first house renovation wasn't on a grand enough scale. If we had done more the first time around, we would be making less mistakes on this project!

Kitchen update... the missing cabinets that were being "rush" delivered in 2 weeks.... were back ordered another two weeks... So I had to move the countertop template yet again.

The plumber who repaired the frozen pipes during the house purchase negotiations and said that we were sure to have more leaks pop up once the water was on and that he would fix those new leaks as they occured (covered in the original quoted price)... decided that our new leak occurred because of something that we must have done.... the slow leak (that has taken 3 months to puddle around our hot water heater) couldn't possibly have been an existing condition. Everyone... remind me to always get those promises in writing... and that saving a $100 on a home inspection may not be worth the end results.. should have stuck with my initial plan.

Our current goal is to get the drywall done. Then paint, finish the floors... and hopefully be close to moving in by then. Barring any unforseen complications...

Going Green

So, another snaffoo added to the list. After two weeks of slowly trying to piece the kitchen together, we found that the handles on the stove do not allow us to open the drawer or door that it is adjacent to. My best friend (the tape measure) informed me that we had an extra 9 inches that had not been accounted for before walls were removed and rebuilt. I called Lowes, where everyone now knows me on a first name basis, and ordered an extra base and upper cabinet.. being expressed shipped.... in two weeks. Since the counter guys were coming in a few short days to template, two weeks didn't seem very express. Nontheless, a call to the countertop guys with lots of sweet talking and pleading home-makeover ignorance, they rescheduled the template for two weeks out, but held our same spot in the manufacture schedule... so (to make a long story short) we will have the countertop installed the same time that we would have even before the cabinet hickup. Whew
We are now on week 4 of wood floor installation. A few hours here and there equals a few rows here and there. We have the main room 75% complete with the pantry and a bedroom waiting in the wings. Cracks, chips, and humps in the floor all add character, right?

And yes, a woman can change her mind. A late night call (before next day siding installation) sounded something like this- Hi! Yes, this is Marie again. I think I am having second thoughts on the white siding under the porch. It will blend in too much with the window trim and door surround and I don't want to paint those things...just wanted to let you know before the morning. Thanks!

My ever-so-patient contractor called in the early a.m. and had me meet him at the house because he had went and picked up about 50 color samples for me to look at. I went with his green suggestion because I really had nothing jump out at me. It hasn't grown on me yet, but I am sure it will.

We just have decking to lay for the front porch and down-the-road we will add some nice white decorative railings. The electric wire to the front lamp post also got annihilated in the process, so we have to decide how badly we want to keep it...

Perhaps spring break next week will bring about some interior progress. Have a Happy Easter!

A Porch!

Just wanted to share how much the front facade has changed. (Click on January postings to the right to see initial posting). The old siding is starting to go back up. We don't have enough to piece together for the entire area so I think we will be putting white siding under the porch overhang. Another bonus to this improvement is the housewrap and weatherstrips around the windows. The plywood around the windows had rotted on the original house (which we discovered after taking the siding off).
He loves tools so much that it almost drives us crazy! He always wants to know what he can "bamm".
Our kitchen needed a few plugs moved around... which accounted for 29 holes in the kitchen alone!
Any color votes?

What a Weekend!

Perhaps it is the spring sunshine energizing everyone, or possibly the offer of birthday cake, but regardless, we were so thankful for all the helpers that stopped by to lend a hand this weekend. It was the first time that we could see real progress being made. We had a partial Kraft clan, Tomczyk family, Dad Kenny, Dad Brace, brother Jason, sister Meegan and kids and others that I am sure I have left off.... but thanks to all!

How many times during this project have I been reminded that nothing is as easy as it seems? Take this weekends kitchen install for example. Seems fairly simple, but add a big unlevel hump in the middle of the floor and a roughly knocked out wall that we don't know how to refinish...and there end up being a lot of stumbling blocks. A combination of about 6 minds were finally able to level the lower cabinets after 6 hours of frustration. While that was being attended to, there were an army of helpers battling the fish wall paper in the bathroom, and yet more who were trying to clear out the construction rubble, dust and such so that we can continue onto the next step in the bedrooms. Several large holes were drywall patched....only later to find out that the drywall was the wrong thickness and no amount of magical mudding would fix the problem. Not a big deal in the land of positive thinking... we now have 1/2 inch drywall on our Home Depot list.

The Collick family joined us again Sunday to tackle the floor project (check out our progress). My brother Jason was on hand to try and tackle the cuts when needed ... somehow the manufactored cut and our cuts wouldn't match up and only Jason seemed to have the magic in fixing this stumbling block. The whole wood floor idea began a few years ago when Uncle John suggested having the black walnut milled... and we are so glad that we did. The black walnut really makes the floor!

And finally, we have to wish Mataya a happy birthday- our spunky little girl who is now 5!

Gaining Speed?

I have many new pictures to post, but am without my camera. So, I wanted to share a few photos that the Collick family took when they came to help last weekend. The two Chad's began putting the wood floor down in the kitchen. The girls worked at taking off the fish wallpaper in the bathroom. There were also about 14 paint samples added to the walls to try and come up with a color combination.

The new front entry also has shingles on it and the old front door wall has been removed. Now we have electrical, drywall, insulation, cabinet installation and continued floor installation on our immediate list.

We are having a work day tomorrow (Saturday) at the house. All helpers will be treated to a spagetti dinner and birthday treats (Mataya turns 5) at 6pm.

Slow and Steady?

Chad has most of the main floor sealed back up after having plumbing and electrical moved around. He is trying to get the floor prepped in order to start installing our hardwood floor. We were able to pick up our flooring at Nelson's the past week. We had cut trees at both of our grandparent's homes 2 years ago and had it milled in preparation for a new house. We are excited to now have a place for it. The floor will be a mix of white and red oak, cherry, maple, and black walnut.

The crew also arrived on Wednesday of this week to begin closing in the front porch area. The area will become our new entry way and mudroom closet. Above the entryway will be a sleeping area for the girls to share until we are able to add on a master bedroom in a few years. The photo below shows Ariya standing in the new front doorway.

So, should we pass a hat and vote on when the move-in date will be?

For all of you wanting a new post...

The last few days have brought blog followers asking for more pictures.... so... let me just explain that if I have not updated pictures... there is probably bad news...or no news. In this case, there has just been no progress to share. The house looks the same as it did two weeks ago. Life with 4 kids (and in-laws on a warm vacation) has left but a few hours a week for us to work.

We have been brainstorming ways to get a bit more work done.... so by the end of the week, I hope to send you some fun new pictures. I get super excited when we have some progress to show. As soon as I get back to the computer I will be sure to pass on the new views.

I love the location so much, and can't wait to get moved in... whenever that may be.

I can't say that no progress was made. I spent 6 hours at Lowes picking out lighting on Thursday and 4 hours at JoAnne's on Saturday trying to pick out a piece of fabric to base our paint colors around. Both of those have been marked off the list... sort of... Lowes called and said the ceiling fans are backordered until the end of March, and the kitchen and dining area lighting are no longer available... the joys of renovation planning. Almost all the interior materials have now been selected so it is just a matter of getting things put back together... somewhat of a mystery right now.

Standing in the living area looking out at the trees, snow, and peacefulness... makes all the work and craziness completely worth it...a view that we hope you can enjoy in person soon.