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ontariomom

It's August. How is your build going? Part 3

ontariomom
9 years ago

Time to start part 3.

Jasburrito. I am so sorry about the trouble you must have gone through to have to tear down what was built and start again. We had to tear down our garage roof and both design and build a new garage roof as the one that was in the plans looked terrible when it was built. It is very frustrating to have to waste time and money like that. Hope your new crew is more on the ball.

Carol

Comments (61)

  • Renee0829
    9 years ago

    Musicgal - Our builder is great at building and GCing but as you said they forget details they are told. So I send a lot of emails and texts and sometimes still have to remind him of things. I just want our hole to be dug soon.

    We own our 7 acres of land in a small community outside of Kansas City, Missouri. We will be country living for sure. With septic and well water. Our builder has done some well water homes but not many at all so we are hopeful that goes without a hitch.

    Still now word on our appraisal but I look at it as no word can't alway be bad.

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    7 acres... wow, Renee. That kind of privacy is priceless. Hope your appraisal sails through with no problems.

    Wanted to show y'all some pictures of the much waited-for Geraldo's work. Our GC told us to direct him straight to himself for payment. Ah... yes, he did say he was going to press home a point at payment time, so we should hear an interesting story in a few days. Anyway, he did lovely iron work and the inspector passed us for many of our safety points as a result of the railings and gate. On some devices, these pics end up sideways, so my apologies if that happens.

    Here is the grotto door.

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    Pool terrace railing-

  • autumn.4
    9 years ago

    jasburrito-wow, that just gave me that warm feeling - the one that starts at your toes and spreads upwards when you realize something gone wrong. :( Everyone typically has a 'thing' you know - the one thing that gets messed up. Hopefully this is yours and it's out of the way - moving onward to better things. Thankfully it was caught though - can you imagine if they'd went much further?

    michelle-our previous home was much warmer too. This one is definitely different with painted trim and cabinets but I think our paint in some areas does mix warm and cool. Our main color throughout sometimes reads more gray (kitchen where counter is black) and then over by the fireplace it reads more of a tan and pulls from the fireplace stone. They are open to each other and just on opposite walls. I actually really love that it does that. It's cohesive it just leans a little bit more this way or that depending on it's surroundings. Upstairs we used natural hickory cabinets for the boys bath and a bold yet warm paint color. They chose their own bedroom paint one very cool and one very warm. My office area paint is neutral but I'd say more cool - it still goes and it's open to the kitchen. Are you going to have anyone help you with that or is colors and decorating something that you have a knack for? I needed help and lots of it. :P Sept 5 is NEXT WEEK. Wow so exciting!

    musicgal-I bet that piano really resonates in that space. Wonderful! I like to listen to the piano but I've never played anything more than chopsticks. Geraldo does do nice work. Everything looks great.

    renee-we are on a well out here in the boonies. It's gonna be alright. And I was born and raised a city girl, lol. I would think a hook up is a hook up either to city plumbing or well plumbing (but that might be over-simplifying thinking coming through). Dh said I had a lot of that through the build.

    We have come a long way with getting some 'home' in the house. I have snapped only one pic with the real camera. I need to get a few more and then I'll post a few. The boys have found so many critters outside and they love it. Toads, frogs (finally caught a tree frog), little lizard salamander gecko guys - didn't know we had those up here, walking stick, dragon flies. You name it - they have seen a couple snakes but I am not into viewing those kind of critters.

  • amberm145_gw
    9 years ago

    I thought I posted this morning, but apparently I didn't hit submit hard enough.

    Squee! DH and I showed up at the lot today, hoping to see cribbers arriving. They arrived yesterday and the forms are almost complete, concrete this afternoon.

  • ourdreamhome7333
    9 years ago

    We are new posting around here, but have been stalking GW for a while :) lots of good info here.

    We are building in south florida. All of our windows are finally in. Front door and garage door have been ordered.

    The plumbing work is completed and we will get it inspected tomorrow (fingers crossed).
    The electrical should be done in the next couple of days, the ac should get started next week.

    We failed truss inspection, had to resubmit plans and finally got them approved :) reinspection next week!! can't wait.

    Roof will hopefully go up soon after.

  • Michelle
    9 years ago

    Thanks for the feedback everyone! Autumn....can you share your magical main level paint color? That sounds perfect! And what color carpet did you go with? As far as decorating....I did our current house myself and often receive compliments....but as I said, it's all warm tones....which I feel is easier than cools. I may need to seek help....how did you connect with your designer?

    Music, I love your piano nook! Stunning!

    Amber....yay!!!

    Welcome ourdreamhome....looks great!

  • Homeblessings
    9 years ago

    musicgal-where did you get your gray sectional and the rug you have under it. I'd appreciate any info on where to purchase them, brand name, color, etc.

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    Homeblessings- The sectional is Jonathan Louis. The rug was in stock at Home Depot- we just needed somthing for the first stage of living in the house so there would be something soft on the floor for the babies. I knew when we saw it, it would look nice, but I did not expect to like it as much as I do:-)
    It is not a solid gray as it shows in the pics, but a salt and pepper combination up close. I have seen the same rug at Homegoods too.

    Amberm- you guys are moving like a rocket ship! What progress they are making-

    Jet- your daughter is beatiful. Congratulations Dad:-)

    ourdreamhome- South Florida- beautiful areas down there. We enjoyed the Keys one year, diving and playing with dolphins.

  • carsonheim
    9 years ago

    howdy folks! Been drowning over here....

    Things are moving along a little better now. Plumbing has been installed, electric is in process, framers are still laboring away, slowly (they have been my biggest nightmare) and I just signed the contract for someone to do the drywall, painting, flooring and tile installation work.
    ....

    This post was edited by carsonheim on Thu, Aug 28, 14 at 12:53

  • autumn.4
    9 years ago

    Michelle-more than happy to but I googled it and it doesn't look like it does on line compared to my house - to me anyhow. It's BM 1535 Seattle Mist. The first color casted dusty purple (BM 1550) so we changed after I had painted a whole coat. Anyhow - we do live in the woods and I'm sure that does effect color somewhat as well. I can try to take a kitchen pic and then a fireplace pic and see if that helps. It's so hard with lighting. If you are ever in our area (Hollandish) you can always stop by and check it out if that would help.

    edit: I have revere pewter in our home also and it is more gray than that, if that helps at all.

    carson-sounds like things are finally taking hold and that ball is on the move!

    This post was edited by Autumn.4 on Thu, Aug 28, 14 at 13:16

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    carson- was a little worried about you. Good to see you here.

    Today, at the hacienda, the concrete guys are moving excess building materials and building a concrete bunker wall around our AC units. It was recommended because of previous torrential water flows on the slope in that area. The silt fence is coming down and we are getting the side yard cleaned up.

  • HappyValleyHome
    9 years ago

    Hi All,

    We have passed all of our mechanical inspections and have insulation going in Tuesday and drywall arriving on Wednesday!! Next week I plan to drive to Maryland to pick out my stone slabs, and finalize my tile and cabinetry order....everything is starting to come together:-).

    Jasburrito...hopefully second time goes much more smoothly...lucky that you caught the problems early on before a lot more had been done.

    Michelle...we went with Anderson 400 windows fwiw...current house had Pella wood windows which have served us well for the last 14yrs. Our current home has a mostly warmer tones with a few cooler tones mixed in. The new home will have mostly cool tones with a lot of white cabinetry that i plan to mix with some walnut cabinetry and rich dark walnut floor which I think will help balance it out. If you like cool tones with a hint of greenish blue I would definately check out BM Gray Cashmere or SW Sea salt. They are two cool tones that don't feel as cold because they have more depth. I always think adding in a warm accent color with flowers, pillows etc looks really good with cool tones, too...especially yellow or coral. One of my first choices in starting a room or color theme is to choose a nice area rug....they usually have a number of different colors throughout them and then I pull in the paint and furnishings from them. Good luck starting!

    Oicu...can't wait to see your lighting! Those darn bulbs are always a pain...i had my lighting quote right at our allowance and then she threw in the bulbs at the end and man do they add up! Our lighting designer tells me that my boxes are really starting to pile up. Can't wait to see them in place.

    Jenniek...:-( to that window company...hopefully you are able to move forward without them.

    Renee...good luck getting started...it seems like it is quite the journey for all of us on here.

    Music gal...it is really starting to look like a home! It is so much fun to see it all come together. Our babygrand won't have nearly as nice of a setting as yours but then it rarely gets played these days...as both my girls quit:-(

    Autumn...can't wait to see your home pics as the inside comes together...I'm sure your personality will shine through;-)

    Amberm...you are moving right along!

    Ourdreamhome...welcome!

    Carson...good to hear things are still moving along for you...sounds like you are not that far behind us...we need pics!

    Went over to the build site this evening and we have aquired a feathered friend up in our rafters...has this happened to anyone else?? Hope builder has some good ideas on what to do about tomorrow!!

  • amberm145_gw
    9 years ago

    We are moving pretty fast, it seems. I was told they'd be pulling off the forms tomorrow, so I scheduled the guy to cut the hole for the sewer pipe on Tuesday.

    I went by the site today to clean up some of the garbage that's starting to build up (no room for bins yet). And this is what I've got. Basement walls, and windows! This is looking at the back of the house from the yard. The deck will cover the space along the back, so we didn't bother to put windows in there. And along the front, we'll have a porch. So the windows are just on the sides.

    I found out our full permit is delayed. Surprise, surprise. With actual build stuff to chase, I left the architect to worry about the permit. He's the main contact on that anyway. He hadn't heard anything, so I called the city. Apparently it's been in "on hold, further information needed" since Aug 14. But they didn't bother to email the architect until I phoned them about it. Bah. We're about 2 weeks from needing the full permit. So hopefully it comes in before then.

  • jdez
    9 years ago

    Bathroom counters were supposed to go in today. Never heard from anybody, so I called them. I was told that the material didn't even come in yet. They will call me next week to reschedule. So, bathroom tile on hold for even longer, maybe up to two weeks they said. I am not shocked. And, DH has been growing a really gnarly goatee and will not cut it until we move. It's like moss hanging from a tree!! Will somebody please take some shears and clean him up!?! I will gladly tell you where to find him.

  • autumn.4
    9 years ago

    amber-huge gains for you! woohoo woohoo!

    jdez-so what if you go on a shaving strike too, he might have second thoughts about his own. LOL! Otherwise you two would make a really burly pair, hehehehe.

  • amberm145_gw
    9 years ago

    Oh JDez, you have my sympathies. If DH decided to grow facial hair on top of the stress of building, it might cause me to snap. The house would no longer be necessary because he'd be in the hospital and I'd be in jail. That man clearly likes to live on the edge. :P

  • jdez
    9 years ago

    Autumn - there's the whole "what if I get in an accident" thing that keeps me clean shaven...lol

    Amberm - I thought a lot of fellas in those cold regions had Paul Bunyan type beards. Guess not at your house...lol.

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    Amberm- you have a whole subterranean house down in there already! What are you feeding your crews?!? Seriously, I think the visual momentum of you guys getting started after such a long time will help push things along as far as your permitting process. Surely, no beaurocrat in their right mind would delay things until cold weather set in... anyway, I hope not.

    Jdez- Looks like some ZZTop days in the ole beard department for y'all. We just gave the final check to the tile guy- hasta la vista, baby! His lack of supervision of his crews cost us an extra 2K in redos. Sounds like a lot, but we have no carpet in the house at all- and his part of the job was very important to get right. I really, really envy people who can live near or on their property while building. Whatever is left to do now, has our full attention and supervision.

    Autumn- take some pics! We are in that stage you were in a few weeks ago... I am washing every soft item in the house, and trying to find places for everything. Where, oh where did we get all this stuff?!

    High on the "to do" list today, is to get SFs big TV ordered. We will have a humongous television before the garage is cleared out. Ah well:)

    Front gate-

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    From the street- we are trying to keep the grass alive:)

  • amberm145_gw
    9 years ago

    Musicgal, judging by the garbage I cleaned up at the site yesterday, my crews eat a lot of Dairy Queen burgers and 7-11 coffee. :P

    And the bureaucrats don't care about the weather.

    Tell SF the TV came already, and it's somewhere in the garage. He has to clean it out to find it.

    I'm feeling like everyone's gone for the long weekend already. I wanted to get my windows ordered this week, still waiting on the final quote. Also waiting on the parts list for my joists and trusses, those were due today, and silence there. Trying to get quotes on doors from some new companies, considering changing out the patio doors. No answer. Hmm.

    Oh well, I'll just go make cookies for a girls night tonight.

  • autumn.4
    9 years ago

    amber-girls night sounds fun!

    okay music-here are some pics. We have been here 3 months now and it is lived in for sure, my time for pristine pics has long past. I am not an excellent picture taker - I point and shoot and the colors didn't come through great. Some seem a little washed out or pasty but it's a gray off and on rainy day. We don't have pics in frames and some things still have stickers on them or aren't plugged in but here goes!

    From the garage entrance looking through the kitchen to the dining room. I still need a picture or something above the console and something on the shelf to block the view of the grommets:

    Dining Room:

    In the dining room looking toward the living room - with 2 kids that *think* they are leaning back out of the picture - hahaha (open door in the background is the laundry room):

    Dining looking toward entry and my little office spot:

    Living room-rug should be in next week!:

    Back hall toward garage entry and it appears the boys left the garage door open:

    Foyer, still need to hang the pics and get pillows for the bench or something (edit I know it's a goofy foyer pic but I haven't stained the door yet and I like my rug!):

    Kitchen - still missing some crown and a backsplash:

    So there is a mini tour of autumn's 98.375% completed house! :D

    Have a safe weekend everyone.

    This post was edited by Autumn.4 on Fri, Aug 29, 14 at 21:04

  • cz_scrap
    9 years ago

    LOve hearing and seeing everyone's progress(and frustrations :(). Construction loan has been approved :). House is on the market-so much easier without little ones this time. County plan checker has promised our architect that he will get to our plans on Monday-even though it's Labor Day(not too optimistic as he promised he would have done it by last Tuesday). Once we get that permit we can break ground. Feel like we are waiting for so many things, but I know this is just the start and the next year will probably be spent waiting.

  • ontariomom
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Wow Autumn your house looks gorgeous and well styled. Your fireplace with built ins turned out great. The kitchen is stunning. Thanks for sharing.

    Carol

  • jdez
    9 years ago

    Autumn - it is perfect. Except that it's so clean that I am ashamed of myself. I love the colorful pillows on the couch. And the pillow users trying to hide made me laugh. Like the birds by the entry too. Nice house. Really nice home. Where is the dog? Not still skunkish I hope.

    Cz - Congrats. Hope you get that permit soon.

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    Autumn- it looks like a model home! Very talented, you are:-)

  • robin0919
    9 years ago

    JB.....it's a shame all that brand new lumber is going to the landfill. Did anyone think about 'Habitat"?. The framers that did such a shoddy job should have been required to disassemble the lumber and Habitat would probably offered free help to get that free lumber.

  • Michelle
    9 years ago

    Autumn, I agree, your home looks beautiful!! I'd love more pics! I may have already asked...but what is the stone around your fireplace?

  • jdez
    9 years ago

    Opinions plz... Does this cabinet door look ok?

    {{gwi:1491380}}

  • amberm145_gw
    9 years ago

    Autumn, I love the console table, and how you've treated the dining room window.

    cz_scrap, you're in what was so far the worst part of the build for me. The waiting on the architect to apply for the permits. Until that happens, there's no idea of when things will get moving, and it's so frustrating.

    robin & JB, our city takes raw, untreated wood separately from the rest of construction waste. If it's split out, it gets recycled. If you don't sort it out, they charge you 40% more for the disposal fees. It's not enough of a price difference to justify hiring 2 bins, though, which is disappointing. I assume most crews just pay the premium to send it all to the landfill. I separated out our untreated scraps from our first garbage pile, and was going to bring it home to put in the recycling bin (paid for on our utilities bill) but there was too much of it. So DH has taken a bunch of it camping this weekend and will burn it.

    JDez, That knot concerns me. If you've chosen a somewhat rustic wood, I'd probably live with it. But the location is a problem. Are you supposed to put a hinge or pull in that spot? Because it looks like it wouldn't attach very well.

    As for me, ugh, not good news. Yesterday afternoon, the architect finally told us what the city is waiting on. We've got a cantilever on the front corner of the house, where the second floor comes out a few feet and doesn't have anything below it. It was required by the city's setback rules (we can have a cantilever going out into the setback, or we have to move the whole house back), and goes with the modern look of the house. Apparently the joist/truss company decided we're going to put a post in there to support the second floor. The architect missed that, and didn't put it in any of his plans. The city's development dept wouldn't have allowed it anyway, since the post would be in the setback area. But now the city's planning dept has noticed we have no support for the second floor. So we have to go back to the joist design and figure out how to support the cantilever.

  • jdez
    9 years ago

    Thanks Amber. I didn't even realize the knot might be in a bad spot. Thanks for pointing it out.

  • lizzieplace
    9 years ago

    Hello everyone! Welcome to the new people on here. Super, super busy last week (and the weeks to come). Here's a snapshot of what has been going on with our house the past week.

    Cabinets - should start next week, but they've got 80% of them installed already

    Stone - exterior completed, no sign yet of when interior work will start

    Siding - about 70% completed

    Electrical trim - outlets, switches, smoke detectors, and some recessed lights are already in

    Closing on both houses in early October!

  • jdez
    9 years ago

    Northpole - you are making great progress. Your cabinets look nice.

  • carsonheim
    9 years ago

    JDez -- I actually quite like that knot! character.

    Northpole -- you are cookin' with GAS ! Moving right along. It's looking really good :)

    Amber - sorry to hear about the setback with the architecture. I'm sure it'll all get worked out.

    Autumn -- your photos have me drooling. You place is so very nicely done. I love your living room, and the way you did your curtains on the ends of the windows.

    musicgal -- when is the GW open house, LOL! Another excellently-pulled-together home. This is the first I noticed of the stone/brick detail on the right -- love it!

    Okay, so we keep moving along at a snail's pace over here in carsonheimville. Hardly any photos to share, as the only thing that's really changed is wiring, HVAC and plumbing runs. And they aren't oh-so-PURTY that they need to be posted.

    I have made a decision on the siding color -- here are the two choices. I'm keeping my decision a secret for now. Which do y'all like best?

    further away:

    And as a reminder, here is the brick:

    Oh, I did find this FABULOUS little vanity chair that I snapped up from Home Goods. I actually decided to get the white one behind it....same chair with a natural white-ish linen. That is my bathroom wallpaper sitting on the chair

  • kg4951
    9 years ago

    Northpole, what color is your siding? It's a lovely color. We are looking at something similar as an accent color.

  • autumn.4
    9 years ago

    Thanks for the nice comments everyone. We were hoping for an inviting and casual feel but still put together a bit. Definitely not too formal with our lifestyle. I can really only claim the clock as my own purchase and one of the lanterns. Yes I am that challenged. ;) Our property is surrounded by woods in the back so we didn't feel we needed to cover the windows. The panels help with making it more cozy and soft though and I love how they frame the windows.

    Michelle-what would you like to see? It's an open plans so that's pretty much the bulk of it. ;) I can snap a few more if you are looking for something in particular. The laundry room is challenging to get a pic of and the locker area...well school starts on Tuesday. ;) That stone is from Lowes. It's Desert Quartz Ledgestone. Pretty easy install and cutting - bonus!

    j-what are you questioning? Tone or depth? Are you thinking they are too light? They look evenly stained but maybe a little washed out but that could be the camera...?

    OntarioMom Carol-how are things coming? We still haven't had the electrician back to place outlets in the floor...we have to hang onto our current furniture for a while and I'm not sure what we will be replacing it with as far as chairs and placement. I think this will be a never ending process.

  • Michelle
    9 years ago

    Autumn....master bath/bed and kids rooms? :). Puhlease? :)

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    Carson- I am sipping on a glass of Pinot Grigio right NOW! And y'all can come over anytime- especially you since you are about 40 minutes away from here.
    Just want to tell you all- we are still fighting some issues, even though we are moved in. No hot water today:-) Plumber will come tomorrow morning. We moved all our remaining stuff out of the rental yesterday with the help of my daughter and family- it was like a third moving day.
    I think we have a mildew/mold issue in the casita. Oh joy:/ At least it's not in the main house.
    Still have to hire a floor guy to put the wood in upstairs... so, we are still right in there with you all. I estimate it will take about 6 months until everything feels "done".
    It is really amazing how the contractors attitudes change when they see your furniture and your books in the house. No more tromping in the tubs with muddy boots:)
    Carson- loving your brick.

  • robin0919
    9 years ago

    JB.....just curious....how did they find out they were using the wrong nails? This was caught long before the inspector would come out.

  • Renee0829
    9 years ago

    Well good news on our front, bank appraisal was perfect! Land was enough for down payment :)

    We close on Thursday, then our builder will start excavating while he's waiting for permits to do foundation! Said in his county it usually takes 7-10 days but we're in a different county so I'll hold my breath and pray that it doesn't take too long!

    Finalized lighting fixtures, door knobs etc and took new plans to granite place to re-bid our countertops since we had to redo plans. We also finalized plumbing fixtures and appliances. Don't want builder to ask me for selections in a hurry!

    Everyone's builds are coming along so quickly!

    Amberm sorry bout your issues :( I'll say prayers it gets figured out quickly!

  • autumn.4
    9 years ago

    music-no hot water. Ugh. Not the shower - no one must mess with the shower. Have you used the pool yet??? And can you get to the water from your property or do you have to go to a designated 'beach' spot?

    renee-that is excellent news! I hope the rest goes smoothly for you.

    michelle-ohhhh you want pics of the naked rooms that have had nothing done to them? Now I get it. ;) I am still on the quest for a new comforter. Once I find that I will be putting panels up on the large window like we did in the dining/living room. Unfortunately we will be keeping the oak furniture. It's in great shape, bought it new when we got married but of course we wish it wasn't so 'oak'. It will come back in style if we wait long enough though I am sure, haha.

    Master bath - hard to photograph but here it is (it's actually revere pewter):

    And the pantry is pretty decent so here goes:

    The boys rooms - they need some work or at least their beds made and then I'll snap a couple pics. Right now you'd see only legos and wonder if they had beds in there or not. ;)

  • hmthelords
    9 years ago

    Hi! I am new to the boards, although I have been reading posts for awhile. We are in the midst of building of our home, my husband is GC'ing and we are showing our current home. STRESSFUL! I am sure you all understand completely. All the details...but our home is coming along beautifully, with some bumps along the way. We had to fire the first mason and have had small issues with one other contractor. Now I am trying to figure out how to tile the bathrooms, so they look nice, but are not a cleaning nightmare. We are going for a transitional/spa type feel for the home and love natural stone, but I am a little worried about the upkeep, especially in the bathroom. Great to be where others are in the midst of the same process. What a great site!

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    Autumn- shower, bath, dishwasher and washing machine. No hot water for 2 days. Our much maligned plumber came over and it turns out the situation was not his fault (for once)-
    Seems like the guy next door ordered a property survey and Mr. Surveyorguy drove a piece of rebar into the gas line. Um... can you say ka boom?
    Gas flow to our house was "disrupted". The plumber found that out at 8 this morning. Good news is that the gas company descended upon us like a horde of locusts... seems they take this pesky pipe puncturing stuff pretty seriously.

    We use the pool almost daily-although I haven't for the past two days since I had cool showers in the house anyway. Generally, a hot soak after a swim is what is called for.

    To answer your question, the lake bulkhead is part of our property- but that lake is not a swimming lake due to the presence of a few friendly gators. Galveston is our closest beach, but Corpus Christi is the nearest "nice" sand- there is a place called Mustang Island we like when we feel beachy.

    Today is our last official day when we could occupy the rental... it is almost September. That was a long 2 years. Oicu, hope all is well for you.

  • thisishishouse
    9 years ago

    Autumn: Nice sinks. Serif? Ours too. You have excellent taste. ;)

    Musicgal: Yikes! You got lucky with that punctured gas line.

    northpolehome: I really like your siding with the different reveal sizes. Nice custom detail.

    We just got back online after going dark for a few days. Had to move out of our rental house, as it's being sold. New house was supposed to be ready this week, but is a week behind schedule. Final inspection for C.O. is this week, followed by one last clear coat on the floors, and a few days to dry & air out. So maybe 7-10 days, if the inspection goes well.

    So we're moved in. And by moved in, I mean to a pile in the corner of the basement and garage: ;)


    The movers were great. Our third time using them in 1 year. (old house -> storage, storage -> rental, rental -> new house) Of course there were a "few" things we wanted to move ourselves. Art work, antique mirrors, TV, computer equipment. Realized after that I can't safely transport more than one of those items at a time, so that mean 4 trips back & forth between homes, 40 miles apart.

    Checked the family into a hotel one town over. The gods of moving were obviously p!ssed off at us. After getting settled for an hour or two, realized that the first room had mechanical problem with the AC. Moved the circus to another room, only to discover late at night that the room was in a wifi "dead zone" and couldn't get signal from the "free" hotel wifi. (Kids have online homework, I have to connect to job) Moved the circus again this morning to another room. Tomorrow I'm expecting the plague of locusts and frogs, floating down the river of blood. Bring it. I am a rock.

    With all the moving around this year, I'm certain my kids will grow up to be vagabonds or gypsies or something. Told the 8yo DD Thursday that we were going to a hotel for 10 days. I then left to go tell the boys. She then proceeded to put out her outfits, roll them and pack them in her luggage, put her toiletries in a ziploc (which she got herself. Thanks TSA) and top off her luggage with her stuffed doggie and slippers. Not sure if I've given her valuable life lessons, or fuel for the therapists.

    They can be so supportive sometimes.

    Here is a link that might be useful: We blogged this whole mess...

  • jdez
    9 years ago

    Carson - love your brick.

    Music - your lot looks beautiful and Geraldo did a great job. Very nice.

    Oicu - I hope the circus doesn't have to move again until it's to your new house.

    Hmthelords - welcome to the party.

    Autumn - everything looks awesome! I understand about the boys rooms. I will likely never be able to get a good pic of my little heathern's room once we actually move there. I love your pantry. It is huge!

  • jackson2348
    9 years ago

    Ok, WHY do I feel inadequately educated to buy light bulbs now?!?! I think you need a doctorate.

    I told my builder we wanted LEDs on the porches because they are about 14' up, and I didn't want to have to change them. He got 5000K. It was lit up like the walmart parking lot, I swear. We got them changed to 2700K, and they look great. But it was a LOT of effort to figure out.

  • autumn.4
    9 years ago

    oicu-haha-yes indeed, serif they are. Your 'bring it, I am a rock' comment made me chuckle. You are so well versed you are a pro and should start a business helping 'home builders in transition'...and your DD could be your personal assistant. ;) I forgot to comment before on that light you posted - so pretty. That is an early school day. Thankfully 10 days pass in a flash, but I am sure not nearly as quickly as you would like.

    j-thanks, yes dh better never hear the words - but I don't have enough storage come out of this mouth. Yes I do regret not taking a pic of their rooms immediately. Oldest ds already has things taped on the walls. We go through lots of tape around here! ;)

    michelle-ohhh I forgot to say regarding warm/cool that one of my favorite things about the rug that dh didn't like and we returned (but I digress) was that it had both warm and cool in it and tied it all together. So much flexibility. I feel that way about the panels in the dining room and a couple of our pictures have warms and cools also.

    j-making any headway this weekend? Too humid here again to stain and I would rather not do it when dh is working anyhow in case I have a stain emergency which would likely include a panic attack. I am so ready to have that door stained though.

    music-that sounds scary. I guess being down south a cooler shower might work out but otherwise I don't like the words cold and shower in the same sentence. That is what the north country will give ya.

    hm-welcome! It looks like it's coming along and yes to gcing being stressful but I think it all no matter what - to a certain degree.

    It's totally bed time and I keep hearing gun shots. What the what - it's not hunting season yet. I finally got the kids in bed before 10 (no time like the last minute to start backing up the bedtime before school) and they can't fall asleep and the dog is freaking out...and I'm ready for bed myself!

  • Michelle
    9 years ago

    Autumn....thank you! Love the pics! Great decor details! Love those bath sinks!

  • robin0919
    9 years ago

    oic....are sprinkler systems required in your area? The pic with the 3 kids in front of the fireplace cracked me up....:)

  • thisishishouse
    9 years ago

    robin: Yes, the sprinklers are a requirement in our new town. It's been code for about 5 years now. Small town, no full-time fire dept, no hydrants on every corner. Certainly would've loved to spend those dollars elsewhere. Just hoping they aren't as temperamental as smoke detectors. Last thing I need is to burn the fish and flood the house.