Cabinets!

We now have cabinets!! Earlier this week we headed up to the house because we needed to bring something up for the electrician and when we walked in I noticed a cabinet in the half bathroom. We saw the truck outside but didn't realize it was the cabinet crew- we thought it was the gentleman doing the trim. Boy were we wrong! We looked in every room and were simply amazed at the craftsmanship of all the cabinets! Countertops and crown molding for the tops of the cabinets will be finished this coming week, but what we've already seen is amazing! The trim and doors have been delivered to site and should be going up this coming week, too! The stone work around the fireplace will be done this week and the painters will return to do a final coat once that is all done. The appliances will arrive next weekend (and one on 12/24) and then the carpet gets installed roughly a week before we move in- it won't be long now! Jeremy went up to get some things and got some pictures yesterday, so here they are:

Here are the built-ins in the study. This should be a great starting point for us to put all of our books out... (I HOPE!!)

This view is looking into the kitchen from the edge of the living/dining room. As you can tell, the countertops are not there, but they will be this coming Friday! I LOVE the woodwork!

Jeremy took this picture to show that the lower cabinets have slide-outs- that sure will make it easier when it comes to getting pots and pans out for cooking dinner!

This view is where the microwave and stove will go. The microwave hood will be delivered this weekend, and the refrigerator will, too. We just have to find the time to get the stove up there since it is currently in our shed... hopefully we can get that up there this weekend, too!

This view of the kitchen is from the doorway into the study. You can see where the sink will go and where the dishwasher will be. The dishwasher should be delivered right before Christmas, so we'll have to get that hooked up- but no biggie there. I'm just looking forward to seeing the kitchen completed!

Here is the other view of the kitchen from the doorway to the study. This is simply cabinets and a counter- I know I'll use the space!!

This is the master bathroom. There will be a sink on each side- it's just going to be double the cleaning duty here...

A view of the front covering the tub in the master bathroom. I can't wait to see this part finished, either!

These are the finished cabinets in the laundry room. This is double the space I currently have... I just wonder if the extra space will stay empty or if we'll actually find something to put up there?

Jeremy got this great picture of the trim stacked up in Megan's bedroom. And this is only about HALF of the trim for the house! The other half is in the living room, but this picture came out looking much "cooler" in my opinion.

Here are the doors for the house. They are currently stacked up vertically against a wall in Michael's bedroom. There are other doors against other walls in the house, but this was a pretty cool picture, too.


Last, but not least, I had to include this picture. I have wanted to get a picture of the back of the house for some time now, but it's been WAY too muddy out there. It happened to be snowing and the yard was pretty frozen, so Jeremy turned on all the lights (not that it's easy to tell) and went out back and got this picture. It just makes the house look so big! Honestly, it's not all that big- it's just the basement that makes it look so huge. The only thing missing from this picture are the lights that go outside the basement doors. Those still need to be installed, but they will be soon. There are still a few finishing touches that need to be done with outlets and such, so those will be done within the next couple of weeks.

I'm not sure when I'll be heading back up to the homesite, but I'm anxious to see what progress is made over the course of this week. Hopefully I can get out there this weekend, but we'll see. Just keep checking back for more updates!

Painted Walls

Last week proved to be a busy one at the homesite. Jeremy did some work and met the two men who did the priming and painting in the main rooms of the house. He said by the time he left the day he was there they looked like ghosts because there was so much primer covering them! But he also said that they told him they were staying until midnight if need be so they could finish the painting! Our builder allows three colors in the home specs, so I did my very best to choose three colors that I thought would be able to go in bathrooms, halls, closets, and then the main areas like the living room and the kitchen-AND coordinate with the carpet, tile, and entryway's hardwood. As it turned out, all three colors I chose were from the same color family, so they blend well together and transition beautifully into the dining area and kitchen from the living room- and they look great with the carpet and tile we chose! If I wanted the builder to go ahead and paint the bedrooms I could have, but we would have had to pay an additional $150 per color over the three in our allowance! Since I wasn't sure what colors I wanted in the bedrooms (at the time), I asked if they could just prime the rooms and I would paint them when the time came. That was not a problem, so I just had to find the right colors for the master bedroom, the guest room, and the kids' bedrooms. Michael chose a VERY light shade of blue called "First Frost"- he actually calls it "Frozen Blue-" isn't that cute?!? Megan actually has pink curtains in her room that will also be hung in her new room, and she kept telling me "purpo" and "pi-" (purple and pink) when I would ask her what color she wanted her room to be. I ended up helping her out and settling on a light shade of purple called "Little Lilac." The next decision was much harder! I had to choose colors for the master bedroom and the guest bedroom- and I knew I wanted to paint one wall one color and the other three a different color, but I didn't know which ones... I ended up settling on shades of blue, and I went with the same color scheme in both the master and guest bedrooms. Here's the kicker... Jeremy had knee surgery last week AND we got a phone call from the builder saying that the floor crew would be in on Monday (11/24) to start laying the tile in the areas with tile. Wow- that meant that I HAD to get four rooms painted over three days- BY MYSELF. Well, luckily my sister had a day off work and offered to help me paint, so we were able to get Megan's room painted and Michael's room started on Friday. Saturday I worked by myself and I finished Michael's room and got the darker shade of blue painted on the one wall in the master and the one wall in the guest bedrooms. Sunday I had to miss church so I could finish the painting, and my sister came and helped me again. We finished painting the guest bedroom and were able to finish one coat of paint in the master bedroom, but it needed a second coat and we ran out of light for the day. We couldn't turn on any lights because none have been put in yet, so we literally were at the mercy of the daylight each day we painted. Now by this time I have put in three days of painting and I STILL have one more coat to do- PLUS touch ups... So, Monday morning I head back up in hopes of arriving before the flooring crew so I can finish the last coat and do my touch-ups. Turns out that I was the only one there! I finished the job and left- utterly exhausted and GLAD that it was done- but not before taking a few pictures. I'm not sure the colors really show up properly, but you'll get the basic idea. It was cloudy and rainy outside so the only light I had to really show the colors on the walls was the flash in the camera. Here are the pictures:

This is the master bedroom, looking from the doorway toward the corner to the right of the large window. I like the colors better in person than in pictures!


This picture is from the entryway of the kitchen facing the dining room and living room. Again it's hard to see the colors, but the living room is "Latte" and the dining room is "Kilim Beige."

Here is another view of the living room. It's a better representation of the color in there, but I still like it better in person!!

Here's Megan's room. It's hard to tell, but her room is a light shade of purple. It'll go well with her pink curtains and bedding that she has already!

This is a view of the guest room. I painted this the same shades as the master bedroom, with one wall being the darker blue and the remaining walls being the lighter shade. As my sister described it, it's "Smurf Blue" and "Baby Blue." Thanks, Michelle...

Here's a picture of Michael's room. It looks white in this picture... but it's really a VERY light shade of blue. I guess you just have to see it in person!

This picture was taken in the study right in front of the window. Here you get a decent view of the kitchen and dining room (on the right) and the living room- but you can't really see the colors- and the color in this room looks lighter in the picture than it really is!

Well, that's it for paint. The next addition should be flooring and possibly the stone work around the fireplace! After that will be cabinets and trim. Not sure when the doors will be put in, but they're coming soon! Until next time... Happy Thanksgiving- and don't forget to check back in a week or so!!

Textured Ceilings, Railings, and Front Porch Posts

This past Saturday we went up to the house and we brought Michael's friend Matthew with us. Michael wanted to show him where his room is- and all the other rooms in the house, too. I hadn't been there in nearly a week myself, so I wanted to see the progress as well. When we arrived we were surprised to see two cars parked out front- the "sheetrock guys" were there working! It was extremely muddy on Saturday since it was raining, so there was no venturing outside to get a picture of the back of the house like I wanted to now that the siding is all finished. That's okay- I'll get that picture once the final grade has been completed around the house and it'll really look finished! I was surprised to see the gutters all installed, the front porch pillars put in, the back patio railings installed, and the sheetrock guys working on texturing the ceilings in the living room (I STILL don't understand why it's called a great room by builders...). The kids were really interested in watching the texturing process- it was cute to watch them watching the guys at work! Here are some of the pictures I got on Saturday while we were there:

Here are the pillars to the front porch. It won't seem like such a long drop once the final grade has been done and the steps going up the porch are put into place!

I took this picture looking out the master bathroom window. All that dirt pushed around is from where the geothermal loops were put into the ground. YAY for geothermal heating and cooling!

Here's a picture of Megan and Matthew watching the men work on texturing the ceiling in the living room. We asked the kids to make sure they stayed well out of the way- and they did a great job listening to us!

Here is our back patio- DONE. I wouldn't let the kids go out there before the railings were put up- now it's done! Jeremy is at the other end of the patio (in front of one of the master bedroom windows) getting video of the house.

This is a picture of the geothermal unit in the basement. It's not completely hooked up yet, but it will be once the drywall dust and painting are complete- don't want to risk getting any dust or particles into the system!

Here's a view from outside the basement door. You would be looking to your right as you walk out the door for this view.

Here's another view from outside the basement door. This one, obviously, is looking to the left.


I just HAD to take this picture. It's the garage ceiling. It's not easy to see, but it's TEXTURED like inside the house!! In all my life I have never seen a textured ceiling in a garage, but I guess it's par for the course with our builder! I am seriously impressed with their work and who they get to do certain jobs on site! And here is the final picture for this trip... I know- it's only a downspout and gutter shot from the side of the garage, but it was the first time I got to see the gutters and downspouts on the house! I didn't even realize they had been put up when we arrived! It wasn't until we were out on the back patio that I realized the gutters were there!

Well, that's about it for this update. The builder had the painting crew come out yesterday and start priming the walls for paint. Jeremy was there, too, working on wiring and putting up the speaker grills so they can be painted the same shade(s) as the walls/ceilings. He told me that when he left they were nearly finished priming and they told him that they were going to start painting and work until midnight! At the rate they were going they might have finished the painting that they had to do!! I'll be heading out this weekend so I can paint the bedrooms- I wanted to do that, so now my part of the "sweat equity" gets to kick in! The floors will start going in soon, too- Friday is what I think I recall Jeremy saying to me. Jeremy also said that he was able to talk to the plumbers again and the water is just about ready to be connected, too! Wow- it seems like all of a sudden things are really picking up! We'll be moving before we know it at this rate! So, be sure to check back- we'll have more updates later this week!

WALLS!!! We have walls!

Yes, I'm excited... it's been a whole week and we now have WALLS inside the house! It's really looking more and more like a house that will be ready to live in soon! When we arrived this afternoon we saw two cars in front of the house and we were pleasantly surprised to see two workers there taping along the drywall lines in the master bedroom and bathroom. Plus we saw a nice surprise in the garage when we got there... you'll see that in the pictures below. Jeremy brought it to my attention while we were there that the geothermal loops were put in, too. I was so busy walking through our house- looking at the walls- that I didn't think to look outside- and I couldn't tell when we drove in that any digging had been done. But, looking out the laundry room and bathroom windows I could tell. The loops had been put in and the system brought into the basement. Now it just needs to be all hooked together and turned on!

Here are some pictures from today's trip:

Look! There are garage doors in the garage now!! THAT was a nice surprise when we arrived!


This is a picture of Megan's room. She wasn't real thrilled when we walked in there- she had just woken up from a nap on the way up there- but the rest of us were!

Here's a view of the kids' bathroom. Since there is no light in there, I couldn't even see anything until I looked at the picture once it was taken with the flash!!

Here's a view of the entry way and the entrance into the study. I like it because it's nice and open- not narrow and hard to get through- and it lead right into the living room.

I took this picture standing right behind the front door. You can see into the study and kitchen looking toward your 1:00 position, and you can see the dining room bay window just up from that... cool!

Here's another view from the front door- looking directly into the living room. The light on the scaffolding was a lot brighter when I was looking through the camera- but I'm glad it only showed up the way it did because you wouldn't have been able to really see the living room otherwise. I love the fact that you can see the outdoors so clearly even from the front door!


Here's another view of the living room. This one was taken from the dining room area. There is a built-in shelf area on the left, near the scaffolding, that will be a nice area to display some pictures and store some finished scrapbooking albums!

Here is a view of the master bathroom shower. Now that the walls are up the bathroom doesn't seem to dauntingly big anymore! LOL- it's just right! The master bedroom closet, on the other hand, seems bigger!

I took this picture of the master bedroom from the bathroom doorway. As you can see, there is still no window on that one side. I am hoping it arrives this coming week along with the railing for the back patio and the pillars for the front porch. Then they can be installed and the siding can be completed on the back of the house. That would wrap up the outside work on the house, too! Then all the work will be inside! If things go as we were told, we could be moving by mid-January 2009! Guess we'll see! So, until next week, take care- and don't forget to check back next week!

Drywall, Electricity, and the elusive Geothermal System

Last week was supposed to be a week of stellar progress at the homesite. It was in a way, but not nearly like I thought it would be. Jeremy wrapped up the low voltage wiring and got it all put into the control box (as I'm calling it) in the basement, the electric company came out and got the electricity hooked up to the house, and the drywall was delivered. Insulation was put in the house, and the man who is putting in all of our trim work came out and measured for that this past week, too. Still... the biggest job (that I see right now) is still not done. The loops for the geothermal system were supposed to be dug last week, and every time Jeremy called about it he got the same story. Okay- the system still eludes us, but HOPEFULLY it will be put in THIS week!!! Since we're not going back to the homesite until Friday of this week, we're all hoping for some nice surprises when we arrive. We went to the homesite on Saturday to see how much drywall was hung, and when we walked in Jeremy was really disappointed. At first we couldn't see anything hung- but that's because we didn't look above our heads! Measuring and cutting drywall to put up for the ceiling must be harder than measuring and hanging for the walls, so all that was done last week were difficult little spaces like closets, pantries, and bathroom areas. Hey- at least that much got done! I didn't take any pictures of the outside since it really doesn't look any different than the past couple of times we have been there. Here are the pictures I got of the inside:

This is the garage. Looks totally different insulated, huh?

Here's one shot of one piece of drywall that was put up in the master bathroom. It just happens to be in the area where the toilet will be... hence the fan cut-out- LOL!!

Drywall in the dining room. It's going to look SO different once it's put on the walls!

Here's the fireplace all insulated and ready to be finished. Even THIS space looks different with insulation in it- don't ya think?

There you have it... the gist of what was accomplished last week. I am HOPING that this week will see more completions- such as the pillars on the front porch, the railing on the back porch, the remaining two windows installed, the siding finished along the side where the windows need to be installed, the geothermal system loops dug and connected, and drywall put up in at least three rooms completely. I know that sounds like a lot (and it is, really), but I will be elated if that happens this week! Guess we'll have to wait until Friday to find out! So, until then, sit tight- and be sure to check back over the weekend to see what gets posted!

WooHoo!! We have a front door!

I know- silly thing to get excited about, right? Well, I was excited to see it when we went to the homesite yesterday. Jeremy assured me I would be very pleased with the progress since last week, and he was right. I got out of the car, walked back a little bit and got a picture of the front of the house- and there is a nice front door on it now! The excavating company that was hired for the septic system was working on the sand mound (and should have finished it yesterday, too), and the plumbers were there when we arrived, but the builders weren't there when we got there. That's okay, though, because I was able to take pictures! Here are just a few of the ones I got:


Here's the picture of the front of the house. As you can see, the front door is there now!! Not only that, but the siding is DONE in the front! Yipee!

Michael and Megan are posing on their bathtub for this picture. Megan was saying "EEEEEEEESE" and Michael looked away... Go figure! Anyway, when they put the tub in, they had to remove two of the studs on the right side (which is Megan's closet). Michael was VERY observant and made a comment about how two boards were missing. One of the plumbers on site said, "He doesn't miss a thing, does he?" Yeah... the answer to that is NOPE!!

Here's another one of the M&M's- sitting on the fireplace here. I think maybe I'll use this one for Christmas cards this year.... HA!

This is the master bathroom tub. Yes, it's a whirlpool tub. Jeremy really likes them- and I'll admit I can't wait to try it out myself- especially after all the hard work of moving when we DO get settled!! LOL!

Here's the master bathroom shower. Again, Michael was being overly observant and noticed that there is a seat in the shower... He wondered why at first, but then logically stated it's so we can sit down in the shower- kind of like he does in the bathtub! I can't argue with that- it makes perfect sense... right?

Here's a picture of the stairs to the basement all framed out. This picture was taken from the study. You can even see one of the stairs in the picture.

This picture was taken from one end of the basement, looking toward the other end. You can see the stairs and all the wires that have been dropped down into the basement. I admit it does look big, but it does run the full length of the house...

Michael was so proud to be able to stand in the front door and get his picture taken! After I took this picture he and Megan took turns opening and closing the door and running in and out of the foyer. Do you think they're a bit excited?

Well, I dont' know when I'll get up to the site next, but Jeremy will be up there this weekend to finish the details on the low voltage wiring he's done- he needs to get it all situated in the basement. Now that the stairs are in for the basement Michael knows for sure that there will be no fireman pole for him to slide down to get down there. We told him that for a few weeks and he didn't know whether or not to believe us! It was funny- but when he saw the stairs he was pretty relieved and grateful for them! Hopefully when Jeremy goes there this weekend he'll see that the well has been dug and they've started on the geothermal loops- but we'll see. Those need to be done SOON since it's getting colder and next week the weather isn't going to cooperate as well as it has been. I'll be saying a few prayers for these things to happen! AND- next week the builders insulate and hang drywall! Before we know it there will be actual walls in the house! I'm looking forward to that! So... until the next post- take care!

The siding is nearly done!

Well, another week of work, and another trip to the homesite! It wasn't the first trip this week, but it was the first where we actually remembered our cameras! Each time we go see the house I am amazed at what has been done. It may seem a little slow-going to some, but there really is a LOT of work that goes in to building a house that I never even realized before! So, with that being said, here are some pictures from this week, in no particular order:

WooHoo! The fireplace is framed out! The wires hanging down from the fireplace are for an outlet that will be placed into the mantel once that is put in.

Here is the frame for the master bathroom tub. There is a nice ledge on one end of it since the tub is actually shorter than the designated space for it- but that doesn't bother me at all, especially since it'll be a nice place to put a couple of candles or something like that!

Yep- that's me with Michael and Megan in the window to what will be Megan's room. Jeremy and I are just so pleased with the work that is being done. They should have the siding done by the end of this coming week if the weather holds! WOW!

And here is a picture of the kids and I looking up into the house from the garage. We're actually standing in front of the laundry room, and Jeremy was standing in the master bedroom closet to take the picture. Before we know it we won't be able to take pictures like this anymore because the drywall will be going in!

Jeremy took this picture from the back patio. Isn't that a beautiful view? I can't wait to see deer come running across our yard on a regular basis!

This is the view I always take when we arrive. It's hard to see unless you zoom in, but the siding is nearly finished on the front of the house now! Pretty soon the front door will be going in and the porch railings will be done, too!

I got this picture because in it you can see that the siding on the back of the house is just about finished, and you can even see the fireplace at the top of the photo. Now that the basement floor has been poured, they should be installing the last window and the door for the basement soon.

Ah- a basement view. The plumber (who also does heating and cooling) has installed the system that will heat and cool the house. We are using a geothermal system, and when Michael saw that the unit was in he asked what it was. Then he came running to me yelling, "Mommy, the geoformal is in now!" I can't argue with his logic... Now they need to dig and put the loops in for the geothermal system to be complete. Hopefully next week- it's getting close and the digging needs to before it gets too cold.

Well, that's it for this post (picture wise). I'm not entirely sure of the next chain of events for home construction completion, but I do know that the septic system and well will be dug this week, and hopefully the geothermal is dug and put in as well. The siding should be finished this week, and I'm assuming that the back patio decking will be fixed soon, too. Jeremy, the plumber, and the electrician have to put the finishing touches on wiring and plumbing rough-ins, the walls will be insulated, and then drywall goes up. What's next after that? Not sure, but I am certainly excited to find out! So, until our next visit... stay tuned!