Comparison

It seems like we have a long way to go yet until we are finished and ready to start actually thinking about things like where to hang pictures, what color towels to buy for the bathrooms, or where to go to buy a new sofa.  (That is a long way away!)

However, compared to where we were a year ago in July...we have come a long way.  Here is the comparison of what the house looked like in July 2010 and what it looks like right now.  That was a lot of work!

We still haven't settled up with the builder, and cannot proceed on anything major until we do.  So, the only things happening currently are a little bit of D doing temporary landscaping fixes, a little more painting, putting up window blinds, and trying to finish up the master closet.

Here is a list of some of the main things that need to be finished (hopefully before fall and before the wee one comes):

• Exterior Caulking & Painting
• Front Porch/Steps/Columns/Ceiling
• Back Steps
• Landscaping and New Wall in Backyard
• All Interior Caulking/Priming/Painting (other than the 3 painted bedrooms)
• Main Stair Treads and Banister
• Kitchen Tile Backsplash & Install Hood Vent
• Doorknobs On The Many, Many Doors & Window Treatments
• A LOT of Misc. Carpentry (Closets, Fireplace Mantel, Other Fixes Throughout)
• Clean-Up and Finish Portion of Basement

Other Rooms Getting Close to Finished:

j's room is almost finished, other than doorknobs, curtains and letting her hang things on the walls.
Having blinds, rather than blankets, on the windows, is a big step!

 

Master closet is about 1/3 of the way done.  It is kind of a pain to put together (much more work than the kitchen!), so it is taking a while.

Kitchen is done, except for the tile backsplash (where all the purple is) & the hood vent that needs to go up after the tile is done. 

D started painting the dining room, so that should be done soon.  It is a little more green than we had hoped for.  So, who knows if that color stays there or not.  Why does paint always turn out a different color than you think it will?!

Baby #3's room is no where near ready, other than it has been painted for a while.  However, my most favorite light in the whole house is in this room.

The winner of the first, and only, completely finished room in the house (other than doorknobs and wall decor/bedding etc.) is...

...d's room.

The TV is a temporary solution, and his room has become a temporary hangout.  Promise. 
This could be trouble long term!

Front Porch

Great news: the front porch is complete !

Not exactly like the plans, but we think it provides a lot of curb-appeal.   

 We haven't been able to post anything lately concerning the remodel or moving, partly because we are so super busy with everything going on (end of school year activities, work, and of course the moving mess), but mostly because nothing has really changed in the last two weeks since we moved out of the apartment and into the house.  No work has been done (other than the few small things we are doing on our own, when we have time...like more painting, a little cleaning up and putting handles on cabinets).

There are some (more) builder problems that we are currently dealing with, which has brought everything to a halt and has stressed us out to the max (when we already thought we were at maximum stress level).  So, for now...we are still "camping" in the house and the mess is becoming messier as we try to find things that were packed for the move - but cannot be put away yet, because of the lack of completion in areas of the house. 

We do have plumbing, electricity, a/c, and parts of the kitchen are functional (plus we get to stop paying rent!)...so it could be a lot worse. 



This is probably how we will be living for a while, until things are resolved between builder, bank, lawyers, and us.
If any of you have ever worked with a builder on your own custom home and made it through smoothly to the end, consider yourself lucky. (And let us know that it is possible!)  We have only heard horror stories so far.



Moving Back In

This weekend was the big move back to the house (this is only a small piece of what had to be moved back...we filled a 26 ft truck).  I can't believe how much stuff we accumulated over a year in the apartment.  We threw a lot out, or sold a lot of things before we moved out of the house, but still somehow ended up with a ton of stuff!  Living with things in storage for a year really makes one realize how much we do not need.  I think we may end up getting rid of even more as we continue to sort through things and put them away in the new/old house.

Almost done loading.

We had some help from some friends on Friday night loading and unloading the truck.  It was a lot of work, but took just under 4 hours to do all of it.

This is the just recently painted (by D) and carpeted baby's room.

Here is j's freshly painted (again, by D) and carpeted room.

On Saturday we had some help from D's parents and R and K with cleaning, painting, sorting, organizing, etc. (while my parents watched the kids).

Putting together more IKEA stuff.

We even had some help from the kid's babysitter.  She is just as eager to get out of that apt. and into the house, as we are!

D and K and his dad moved the washer and dryer up from the basement to the 2nd floor and put them in the laundry room.  That was probably the hardest job of all over the weekend.

At this point, things are just kind of piled anywhere and everywhere, since there is still a lot of work going on in the house.  During this week we will begin to sort and organize things and hopefully by the end of the week/early next week, we will be able to sleep in the house and leave the apartment for good!

Carpet Install

Carpet was installed in the three kid bedrooms on Friday last week. 
Just in time for us to move all the furniture in that evening.

May 22 - Lots Of Painting To Be Done...



1st couple coats of d's room. 

(Sherwin Williams 6524 Commodore)

Trim & Ceilings - All D's handiwork.
(Sherwin Williams 7000 Ibis White)

May 17

Countertops are in and 2nd floor is near complete.

Countertops are all in...
which means we are getting close to having the plumbing hooked up!



Kids bath



Master bath

First floor 1/2 bath

Wood floors are finished on the second floor.

Just in case anyone forgot what the outside looks like, since we have been posting pictures of only the inside, here it is.  Nothing has changed, other than there is no snow anymore.  Still a lot of work to be done outside.

Someone has moved in before us.  A mama bird has been sitting on her nest, on our front porch, for a few weeks now.

This is design and administration central - at our apartment.

Cinco de Mayo

The tile in the kids bath is complete:

Wood flooring in the upstairs hallway:

April 24