Progress, Progress, Progress

To start, I must apologize for my lack of posts lately. Some would say I have been slacking but actually that couldn’t be farther from the truth. We have been so busy with projects at the new abode we haven’t had time to keep you all updated. That along with the fact that we shut off our internet earlier this summer and our neighbors connections either have security enabled (who wouldn’t trust us?) or don’t have a super signal that allows us to connect for more than a few minutes at snail speeds. I am actually writing this on word and sending it with Breanna so she can post it at work tomorrow. Since our last post so much has happened I’m sure I will forget to mention some of it, but I’m going to do my best.

Along with more ridiculous amounts of rain, we did have a couple dry spells so the guys were able to finish the roof and, at this point, it is nearly shingled. Only the south side of the garage and part of the sunroom peak are left to be completed. We have steps and a landing into the house from the garage, and more importantly, we have steps up to the bonus room in the garage. Our electricians were rough in the entire house – which was exciting to see where lights and switches were going to be. The plumber also came in and got the lines and drains roughed in. Along with life, during this time we were busy sanding and varnishing doors, door jambs, bi-fold closet doors and window jambs. We were able to procure some help for this project: Finishing by Jim is the name of the gentleman’s business. He does fine work and for mere cups of coffee he’s willing to put in many hours. The beauty of this project is that we are fortunate enough to use Grant Hustad’s airplane hanger, which provides us with ample room to set up our work area to complete our projects. We will be moving on to trim and tongue and groove later this week.

I was able to talk Breanna into splurging a little bit on our insulation after getting some quotes on spray foam. We decided to foam all our exterior walls upstairs and our walk-out wall downstairs. It was really neat to watch this process. It only took them one day to complete and while the price was higher the savings in heating and cooling will pay for itself (we hope) within seven years. Along with the higher R-Value it also adds strength and rigidity to the walls.

Last week the house really started to take shape. After rounding up a little help from Tim, we hung plastic sheeting on the ceiling of the house and the garage as well as the garage walls. This is a vapor barrier for moisture. We didn’t have to do this on the walls of the house because the spray foam acts as a vapor barrier as well as insulates.

The sheetrockers started early last week and were able to hang the main level and the garage and start on the tape and mud before the weekend. This week the house received the final coat and the walls were even textured today. The garage needs a little more time dry so it is a little behind the rest of the house.

We also got two of our three garage doors last week. There was a mix up when the ordered the doors but luckily for us there was another mix up somewhere else so we were able to snag two doors from that mix up, which are actually a better quality and better insulated doors than we had picked out. The best part is that we get them for the same price as our original choice (so we caught a nice break there).

The ceilings in the house are getting textured tomorrow so there is a chance we will be able to prime before or during the weekend and get to the painting next week. Last week I also framed in our walk-in shower and started hanging the cement board. All we have left there is to waterproof the walls and floors and start with the tile.

Probably the biggest change, aside from the sheetrock, happened today. The excavator came back today and finished moving dirt around. We no longer have large piles of dirt and sand all around the house but can see what our yard will really look like. Now if we can just get some grass started…