Days 227 & 228 -- Drywall Begins!

Friday, February 24, they delivered the drywall. Stacks and stacks and stacks of drywall / sheetrock.

And on Saturday, the 25th, they came and put up the drywall. All of it!

Ten guys in one van with all their tools, their lunch and a microwave.

And BAM --  we have drywall up :) 

[Yes, you could say they 'rocked my world - at least my house]

I did not think it would go this fast!

Of course they still have to tape and mud and sand it all.

I don't know how long that will take, but I

guess I'd better get the paint colors picked out!

Blown-In Insulation -- The Full Story (or the Fill Story)

I know that all of you are really curious about this blown-in insulation.  You are all wanting to know more  so here it is:
First they put up all this netting:

And then the fun part . . . they fill it up! (this stuff feels like cotton but it is actually made out of sand according to this guy)

Insulation Begins -- Monday - February 20 - Day 223

Things have been moving rather slowly evidenced by my lack of updating, but they are starting to pick up.

The stone masons put on the rest of the capstones

but they still need to do some mortar.

The front entry with the caps on the columns.

A few things were finished up on the heating system and some more wiring was done last week including wiring for the TVs.

AND

Bryan built this beautiful arch in the entryway.

(with Emily's help)

When I'm not sweeping up or picking up, I spend time walking around the house. . .

thinking about the blessings and promises of God.

We had our first measurable snow a week ago  --  about 3 inches.

Bryan and I brought the scaffolding in the house and put it up.

The insulation company started doing some insulation on Thursday and Friday last week and are still working on it this week. The orange stuff is fireblock and the white stuff is foam insulation

Orange fireblock in all the holes . . .

Lots of spray up in the top and then "picture framing" in the spaces below helps seal everything.

The insulation guy working . . .

and the boss man supervising. :)

We had our rough-in inspection last Friday and almost passed! We had a couple of things to get done and they were done by Saturday night and we will get a re-inspection tomorrow since today is a holiday.

Also, Bryan and our nephew, Kris, put up the skylight in the master closet on Saturday.

So while it doesn't seem like the most exciting month, we are progressing. We should get the insulation done this week and move on to drywall next week! 

Gravel and Waterlines -- January 20 -- Day 192

The weather is very unpredictable! Last Monday was 64! I cleaned up out at the house and it was very warm. Today I was out there with the security system guys and it was 19 degrees!

A few more days and we should be ready for drywall. I am working on trim, doors, light fixtures, sinks and faucets and flooring. Plus the layout for the pantry and the laundry room.

I have ordered the kitchen cabinets and the bathroom cabinets.

Some days it just seems frustrating that we are not closer to moving in, but other days I feel overwhelmed with decisions I still need to make!

A few things that are being worked on:

Bryan put some gravel on the driveways to help with the mud.

The plumber has been finishing up the septic lines. 

(you can see we had our first snow but it wasn't much!)

And installing the water lines.

The stone masons put some of the capstones on the columns before the weather turned cold.

The framer built the tub surround. . .

 and put in the pocket door hardware.

 We have 7 pocket doors!

Believe it or not there are 4 of them in this photo!

A Little History

Since things are progressing very slowly on the house, I am going to take this opportunity to share a little history. This is an aerial photo of the property as we first saw it. There is a shed, a barn and a 'house' which wasn't really a house. Most of what you see here are shipping containers. A few of them are travel trailers.

What you can't see very well are the fences. There are multiple fences criss crossing the property.

We rented a dumpster and filled it with debri.

We encountered few 'friends' a long the way.

The kids decided to paint the old house.

and then we tore it down!

A Few New Pictures - January 5

Weather is amazing today! Well over 60 degrees and there was no wind! There was also no one working on the house today :( 

They are working on the water lines for us across the road.

Here are a few more photos just for fun:

This is the screened porch on the south.

This is the kitchen sink

and the bathtub. The only things I've ordered so far!

And now it is nice and clean and smoothed out all around the house.