Projects this weekend (besides unpacking)

Plumbing and plumbing.
--Replace the downstairs toilet flapper etc
--Try not to get incredibly frustrated re-installing the downstairs faucet stem, in the hope we can then turn off the hot water in the shower

If we get really energetic, we might prime the kitchen.

A big flurry of action

Yes. It was a long week of completing priming, painting, cleaning, packing, moving, slightly unpacking, and collapsing.

Along the way, we discovered that the upstairs bedchin sink leaks into the basement, the downstairs bathroom tub faucet won't actually turn off the hot water, and the windows are more like breezeways.

But the paint colors look terrific! And we did manage to finish our three goal rooms, and they look really fantastic.

Pictures coming very soon, when I unpack the cord that connects my camera to the laptop...

Painting

Wall prep naturally leads to painting - lots and lots of painting. Which takes much longer than you would reasonably expect, but I suppose that's why I don't make a living estimating paint jobs... Once again, my friends came through in the pinch.



Slide show for today:

Wall prep

The next weekend was all about wall prep. The moms helped us finalize the colors - then my mom guided me through the longest hardware store trip yet, while Erin and Aunt Deb patched, sanded, and cleaned.

Our intrepid friends continued on with their sanding and patching, and finally got to move on to priming! The goal is to paint Erin's bedchin, my room, and the living room before we move in, and there's quite a way to go...



I spent a lot of time scraping the loose paint from my walls, and then trying to patch them. I've gotten much better at the patching, but there's just no reason for it to take so long!


Slide show for today:

Windows, doors, and walls

And the action just keeps going! After returning the incorrect door that I bought (I'm great at hardware stores, really), Dad hung the new door. I got to caulk some windows - on the outside, not the inside, who knew? - and then we finally started putting up the heavy drywall to replace the plaster we tore down.



From this we learned a couple things:
1. Make sure Dad and Dave agree on the approach before we start it,
2. Max isn't allowed to hang drywall hungover, and
3. There are a lot of walls in this house!

I know, 3 sounds kind of dumb - but not to the rest of the crew, who were cheerfully sanding wallpaper paste off the walls...



Slideshow for today:

A little help from my friends

Yep - I don't know about the rest of you, but every time I hear/think about that phrase, I see the Muppet version of that song... I get by with a little help from my friends...

And I really, really do. While Dad and Dave continued fixing the beams and basement windows, Max finished the plaster removal (and Erin and I went to Build it Green and the hardware store), causing a little dust:


Everyone else ripped up the linoleum from the living room - in two lovely layers, the bottom one looking like carpet! - tore down all the wallpaper in the house, and somehow found time to carry the fridge from Erin's bedchin (bedroom/kitchen) into the basement.





I'm not entirely sure what I did - but I think it involved the hardware store again...

Slideshow of the day:

Don't fall down

Ok, with about two weeks and a day before we actually move in, we started with the basics - making sure the house didn't fall down.

Dad and Dave worked on reinforcing the termite-chewed beam and joist in the basement, and adding a little more support.


They also found more things to fix; like the broken basement window in the back, and the rotten window sill on the front basement window.





While they did that, Erin and I went to Home Depot and Lowe's. For hours. Why does the hardware store take hours? Because you can never find everything on the list at one store. Also because sending the two of us to load six sheets of 5/8" thick 10' long drywall is just a recipe for frustration and disaster. Luckily neither of us were crushed by the weight - but it was a close thing...

Finally I got to do some demolition. Two walls in the dining room had large areas where the plaster had pulled away from the lathe, so we decided to take the plaster down on those walls and replace them with drywall.

Better Than Email?

Instead of sending emails and web albums, I thought I'd just throw the stuff up here, so it makes a nice way to keep track of the progress and see what's up next... And then if you don't want to hear any more about the house, you don't have to ;)