Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Full Steam Ahead ...
We're still working on, and making good progress on, the house. It's hard to stop in the evenings when we feel like we're getting so close! My summer class finishes up on Thursday this week, then the weekend will be spent with my sister in South Louisiana. Sunday we'll rest (hopefully! -- knowing us, we'll work on projects at the Murphy Loop house) and Monday starts our one week that we're both available. The next Monday, after the 4th and my birthday, David's summer class starts. So then we'll switch roles! I'll be the one available and staying with the kids and working on the move, and he'll be doing the school thing. I do have some school work I need to do, though. It's going to be tough to stay focused and get some work done. I know I will be distracted by all the house stuff that needs to be done.
David's summer class starts at 7:30 each morning. That means he'll need to leave WM at about 6:30! Not that it's an hour drive, but that gives a few minutes of "late time" on the front end, plus time to park, walk to class, and get there a few minutes early to get in the zone for class to begin. I'm thinking today about us all coming to Monroe together in the mornings. He can drop us off at Murphy Loop to work while he's in class. That way we'll only have to bring one vehicle. But boy, those will be early mornings! We can adjust, though. It will just mean going to bed earlier at night, which we really need to do anyway.
Let's see, we have a new front door; we've made good progress on painting the living room and the front hallway, and David will probably lay the floor in the living room today. The living room needs curtains; the room has four windows and is letting in a lot of heat. The dining room needs two pieces of border hung, and the kitchen needs the rest of the cabinets and drawers cleaned out and shelf liner put in. (I've done half of the top cabinets already; I have the other top cabinets and all the bottom cabinets to go.) I think that will be one of my priority projects. The family room is basically done; it's become our catch-all room for the short run. The utility room doesn't need any work, really, but it is full of tools and other supplies from all the projects we've been working on, so it needs to be cleaned out so we can move in our fridge and washer and dryer. I know that's one of David's priorities (as well as the living room floor). I think those are the two big things on his
mind right now. And who knows, they may get checked off today! Our room got its furniture last night (hooray!) so now we just need to finish the decorating and then move our clothes in. Our closet needs some attention. It has A LOT of wasted space right now, and no doors. So I guess then just the back hallway; we haven't touched it yet. It's getting two layers of wallpaper, one to cover the paneling and then one to be pretty.
mind right now. And who knows, they may get checked off today! Our room got its furniture last night (hooray!) so now we just need to finish the decorating and then move our clothes in. Our closet needs some attention. It has A LOT of wasted space right now, and no doors. So I guess then just the back hallway; we haven't touched it yet. It's getting two layers of wallpaper, one to cover the paneling and then one to be pretty.I'm going to try to go to Lowe's in a little bit and try to get: a border and curtains for the living room, a big tub for tools and supplies, wallpaper for the back hall ... and anything else I remember or David asks me to get. I'm looking forward to that.
I have tests to grade tonight and a few things I need to get ready for class tomorrow. I'm getting out of class early today, though, which is nice (for the students and me!).
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
House Update
My birthday is just a couple of weeks away. I turn 30 this year! I'm celebrating with a family picnic at our "new" house. It's too early to know which house we'll be living in then. In some ways we could be living in the new house now, but it sure makes it easier that we're not, so we can focus on what needs to be done and keep the other "living" stuff out of the way. The kids already have their beds in their rooms, though, so we're the only one missing a bed. We worked in our room last night, and so it's getting closer to being finished -- which means we can maybe move our bed and furniture soon. In fact, our room could be finished by the end of the week, or it might still take some of next week, depending on how time goes. We could make do with a pallet if we needed to, but the other big thing we're missing right now in the new house is appliances. We have a stove/oven there we can use and a dorm-sized refrigerator, and a chest freezer that we can't quite get to for all the "working" stuff piled around it and on top of it. We'll move our fridge and washer and dryer from Monroe to the new house at some point. So we could make do with what's there: we have lights and plumbing and air and a means to cook -- but it's nice that we don't have to yet. It just depends on how things happen as to when we're ready to make the big shift from one house to the other. It's very exciting to see things coming together, though! I don't have new pictures to post because our camera quit working. I bought a new one online last week, but it's not here yet. I was able to borrow Mom's camera last night and I took lots of pictures. I think I got some good ones, so I'll try to share soon.
We're planning on buying a new front door this afternoon. We found one at a discount place for $105, which David said is a good price. David says he thinks it should fit in the van so we can go get it. I guess we'll see! The nice thing is we should be close to being finished buying things for the house. We do have two big expenditures left that are on our list to do at some point: a shop or some kind of outdoor storage and a fence. We may also do some kind of carport and some kind of covering on the patio. All of those come after the inside is finished, though. Then David will move his attention to outside. I don't know what kind of priority he's thinking for those four things. (Well, I would think the covering for the decks is the least important, but I'm not sure about the other three.)
Let's see, regarding the inside: the living room is still not started, but the floor is bought, and I think we're going to try to use paint we already have. So from a cost perspective it may be done, except for window treatments (FOUR windows!!) and the front door. The front hallway walls need to be painted; I don't know if we have enough paint for both the living room and the hall or not, so there may be a little to buy there. The kids' rooms and front bathroom are done from a cost perspective (I think), and almost from a work perspective, too. Same thing for the kitchen and dining room. We still have touch-up painting to do there and maybe hang border in the dining room (still debating on whether I want it in there or not, but it's already bought if so); we have curtains to hang but they're bought; I have shelf liner to put in the cabinets but it's bought, unless I need more. The family room is done except for hanging curtains which are bought. The back hallway has not been started; we'll hang the thick wallpaper to cover the paneling (which is bought), and then cover it with paint or wallpaper, not sure yet. The back bathroom is done. I think we have everything for our room except the rest of the border we need to finish it out. (Oh, and I'm going to want new bedding. Our purple one won't go with our new room very well.) And that may be about it! It's so exciting to see the list getting shorter and shorter.
I'll try to post a new picture or two soon!
We're planning on buying a new front door this afternoon. We found one at a discount place for $105, which David said is a good price. David says he thinks it should fit in the van so we can go get it. I guess we'll see! The nice thing is we should be close to being finished buying things for the house. We do have two big expenditures left that are on our list to do at some point: a shop or some kind of outdoor storage and a fence. We may also do some kind of carport and some kind of covering on the patio. All of those come after the inside is finished, though. Then David will move his attention to outside. I don't know what kind of priority he's thinking for those four things. (Well, I would think the covering for the decks is the least important, but I'm not sure about the other three.)
Let's see, regarding the inside: the living room is still not started, but the floor is bought, and I think we're going to try to use paint we already have. So from a cost perspective it may be done, except for window treatments (FOUR windows!!) and the front door. The front hallway walls need to be painted; I don't know if we have enough paint for both the living room and the hall or not, so there may be a little to buy there. The kids' rooms and front bathroom are done from a cost perspective (I think), and almost from a work perspective, too. Same thing for the kitchen and dining room. We still have touch-up painting to do there and maybe hang border in the dining room (still debating on whether I want it in there or not, but it's already bought if so); we have curtains to hang but they're bought; I have shelf liner to put in the cabinets but it's bought, unless I need more. The family room is done except for hanging curtains which are bought. The back hallway has not been started; we'll hang the thick wallpaper to cover the paneling (which is bought), and then cover it with paint or wallpaper, not sure yet. The back bathroom is done. I think we have everything for our room except the rest of the border we need to finish it out. (Oh, and I'm going to want new bedding. Our purple one won't go with our new room very well.) And that may be about it! It's so exciting to see the list getting shorter and shorter.
I'll try to post a new picture or two soon!
Sunday, June 10, 2007
New floors!
For a while, "flooring" has been the BIG ITEM on the to-do list for the house. Well, as of last night, it is close to being checked off. David picked out a wood-look roll vinyl (we were sold on the price more than anything) for every room we replaced except one -- the black bathroom. I like what he got for in there, too. This picture is Dave and his dad working on the floor in the hall at Joshua's doorway. They got this laid and most of the floor in the family room. To finish the flooring, David will finish the floor in the family room, glue down the floor in Joshua's room, and have to cut and lay down the floor in the living room (the room behind them in this picture, with the window shining through). And then floors will be done! He says there is no other big item on the list, just lots of little things, mostly painting. I have three more weeks of school, so he has four more weeks until he starts his class -- but a lot can be done in four weeks. A lot has been done -- I think four weeks is about all we've worked so far. And it's starting to come together, although it's a little overwhelming how much work is still left. At least there's not too many things that really should be done before we move in. The rest -- well, we'll get as much as we can done, and if some doesn't get done until after we move in, then it just doesn't.
Today he's wiped out, and I don't blame him. He's slept all afternoon. I'm glad he's getting to rest. Maybe he'll be refreshed for a new week. I know he wants to get a lot done. But he has been really pushing himself hard, too.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Quick World Tour
Neat video of our amazing world! Thanks, God!
http://v.mercola.com/blogs/public_blog/Amazing-Trip-Around-the-World-in-Less-Than-4-Minutes-5296.aspx
http://v.mercola.com/blogs/public_blog/Amazing-Trip-Around-the-World-in-Less-Than-4-Minutes-5296.aspx
