Steps and Sheetrock Are Going Up

A quick picture update since my blogging time is limited this morning. I have a busy day ahead!

Our bedroom

The Den

Our Kitchen

Todd, Tim and helper building our back steps.

Thanx for checking in!

"Our walls are now "Carolina Blue" on the inside. They were out of NCSU red.

The guy in the blue shirt is our builder, Eddie Broome, who we caught totally by surprise today when this picture was taken. Eddie, Joe, Michael were boxing our roof overhang today along the back of the house.

The insulators began spraying the "foam insulation" in our basement yesterday, July 23rd, and on the main level of our home today. Tomorrow they will spray the attic and then hanging sheetrock begins next week. This was really neat to watch.

This N That

Trench for the footing for the retaining wall and steps...I'm trying to convince Paul that we should make this a little deeper, a little wider, fill it up with concrete & have a swimming pool. Don't you agree this is a grand idea??

One side and the back of the house are completely bricked. Only two more sides to go!

Since my last post the brick masons have returned, the porches and garage have been sealed with a special sealant to ensure there is no moisture in my craft room (and elsewhere), Ed and his men continue to work as if possessed, and tomorrow the insulation crew will start sealing her up! The sheetrock should start going up this week as well...we'll feel as if we are really making progress once the sheetrock goes up. I hope to have everything chosen (light fixtures, colors, etc) by the time the sheetrocking is finished. Any bets for if I will or will not...my bet would be there will STILL be something for me to choose!! Picking out "stuff" seems to take on a life of its own. My vehicle resembles something a pack of gypsies would drive...I have everything from fabric to floor samples in it.

As always, I appreciate your interest. Please stop in again soon!!

Workers are Everywhere!

There are still two more layers to go before the garage floor is completed.

Concrete guys pouring the floor for the garage

Yesterday, my sister, Betty (Ann), and I went shopping for material for a window treatment in the kitchen. Since I plan to use plantation shutters, I won't need many window treatments, but I want to use a special treatment in the kitchen that I saw in a decorating book. I found the perfect material for the kitchen window, but the cloth shop didn't have enough material for the lining I want to use. This morning I looked on the internet and was lucky enough to find the lining material online & was able to order it. I am so excited about finding the material & lining I really love, because from this I can pull colors for the walls, accent pillows, etc.

Busy, busy times at the housesite! I've never seen so many men working everywhere...we have the concrete man pouring the porches; the electrician is running wires everywhere; the heating/air guys are running huge silver "snakes" here and there; the plumber is running his pipes where they need to go; and last but not least, Ed and his carpenter guys continue to work so that the insulation guys, the "boxing" guys, and the sheetrock guys will be able to do their thing. We're one day closer than we were to completion!

Sunflowers Galore

Thought today I would share some pictures of Paul's beautiful sunflower field on our "farm." They are totally beautiful, and if we could get just a little more rain hundreds more would show their little faces.

Squatters in the House

Look closely to see Mama or Papa Bluebird

We have a bluebird family nesting in our house. I am praying that the little babies will be ready to leave their nest before the sheetrock guys get ready to close up the house! I would be devastated to have to uproot them before they are ready to fly. Mama & Papa Bluebird have worked too hard raising their little ones to see their efforts thwarted! I snapped a picture of one of the parents (I think it was Mama bird) the other afternoon & wanted to share it with you. The same afternoon I photographed the bluebird, we had a pair of wrens trying to build a nest in our breakfast room, and twice I had to tear it out. The wrens are such cute little birds, but I didn't want to have the same situation with the wrens as we do the bluebirds. I hope they found another suitable location to build!

The Brick is Going Up!

Our brickmasons taking a well deserved break in the 90 degree heat.

Getting started on the brickwork, 7-1-09



Brick on house 7-11-09
Those guys are making a lot of progress!

(Back of House)

I have been chastised for not posting any new pictures of the house on the blog, so I decided I should get with the program and post a few. There has been a lot of activity inside as well as outside the house. The brick masons started brickwork week before last (July 1st), the electrician, plumber, security, and heating/air guys plus the carpenters have all been working inside; needless to say, we have had people swarming everywhere! Once the brick masons finish, the stone mason will begin his work on a couple exterior walls & the fireplaces. Once all the the electrical, heating/air ductwork, plumbing, etc. is completed, the insulation will be put in. It's an interesting process to see the steps taken to build a house. A lot of the stress has been eliminated for Paul and me because we have a builder who knows what he's doing & knows who to contact for the next job. Now if I can make a few important decisions this week, everything should continue to proceed on schedule!

Thanx for stopping by my blogsite!

Chameleon Shingles!

The shingles are gray...no, wait a minute....

now they're brown!

Someone asked me about the color of the shingles on our house...not to sound flippant, but we have chameleon shingles! Honestly, at certain angles and at a certain time of day the shingles look gray, and from another angle at another time of day, they are brown. I'm sure once we get our brown brick on the house they will take on a more brownish hue.

Tomorrow we meet with the electrician and the ceramic fellows, then on Tuesday we meet with the flooring (hardwood & tile) fellow. Things are beginning to fall into place. If I can find the right bathtubs & nail down some appliances, I feel we will be in good shape!

On Friday, I talked with the nicest lady at Sunshine Lighting in Albemarle, NC. I hope she can help me with the lighting in the house, something I personally feel is very important to a home. You may want to check out Sunshine Lighting if you are going to build a new home or remodel your present home. (She DID NOT ask me to give her a plug, by the way!)

I hope all of you have a wonderful, productive week. Try to stay cool!!

Thanx for dropping by!

Sunrise at the Lake

Sunrise @ Lake Tillery, Norwood, NC

Our French Hydrangea bush...it's beautiful this year.

I thought I would spice things up today and share a couple pictures with you other than house pictures...I'm sure you will welcome the change!

We have had a good weekend. My good friend, Julie, and I went to Charlotte yesterday to do a little shopping. She and I always have a good time together. I saw a couple things for our granddaughter (who should arrive in August) that I couldn't resist....I hope that our son & daughter-in-law will indulge me a little and let me pamper the baby with things that aren't necessities but are, oh, so cute!!

Paul & I have been to pick up at the homeplace. It's dirty, hot work, but he and I always manage to enjoy the time together.

Hope you enjoy the pictures. Wish you could have been here with me this morning to enjoy the beautiful sunrise!!

What a Difference A Day Makes

Made me nervous to watch these guys on the roof!

You'll never catch me doing this!

Carpenters on the roof

Carpenters on the roof installing sheething on the rafters

We have a Roof!

Yesterday this time we had some semblance of a roofline, but today the carpenters put plywood & tar paper down on the roof. The guys made me nervous walking around on that steep roof, but they acted as if it was just another walk in the park. Since I have acrophobia anyway, roofing would definitely not be a job for me!

The Roof Is On....Well, Almost!!!

Roofline from the back. The carpenters had completed more roof in the back than on the front at the time this picture was taken.

Shot of House from the Pond - You can see the roof going on! (Note we have drained the pond because of a leak which we hope soon to have repaired)

Front of House w/Cross Beam for Roof

I haven't been blogging, but I've been busy! First and most importantly, I've been to a baby shower given for our son & daughter-in-law's first baby which is soooo exciting. They received a lot of wonderful gifts for their baby who is due in August. In addition, as you can imagine, I've been busy meeting with cabinet people, looking at appliances, light fixtures, bath & kitchen faucets, hardware for the cabinets...the list is never ending for choices and decisions that have to be made. It would be easy to get overwhelmed if you tried to choose everything at once, but I have found if I concentrate on one or two major items per day (e.g., faucets & appliances) and study/compare those items, then I don't get as frustrated. That may have to do with my"pea" brain or my tendency to get too much going at one time, but so far that has kept me from feeling out of control with decisions concerning the house.

Today I will be going to Hamlet to look at interior shutters and then up to the homesite to clean up after the carpenters leave. Paul & I try to pick up behind them every day to keep the site as clean as possible. It's amazing the scrap wood that is left over from cuts off long boards...wish someone could come up with a good use for it.

We are pleased with the speed and progress the builders are making. They do not mess around while they're working!! It has been so exciting to watch as the house went from a hole in the ground to having the last support in place for the roof. There's still a long way to go, but at least now we have the shape of the entire house...and that's a good thing.

Since these pictures were taken, the roof has been almost completed. I will be posting those pictures tonight. I forgot my camera yesterday so I couldn't take pictures...what do they say about if your head wasn't attached...well, that's me!!

Have a great day, all!!!

Picture of the house taken from Cameron Road

The house is up enough that you can see it from Cameron Road, a day I have been dreaming about for a long time!! There has been a lot of planning and decision making to get to this point, but there is still a LOOOOONG way to go before completion. Even so, I feel this is a tremendous milestone in our building process.

Going Up Quickly

Looking out our front porch. That mound of dirt in front will be moved!

Front of House

Back of House

Walls in den going up!

I am truly amazed how quickly the construction crews are going up with the walls. Everyone says that it seems you are making a lot of progress at this stage, and I can see why. Walls are now in place for each room so we are able to see the exact size of each space. It's hard to visualize the size by looking at it on paper, but now we are able to see the real McCoy! I have spent the morning measuring furniture & now its back to the homesite to see if everything is going to fit where I had hoped it would!! Guess we'll just have to buy new furniture if the old pieces don't fit, right girls!!???!!!

Thanks for your interest and for visiting the blogsite. Please come again soon!

We've Got Walls!

Walls are going up so it's beginning to resemble a house at last! With two crews working, construction should move rapidly if the weather will co-operate!!

Putting an I-Beam in place on the garage floor

Basement looking from the back towards

 the front of house

Standing in the downstairs greatroom

bj

We're Finally Making Progress!!

Sorry that I have been so slack about posting updates on the home construction, but to tell the truth there hasn't been a lot to write about until the last week or so. Our builder was waiting for the foundation people to finish the job they were on, and it took them forever to get to our job....BUT, they are on our homesite now and hard at work. The foundation walls are poured and the concrete floor is almost completed in the basement. Once the concrete floor is finished, the building will start in earnest. It still seems almost surreal to me that we are building a house even with the concrete walls up, but I think reality will set in once I see two by fours being hammered into place. 

Paul & I have already chosen the brick, stone, windows, & shingles so some major decisions have already been made. There is plenty to keep me busy behind the scenes: choosing cabinets for the kitchen/bathrooms, pricing interior shutters, choosing windows, interior/exterior doors, and hardware for the doors. This is only a small sample of decisions that have been or need to be made!! I have begun to get to the fun part of choosing colors for the walls, thinking of wallpaper or borders, and thinking about window treatments. Our excellent builder is keeping me apprised well in advance of the time that decisions need to be made so that has been most helpful.

Please bear with me as I stumble through this blogging. I have yet to figure out how to label the pictures; therefore, I will tell you about them here! The first picture is from the back of the house looking towards the front of the house (you can see the basement walls/foundation in place); the second picture is of the forms for the foundation before the walls were poured; the third picture is of the storage area (after the concrete walls & floor have been poured) under what will be our front porch. I can already see that will be an excellent place to store the Christmas tree!

Hopefully, within the next week or so construction will be advancing at a more rapid pace. Thanks for your interest! Check in again soon!