TA DA Tuesday

I felt a bit of Ta Da by the end of today. Lots going on - and even I finally got some traction and checked a few things off our list on my own! SWL arrived early to find the neighbors tree and dropped a HUGE limb on the drive. Thank goodness we weren't parked under it (as we usually are). It did minor damage to the bushes there - but I did get them trimmed and planted after SWL had removed the tree to the neighbors yard. Later they had a tree service haul it all away, as well as prune the dead wood out of their big front trees... nice, and maybe something you will consider with your front tree at some point.

SWL then moved on to the kitchen floor. Not too much progress there today - but more boosted confidence that he has it beat. He was happily interrupted by the dry wallers!! Oh what a difference it makes to have a white ceiling and walls! When I left this afternoon they'd started to tape and mud! I think they'll finish this week. I moved on to icky insulation work.... not a fun task - but something I'm capable of doing on my own. I did the knee wall of the MBR, and the floor of the front knee wall space. SWL moved outside to install cleaning access to all your downspouts.... so that you can flush them to prevent backup (and so water at the foundation). We did have dirt spread around the foundation - a communication glitch where it was DONE rather than just DELIVERED!! Yea - check!

So - big day on Barrington. Tomorrow - more dry wall. Hope to see Randy the tile guy?? And might see some action in Cyd's closet? Tonight we'll do Try it Tuesday with Cal - best restaurant in Columbus is supposed to be sushi.... somewhere we've never heard of. Tonight we'll check it out! We'll let you all know.

Momentum

Well - Even though SWL has continued to make progress, I have lost a bit of my momentum! There just hasn't been anything really to photograph. Good news - drywall will begin tomorrow!! And if we're lucky, we could have some tile going in as well? SWL has the kitchen floor under control,
so after the drywallers get out- he can get back to it and complete the sub layer. Knock on wood we could be ready to learn how to install hardwood next week. I'm hoping too that even though the drywall has not been started or sanded in Cyd's closet..... when it's complete everywhere else, we might dare to begin paint! When Cyd's closet is ready, we can hopefully close off the MBR and keep the mess confined! That's the plan anyway. Callie arrived from Chicago this morning, painting is happening on Oakridge (trim) - so no photo documentation, but we're keeping busy! xoxo - have great weeks and we can't wait to have everyone here by the weekend!!

Kingston Mines

Birthday Trip!

We hung up our construction hats and took a few days off to Chicago - where we met up with Callie and Eric to celebrate their birthdays! Great fun, great food - great plan! Thanks Cal. Cal came in early from SF to celebrate with Eric. We arrived Tuesday and hit the pavement hard. We started with lunch - always a priority. We took SWL to the RL restaurant just off Michigan Ave. It was unseasonably cool so that charming library style spot was perfect for a good burger. Tuesday was the best weather forecast so our next stop was a walk to the river to catch the Architectural tour. It was interesting and informative - good call from Dragon Sherman. I think we took a long walk home (maybe a shop or two on the way) and headed in for a rest before meeting up again for dinner. It was try it Tuesday/Chicago for Cal - a bit of a cheat, but I think they enjoyed our old favorite - Shaw's Crab House. It's so old school - how could you not. They were treated with a surprise birthday desert. Those professional waiters really do pay attention when carding folks! Cal's 23rd arrived with rain. We had a great breakfast at a spot on Webster called Toast. In fact we liked it so much we did a repeat this morning! Incredible pancakes, breakfast sandwiches - charming little spot! On we went to spend the biggest chunk of the day at the Field and Science Museum - COSI on steroids! We saw the body exhibit - and were wowed by the amazing German submarine that we captured in 1944- at the end of WWII. We all admitted we needed a crash course in our history! We took the long walk home on the lookout for latex pillows for Cal. We meandered here and there - stopped for coffee, and again rested up just a bit before heading out for her birthday sushi dinner. AMAZINGLY hip sushi spot - a recommendation from Shannon. The name escapes me! - Cal, help me here. But, will be going back next trip! We ended the evening at the Kingston Mines for a bit of blues.... a trip down memory lane for SWL! Great night- great trip! Back to work tomorrow - and counting the days to have everyone home in just about a week!

Stuff

Another rainy day in Ohio, but at least it brought with it some cooler temperatures. Barrington Road has been a little sweatbox. We haven't had the AC on - something about drywall dust, sawdust,and insulation blowing around was unappealing! Anyway, it was nice to work with all the windows open - and a cool breeze. Today was miscellaneous stuff. We hung a piece of drywall over the first floor bathroom tub. SWL indulged me by letting me help him trim out the Dining Room corner cabinets. I just NEED those little things that give me big satisfaction! Next he went on to finish prep in the Master Bath for tile.... drywall patching. That was about it for the day. Mimi stopped in to deliver the bath wallpaper! I chiseled out the old hinge patches so the french doors could be rehung, as well as took down the existing guest bedroom closet doors to take hinge placement measurements.... in preparation to install your new green doors! Fun little stuff! Hope you all had a great weekend. I'll try to post tomorrow - but then we're off for a few days, so have a good week all.

Satisfying Saturday!

We took off early this afternoon because the kitchen is ready for drywall!! BIG satisfaction in that accomplishment. SWL put the blocking in to hang the cabinets on, while I started insulation.
He helped me complete that and voila! I cleaned it up and moved the saw out.... we'll now see what the dry waller's schedule is. Hopefully week after next. Next week we'll only have Monday and Friday to do little jobs - heading to Chicago for some R and R in honor of Callie's birthday!
The cabinets look gorgeous - stacked in the living room waiting. One of the next big hurdles will be leveling the kitchen floor - another big day for SWL on his hands and knees! So, the saw is up in the MBR ready to tackle Cyd's closet framing.... not sure when. Tomorrow we'll do some drywall ourselves, the first floor bath ceiling and the patching in the master bath. Steady we go!

Outside & Easy!

We worked outside and took it easy today. I started off with yoga.... SWL decided it would be wise to fill the "pool" before we get more rain tonight. (Hate to watch rain fill and run down the foundation wall after all our effort to remedy the rot we'd found!) He's trying to distribute some of the raised bed in the back corner - where we removed the RR ties. Anyway... not the best fill. I headed to Oakland Nursery to get the plantings. Now, we wait for 2 yards of dirt to be delivered so we can finish there, as well as the rest of the perimeter grading! SWL mowed both front and back; I trimmed a bush by the garage door - headed home early. Tomorrow we expect more rain - so we'll be back inside. Strategy meeting tonight, but I'm expecting to plan out priority to get baths ready for tile AND kitchen ready for drywall. Big steps ahead! Have a great weekend everyone.