We’re due to move back home in two weeks, and I’ve been so busy trying to get other things accomplished at the house that I hadn’t realized how long it has been since my last post. Whether before my day job starts or late into the night, I’m doing a lot of the painting and finish work to save/re-allocate budget (we were originally planning to hire someone, but the surprises and extra projects have been adding up), so there’s a lot going on.
Looking back at pictures have reminded me of how far we’ve progressed, even though it feels like things have stalled again; there are at least 6 projects that are stuck at 90% complete. It’s frustrating to know the proverbial clock is ticking, while there are days when nobody is working because we’re waiting on materials. Among the things either in transit or on order include kitchen cabinets (being manufactured in Canada), bathroom vanities (stuck on a boat somewhere in the Atlantic, from Spain), master bathroom tile (on order; not enough in stock from the same lot to complete the whole room), and our new fireplace (on order).
Despite the waiting, the house has changed significantly in the past 3 weeks:
The front door has been painted (by yours truly). It will get the finish coat once the terrace is rebuilt and the brick is painted.
In the hall bathroom, the shower tray has been installed and both the wall and floor tiled and grouted.
The fireplace wall has been rebuilt.
The mudroom, kitchen, dining, living room, and hallway have been primed.
And the HVAC has been turned back on (thank goodness…it’s been hot).
We also decided to remove the closet in our son’s room and create a nook for his desk. Ordinarily, I know it would be pretty foolish to rip out a closet, but we had added an entire wall of built-ins a few years ago (so there is ample storage), and opening up floor space was more important. If we were going to do this, last weekend was our only chance (before the floors are finished), so I busted out my sledgehammer and had at it.
The plan this week is to rebuild the front terrace and re-finish the floors. We’ll need to stay out of the house while the floors cure, so I’m going as quickly as I can to (at least) finish painting all of the ceilings. Wish me luck…
William Martino 