We're Finally Home!

It's so good to finally be home! Even though we still have some work to do, we're really enjoying our new home. We will get everything finished, slowly but surely. Tomorrow we will have our appraisal and this morning we finally got the insulation blown into the ceiling, so the house should feel a lot warmer now. The snow and ice held a few things up for us, but that's ok, at least we were still able to move in. Now the last thing we are waiting for is the garage door and we should be getting that this week.

I will be taking some more pictures to put on here when we get a few more things done. I guess I should probably change the Christmas songs on my music player too, but I'm just not ready to do that just yet. I want to here the song that I have playing a little more...

Almost There!

We're almost there. Whew, finally! Tomorrow they will start laying the carpet, as you can see they already laid the pad. If we pass the final inspection, we will start moving in. We have a few things that still need to be done, like finish putting some trim above a few of the windows and some touch up painting here and there and also we need to paint the front door and all of the interior doors, but that can be done gradually. I'm so excited that I can't sleep. I'm thinking of all the things I need to go and buy.....like shower curtains for one.

Kitchen is almost complete! The countertops will be finished in the morning and the sink will be put in too. (Oh and the island is not staying white....I have to paint it). The lighting keeps making everything look too dark or too light. In this picture the floor, cabinets and walls look a little darker than what they are. The picture below is pretty much the true colors....as you can see the floor is lighter than the above pic.

The wood floor has a thick layer of dust on it, so you can't see just how beautiful it really is.

This is the granite tile countertop that will be grouted and finished tomorrow.

The masterbath countertop has been grouted.

The guest bath countertop has been grouted.

This picture almost looks like a painting! Click on it and see what I mean. I took this off of my covered porch outside the masterbedroom. It is such a gorgeous view!!!

Pictures That I Promised!

Well, I got a late start today because I literally couldn't get out of bed today until 3:00 p.m. I finally pulled myself out of bed and took a hot, hot shower and was back at it around 4:00. We only worked til 1:00 a.m. tonight, but poor Andy was beat, after not getting enough sleep and putting in such long days.

Of course you had to know I would take a pic of our snowy view! Click on the pic to see what it looks like from our back deck.

The snowy view from my bedroom window!

The snowy view from our living room window! Don't mind those posts that are in the way......they will be shorter, eventually.

A pic of the snow and hail last night!

Here is a pic of the dining room! Tim was calking and puttying for hours, along with critiquing my painting job from the night before. I had the wrong kind of roller and the paint was weird and thick and it just didn't look good, so I had to use a brush for the trim, which took longer and was more work. Ugh! Tim will be happy because I went back over all of it a couple of times, with the right kind of roller to get rid of the brush strokes, so it looks good now.

The spots are sawdust in the air. Anyway, my kitchen is coming together slowly, but surely!

Dining Room!

The Living Room! That big wall was a different color, but Michelle Doney looked at it and told me that it closed in the room and made it look smaller, so she came to my rescue and picked me up, took me to Home Depot and helped me choose this color to make the room look bigger...and it does! She then helped me paint that wall, plus the entryway and the hallway. Thank you Michelle for your help and color suggestion.....you're awesome!

Looking into Kasey's room!

My bathtub!

This is the granite tile that Dale will be putting on my bathroom countertops. Isn't it beautiful?

My Island is still incomplete for the time being, but we're gettin' there. As you can see, the big spot lights we were using, made the cabinets and paint color look a different color than what they are in this pic. You can see the difference in the other kitchen pic in this post.

Andy is sawing the hole for the sink, as Jeff works on the plumbing and hooking up the dishwasher and water line for the refrigerator. It's amazing how the camera picks up all of the dust particles in the air, that you can't even see with your eyes. Ew, we were breathing all of that in!

I can't wait to take a pic of the tile floors and countertops to show you all. Dale will be grouting the countertops and Michelle D. is going to grout the guest bathroom floor. It's going to look so beautiful!

Another Late Night!

It's 4:30 a.m. and we just got home from working on the house.......and I thought 3:00 a.m. last night was late!!! There's just so much to be done and we're running out of time. Andy has been trying to get all of the electrical done before the insulators come in to blow the insulation into the ceiling and I have been painting, sanding the putty on the trim and baseboards, vaccuuming again and again, taping off trim and painting trim. I couldn't hardly get out of bed this morning and it took me quite awhile til I could stand up straight and walk pretty normal and I have a feeling it will be worse tomorrow. Thank goodness for pain medication or I would have never gotten out of bed today. Somebody please tell me this will be over soon. :)

I know a couple of you have requested that I put some more pics of the house on here now that we've painted, but quite frankly I'm just too exhausted and I need to take a hot shower before crawling into bed. I will try and get some pics uploaded tomorrow. I saw that I had a few comments today and I am anxious to reply to them tomorrow.

Beautiful Scenery!

There was quite a bit of ice on the roads, as we headed out of town to Portland to pick up interior doors, a kitchen sink and carpet and pad.

As we arrived back in town the sun was so bright, as it was setting, that it almost blinded us! It is difficult to get a great picture in a moving vehicle, but I think it is still beautiful.

I am in such awe of the peaceful calm in this picture, as the sun reflects on the still water! I wanted to just sit and drink it in, but we didn't have time. My wonderful husband pulled over to the side of the road just for a couple of seconds, just long enough for me to snap a couple of pics. He is so sweet to me and would have let me stay there awhile, if we hadn't had people waiting for us, at the house.

The beauty of nature was captured in this picture, as you see the weeds in the forefront, the ducks in flight, plus a few floating in the water and even a bird pirched on a piling. It looks to me like that is a hawk on the piling. Click on the picture to see a closeup. Once in awhile we will see a bald eagle out there on the pilings too. I love this picture! I LOVE SUNSETS! Oh how I would love to own a fancy camera with fancy lenses to take pictures with. I adore taking pics of scenery.....ok, I just plain adore taking pictures! I should have been a photographer.....it has always been a dream of mine....

Here is a picture of Saddle Mountain with snow on it. Remember my camera makes it look farther away than it is, so click on the pic to see what it really looks like from our deck.

I zoomed in to try and get a closeup. I wish I would have taken a pic yesterday when the ground was all white with snow.

I hope you all aren't bored with my scenery pictures......I know it is not everyone's cup of tea. Do any of you enjoy a good view as much as I do? What is your favorite scenery to look at?

Snow Girl!

Is she cute or what? I got such a thrill watching Emma twirl around trying to catch snowflakes in her mouth! She was completely mesmerized by the wonder of each falling snowflake and you could see the joy and glee all over her adorable little face. I took this picture as she was running back inside the church to get warm for only a few seconds and then she was out the door again, twirling in the dancing snowflakes. Do you see the snowflake that landed on her eyelashes? So cute!

All of the kids were having a blast throwing snowballs at each other. Ok, there were a couple of big kids that were having fun too.....Andy and Al! They were so funny! You should have seen them chasing all the kids with snow in their hands. These are the kinds of things that go on after most everyone has left the church. :)

Starting To Feel Homey...

I will start by saying it's been a few very stressful days, as I was trying to make decisions on paint colors for the interior. I am a very visual person, so I felt like I was shooting in the dark trying to choose paint colors, before being able to see what it would look like with the flooring and cabinets and countertops in. Anyway, like it or not the task is done. If I made a mistake, we can paint over it later, after we are all moved in.

We almost finished all of the interior painting today......we only have 2 walls left to do in the master bath and the garage and that's it, besides some touching up here and there. When we left tonight, Dale and Loren were almost done with the wood floor, in the kitchen and dining room. It looks absolutely beautiful! Tomorrow morning the kitchen cabinets will be put in and oh man, I can't wait to see what they look like, with the wood floor! It already looks and feels, so much more homey, with paint on the walls.

Monday the granite tiles come in for the kitchen countertops and backsplash and we will be going to Portland to pick up the interior doors that day too. It's looking like we just might be moved in before Christmas. Yee Haw!

Thank you, Dale, James, Loren, Ron and Andy for all of the work that you did today. I know it was a long hard day and your time and effort is much appreciated. I'm so thankful for good friends and a good husband!

Exterior Paint Almost Finished...

As you can see, we aren't finished painting the exterior, but at least you can see what the Olive Green looks like. Now try to imagine a dark burgundy front door and cream on all the trim. I love the olive green!!!

2nd Choice, but I love it!

Well this is our second choice, but I do love it! I know it is quite different than our first choice, but the look is still a bit rustic and I think it is very warm. I am always drawn to warm colors! We actually brought the wood floor home with us tonight and we will be able to pick up the carpet in 7 to 10 days. It was very difficult to get a picture that shows the true color of the wood floor and carpet under the flourescent lighting in the store, but this gives you an idea. I know it will look great.

Oh No! What A Disappointment!

The lady from the carpet store called us back this morning and told us they won't have the carpet or wood floor in stock until the end of January. Ugh! I am so disappointed because I loved that wood floor. So now here we go back to Portland to pick out something different.....I just hope we can find something that looks as nice.

Do You Like My Carpet and Wood Floor?

We went to Portland today and picked out the carpet and wood floor. It was really hard to get a good picture inside the store because of the glare from the lighting. These pics make the floor look a little more yellow than it really is, but trust me the carpet looks beautiful with it. Do you see the sample in the lower left corner? Click on the picture to see a closeup of the wood floor.I didn't want the floor and cabinets to be the same color, instead I wanted a nice contrast and this combination is perfect. The cabinets pull out the warm, darker color in the wood grain. The floor is not solid hard wood........it is an engineered wood floor.......in other words, it is real wood on top of plywood. I love it!

Beautiful Clouds!

I thought the clouds were so beautiful, so I just had to take a picture of them.

This one is my favorite because it really showed the beautiful color of the sky and clouds. Click on the picture and you will see what I mean.

The sheetrock is up!

The front yard looks even better with the topsoil on it.

Cabinets were delivered!

The cabinets were finally delivered today and I am so excited. We only opened one box because Andy is so busy doing other things right now. This is the cabinet that goes above the stove and microwave. I don't know how to get a picture without the glare of the flash. Ugh!

Friday ~ 12-5-08

The front yard is starting to look good.......I can almost imagine it with grass!

I think the rock on the hillside will look good when it is complete!

As you can see, the sheetrock has been delivered. They will sheetrock tomorrow!

A pic of the driveway!

Still Making Progress On Our Home!

Insulation! Woo hoo! Almost ready for sheetrock!

Part of the front yard.

My Honey!!!! By the way, I'm taking this pic up on the hillside, so I told Andy, ha ha, now I'm, "King of the Mountain!" You'll know what I'm talking about if you read my older post where he was the, "King of the Mountain!"

We had to dig out the side yard and front yard a little more.

I can't take a straight picture for the life of me anymore! Anyway, you can see where my hot tub will go on the cement slab. It will sit inside the deck, when Andy finishes it. This is a good shot of the covered porch off of our master bedroom.

A pic from the side yard, looking into the front yard.

This is part of the back yard.

Another part of the back yard.

I took a pic of the moon while playing with the night setting on my camera. Wish it would have been a full moon!

I took this pic off of my back deck, standing right in the center of the living room window, so you could see what the view looks like from inside the house. Isn't Saddle Mountain awesome?

I tried to get a pic of the insulation and also of what the view looks like at night, from inside the house, but it didn't turn out too well. You can see my flash in the window, but take my word for it, the view in the evening, just before it is completely dark, is breath taking!