Settling In

Hi, all!

We are slowly settling into the old house what with my parents gone for a month while we were moving (I think they planned that ;) ). Bob's kids are great. They helped me paint a luminscent paint in the dining room, rag the living room and painted Nathan and Stephanie's feet, clouds, and stuck "wallies" in the kids' room.

It looks great... now only if I can convince Van to sponge our room then we are on a roll! ;)

We've ordered furniture for the living room of which the last piece won't arrive until mid October... Hopefully we'll be lucky and it'll arrive before then. *sigh*

The finishing touches are basically what is left - the window dressings, blank walls in need of some art work (kids or prints), a central information center for the household, finishing off the hallway closet. Whew! And here I thought I was done after moving in. Oh, the biggest thing - the landscaping -> gonna start next week per Van...

We still have a few things to unpack and the kids have started school - who knew that 1st graders and preschoolers would have homework! And Stephanie already has a fundraiser...

I will be starting a different blog detailing the kids academic (and not so academic) activities for those of you who are interested. Let me know via email or post a comment here so I know if it would be a worthwhile thing to do... who knows. You may expect to see a newsletter with your Christmas card this year... if I get around to it *sigh*

I'll get some pics in hopefully within the week...

The Pistachio Ice Cream House

Hi all!

It's been awhile since my last post. Needless to say we've been very busy... especially Van. Also, I was uncertain of what pics to post - how much to show? should I surprise you all at once or give you teasers...

Well, I still haven't decided so I'm showing you teasers in an effort to tease all of you to come down and take a looksey... or not... hahaha! Morbid sense of humor I have...

Well, as usual, you may see more pictures of the house at the link on the right, but I'll let you guys see the "facade" if you will.

(In case you can't see the pic, that's Susie, Nathan and Stephanie)

So, as of this writing, just about everything is complete except for the following - the vanity cabinet fronts (and the refinishing of the wood - apparently there was miscommunication between Van, the foreman and the cabinetmaker), the cabinetry handles (or pulls or thingymabobs), touchup of paint, plaster and stucco; repositioning of certain lights, the closet organization (we're doing it ourselves... are we crazy or what?!) (by the way, totally rhetorical okay!), clean up of just about everything, water softener, a minor matter of a certain knob in a certain fancy sink (my splurge) that Van broke because it was "poorly made" ;), dressing up the fireplace in both directions, a certain matter with the decorative touch of the porch; and the landscaping... (keep in mind there maybe more... I just don't know what that is...) (hmmm, what the heck is it with me and the "..." heehee! ;))

So, sit back, enjoy the other pics and don't blame me for the style... ummm... it was Van's idea...(HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!)

It's a House! It's a House!

It's hard to believe but we are almost finished. The insulation went in this month, they have completed the drywall and finished tiling the roof. The chicken wire has been nailed in and the stucco should go in sometime this week. So exciting and so nerve-racking at the same time.
All in all I believe it will be worth it. The basics are in, so now comes the cosmetics... The things we've chosen are not technically "standard" and the walls will not be all white. There is definitely color to this house, I just hope it turns out the way I've pictured it in my head. I guess we'll have to wait and see how it turns out.

As of this post, the construction is scheduled to be done by the end of June and we'll be moved in by the end of July. That is, if we pass all our inspections and don't experience any delays in delivery of stuff.

After that's all done, then comes the landscaping. Right now the front and back yard looks like something straight from a scary movie - overgrown grasses and weeds, graveyard of leftover furniture... you get the idea.

I am indecisive about the exterior of the house. I am leaning toward green - sage green and I kind of wanted it in the midtone range... but Van wants a light colored house... but I don't want it to be a neon green... sigh, so hard picking just the right color...

Well, as usual, there are my pics to peruse at the "More Pics" link.

Keep your fingers crossed for us!

And now the Itty Bitty Details

As you can tell from the pictures, things are moving right along to the point where we have to deal with the nerves of the house - electrical and plumbing...

As if that wasn't enough, the contractor is telling us to get him a list of things we want in the house, otherwise he'll give us the "standard". So I am currently devising a list of what things I CAN'T do without. The list is rather substantial I must say and I'm confused. So many choices to make. For example, what type of faucet would we like, separate knobs for hot and cold or a single one, and if a single one, what style? Contemporary, traditional, eclectic? For the kitchen sink, how many holes do you want drilled in... and on and on it goes.

And then I have to add to that what the other occupants in the house want. Let's just say we need a lot of patience to get this list together. Bless Van though. He is letting me do "almost" whatever I want. I think that's dangerous but fun! And no, I am not telling you what I have picked so far... y'all have to wait for the "unveiling." Besides, we already have too many chefs in the kitchen, so to speak.

Anyhoo, I have posted a new album, just click to the right of this post on "More Pics." It's labeled 2006 04 01. Peruse at your leisure.

Just a Few Inches

Who would of thunk that 2-3 inches would make such a big difference... actually, it really is about 11 inches that we are talking about. Shortcuts are great but sometimes it just doesn't hurt to make sure it is correct.

For those not in the know, we had to stop construction on our house because the neighbor complained to the city that our house seemed awfully close to her house. A very valid concern. It turns out there is an industry-wide acceptance that the fence is considered on the property line... this isn't necessarily the case on our part. It turns out the fence between us and the neighbor was off by 11 inches. So after some city government red tape we are back on track but need to move our west wall by 2 inches (what is legally allowed upon approval by the neighbors in the City of Glendora).

This is the month we were supposed to be able to move in. Oh well. The new projected completion date is in June... which means we won't be moving in until July. I'm looking at the bright side and envisioning what our house would look like when completed. I've even enlisted Phillip, Jennifer and Courtney to help with the painting of it. It should be fun.

On the other bright side, if we did move in this month or next, it would be bad timing - tax season.. Thank heaven for little miracles!

Pray that it doesn't rain as much for the next few months!

And then we hit an obstacle...

As some of you may know, we have hit a rather large obstacle in the completion of our tiny abode.

So after the third inspection, after the frame for the walls and the roof were up, the City of Glendora came back and said that we are not at the legal limit of 5 feet away from the property line. It turns out the fence that separates us from our neighbor on the West was not on the property line - everyone assumed it was on the property line.

Without going into too much detail, we have a decision to make, but whatever decision we make, it will put the project behind schedule by at least 2-3 months. So the target date of the end of March is not going to happen.

But on a more positive note, we have picked and ordered the flooring for the living areas of the house. Lan has laid out the kitchen for us, even after we keep changing what we want. (They said two heads were better than one... of course no one mentions if you doubled that what would happen! hee hee!)

So, all in all, we think we are going to have a livable house, but just getting there. Van has kept his cool for the most part, but I must say remodeling is an intense project that isn't for the faint of heart.

We're Being Framed...

Over the past two weeks or so we finally have the framework of a house...
and all those horror stories you've heard... all very, very true. Luckily for us (or me!), Van has been at the site every day keeping an eye on things, double checking the measurements, talking with the subcontractors (or "subs") making sure the changes we've made (OH YEAH! There have been changes... don't kid yourself that you'll catch everything during the planning stage.) are implemented. I really haven't been doing a whole lot in terms of keeping track of the progress and what not but Van and I have been through the ringer and back in deciding how we want the new house to look like... or at least get a semblance of what we want it to look like so we can at least communicate that to Lan.

Its the little details that get to you. If you aren't a detailed person, you are in big trouble.
But as trying as this may be, it is neat to see the framework go up... the house is finally coming together.

Well until next time, enjoy!

P.S. I've added more pics to the link on the right...