Day 111, A catch all for moving-in...

Jeff is the Screen door guy. I wanted to have screen over our front door so we can let the warm breezes through the house without the flying critters from the outside landscape. He did an awesome job. As you can see it is very hard to see it mounted to the front door.

I hope we don't have anyone or dog go through it when it's deployed.

Here the reason we decided to stay and remodel, our sunsets

Here's one of the challenges of living at the top of the hill... T U R K E Y S!

Sandy thinks it is so fun to watch the baby turkeys show up every Spring. She tends to forget they grow up into full size birds. They have no natural predator, you never see one run over. In the Fall they flock into our front yard turning it into a turkey toilet... Yuck!

Our next big event is the installation of the entertainment center. We have three flat screens to get up and get running. The master system is in the Family room. We have another one in the Kitchen so we can enjoy our cook top counter or the new eating nook. The original flat screen is slated to be repositioned in the studio and mounted from the ceiling.

RIGHT, Paul is confirming we have all the parts and pieces to do the job. He starts on Monday, November 25th.

Pixar and Tamika play with a new toy in the Family Room. They were on a down stay until we turned our attention to Paul. We sure miss Pasco and Ben, however the youthfulness of young pup does add a new energy to our home. Pixar turns two year old on December 2nd.

BELOW, this is the last memorial to Ben and Pasco before we get serious about moving back into our new home.

Our utility room is 75% operational. Sandy has been preparing all meals for the kitties and dogs. My favorite item is the 24" deep sink. I love it for the special deep cleaning project only a deep sink can handle.

We love our new bathroom, heated floors, great shower fixture, glass bowl sinks, wall mirror, plenty storage, lighting and drawers. I love the pull out shelves to store all our pharmaceuticals and home remedies.

As we sort out what drawer get what item. We have decide what gets store away, what will go into a studio kitchen set and what will be donated. We directing our stuff into YES, NO go or Donate / Re-purposed.

BELOW, we need to order cushions and have a table built to reside in the elbow of the nook seating unit.

We have done our initial stage of the Living room (antique). Sandy even has her roll top desk in it's new resting space. I did restrict her to three Tiffany floor and table lamps, we will see if she can do it. Also we visited Robert's Relics in Windsor to find a curio cabinet for all her glass treasures.

This antique display unit comes with:

1- A light at the top

2- Six glass shelves to display Sandy's collections

3- It fits perfectly in the space

and we love it

BELOW, the Family room is staged for the new entertainment system soon to be assembled next Monday... Bring on Super Bowl Sunday.

Everything in the back bed room is ready to be sorted for determination of it's final destination.

 

NEXT: I don't have a clue, I am going to visit my son in San Diego for four days, more next week...

We are going to KOA for Thanksgiving, doesn't get more American then that!

Day 110, The Devil is in the Details

When you come to the end of a project whether it is a major remodel or daily chore; there is the tendency to skip on to the next something. I have learn that some of my worst goofs are created in this phase of a project. As I hand the final draft payment to Darrell for the outstanding delivery of our remodel. I know we have a myriad of punch list items to complete. I have notice as we started using the appliances, fixtures, cabinets, doors etc we start to see new things we ignored before.

Sandy and I preparing for the next stage of this project is the move back.

As Sandy blesses the last draft check. We still know we have host of invoices pending for non-scope approvals including our new entertainment center to be delivered next week. 

She reminds Darrell to start protecting our floors by wearing her dusting slippers

Clint and his wife, Sarah posed in front of the 'Blue Wall',  our wonderful introduction to the rest of our new living spaces.





BELOW, this is our memorial of our two senior Labs who crossed over the Rainbow Bridge. Next week, Sandy will say goodbye to Pasco and Ben is her very special celebration of their lives in our home.

Darrell and Craig got a change to catch up on all the pending punch list items as well as discuss lesson learns during the remodel process.


We are staging the furniture in the Family Room as we prepare to receive the entertainment center and the wiring of the flat screen and speakers.

You got to love Darrell when he gets to something he is really passionate about. He is a man of strong Family and Work values. I love to listen to him describe riding sand buggies at Pismo or describing an experience with a past client. I wonder what he will say about the Steele's after this project.

ABOVE, these are some of the familiar items as we move through the punch list process. Left is the actual list, sample stains to finish off the new entertainment center, grout chart to transition from the oak floor to the porch paver tiles. And of course the flow of funds from owner to builder.

ABOVE, Darrell and Sandy share a dog moment with Pixar, our new Lab and Tamika, our resident blond retired breeder.


LEFT, something in causal conversation you learn some interesting facts. Like Darrell ordered this cabinet extra because he felt it would look funny if we only had cabinets on the right side of the sink and nothing on the left. Sandy and I didn't have a clue he did that...

Darrell and Michelle worked feverishly to put a check mark to one more punch list item.

These two have make this whole remodeling experience at very wonderful home transformation.

BELOW, Picks up on all this other calls that are part of a busy builder's business partner.

Sandy is displaying the note pad and lab coasters given to us by the Brittans. The pad is proudly located on our middle refrigerator and the coasters are staged just in front of our gas cook top.

Soon I will be shooting 17 new shots of the remodel based on photos I took on May 6th, 2013, day 1 of the start of remodeling. The plan is to position the camera in the exact location and angle as the original shot.

Currently, I am staging furniture in the Living and Family room. I want to have the AV equipment installed plus a few other completed punch list items before I break out the Nikon and tripod.

Day 109, Carpet & Carpentry

This week signifies the last of the primary project chores less the entertainment systems. The carpeting of the downstairs, and various punch list items.

Sandy and I have been down with colds this week, yuck!  I think our immune systems took a tough hit with dead dogs, a sick kid and my dental cleaning.

I am sad to see the Brittian family pull up stakes and head to their next job site. I will soon not have that familiar sign greeting me everyday as I leave the house.

BELOW, Pat inspects the new 'Blue Wall'. Pixar and Tamika looks on to see what treats may be had,  afterall Halloween is just around the corner.

Plaster walls have certain tactile quality. They are so smooth from the burnishing process as seen by Dad touchy experiment.

ABOVE, the final touch is completing tacking the 'Blue Wall' baseboard.

RIGHT, Michelle and Dad finish installing the wall plates for the in-house vacuum system. They wanted the plate to be perfect or else.

ABOVE, here Jeff (left) and Troy (right) prepare to install the carpet runner for the downstairs.


LEFT, here comes the carpet pre-cut and ready to install.




BELOW, the the base pad in attached to the stairs prior to attaching the carpet. We anted the edge of the carpet rolled aroung each edge of the step.

RIGHT, looking the stairs up to the Family room we are very pleased with the end result. The color bends with the rest of our color palette. Thanks to Kristy and Kerry

BELOW, Sandy and I are very pleased with how well the entire downstairs turned out. From the humble beginnings of wooden rails and hand rail to what we have now.

Michelle checks in with Darrell to see if there are 

any last minute items still left to do.

 

The basement was our staging area for appliances and key fixtures prior to their installation. Sandy wanted some of the old cabinets saved and installed in the front space of the downstairs. Darrell and Stacy will return on a rainy day to do that task.

Another chore is having Mikey doing a full electrical audit of our system. After many electricians adding and subtracting circuits over the last fifty years we need to verify each and everyone to insure their reliability.

In fact one of the key outcomes of such an audit is replacing faulty switches and plugs with code approve electrical items.

Mikey will finalize the switch labels for the Master and Sub Panels as part this audit.

 

WE are constantly reminded of the nature that surrounds us. I had profound influenced on us to fix up our home. The sunsets at Wikiup are breath-taken in their explosion of warm glows and the replacement of evenings cooler tones. Then comes all the points of light ushering the night.

NEXT: I hand Darrell the final payment and we discuss the punch list items.