Reservations accepted

Nuff said.

The Longest Week EVER!

The Toaster parked in the garage for the first time!

I'm down to counting 'sleeps' - like we taught the kids when they were very young and looking forward to a big event. If we get the Certificate of Occupancy today we will be almost home (literally).

The power washer was at the house for several hours yesterday. Everything is sparkling and clean, at least on the outside. The house cleaners will have their work cut out for them later this week!

Carpet was installed in the two guest bedrooms and all closets.

Mr. Cabinet, Mr. Electric, Mr. Trim & Mr. Floor all returned to make final adjustments.

Mr. Paint is due to stain the front door one more time and do some touch ups inside.

The back ordered kitchen faucet was installed.



The yards continues to intrigue us. The landscaper has provided a great beginning.

As soon as the weather allows, you will find us outside working!

Drainage,Carpet,Touchups..Moving Van!

January 11, 2009 - Front yard

Backyard with fire pit & bench - another one bench is on the opposite side. Can't wait to have a fire out there! Wine and marshmallows anyone?

Just a few things left to do on the house this week. From what we've been told, one of the biggest hurdles is the drainage inspection. That is due to take place this morning. After the floods of 2007, the city is a little more strict on what the approve.

Fingers crossed, we are ready for them & they will like what they see!

Bob's playroom with the infamous elevator sign. Found in a building due for demolition in downtown Los Angeles about 35 years ago. The sign has travelled with us for years, mostly living in our bedroom closet. It was subjected to a foot going through it several years ago. We had it rewired, a back plate put on it & it is now hanging in its newfound glory!

There are still things missing - various hardware backordered or not hung yet, the 'real' kitchen faucet (a temporary one is in place) is due today, a mirror in one bathroom is not in yet. Yesterday when admiring all of the space in the laundry room - we realized the two hanging rods are not there. Not only that, it looks like someone forgot about them! The painters will return this week for touch ups and to finish painting & staining. Carpet will be installed Wednesday. The propane tank will be installed today. After the drainage is approved, the landscaper will continue with his work.

The pool bath - as it is called on the plans. We have no bath in that room and no pool but like name! The mirror for this bathroom is backordered.

Certificate of Occupancy will be the next step. We are hoping to have that on Thursday.

If the stars align and we get our CO, we will begin moving boxes by the end of the week.

The kitchen!

The moving van is set to arrive a week from today...............WOW!

We are Moving.....This Year!

As the calendar turned to 2009, we know for certain we are moving this year. We hope sometime within the next few weeks.

There is a lot to be accomplished to finish this project although it appears that most of the major work is done.

Accomplishments this week include the hardwood floors that have had the first two of four coats that they will get before they are finished. The sawdust is a thing of the past & we have had to get used to the dark finish. It is quite different from the raw wood that had no color. The more I see it, the more I like it.

Living room

Sprinkler installation began on Friday. Depending on weather they will finish up early next week. The landscaper should be on site next week to begin his work.

Trenching for sprinkler installation

Plumbers were on site last week to move the well to its correct location & make a few other changes. The kitchen faucet is due to deliver next week.

The trim hardware is slowly being installed. A few items did not come in, a few of the items were wrong, the person installing has not been there consistently. A little frustrating but we are confident it will be resolved easily.

Glass and mirror installation will begin Monday.

Appliances are scheduled to deliver next week.

As a full work week resumes on Monday I think we will see a lot of people working hard to finish up.

Floors and a Firepit!

Yesterday we met the man who will clean the house before we move in. The house is a mess and it will be quite an undertaking! But, if he was there looking at the job, it must be getting closer!

We have approved the stain color for the hardwood floors. The first coat of color will go on today. Yesterday we arrived to big wood chips all over from the hand scraping. Don't think it's a look we are interested in keeping for the dining room floor although it does lend itself to a casual dining atmosphere - sawdust floors.

Wood chips (sawdust) covering the dining room floor

Living room after being scraped

The HVAC is in place, all the vent covers are installed in the house.

The kitchen faucet that was on back order should be installed this week.

The fan for the kitchen nook (also on back order) arrived yesterday.

The trenching for the well to be moved was done last week. It will reside on the north side of the house, along with the propane tank. Niches were built into the wall to accomodate them and also to disguise them a little. Great idea on the part of the landscaper.

Glass & mirrors are scheduled to install early next week.

The sprinklers should be started this week.

The brick thresholds were installed in the doorways & look really good.

The fire pit and the backyard!

The most exciting thing in the last few weeks has been the transformation of the backyard. It is cleaned up & trimmed, ready for the landscaper.

He returns from vacation next week and will get to work.

The firepit is finished & really looks nice.

Can't wait to sit out there with a glass of wine & a fire!

It's all in the Details!

As we watch the details come together the end is so close, but seems so far away!

Tile and granite are complete. Kitchen faucet on backorder!

Fans and lighting -almost complete!

Retaining wall on the north side of the house

And.....a mail box!

More Pictures!

Backyard

Laundry room with newly laid tile

Master bath with newly installed plumbing fixtures

Master bath with tub & plumbing fixtures

Kitchen backsplash - in progress!

Pictures!

Back patio

Study desk

Jack & Jill bathroom

Master bath (in progress)

Kitchen backsplash (in progress)

Entryway floor

Driveway/sidewalk

Driveway

The Finish Line is Near!

The Finish Line

We can see the end in sight. There is much to be accomplished but when we turned the page to December we were able to say ‘we are moving next month’. And right after that, we were informed of a one week delay! Still, the details are coming together.

The paint is complete. All of the colors were what we were hoping to see when we stared so intently at those paint swatches.
The culvert under the driveway had to be replaced due to a change in city code. That delayed the pouring of the driveway, sidewalks and patio extension. We are hoping to see cement today. The brick hearth is done. It came out well and really has a pretty shape to it.

The tile is moving along. We are very pleased with all of the choices.

Entryway

We had a meeting to discuss the placement of the entryway tile & accompanying listello (mosaic) iles. The end result is a perfect solution to a tile we knew we wanted to use as soon as we saw it at the tile store. We just weren't sure what the end result would look like at the time.

The hall bath or ‘pool bath’ as the plans call it (although we have no pool and the bathroom has a stand up shower and no bath tub) is gorgeous.

We knew we would like the white hexagonal tile and black trim. It far surpasses what I imagined.

The granite countertops in the kitchen were installed. The granite, as we thought is really beautiful. Big chunks of silver and cobalt blue are very apparent in the black granite.

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The master bath slate (with a familiar face visiting) ……is one of those ‘out of the box’ choices that turned out to be a good choice.

The Rainbow Rock shower floor – yes, a rock floor in the shower looks really cool – can’t wait to step on it. Picture to follow.

Carpet has been chosen for the guest rooms and closets. The retaining walls should be started next week. Tile will finish early next week. After that, electricians, plumbers & lighting are up to do their thing.

Our time line indicates a move in date of January 16 – that will be here before we know it. We are really getting excited!

Well, Paint & Doors

Mom & Jill came to visit!

Painting is a long, SLOOOOW process. There is a lot of prep (caulking, taping, covering windows, priming) and now finally, we are beginning to see results! As of yesterday, some of the white gloss (final coat) had been painted. The painters tell us they should be done by the middle of this week. We have our doubts!

The drilling for the well has been done. They tell us they hit water at 200 feet. I have no idea what that means - but good information to have on hand I suppose!

Dinner party conversation maybe?
'So, when we we dug the well, we hit water at 200 feet'...... or not!

Drilling the well!

We were very pleased to see that exterior doors were installed when we drove up earlier this week. The front door looks great. It will be stained the same color we have used on the interior pieces.

Looks like it's time to move - the new tenants are hovering!

Coming soon - tile & granite!

Our World Became Color - and Other Updates!

When Sean was about 3 or 4 years old, he asked us when the world 'became in color'. I'm not sure if he had been watching too many of my 'I Love Lucy' tapes in black and white or thought of this on his own. Pretty profound for a little guy.
In any event, our new house is in the process of 'becoming in color'.

The outside of the house is mainly gray. The trim is white & there is a red accent at the top. Those colors alone gave us hours of angst! In the end, we held our breath, hoped for the best and were very happy when we drove up to see the paint in person. It was what we were hoping to see!

Next challenge, interior paint. The three step process for the stained pieces - fireplace, entertainment center in the living room and most of the study is complete. The pieces were stained, sanded and then lacquered in a satin finish. We walked into a hazy fog of stain fumes yesterday. During the visit today, we were very pleased with the results. As we left today, the windows were being taped in preparation for spraying the interior of the house.

In other news, we met with Mr. Landscape last week. His proposals are very interesting. A lot of what we heard was what Bob had drawn last summer. He had some new ideas & we will see how they play out as we get closer.

The 'hangar' in the playroom (Bob's airplane display case, above) is looking more like a hangar and a lot less like the marionette stage that Jill & I were calling it a week ago.

Meg & I - admiring the finishing touches on the rotunda crown molding

The rotunda got one final round of crown molding & looks great. It was missing 'something' and Bob figured it out, told the carpenters & voila - complete!

The electricity has been drawn from the pole to the house, preparations for the well have been started.

Kareem has fulfilled my request for a beautiful plate from Morocco to display in the kitchen. When he returns home in December, this will be in his bag. There is a spot above the stove specifically built with this plate in mind. Thanks, Kareem!

The biggest excitement was last week when Bob asked Jay the Builder for a move in date. As of now, we will move the week of January 9, 2009.

What a great way to start the new year!

Pictures and Paint!

The trim carpenters have finished all but a few details. They are truly artists and did a great job. They listened to our ideas, added their own and we are very pleased with the results.

Master bedroom

Fireplace mantel (hearth still to come!)

Dining room - looking toward the study

Study doors

Coffered ceiling in the study

The beginning of Bob's display case in his playroom

The painters have started the exterior of the house. We'll see soon how those color choices look! They move to the inside in a day or two. They anticipate a little more than a week inside.