Finally, the upstairs!!

So Sunday, still no stairs, but Alan and I decided to take the ladder and climb from the main floor to the upper floor. It was worth the wait! :) It looks really good! A few of the rooms (mostly closets) look smaller than envisioned, but framing can make it feel that way. So below are the long awaited pictures of the upper floor. As of today, they are very close to finishing the framing of the roof).


View of Den

View of Girls' Bathroom & closet (accessible from their room)

View of Laundry Rm, Media Closet (Gathering Area is beyond Laundry Rm)

Gathering Area from Den (you can see Laundry rm & Master beyond)

Girls' Bedroom (view from their bathroom)

View of upper level Gathering Area

Main level Formal Dinning Room (view from Formal Living Room)

View from main level Family Rm looking in to Kitchen & Formal Dining Rm

Side View

Back View

Trusses Going UP!

The trusses are going up (and earlier than expected)! Still no stairs as of 4 PM today - can I just say how much it is killing me to have to wait to see the upstairs!!! I am not a patient person and this waiting thing is for the BIRDS! Tomorrow, if they are not on, I'm taking a ladder and heading up! :)

We took pizza up to the framers today. What a bunch of hardworking guys! Framing is not an easy job. Can you imagine standing on a 2x4 after working hours in the hot sun, pulling up trusses?! We're very appreciative of these guys!

Making Progress

Due to a sick Jordan :( & lots of work to catch up on, this blog entry will be short (but sweet). :) We spoke with one of the framers tonight. He said they hope to be done framing by Saturday and trusses up Monday (he mentioned the plumber may come Monday as well). The stairs to the upper floor are still not in; so unfortunately we have yet to see what our design looks like, but cannot wait to see it!

Here are the latest pictures:

Jocie's Crush

It has happened, shhh...don't tell her daddy, but Jocie has a crush! :) My little girl opened up to me tonight that she has a crush, not on just one boy, but two! As she is telling me this, she is giggling and smiling from ear to ear. She told me that she told a friend at school too about it. I asked her what happens if she tells other people about Jocie's crush(es). Her response? "Oh I don't have to worry about that, we ankle swore." Aye aye aye!!! I suggested to her that it's a little too early to be thinking about crushes and dating. "But Mom, when can I date?" How about when you're 16, was my answer! Jocie, "But that's forever!!"

I can already feel gray hair and wrinkles coming on! :)

Problems being taken care of

So today, we met with the builder, the foreman, and the sales/marketing gal. They took care of all of our issues, all to our satisfaction. In fact, everything was handled surprisingly well & fast!

Like I said in an earlier email, we're learning a lot about the construction process. Today's lesson - circ lines - basically a pump system that will have almost instant hot water at all sources. A friend of ours is a plumber and has filled us in on a few inexpensive upgrades that we should add now and would greatly benefit from. So...a circ line it is. :) The boys will love it. They currently have to wait 3 minutes. Dad will tell them to turn on the water and get in the shower. They'll respond, "But Dad, it's cold!" And he will proceed to turn it on for them while they stand there freezing. Poor guys. :)

No new photos to post today, but maybe tomorrow! Not a good day to frame anyway - it was very windy (thankfully no rain). Hopefully Mother Nature will cooperate and hold off on any adverse weather until the roof is on. :)

FRAMING has started, but hold them there horses!

So to our surprise, Friday the framers began framing the house! No concrete slabs yet, but no complaining here. :) There was a team of 7 guys on Friday working from sunup till sundown. They multiplied and returned on Saturday. Things seemed to be going great until we noticed a few minor problems (you know windows and doors moved around and things not aligning according to the plans)...you know, minor details. One of the pictures below shows the differences. Hopefully all will be remedied Monday!


Look at Katie. :)


Why does it look like that power line is in my garage?


As of Sunday


Some issues with framing vs. plans.


View looking at formal dining from living room

Basement

Basement

Not a good idea

White shirt, khaki skirt, a bunch of dirt -
NOT A GOOD IDEA!

Backfill is almost complete...