Honnneeeyyy, I'm Hoommmeee!

Please accept my sincere apologies for the deplorable image quality, although it's not too bad considering it was taken with my iphone.

My camera-baby doesn't like to go on bike rides with me, so I take my trusty iPhone-baby instead.

Well, I don't think this bull-dozer will quite fit in our garage. For now, it's just camping out in our front yard. You can't tell from the picture, but there is about a 20 foot hole in the ground in front of the porch.

Qu'est-ce que c'est?! Sacrebleu! (Name that movie).

They are digging the hole to install the pipes which will connect the Barrick Abode to the county water system. Thank goodness... Once the hole is filled, they will finish grading, put our driveway in and also the stairs to the front porch. Landscaping won't be complete until a few days before we close on the house.

More pictures from the inside of the house are coming shortly! Not too many more things to complete before the house is done!

*Note to readers: Someone turns O-L-D tomorrow. I'll give you a hint: It's not me!*

Endless Summer

I could feel the salt water gushing through my nose. My hair was wrapped tight around my face, and I'm pretty sure my head was the opposite direction from what it was supposed to be: down. My legs were quickly whipped behind my head and suddenly I was upright again.

Whew.

Although I could feel that there was not only unnatural amounts of salt water up my nose, but now also sand.

I had flashbacks of the first time my Dad took me in the waves. I've never gotten over the fear of the ocean, and specifically, its waves. Perhaps it had something to do with the sand up my nose. My deep-rooted fear is probably why I don't touch the bottom of the ocean with my feet. Even when it's 1.5 feet deep, I swim in as far as I can.

Just in case. You never know what's swimming beneath you: sharks, pebbles, jellies, small children with enormous scuba masks.

All of this is irrelevant in Hawaii, by the way. I'm just sayin.'

So, despite my surfing efforts, my itch to learn how to surf with the cool kids has utterly been satisfied. Never to itch again. Thanks to my helpful teacher, Joe, who took me in after my first - and only - spill... only 10 minutes into it. I know, I know...hard core.

Over the long Labor Day weekend, another couple joined me and Bobby to Ocean City. It was a gorgeous weekend, and after a shopping-filled day at the outlets, the four of us packed up and headed to Assateague Island beach, where we spent the day, surfing and whatnot. I read through half of a book, took about 5 naps, and left looking like a poached beet. Did I mention I'm allergic to sunscreen? Remember the Sun screeen Rash of 2007 on my Honeymoon? Well, we didn't want that to re-appear, so we steered clear. HA.


Here it is...documented by my loving husband. See? The first picture, I'm so excited that a wave is coming!! Actually, I was scared to death, but that's when Joe said to paddle as fast as I could. I have balance problems, so I kept coming off the board. I think I'm going to make it!! Oh, and the third picture, the wave got the best of me... until the last picture, which is where I'm upside down, getting served by the wave.

But, somehow I made it out alive...and LOOK! I'm actually smiling!

Some random horses strolling along the beach. I think they were twitterpating.

They are just beautiful animals...

Hey Bobby.

On the road to Assateague. Isn't is gorgeous? I love the long line of trees.

The sun was so golden over this field. Just beautiful!

I felt so "Endless Summer" on the drive back. The surfboards were on top of the car and I caught the shadow. Don't look at this picture for too long...it'll make you dizzy.


Have a great week!

Let there be LIGHT!

Short update today because *palm to the forehead* I forgot to bring my camera.

DOH!

Not to worry. That's why we have iPhones! Actually, we have iPhones because we're yuppies. Yup. That's why.

Huh?

ANYWAY, the electricity was turned on in our house today!!! Thank goodness for that Benjamin Franklin guy, huh? All of our lights work and so does our Sump Pump. Which is great, because we currently have frogs inhabiting our (un-finished) basement due to some water that's been trapped down there.

Hasta La Vista, baby. I mean, frogs. (Forgive me, Terminator 2 was just on TV).

Along with electrical current, our appliances were also delivered today! Now we can store bread in our oven, pie in our microwave, wine in our dishwasher...'cause, you know, we cook a lot.

House is scheduled to be FINISHED next week! Closing date is still unknown.

Crazy Realtors and their secrets.

In other news, I have a smashing picture of myself getting eaten by a wave from last weekend. It's actually surprising that I did not come home with a mouth full of sand. I'll blog all about that party of fun later.

Is it Friday yet?

Sincerely,

Your friendly electricity consumer

Finishing Details

These next two weeks will be busy for our builder...lots of finishing touches to be installed so the house looks "finished" and ready to be turned over to us in early October. The house will be, for the most part, completely finished in about 2 weeks, but they take several weeks to run quality assurance inspections in and around the house (as I mentioned in the last post). It's so exciting to see everything come together!

In the past four days, here's what's happened (in bold):

Schedule Update:
Day #60 - Friday, August 14, 2009: Drywall installed, not complete.
Day #61 - Saturday, August 15, 2009: Drywall taped and mudded (but not sanded), columns arrive.
Day #65 - Wednesday, August 19, 2009: Drywall sanded.
Day #66 - Thursday, August 20, 2009: Columns begin to be completed. Primer is applied to walls.
Day #67 - Friday, August 21, 2009: Columns finished!!! Walls painted. Trim and Doors delivered.
Day #70 - Monday, August 24, 2009: Baseboards, Trim and Doors installed!
Day #71 - Tuesday, August 25, 2009: Cabinets delivered.
Day #72 - Wednesday, August 26, 2009: Cabinets installed in kitchen and bathrooms!
Day#74 - Friday, August 28, 2009: Front porch finished. Garage Doors installed.
Day#77 - Monday, August 31, 2009: Interior drywall touch-ups, walls painted.
Day#78 - Tuesday, September 1, 2009: Tile and linoleum laid.
Day#79 - Wednesday, September 2, 2009: Hardwood floors installed, plumbing finished, siding started.
Day#80 - Thursday, September 3, 2009: Siding finished.
Day#81 - Friday, September 4, 2009: Granite counter tops delivered and installed. Plumbing and electrical finishing work completed (sinks, faucets, recessed lighting, electrical outlets, etc).

They have started locking the house when they leave for the day, so our updates inside the house will be getting few and far between. I can't complain, there are only about 2 weeks left until it'll be finished.

Sooo, here are some pictures of some new improvements that we took yesterday when we went to measure the windows for blinds:

Front porch is finished!!! Also, outside lighting was installed: by the door, and in between the garage doors.

The counter tops were delivered! Hard to see in this picture. Also, lighting fixtures were installed and recessed lighting in the kitchen area were installed and finished.

Mmm...hello, extra-wide sink. I can bathe about 2 babies in this sink. Also, you can get a better feel for what the granite looks like here. A little bit of green and brown with some nice variation in the pattern. I love it!

THIS is our closet...MY part of the closet to be exact. Bobby's side goes off to the right, but you can't see that here. I have grand plans of installing floating shoe shelves vertically on the wall straight ahead! That might be a Melissa-Project. Bobby wants no part of it.

The master bathroom! The tile is already installed around the tub and on the walls of the shower and floor. The mirrors were hung and so was the lighting fixture. The shower walls were also put in.

The front entryway!!! Don't worry *shudder* The "lovely" brass lighting fixture will not be lasting long.

Well, that's it for now! Next week, we are anticipating the delivery of our appliances (dishwasher, fridge, etc) and carpet. Then, they should be finishing the grading in the yard, and start pouring asphalt for the driveway. Landscaping should come soon after that!

We're getting ready to celebrate Bobby's 27th birthday next week! If only we could be moved into the house by then...

Have a great week! Pictures from the beach should be coming soon!

Home Improvements (Pun Intended)

This week, we have been seeing major progress with the house!!! Most of which is on the interior, which is making it look like a "house" not just a shell of drywall.

Well, where do I start? First of all, here's our Progress Point. Everything on the exterior is pretty much complete. Oh wait, yes...SIDING. Don't worry, that's coming. Our house won't be blue forever (despite my nieces and nephews' dismay). The front porch was finished on Friday, with the exception of the "ceiling" of the porch, they still have to install that, but shingles and framing are complete.

By Saturday, the cabinets were totally installed and they had also installed our garage doors! I love that they aren't your average garage door, they have a little more detail to add to that "Craftsman" style that is our home architecture.

On Monday, the house was inspected for nicks and imperfections in the drywall. All of that was "touched up" and given a coat of white paint. (No, the builder will not paint colors for us. We already asked.) It's really amazing what a fresh coat of paint can do! Everything looks so clean and white. Nevermind the inch of dust on the floor.

On Tuesday, the workers were busy installing tile and the linoleum we got in the guest bath and laundry room. It looks SO good! On Wednesday, the plumber came back and installed all the final fixtures: toilets, faucets, sinks, shower heads, etc. Bobby also informed me that the water tank was also installed. (I'm scared to go in the basement now because there are several frogs down there with the open windows. Gross.)

Guest bath has tile surrounds and linoleum flooring.

Master Bath has tile floor and tub and shower surrounds.

Also on Wednesday (today) the HARDWOOD was installed!!!!! Yay! This was my most anticipated part of the house. Please don't ask me why. We got a very light-colored maple hardwood with a really interesting grain. The floor is very light and it looks really cool contrasting with the dark cabinets and (what will be) dark counter tops (coming Friday - also very excited). They had a protective cover on top, so we had to pull it back for a picture. Hopefully you can get the idea!

Floors against the cabinets in the dining area of the kitchen.

MMmmm....gorgeous. This room is really light, so the floor will add a really interesting dimension in here (the dining room).

Last, but not least... SIDING!!!!! They were starting the siding as Bobby and I were taking pictures today (Wednesday). They should be finished with that tomorrow!

Wow. I can't believe how much they were able to get done this week! I think next week should be just as exciting as they will install the granite in the kitchen, install all the lighting details, deliver the appliances, etc. The house is estimated to be complete on September 16th. HOWEVER, they run Quality Assurance tests to ensure everything works properly before we move in. Settlement is still scheduled for early-mid October.

SO, here's your update!

Schedule Update:
Day #60 - Friday, August 14, 2009: Drywall installed, not complete.
Day #61 - Saturday, August 15, 2009: Drywall taped and mudded (but not sanded), columns arrive.
Day #65 - Wednesday, August 19, 2009: Drywall sanded.
Day #66 - Thursday, August 20, 2009: Columns begin to be completed. Primer is applied to walls.
Day #67 - Friday, August 21, 2009: Columns finished!!! Walls painted. Trim and Doors delivered.
Day #70 - Monday, August 24, 2009: Baseboards, Trim and Doors installed!
Day #71 - Tuesday, August 25, 2009: Cabinets delivered.
Day #72 - Wednesday, August 26, 2009: Cabinets installed in kitchen and bathrooms!
Day#74 - Friday, August 28, 2009: Front porch finished. Garage Doors installed.
Day#77 - Monday, August 31, 2009: Interior drywall touch-ups, walls painted.
Day#78 - Tuesday, September 1, 2009: Tile and linoleum laid.
Day#79 - Wednesday, September 2, 2009: Hardwood floors installed, plumbing finished, siding started.

If you're looking for me or Bobby this LOONNNGGG weekend, we will be found on the beach. Relaxing. Getting sand in our hair. Hopefully not breaking out in a rash from sunscreen. We'll be back on Monday with more updates from Thursday and Friday! Happy Labor Day Weekend!!!