Home Improvement

“I love it when a plan comes together!” -Hannibal (the A-Team)

It is sooooo cool to see things start to take shape. Bill and Dad are just going crazy on this bathroom. By the time they are done with it, it will be brand new from floor to ceiling. Seriously, new floor tiles, new sink with cabinet, new tub, new surround, new walls, new light fixture, new outlet, and last but not least… a new toilet! So sweet! Today they pulled the floor tiles (where we found more of the dreaded “M” word!) They have the surround up and curing. We can seal it up tomorrow an might be able to use it in a day or two! (And there was much rejoicing!)

Mom mowed the rest of the back yard. It now looks twice as big! Now maybe it will dry out. It’s kind of been a swamp with all of the rain we’ve had. I’d hate to breed West Nile virus back there or something! Now we just need to keep it short. I love having a big yard. I was running around with Maggie (the dog) and it’s just awesome! We can’t wait to have a dog of our own… That’s another one of those infamous “down the road” happenings. Anyways, Tony got some more exterior painting done and got some of the water out of the moat. In all it was a good day. It doesn’t seem like much happened, but a lot is going on. This weekend is going to be a big one. I’m off tomorrow and hope to actually be of some help finally this week. Here’s a few pics of what’s going on. Hopefully this bathroom will be pretty done by Sunday. We’ll post ya’ll later.

Well another day, more progress. Dad and Bill are going like gangbusters on the shower surround (or as Edith calls it, the sound around.)

The tub surround starts going up!

We all can’t wait till it’s done! It’s kind of a slow process, especially for something called an Easy Install Surround! Bill’s glad we didn’t buy the Hard Install Surround! He he he! Anyways, it is definitely coming along. After quite a bit of research, this seemed the best option for dealing with the window sitting so low into the shower. It’s something that goes up (fairly) easily and could be cut to fit the window. More work was done on the office walls too! Even Estela got into the act, mudding some of the closet.

Not bad for a girl that doesn't like to get her hands dirty!

Yet again, it was another day where Everyone did a lot more than we did (which was about nothing.) Estela and I only ended up going to Home Depot to pick out hardware for the shower. We got some cool handles that match the knobs on the sink. Oh, and Bill and Edith gave us the gift of a new toilet. Thanks guys! They know me well… it is truly a gift that keeps on giving (or should I say taking? I’m sorry, that was bad. I really should avoid the toilet humor. Oh no, I can’t stop the toilet jokes!!! Make it stop.) Wow, now that I’ve regained what little sanity I had, I’ll continue.

Mom and Edith finished up the painting on the living room, it looks so awesome. I don’t know why, but we loooooooooooooooooooove the high gloss white. Thank you Behr for making a great product and thank you Home Depot for having a good sale on it. Anyhoo, another day down and big steps made. We are getting closer and closer every day. As my dad said the other day, “We can see a light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s not even a train!” Ha ha, he has an interesting sense of humor. I guess that’s where some of mine comes from… We look forward to getting some more done and maybe even moving in. I know, it’s a crazy idea. Buying a house to actually live in, not just work on. That’s just crazy talk. Maybe I should lay off the Miller Lite! Oh well, we’ll keep you updated. Post ya later.

Hey kids, sorry it took a couple of days to update the blog… It’s been a tough week. But that’s another story for another time (actually a couple of them really.) Anyways, day 18 showed even more progress. Mom, dad, Bill, and Edith continue to bang it all out while everyone else is at their jobs. They have done some serious damage. Mom and Edith were painting fiends almost finishing the living room and even slapping some primer on the kitchen! There is less and less of the ugly colors every day! Woo hoo! Dad and Bill are just cranking on the bathroom. They finished all of the green board in the bathroom and drywall in the office.

New valves in addition to the green board. Thanks guys!

Bill had a good idea to leave a plywood access panel in the closet that is on the plumbing side of the bathroom in case we ever need access to the plumbing. I was thinking of using a cabinet door but this is even easier. Just remove a few screws and the entire lower wall comes off if we need to get to the plumbing. “I’ll buy that for a dollar!” Good idea! In addition to they framed out the window that is in the shower too. Bill went nuts mudding the office and sanding. In all a good day. I’m sorry that I haven’t gotten to do much so far this week, but gotta pay the bills too. We appreciate all the work that they are putting in. Can’t wait to see the bathroom when it’s done, and they can’t wait to use it I’m sure. A big thanks to Tony and Anna letting everyone come over for showers. That’s about all for today, I’m sure I missed a bunch but things are really coming together now. We’ll see you next time on the next installment of this old blog.

PS. Here’s a pic of Maggie. She’s been a big help too, keeping Estela sane and giving me some exercise. We’re really glad Bill and Edith brought her with!

Maggie Joe keeps us all entertained...