NaBloPoMo April 2014

Here we go again, National Blog Posting Month where I vow to post something once a day for the entire 30 days of April.  Are you ready?  Get set....  Write....

Perhaps I will sleepwalk around my house that month, maybe even go outside?!  I could watch lots of sci-fi television before bed in honor of the occasion...  Lord knows we own every episode of Dr. Who that my oldest is obsessed with.  I even bought him a bow tie ("Bow ties are cool")  and he wears it.  With his sweatshirt.  And jeans.  Some things don't change.

Doctor Who prompts surge in popularity of bow ties!

Around the house, projects we have in store for you:  painting the West side, digging a trench for drainage (yes very exciting), burning things and raking up stuff, and tilling the garden.  We also plan to start demolishing the upstairs bathroom and while we are at it, the dining room (hey! why not).  Also, it is about time to call the PLASTERER for the hallway.  Now that will be exciting!  I mean walls are fabulous, but walls that can be painted a color are nirvana!

So stay tuned and check back often.  You never know what might be posted...

Where were we...I forget!

The support beam which will soon be covered up...

At long last, a house update.  I know, I know...it has been awhile, I promise, things are slowly moving along...

Okay, the truth is, the husband got sucked into the basement for a few weeks and I despaired of him ever coming up.

The wall and beam before plaster board.

I thought we had agreed to finish the hallway next, but somehow that morphed into insulating the basement stairway.  Insulation = good.  I cannot argue with insulation.  However the project required cleaning out the existing, inferior, or lack thereof insulation, rebuilding the wall framing, cutting insulation (both backed and hard foam), and numerous discussions on where to put a light in the stairway.  We also covered up a non-functional window that looks into a crawlspace and stopped to admire the rabbits that are wintering under the house!

The insulation project morphed into better basement lighting, which resulted in wiring no less than 13 overhead lights, and figuring out the wiring circuits.   Let's just say the basement now lights up like a Christmas tree (minus the pretty colors) and illuminates all the spiderwebs and dirt quite nicely.  Yes Virginia, I can also now see the laundry!

This past few weeks he surfaced and began once again adding plaster board to the hallway.  He has to cut wood strips to build out the wall so that the wallboard attaches and is level.  Then everything has to be cut to fit.  Then he has to coerce his assistant (me) into holding heavy things.  Usually the drill gets dropped at least once.  And if we are lucky, no one bleeds.  It takes a long time.  I think the rate is one piece of wallboard per day...

Sometimes, hanging plaster board also involves fixing the floor (don't ask, just accept that as the truth)!

Covering the beam, piece one.

Action shot!

We were (and still are) hoping to finish the hallway this winter.  We have until the end of March before outdoor projects commence (raking, burning, gardening, painting, you name it)...  As of today, March 16th, we have about 2 more sheets to go...

Walls! Walls in the stairway up to the second floor!

Walls!  Walls around the window.  Walls around the door.

Walls! Walls in the hallway.  Give me some more :-)