Trimwork: October 19th

On Friday, October 19th, John and I visited the house before taking care of several errands. That afternoon, we visited three different vendors, selecting carpet for the upstairs bedrooms and granite for the kitchen countertops and compared appliances (but haven't settled on final selections). All this shopping is a little foreign to us. Besides this Friday, we've also been shopping at home in Georgia trying to purchase all the light fixtures we need. I guess we could kindly be described as frugal. Our issue is that instead of seeing a single purchase price for the house, we are actually seeing what each component costs, and that can be a bit overwhelming.

Since our last visit, the builder has been hanging doors and doing as much trim work as he could while waiting for the cabinet contractor to return from vacation. There is trim around the windows, crown moulding and baseboards - we are very pleased with how it looks, but photos don't really capture it as a dramatic change - the white trim disappears against the white primed walls. The stairs below are a clearly visible change, however:

Here I am next to the fireplace, which is ready for the rock. Note that I am holding stickers in my left hand that I was peeling off the windows (I couldn't help myself!)

October 6th

The last time we were up to the house, there were multiple crews at work and John and I were too overwhelmed to even remember to take pictures! So this update is a bit overdue. This Saturday, Scott (the builder) was concerned that I was not as chatty/smile-y as normal. I was feeling a little like the deer in the headlights. It is so hard to think we are closing in on a project that has occupied my mind and emotions for almost two years now. We are on the verge of reinventing our life style and that is - at times - a sobering thought.

Besides the progress on the house, we accomplished another to-do on this trip - we found a barn that we really were pleased with for Sunny and Skeeter. So they will move on or about the first of December - they may actually be moved in before we are! The farm has many large, green pastures and an open, air-y, pleasant barn and is only five miles from the house.

So - the wallboard is up inside the house, is primed and looking very white. This is a huge change and makes all the rooms look so much bigger. The hardwood floors are also down, but are covered up for time being:

The gravel driveway is also a new feature - Scott was able to straighten the drive out and shorten it from the orginal drawings - and shorter means less concrete = less expense. (I'm sure we'll spend it somewhere else!)

In response to the question we hear often "what will you DO up there?", here is one answer: watch the clouds come over the mountain.



On an earlier post, there is a photo of a huge pile of rocks, titled "future landscaping boulders?". Here is how many of those indigenous rocks have been used behind the house as a retaining wall. These rocks are both behind the house and on the side leading down to the area under the screened porch. I am very pleased with how this worked out.



John and I both LOVE the porch ceilings - they will be pickled white so that the wood grain will still show. The columns are fiberglass so fit in with our "no maintenance" requirement. (They are yet to be painted and finished)



Again, the view - this from our front door:

John on the front porch. Note the recessed lighting:

Driving away, the house from the street. We are trying not to dwell on the thought of yard work!

And back in Alpharetta, Jake [the handsome] in front of the townhouse - he is ready to move!