What a week . . . it didn't rain! Well, okay, so it did start raining yesterday but not until 3:30, which meant the guys were still able to work on our house nearly all day and certainly all week. This was the first week since we began building two weeks before Thanksgiving that they were able to work all five days. During the past two weeks, they have been working on the roof.Work began on the center section of the house. The rafters went up first. And since my last post, they finished framing the second floor. You can see Hannah Kate's room now. It's on the left. The two openings in her room are French doors that will lead out onto a small balcony. The kids' bathroom is in the middle with the small window, and Mason's room is on the right with the bigger window. And, yeah, I'm really glad I wasn't that guy up on top!
It took several days for them to finish the rafters in the middle section.
It was also during this time that I realized I hadn't posted any pictures of the back of the house. As a matter of fact, I hadn't taken any! It had been too wet and muddy to even think about setting foot in the back yard. As a matter of fact, it is wet and muddy EVERYWHERE. So wet and mud . . . and Mason and Hannah Kate . . . well, let's just say that created a very precarious situation for me every time we went to the house. So I had to remedy that one. Rubber boots. Yes, very unfashionable, I know but also very necessary when you're building a house during the rainy season in south Louisiana. But just because they're unfashionable doesn't mean they have to be ugly. Okay, so really there's absolutely nothing cute about rubber boots. But I must say my zebra striped boots are about as cute as you can get in the rubber boot department! I was hoping to find a cute pair of cheetah print ones for Hannah Kate, but the only ones I could find in her size were Hello Kitty. She loves them though. And Mason has camo, of course! So here we are in our boots!
So now that I have my rubber boots, I can give you a tour of the back of our house! the garage is on the left. The master bedroom/bathroom is on the right. The rest of the living area is in the middle, which is the two-story part. The four windows that you see on the left side of the first floor look into the breakfast area/eat-in kitchen. And then to the right is the family room. There will be French doors leading to the back porch. The doors are flanked on each side by two windows. The family room is open all the way through the second floor so the three square windows you see above the area I just described are in the family room, too. And then to the left of those three square windows is the area that is the playroom. That's where the other window is.
Once they finished the rafters in the center section, they went ahead and sheeted that section before starting on the roof over the garage and master suite. I must admit . . . the day I drove up and saw this, it took my breath away . . . it just looked so huge to me! After the slab was poured, we were doubtful. We knew what the plans said, how much square footage was in each room, but it just didn't seem possible. It didn't seem like even a table and chairs would fit in the dining room or a piano in the music room. And it seemed like the cabinets would just eat up the space in the kitchen with nothing left. We fretted that the family room was tiny. But as the walls started going up, we could visualize it a little better and realized that, yes, we can get a table and chairs in the dining room, the piano will have plenty of space and the family room is just fine. But this . . . just makes it look monstrous! I guess it's deceptive though. The right side of the house is really only the garage. The left side of the house is only the master bed and bath. And the middle is the kitchen, dining room, music room, family room, play room and kids' bedrooms/bath. Since the family room ceiling goes all the way through the second floor, all of the space you see on the second floor isn't square footage at all. It's very humbling . . . I can tell you only that this is a gift from God! We are here because of His abundant provision and blessing upon our lives and our family. Anyway, here it is.
They actually didn't finish the middle section until yesterday. I thought they'd go home and wait until next week before starting on the roof on the rest of the house, but I was pleasantly surprised when they didn't. They immediately started working on the rafters over the garage. Our builder said this section of the roof, as well as the section over the master, will go much quicker since it isn't as steep and as high as the middle section. Even though the forecast calls for rain late Tuesday and all day Wednesday, he said they should completely finish with the roof next week!
The picture below was taken from the back of the house.
So at the end of the day yesterday, this is what it looked like:
The kids and I spent the better part of the last two days cleaning up . . . you know, picking up all the garbage left behind by the guys . . . it was ridiculous! Let's just say that I made sure I was there the past two days when they left for the day, and they promptly picked up their empty bottles and coke cans, leftover bologna sandwiches, vienna sausage cans, Now and Later wrappers and tobacco products and took them with them! There were lots of scrap pieces of boards and lumber to haul out to the burn pile. And it has taken forever to get the inside swept and free of nails, staples and sawdust. But I must say . . . it's been some of the most rewarding physical labor I've ever done! Besides, I have two very good helpers . . . well, most of the time. Here they are sitting in the doorway that leads to the back porch and taking a sucker break . . . aren't they ADORABLE?!?
So now that I have my rubber boots, I can give you a tour of the back of our house! the garage is on the left. The master bedroom/bathroom is on the right. The rest of the living area is in the middle, which is the two-story part. The four windows that you see on the left side of the first floor look into the breakfast area/eat-in kitchen. And then to the right is the family room. There will be French doors leading to the back porch. The doors are flanked on each side by two windows. The family room is open all the way through the second floor so the three square windows you see above the area I just described are in the family room, too. And then to the left of those three square windows is the area that is the playroom. That's where the other window is.Once they finished the rafters in the center section, they went ahead and sheeted that section before starting on the roof over the garage and master suite. I must admit . . . the day I drove up and saw this, it took my breath away . . . it just looked so huge to me! After the slab was poured, we were doubtful. We knew what the plans said, how much square footage was in each room, but it just didn't seem possible. It didn't seem like even a table and chairs would fit in the dining room or a piano in the music room. And it seemed like the cabinets would just eat up the space in the kitchen with nothing left. We fretted that the family room was tiny. But as the walls started going up, we could visualize it a little better and realized that, yes, we can get a table and chairs in the dining room, the piano will have plenty of space and the family room is just fine. But this . . . just makes it look monstrous! I guess it's deceptive though. The right side of the house is really only the garage. The left side of the house is only the master bed and bath. And the middle is the kitchen, dining room, music room, family room, play room and kids' bedrooms/bath. Since the family room ceiling goes all the way through the second floor, all of the space you see on the second floor isn't square footage at all. It's very humbling . . . I can tell you only that this is a gift from God! We are here because of His abundant provision and blessing upon our lives and our family. Anyway, here it is.They actually didn't finish the middle section until yesterday. I thought they'd go home and wait until next week before starting on the roof on the rest of the house, but I was pleasantly surprised when they didn't. They immediately started working on the rafters over the garage. Our builder said this section of the roof, as well as the section over the master, will go much quicker since it isn't as steep and as high as the middle section. Even though the forecast calls for rain late Tuesday and all day Wednesday, he said they should completely finish with the roof next week!The picture below was taken from the back of the house.So at the end of the day yesterday, this is what it looked like:The kids and I spent the better part of the last two days cleaning up . . . you know, picking up all the garbage left behind by the guys . . . it was ridiculous! Let's just say that I made sure I was there the past two days when they left for the day, and they promptly picked up their empty bottles and coke cans, leftover bologna sandwiches, vienna sausage cans, Now and Later wrappers and tobacco products and took them with them! There were lots of scrap pieces of boards and lumber to haul out to the burn pile. And it has taken forever to get the inside swept and free of nails, staples and sawdust. But I must say . . . it's been some of the most rewarding physical labor I've ever done! Besides, I have two very good helpers . . . well, most of the time. Here they are sitting in the doorway that leads to the back porch and taking a sucker break . . . aren't they ADORABLE?!?The windows were ordered a couple of weeks ago, and the millworks company finished all of the doors the week after Christmas. Those should go in soon. The inside stairs are supposed to be built this upcoming week. I also have to go pick out the shingles this week. As soon as the roof is finished, we'll begin the electrical and mechanical work. We're going to do that work ourselves. Okay, so actually Seth's dad is going to do the work, and we are going to assist. Fun times ahead for sure!