Interiors

With the end of November upon us, we've been making a big push to keep the house moving forward so we can try and meet our goal of moving in over winter break when we'll have two weeks off from school.

Sean and Mickey have been tediously working at the house, and they finished all the porch railings just in time. This fall has been unseasonably warm, so they were able to work on them with temperatures still in the 50s. We got our first decent snow of the season last night, and the guys are glad to have all of the exterior work complete. The front railing still needs paint, but that can wait for a couple more weeks when that crew returns for final interior painting.
Meanwhile, the guys have been focused on interior trim jobs that are Mickey's specialty. All of the doors have been hung, and they're now trimming windows and doors. Each window has nearly 20 pieces of trim to perfectly cut and install, and they have the traditional Craftsman look we've tried to use throughout the design of the house.
The tile in the two upstairs bathrooms is ready for grout, too. The master shower has a band of pinwheel tiles that match the floor of the bathroom.
The Jack and Jill kid's bathroom tile is also nearly finished. Vick will add the coordinating tile band tomorrow to complete it.
Meanwhile, Jesse and Al started work on the drain field Monday. Heavy rains all day Tuesday delayed the project, but hopefully they'll be able to install the rest of the septic field by the end of the week. Several elms had to be removed for the installation, and we were glad that we didn't have to lose any more oak or cherry.

All of our lighting has arrived, and we're anxious to have it installed along with the counters. There are tons of interior trim jobs to work on in the meantime, so Sean and Mickey will keep busy making closets, floor to ceiling book shelves for the library, and a handy bench and storage system for the mudroom.

Fall Color

In the last couple of weeks we've made a lot of progress on the exterior and interior of the house. The front and back porch decking is down, and the rails are being worked on. The furnace and well have been hooked up and are chugging away. Interior paint is up and awaits touch ups closer to the move in date.

Sean and Mickey were busy this week installing the kitchen, bath, and laundry room cabinets. The counters will be measured this week, and installation should take place the last week of November. Here is a view of the kitchen from the dining room.
Aimee and her mom Linda were busy staining wood for the back porch railing and a few other oak pieces that will be used to finish off the porch posts. Sean helped get the staining set up while Peter supervised the work from his Pack n Play.
We have been lucky to have a mild fall, and temperatures today were in the low 60s. Sean made a cozy fire in the fireplace, and Peter was happy to take what will surely be one of many naps alongside it.
The back porch railing with stain that matches the posts.
The front porch railing in the making. Notice the newly stained and finished boot and cap on the post.
Tile work will continue this week, and interior doors will also be delivered. The septic field site is prepped and ready for Jesse to come out soon. It's exciting to check off items on the to-do list that seemed so far away when we broke ground in June, and we look forward to moving in after Christmas.