We're back in Ohio

We're back at work today after traveling home from Kansas yesterday. We started out by having a lovely breakfast with two of our good friends from Sterling (yeah for the Lightners). They had mercy on me and helped us pick out some of the paint colors for the house. They are talented in that way, and I am not! So we have most everything decided on that.

The drywall guy is going to start mudding this afternoon or tomorrow. We are waiting on the heaters at the moment. Since we don't have our HVAC unit hooked up yet (that's a different story), we have to bring in propane heaters so that the drywall mud won't crack and pull the seams apart. This process will probably take a week or two to complete. After that is dry, we will be ready to paint, and then finish trim, electrical, and flooring. We are debating how much of this we should do ourselves. We are trying to hurry, since we are paying interest only until we officially "close" on our loan, and the interest rate is pretty high.

I'll try to post Chicago, new house, and Christmas pictures on here when I find my computer and the time to do it.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to everyone! We are having a wondering time visiting my family in Kansas. We are headed to Stafford in a few hours to spend Christmas with my grandma's side of the family. It's always a fun gathering!

Our drywall continues to progress, although they aren't working again until tomorrow. When we get back, we are looking forward to getting our garage door installed, and finishing up the decisions on our paint, as we will need to be doing that in a week or two.

That's all for now! I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!

All I want for Christmas. . . .

I'm getting what I really want for Christmas . . . drywall in my house. They started today! Hooray! I'm on my way over there to take a look at what they've done and possibly take some pictures. We are headed to Kansas tonight, so we'll have to get pictures now, or when it's done.

I'm so blessed to work where I do. I not only have a positive work environment, and good benefits, but the congregation is so friendly and appreciative. Let me list for you, the gifts I've received this Christmas: a bag of cookies, a box of candy canes, a devotional book, a stationary set, a bag of chocolates, a box of ESTHER PRICE chocolates (I just ate one), a nativity wall hanging, a Santa ornament, a CD, a scripture ornament, and a very yummy pecan butter coffee cake.

Merry Christmas a little early!

Drywall Time!

I received a call this morning from the inspector at Butler County. They are letting us pass the foundation inspection, as long as we write a note to the county saying we realize that we don't have straw on top of the drain tile. We are having an insulation inspection today, which we are pretty certain will pass, and then we'll be ready to drywall!! Yeah! I'm very excited.

Passing the time!

I'm amazingly bored at work. I just got done folding tons of bulletins, so I'm taking a break and posting this. I'm hoping this will keep my mind of off our inspection with an unknown result.

1. ONE OF YOUR SCARS, HOW DID YOU GET IT? gallbladder surgery Jan of 04

2. WHAT IS ON THE WALLS IN YOUR ROOM? a quilt, my earring holder, a picture, etc.

3. WHAT DOES YOUR CELL PHONE LOOK LIKE? it's pink and razor-like

4. WHAT MUSIC DO YOU LIKE TO LISTEN TO? I like almost anything. I usually listen to praise and worship music.

5. DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME YOU WERE BORN? Around 6 am, I think

6. WHAT DO YOU WANT MORE THAN ANYTHING RIGHT NOW? my house to be finished!

7. WHAT DO YOU MISS? family and friends I've moved away from

8. WHAT IS YOUR MOST PRIZED POSSESSION? I have no idea.

9. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SMELL? rain or my tea brewing device making Orance and Spice at work.

10. DO YOU GET CLAUSTROPHOBIC? not generally

11. DO YOU GET SCARED OF THE DARK? only if I'm alone for a long time and awake

12. What? what..what..

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE COLOGNE / PERFUME? I'm not sure, I like lots

14. WHAT KIND OF HAIR DO YOU LIKE ON THE OPPOSITE SEX? duh, red heads, of course

15. WHERE CAN YOU SEE YOURSELF BEING PROPOSED TO AT? well, since that already happened, I'd have to say Sterling Lake.

16. COFFEE OR ENERGY DRINKS? Tea only

17. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PIZZA TOPPING? it changes, probably sausage

18. IF YOU COULD EAT ANYTHING RIGHT NOW, WHAT WOULD IT BE? Coconut pecan pie or a warm brownie with ice cream and caramel

19. WHO IS THE LAST PERSON YOU MADE MAD? Ha! I probably shouldn't answer this question on here. Let's just say it was someone that I live with.

20. DO YOU SPEAK A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE? sing . . . yes, speak . . . no

21. WHAT WAS THE FIRST GIFT SOMEONE EVER GAVE YOU (OF THE OPPOSITE SEX): a hockey puck

22. DO YOU LIKE ANYBODY? Yes, I like a lot of people! My husband, family, and friends.

23. ARE YOU DOUBLE JOINTED? Yep, my elbows. It's gross!

24. FAVORITE CLOTHING BRAND? I'm not sure I have a favorite right now. Anything that fits and looks ok.

25. WHAT`S YOUR DREAM CAR? Chrysler 500 (black with tan leather interior)

27. WHAT IS ONE OF YOUR DREAMS? finish my house and have a family or be in a touring singing group

29. WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO TELL SOMEONE HOW MUCH THEY MEAN TO YOU? I've always been a fan of writing notes. That way they can keep it with them. (I like getting notes too).

30. SAY A NUMBER FROM ONE TO A HUNDRED:7

31. BLONDES OR BRUNETTES? I've always wanted to see what being blonde would be like but I generally like my brunette hair.

32. WHAT IS THE ONE NUMBER YOU CALL MOST OFTEN? Butler County Building Department (I've got it memorized).

33. WHAT ANNOYS YOU MOST? guilt or farting (at home) and way way overprotective parents (at work)

34. HAVE YOU BEEN OUT OF THE U.S? yep! Canada once, and Europe twice.

35. YOUR WEAKNESSES? Caring too much what everyone thinks about unimportant stuff (like appearance and money)

36. WHERE DO YOU WANT TO LIVE? I'd like to try several places out. Chicago, Hawaii, New Zealand, or Europe

37. FIRST JOB? babysitting

38. EVER DONE A PRANK CALL? Yes, in middle school, until my friend's mom got mad and I got chewed out. I NEVER did it again.

39. WHAT WERE YOU DOING BEFORE YOU FILLED OUT THIS SURVEY? working!

40. IF YOU COULD GET PLASTIC SURGERY WHAT WOULD IT BE? tummy tuck or something done with my hips!

41. WHY DID YOU FILL OUT THIS SURVEY? taking a break from work

42. WHAT DO YOU GET COMPLIMENTED ABOUT MOST? singing at Monroe Pres probably

43. WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF ALCOHOL BECAME ILLEGAL? wouldn't make much difference to me (besides cooking).

44. WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY? a nice relaxing dinner in my new house (hopefully)

45. HOW MANY KIDS DO YOU WANT? I've always thought I wanted four. Now that I want to adopt as well as have biological kids, I'm not sure how that will turn out.

46. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? just my middle name, after my Grandpa

47. DO YOU WISH ON STARS? No.

48. WHICH FINGER[S] IS YOUR FAVORITE? the one with the diamonds on it!

49. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? last night (I think a few times).

50. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? If I don't write too fast.

51. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?i really don't like lunch meat (or any other kind of processed meat). I will eat turkey but that's about it.

52. ANY BAD HABITS? My main bad habit is worry!

53. WHAT IS YOUR MOST EMBARRASSING CD ON THE SHELF? hmm, I don't think I have any embarrassing CD's. Andrew's first CD was the bodyguard, that's sort of embarrassing.

54. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Probably. It takes a while for me to form deep relationships with people, so I hope I'd stick around.

55. HAVE YOU EVER TOLD A SECRET YOU SWORE NOT TO TELL? probably when I was younger

56. DO LOOKS MATTER? Generally, no. I try to keep myself presentable but not spend too much time or money dwelling on it as I think there are more important things in life.

57. HOW DO YOU RELEASE ANGER? Oh, all sorts of immature things. Andrew usually lets me beat on him for a while and then I end up crying.

58. WHERE IS YOUR SECOND HOME? umm, where is my first home?? Actually, my second home right now is probably my in-law's house.

59. DO YOU TRUST OTHERS EASILY? not strangers but if I know people I'm pretty trusting.

60. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD? any doll

61. WHAT ARE THE FIRST THREE NUMBERS IN YOUR CELL PHONE? 513

63. DO YOU USE SARCASM?at times. I try to not overuse it.

64. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN IN A MOSH PIT? no..

65. WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN A GUY/GIRL? loves God, emotionally stable, caring, sense of humor (a.k.a my husband)

66. WHAT ARE YOUR NICKNAMES? Jaimer

68. DO YOU UN-TIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? nope

69. WHO IS YOUR CRUSH? Umm, I'm married.

70. WHAT`S YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR? Coconut or Toffee Chip

71. WHEN IS THE LAST TIME YOU WENT ON A DATE? I do believe that was last Friday night.

72. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE COLORS? red, pink, and black (to wear)

73. HOW MANY WISDOM TEETH DO YOU HAVE? They were ALL removed in March

74. WHO/WHAT DO YOU MISS MOST RIGHT NOW? My family, good friends and Sterling co-workers

75. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS? it would be fun but it takes a lot of time

76. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? preschool kiddos having play time the the gym here at the church. They are excited because today is their last day before Christmas.

77. LAST THING YOU ATE? sandwich

78. LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Jenny my sis

79. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE IN THE OPPOSITE SEX?walk

80. FAVORITE THOUGHT PROVOKING SONG? I Will Trust in You (Craig Aven, the Worship Leader at our church)

81. FAVORITE THING TO HATE: right now it's the Butler County Building dept. Just kidding. I don't really hate much.

82. FAVORITE DRINK? Cranberry or peach tea.

83. FAVORITE ZODIAC SIGN: I have no idea.

84. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SPORT? football to watch, tennis to play

85. HAIR COLOR?light brown

86. EYE COLOR? I've never really known. Depends on what I'm wearing.

87. DO YOU WEAR GLASSES? only after I take my contacts out.

88. SIBLINGS? yes, a sister and a brother

89. FAVORITE MONTH? May!

90. YOU LIKE SUSHI? Yes!

91. LAST THING YOU WATCHED?The weather channel this morning

92. FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR? Hmm, probably May 25th (our anniversary)

93. ARE YOU TOO SHY TO ASK SOMEONE OUT? Not Applicable!

94. SUMMER OR WINTER? SUMMER!!

95. KISSES OR HUGS?both please, I prefer hugs, and lots of them!

96. RELATIONSHIPS OR ONE NIGHT STANDS? relationships

97. WHO IS THE MOST LIKELY TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS? Amy Doane perhaps?

98. WHO IS THE LEAST LIKELY TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS? Jennie or Maggie! :) Althought it would be fun if they did!

99. WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING? Born O'Hurley. I wouldn't recommend it.

100. IS ANYONE IN LOVE WITH YOU? Yes, my husband is. He's told me several times today!

On Pins and Needles!

We ended up having to dig up two corners of our backfill so the inspector could look at our foundation. He discovered that we were missing straw in our backfill. I'd never heard of this before. He's still not sure whether or not he is going to make us dig up the whole foundation and backfill again with straw on top of the gravel or not ("yes, Merry Christmas to you Mr. Inspector"). He is going to try and pass our foundation "as is" through his boss tomorrow morning. I hate the waiting game. I wish I would just know what was happening. The guy is really nice, so I do trust him to do what he can to help us. Hopefully, he will get this cleared through the county for us and we'll be able to drywall later this week (maybe Thursday or Friday). We'll have a significant setback if we have to redo the backfill. I'm supposed to call and find out our verdict tomorrow morning at 8:30 am, so I'll keep you all informed.

Daily Advice: If you would like to be sane, don't build a house by YOURSELF! This is not for the faint of heart!

Inspections Inspections

We are meeting a county inspector to look at our foundation this morning. Let's hope and pray that he won't make us dig up a corner of it (the excavators are so expensive) but I have a feeling we'll have too. I hope this all gets worked out this week.

I was welcomed to work today by three Christmas cards, two bags of goodies, and a gift from one of my co-workers. I'm such a bum or a scrooge this year, for not doing nice things for my co-workers. I would make them some Christmas goodies, but I'm having a difficult time finding time or a kitchen!

We failed again!

I'm back at work today. I came in for a few hours yesterday but felt terrible, so I went to the doctor and then home. I have a sinus infection. It made it in today by about 11:00 am and feel a bit better than yesterday but I probably won't stay the whole day long. My head is pounding.

We've had a terrible mess with the house. First of all, the county called Andrew and our UBI office to say that we never had a foundation inspection. This is true. . . because I called the county before we backfilled and a lady there told me that "you only have to have an inspection if it's a walk-out basement." Well, now they are saying that we'll have to dig up one little corner so they can inspect it. This stinks, it really does. The inspector also found three things that he thought we should fix with the framing. Two of them don't make sense to us, so we'll need to get that figured out. This whole things just makes me dislike the government even more! Anyway, I'm sort of foggy headed right now, so I can't explain everything that we have to fix. The inspector said to go ahead and insulate but we can't get that inspected until we pass the framing inspection. So, we have insulation being installed right now, but we can't move past that until we get several things taken care of.

All for now!

We didn't pass!

I decided to stay home from work due to terrible sinus congestion and constant sneezing. Anyway, I just went out to check and see if we passed the framing inspection and the "fail" sticker said that we had to have the approved set of plans at the house for the inspector. The frustrating part is that I called the building department this morning to ask if there was anything the inspector needed and all they said was that he needed access to the house. Argh! So, I guess the real inspection is tomorrow.

We PASSED!

Andrew just called from the house to say that we passed our electrical inspection on the second try! Yeah yeah yeah!! I'm so excited to be moving on to things that I can help with! On to the framing inspection tomorrow. . .

Weekend Happenings and Inspections

We had an action packed weekend. On Friday night, we joined several other "young married" couples (we're the longest married) :( from Grace Chapel for a Christmas party. It was so much fun, despite the fact that we played a pretty intense getting-to-know-you game that asked some personal questions! I then woke up on Saturday with a bit of a sore throat. I went on to help clean the Monroe church anyway. I then helped Andrew finish up some of the electrical stuff at our house. I'm getting quite helpful in my ability to connect grounds, drill holes, and help run wire. I just wish I had learned all of this earlier in this process! Then on Sunday, I taught two hours of Sunday school in the morning. I still wasn't feeling the best, so I hope that it was good. I was pretty foggy, so I'm not sure how it went. Then in the late afternoon, I headed down to Fairfield to watch one of my students in a Christmas play at her church. She played the part of Mary and had several solos. She did such a good job singing. I wasn't able to stick around to talk to her afterwards because our family headed over to watch Wayne and Susan's church choir in their Christmas program later in the evening.

I debated whether to go to work today. Not because I feel that sick, just a stuffy nose, and a sore throat (which I suspect is just a product of bad allergies) but I have four sick days yet and there wasn't much going on today. In the end, I decided to come anyway. I'm going to have to cancel a few of my lessons tonight, due to the fact I can't really sing with my nose so plugged! Oh well. I'm just thankful that I don't feel that sick.

We are having another electrical inspection today. If we pass, which I think we will, then I can call in for a framing inspection tomorrow, if we pass that, then we can have the insulation installed on Wednesday, and after that is done the drywall can be hung! We can really move if we pass these two inspections! I'll let you know!

Top 10 Reasons I Love my Sister!

I've created the following list from my trip to Chicago.

Top 10 Reasons I Love my Sister (and love to visit her):

10) She always comes to pick me up, even if I'm on a street corner (in downtown Chicago)!

9) We can hobble along together on the ice and not seem too weird or too old.

8) She made me some yummy fondue (cheese and chocolate).

7) She lets me hang out with a group of all Psychologists, which I found wonderfully refreshing.

6) She is fascinated with my ability to do a sinus cleanse!

5) We can talk about things, like exclamation marks, for long periods of time.

4) She warns me before having to hold hands in church, after singing the Jesse Tree song.

3) She takes me to the nationally ranked, Wheaton College Cafeteria.

2) She pumped up my air mattress with a hand pump. It was funny!

1) She let me meet her date for this weekend, and didn't get mad when I remarked about how normal he was compared to her other dates (and didn't get mad when I told the date that she had broken her nose in basketball . . . . although to my defense, that was better than saying "oh my, I think I have on someone else's pants").

Chicago Update

I had a fabulous time in Chicago! My sister and I spent many hours just hanging out together and talking. We also had fun going to tea at the Urban Tea Lounge, attending the Wheaton College Christmas concert, making fondue, and a volleyball tournament. I have a few pictures that I'll put on later. We both miss Sasha living in Chicago and hope that she comes home soon!

Well, we have continued to postpone our electrical inspections. Andrew continues to talk to the inspector and find things to fix. I think this is just fine. The inspectors will charge per visit, so it's better to get it right first, rather than have the inspector back time and time again. I'm obviously ready to be in our new house, but I realize the benefits of being patient.

No Inspections

No inspections yet. Andrew talked to the electrical inspector on Thursday morning and discovered some things he's got to fix. We are having our official electrical inspection on Monday. I will be in Chicago (yeah, yeah, yeah), weather permitting, visiting my sister. I can't wait, if you couldn't tell. I'm taking mega bus and my ticket was under $25. I had to change it once, so that made it cost a bit more. :) I would so move to Chicago, if Andrew would go with me. I wonder how I love going to the city so much, and Andrew loves going to the country. It's a mystery. Anyway, I heard some fantastic lyrics today (Big Daddy Weave). They really hit the point of what we've been hearing about in church lately. Enjoy!

I try to hold my own life in my own hand

Frustration sets in, thought I had this

Failure is the one thing that I can’t stand

Oh, You remind me that taking care of me

Was never in my job description.

Oh, now I’m finding You want to fix it all

You’re just waiting for permission

I’m giving up, I’m letting go

Of everything that I’ve held onto

I’m giving up, I’m letting go

Of everything that I’ve let hold me

Far too long (for so long)

Lord I know I need to give

You full control

Help me give up and let go

I want to trust You with my whole heart

Not lean on what I think I understand

And even when I can’t see Jesus, help me still to believe

You’re unveiling an unfailing plan

Oh, but sometimes the old me creeps back in

Oh, and the only thing I know to do is give it all to You again

Help me give up, help me let go Help me give it all to You

Inspection Update

I called for an inspection this morning and found out that we have to have the electrical inspection before the framing inspection. So, I requested that, which will take place tomorrow. I will call in the other one, once we pass the electric. We'll see how it goes tomorrow. Hopefully we pass right away, or just have minor things to change!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's been so long since I've posted. I can't believe that I actually let it go a week without writing anything. I think that's been the longest break thus far! I hopefully won't do that again! Anyway, we're moving forward with the house. Andrew has one major project left with the electric and we'll be ready for inspection. We're having the insulation guys out tomorrow to do firestopping (plugging up all the holes in the walls with caulk to prevent fire from spreading . . . heaven forbid if ever a fire). We are planning on calling in for our framing inspection (this is the big one, folks) on Thursday. I hoping that we can both meet the inspector out there. It's pretty rare (I've heard) to pass this inspection the first time (not to mention passing the electrical inspection), so let's hope and pray that we won't have much to fix! If we don't pass, we'll be pushing the insulation and drywall back a bit. I'm so ready to be painting and well . . . moving in!!! I still haven't decided on all the colors yet (umm, help!!!). Our major deadline now, is Andrew's schoolwork resuming in January. I don't want him to be working on the trim, cabinets, or hardwood floors (as he says he's doing) when he needs to be studying.

We had a calm and relaxing Thanksgiving here. Andrew and I were able to "escape" down to Shaker Village for a night on Friday night. Andrew had been wanting to go for his birthday, so . . . we used his birthday money to pay for the trip. It was so nice to just get away from everything for a night. He can play a mean game of checkers! I almost had him beat for a while (because I'm sneaky) but he beat me in the end. It was so fun and relaxing just to do something else than talk about the house and make those kind of heavy decisions with him!!

I'll keep you updated on the inspection, etc. I'm so hoping that we pass and are drywalling by next weekend!!

Sinus Wars!

I've struggled with sinus problems ever since I can remember. Upon moving to Ohio, my sinus problems have gotten much worse! My nose doesn't agree with the air, I guess. Most recently, the chiropractor has said to me that she thinks she can fix my sinus problem. I am overjoyed to hear this but skeptical at the same time. She has adjusted me twice, thus far, in order to correct a sinus headache that I've had. Neither time has worked! :( As I'm faced, again today, with another pounding sinus headache (and no, drugs don't have any effect), I wonder what the solution might be. I have sinus headaches approximately 5 out of 7 days a week (especially lately). Argh!! Any ideas?

We've finally set a bit of a deadline for the electric to be finished. We're hoping to have our framing inspection on November 28th!! It's not set in stone but we're hoping for that date! After that, we can proceed with the insulation, drywall, and finish carpentry!!

Siding Pictures . . . Finally!!

Back of the house with siding.

One side to go with siding

House on 11/19/2006 with siding and trim

Calm

I fear we're in the calm before the storm, the Christmas storm I mean. Things at work have been unusually slow but I hear about the dreaded (although that word is rarely used) Advent season. The church calendar picks up with several services per week, etc. I've used this time to try to get all organized and ahead in some projects.

The siding is mostly up on the house and I promise pictures sometime soon. I bought batteries today, so my camera will be functioning soon. I am so pleased that I learned how to do something useful at the house. I'm shimming the windows myself.

Also, my good friend, Connie, and two of her friends, are coming to stay this weekend. They are actually here to attend a youth gathering in Cincinnati. Should be fun, folks!

No Title

We are still hunting for a car. I made several phone calls yesterday, only to discover many of the cars we were interested in from dealerships were already sold. We do have an appointment with a guy from Dayton to look at his 1995 Honda. The price is really good for the car but we are leery as the guy said his ex-girlfriend ran the car into a guardrail when it was icy. Ah the drama! We'll see if we like it or not.

I received a call, the other day, from the May Festival Manager. They are opening up one concert in January, this year, to any former singers, if they want to return. I really wanted to do it, because of the music and it's just fun to be around good musicians, but Andrew convinced me (or made me think) that I would be completely stressed and busy if I did that. I would drive down to practice on every Tuesday night (minus the holidays) until the end of January. As much as I really want to do it, I just have to think that I'll do it again when I'm not so busy.

I started seeing a chiropractor this week. I had a stiff neck that wouldn't go away for almost a month. She found that almost my entire neck was out of whack (my term not hers) and the natural curve supposed to be in my neck was gone. So, after receiving my first adjustment yesterday, I'm here at work, trying my best to use the proper posture she told me too. I never thought I had that bad of posture before, but I guess so. I also realize that if I'm ever using my mouse at work, I have to really slump over and lean forward to use it! My keyboard is on a pull-out thing but my mouse is not. I tried moving it this morning, so we'll see if that helps.

Ok, all for now! I've got to get to work on the newsletter!

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles! :)

Well, just automobiles, in our case. We found out that our car is a bit beyond repair. It has a bad transmission, and a leaky valve resulting in the cost of the repairs totally about twice what the car is worth. We're going to try to get a few hundred dollars from it and buy another car. We have our eye on a 1997 Toyota Camry that is around $4,000. We own another Toyota Camry and love it! We were also commenting to each other that it might get confusing around our family since two other people own the same model and color of that car! Actually there are a total of six Camry's in the family and if we buy this one, it would total seven!! :) We should take a picture!

The siding guy is working today. I'll take some pictures tonight, if there is anything to see. He says that it should only take him one week to finish, so we'll see. I bought a kitchen sink and bathtub/shower faucet yesterday. I ended up with a cast iron sink because the other ones felt way to cheap!

Well, that's about all for now. We're just plugging away on the electric, cleaning things up, and moving forward on things. I'm hoping we can have drywall in by/around the 17th of November. I'd like it in before Thanksgiving anyway. All for now!

Election Day

Well, it's election day. For me this means that my place of employment will be packed today, because it is a voting location! It's been hairy this morning! :) But I won't go into that.

We received our car title yesterday!! Yeah!! I am headed to Middletown today at lunch to sign the title over to an Ohio one and get the plates. And again I say . . . yeah! I also have a chiropractor appointment at 6:00 pm tonight. My neck has been out for a long time. We get 12 "free" visits per year. Since there are only two months left in the year, I figured I'd be under that number.

After my lessons last night, I "drove" the Oldsmobile to a mechanics in Fairfield to be checked out today. I liked going down the hills because then the car would make it above 30 miles per hour. I think I pulled over about three times to let people pass. It wasn't too bad. Jennie came and picked me up (thank you Jennie!!) since Andrew was at work last night until 10:30 pm! I couldn't sleep, so I enjoyed a very funny "Whose Line" rerun. The mechanics are just checking out the problem, then we will decide whether or not it is worth the money to fix it. Unfortunately, I left my cell phone at home this morning (charging) and so I don't know if they called me yet or not. Thankfully, Susan (my m-i-l) works about 2 miles from me and she is bringing my phone over. I'll pick it up mid morning when I go to Middletown for the car tags. It'll be so nice to have our cars back again.

Andrew continues to work on the electric and says he'll be close to finished this weekend. Also, the siding guy starts this morning. Andrew met him before work. It should look MUCH different by the end of the week. I'm so excited!! I'll post lots of pictures when things look differently.

Don't worry, Mom . . . . I'm also going to vote at lunch today.

More Survey's

Ok, I realize that no one has commented in a while. Andrew suggested that I not write anymore until I got 7 different people to comment so . . . I'll think about that for the future. These survey's are way too much fun for the time being. Andrew loved the name one below, but didn't post anything (yet). The fun part (for me) is reading yours! So, please post yours in my comments! Here's another to enjoy!

1. Who was your best friend(s) in high school? Marie Chesbro

2. What sports did you play in high school? Tennis

3. What kind of car did you drive? 1991 Buick LeSabre (we called it Big Red)

4. It's Friday night, where were you? Probably at a sporting event (watching my sister)

5. Were you a party animal? . . . umm no

6. Were you considered a flirt? I don't think so . . . although that's where I first learned! :)

7. Ever skip school? Well, once I had a little "disagreement" with my PE teacher and went to the principal's office (I was friends with her daughters) and we just sat and chatted since it was the last day of school. I also "skipped" choir class once and this same principal wrote me an excused note! :)

8. Were you a nerd? Only a music nerd, not a book nerd

9. Did you get suspended/expelled? Definitely not! I followed all rules!

10. Can you sing the fight song? I don't think it has words

11. Who was your favorite teacher? Ms. Bennington (for letting us watch SO many movies), Mrs. Richardson (for letting me cook and sew during school), and Mrs. Suiter (for letting us read our library books and eat Peanut Butter M&M's everyday during spanish class . . . guess that's why I don't know ANY spanish).

12. Favorite Class? History, or English

13. What was your school's full name? St. John High School

14. School Mascot? Tiger

15. Did you go to Prom? Yeah!

16. If you could go back and do it over, would you? Try harder in Math class

17. What do you remember most about graduation? It was so quick and I had to pray infront of quite a few people!!

18. Favorite memory of your senior year? The musical

19. Where were you on senior skip day? There was no such thing.

20. Did you have a job your senior year? No, besides helping out on the farm. I worked at the bank, after I graduated.

21. Where did you go most often for lunch? Home or The Ruby Slipper

22. What did you do after graduation? Went to Sterling College

23. When did you graduate? 2000

24. Who was your senior prom date? Matt Fox

25. Are you going to your ten year reunion? If someone organizes one.

26. Who was your home room teacher? I don't remember having home room. We were so small, I don't think it was needed. Don't remember.

27. Who will repost this after you? I HOPE everyone does!

Trouble . . . not in River City but in Ohio!

Well, we waited too long to renew our car tags for the Toyota. Andrew took it in to work on Monday to get Ohio license plates when we discovered . . . we didn't have the title. I called the county in Kansas, and they said that our title was "in progress." Well, it has been "in progress" for three years now!! The lady apologized and said they would get it to us soon. So, in the mean time, we can't drive the Camry around, because it has expired tags. So, my considerate husband let me take his car to work, while he drove his parent's truck. On my way to work this morning, I was just driving along, being nice to the car, when all of a sudden, I went to press on the gas petal and it went clear to the floor with no reaction from the car. I coasted for a while and tried to figure out what to do. I pulled off into a subdivision and figured out that the car, while in drive, was only running in first gear. Well, I could manually put the car into first, second, and third, so I tried that and found it would run in third. The problem was that I couldn't get over about 25 mph without the rpm's getting too high. So, I called Andrew and then put putted my way to work. Now, I will just have to put put home tonight, too! I'm thinking the transmission went out. Ha, I'm faking you out! My husband told me that. I had no idea what was wrong with it. Anyway, I'm not sure what we'll do about cars but things could be worse. Speaking of . . .

The sweet girl, Ellie, in my Sunday school class, is having her third open heart surgery this morning at 9:00 am. They have amazing technology these days and her parents have a website where they update every so often. If you are interested in reading it and praying for her can email me at jaime_schechter@yahoo.com but I can only invite people to it through email.

My 10 Names

I'd love you to all participate! Copy and paste this into the comments and fill it out yourself! Enjoy!

1. YOUR DRAG QUEEN/KING NAME: (first pet & current street/road name)
Salty Yankee

2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (favorite ice cream flavor & favorite cookie)
Toffee Chip Ginger Snap

3. YOUR "SOOPER FLY" NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name)
jsch

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal)
Red Beagle

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born)
Dawn Stafford

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name, last 3 letters of mom's maiden name)
Schja Wal

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd favorite color, favorite drink put "The")
The Purple Vanilla Soda

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers)
Keith Donald

9. STRIPPER NAME: (the name of your favorite perfume/cologne)
Sunflowers

10.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (grandmother & grandfather's middle name)
Irene Franklin

Electric and other things . . .

I haven't updated much recently because things have slowed down considerably. Andrew started to work on the electric this weekend, despite the fact he is fighting a cold. I think he will recover quickly, as it seems to not be severe. I'm doing my best not to catch it (although, I've always caught his colds!) because I'm singing at Monroe Presbyterian next Sunday.

Our siding guy was pushed back another week, due to rain delays. That's fine since it is giving Andrew an opportunity to recover and finish this class he is in, while working slowly on the electric. He is also going to have to fix the stairs (they don't fit but were build to plan, we're not sure what happened) and frame in one more door upstairs to some attic space. I don't think we'll be in by Christmas now, but that's ok. I appreciate all the money we're saving by him doing the work.

I taught Sunday School this morning. It was a little tiring as I had to put my one sweet heart in time-out FOUR times! The lady who helped me, told me I did a great job with this girl, after the hour was over, even though I didn't feel things went well.

Well, that's it for now. I'm off to enjoy the last few remaining hours of the weekend!!

More pictures. . . finally

Yeah! Blogger is being wonderful tonight, imagine that! So, I am able to post lots and lots of pictures! Enjoy!

The beautiful tree in our neighbors yard!

The back sliding door is now installed. Wayne and Andrew figure out how to fix the crack at the top (so they can nail in the door)! They fixed it, of course.

The back of the house.

The view out of the double window in the upstairs bedroom. That window was a bear to install. I wasn't dragging it up the ladder but I was inside, scared to death!

Looking out one of the front dormers.

The view out of the upstairs bathroom window (it's small and high so you can't see in, really).

View of the house with all the windows installed!

Installing the door from the mud room to the back yard.

The view into the garage. All the windows and doors are waiting to be installed.

Dewey gets a hug from me (Jaime). I look a little psycho in this picture but there are others that are worse (believe it or not).

Downstairs back bedroom window is installed.

Looking into the mud room, then laundry room, from the kitchen door.

Who wants what?

After recently joining the myspace online community, I begun to reconnect with old friends that I haven't thought about in years. It has been good, in a way. It was at least, reminded me that I have friends. It has also gotten me thinking about Sterling and our life there. I know that it has all changed now, many of my best friends (and co-workers) are gone, and the atmosphere has changed. I've heard this time and again. This doesn't stop me from missing what we had there.

However . . . . . I have felt lately that some people would prefer us to live Kansas. Many times this idea hurts my feelings. I feel as if I have sacrificed living far away from my family, and that is not appreciated. It also makes me feel as if I am not well liked (worst feeling ever). Anyway, this idea kept me up a little bit last night. I also do like it here! I love our church and the caring community there. I love my Sunday school kids and my fellow teachers. I love my job and the people here. I love our new house and the location. I love the "build-in" family that Andrew's family has provided for us. This is a good "country in or close to the city" type of area. I am able to take advantage of things, such as May Festival, while still driving by farms every day. Anyway, moving on . . .

The roof on our house is being finished today. My past two day's lunch breaks have been spent driving to the roofing distributor (down in Lockland) to pick up extra supplies and also PAY for them. Argh! I'm sick of spending money even though I know it is on a fabulous new house. Anyway, today, I drove down, picked up ridge caps, drove up to our house, dropped them off, and made it back to work, all in about 1 hour and 20 minutes. I owe the church a little make up time. Andrew should be able to start working on the electric work, as soon as his class slows down a bit. He's got a final test, a final paper, and a power point presentation due soon. I'm trying to be patient. The siding guy is scheduled to start next Monday. I'm now hoping for drywall around the 17th of November. We're also contemplating installing the insulation ourselves, to save money . . . of course. I should have time to post lots more fun pictures tonight, if I think of it. I'm really enjoying this lull in the house building. I can't imagine what I'll feel like when it's all done and I don't have to deal with it anymore!! Yeah! I planted some bulbs (by the mailbox) and a bag of grass seed this past weekend. Just in time, as I think the first hard frost hit this morning.

I have also developed a new reaction to stress. My normal reaction to stress: weight gain and yes, I know it is from eating too much. Now, I have discovered that I have an eyebrow twitch above each eye. For a while I thought it might be my diet (which has been so incredibly terribly bad bad bad) but recently I've improved my diet and now both eyebrow's are twitching! I guess twitching is better than weight gain. I have noticed several sweaters are smaller than they were last year. Hmm, must have shrunk in the cold barn storage! :) I can't wait to go back on the Jaime's southbeach diet and buy myself an exercise machine (I've got half the money saved away in my underwear drawer, I'm sure you wanted to know that). Wow, this is an incredibly long blog. I'd better get to work on Sunday's attendance! All for now folks!

What's in a name?

Take this little test and find out how popular your name is. I'd love to hear the results in my comments! :) Hopefully more lovely pictures will appear tonight. We had a few flurries yesterday, so I'm glad the house is up and roof is on!

HowManyOfMe.com

There is: 1 person with my name in the U.S.A. how/'>http://howmanyofme.com">How many have your name?

Windows and Doors are in!

The windows and doors are in, thanks to my husband and father-in-law. I have more pictures than this but not much time to post. I'll just put a few on there. Enjoy!

*Sorry, blogger is being a pain this morning and this pictures are big to upload. I'll try to do more tonight after lessons but I've got to get ready for work now. So, only one picture loaded. It's of our new back door, which I think is beautiful! Enjoy!

65 Things about Me

I'd love to have any of you copy and paste this into my comments and fill it out for yourselves. The more the merrier!

1)Name: Jaime

2) Birthday: 05/03/1982

3) Birthplace: St. John, Kansas

4) Current Location: Mason, Ohio

5) Eye Color: Depends on what I'm wearing

6) Hair Color: Brown

7) Height: 5'3"

8) Right Handed or Left Handed: Right Handed

9) Your Heritage: Mostly German. Does Kansan count?

10) The Shoes You Wore Today: My black serious shoes.

11) Your Weakness: Sweets!

12) Your Fears: Hmm, losing my loved ones, I guess. I really work on not being afraid of much.

13) Your Perfect Pizza: Pepperoni, sausage and extra cheese.

14) Goal You Would Like To Achieve This Year: Set up a recital for my voice students to perform in (get them ready for it!!).

15) Your Most Overused Phrase On an instant messenger: Don't IM a lot anymore

16) Thoughts First Waking Up: Depends on the day, today: "Is our house done yet? *sinking feeling* no, it's not. Then "God help me!!" :)

17) Your Best Physical Feature: Depends on the day? I don't know hair, or teeth, I guess!

18) Your Bedtime: Depends on the day. Usually by 11:00 pm

19) Your Most Missed Memory: College days (friends, choir, being romanced and serenaded by Andrew), the year I roomed with Sarah in McCreery!

20) Pepsi or Coke: Neither. The only pop I drink is Root Beer.

21) McDonalds or Burger King: Neither. Not a big fast food person. If I were desperate, McDonalds.

22) Single or Group Dates: Group dates were always more fun since Andrew doesn't really like to talk and I do!!!

23) Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea: Neither. I only drink fresh brewed tea now, the rest is gross (I'm tea spoiled, thanks to my in-law's tearoom)

24) Chocolate or Vanilla: Depends on the desert. Vanilla Ice Cream with Chocolate brownies (a little caramel never hurt, either)

25) Cappuccino or Coffee: I barely drink cappuccino . . only if it is very sugary!

26) Do you Smoke: No

27) Do you Sing: Yes! Every day!

28) Do you Shower Daily: Yes!

29) Have you Been in Love: Have been and still am!

30) Do you want to go to College: I've already done that, so probably not anymore.

31) Do you want to get Married: I've also done that so . . . no not again! :)

32) Do you believe in yourself: Not very often.

33) Do you get Motion Sickness: I never have before.

34) Do you think you are Attractive: Rarely

35) Are you a Health Freak: I try to be but am having a difficult time right now!

36) Do you get along with your Parents: Yes, very well.

37) Do you like Thunderstorms: Yes, as long as they don't damage anything.

38) Do you play an Instrument: Yes, clarinet and a little piano.

39) In the past month have you Drank Alcohol: Yes, I tried a raspberry thingy at my aunt-in-law's house. About two sips. Too strong for me!

40) In the past month have you Smoked: No

41) In the past month have you been on Drugs: No

42) In the past month have you gone on a Date: Yes, I can count the marriage
Rendezvous we attended.

43) In the past month have you gone to a Mall: Um, yes, to pick out our appliances at Sears but other than that I haven't been in over a year.

44) In the past month have you eaten a box of Oreos: No, I'm not a huge fan of packaged or processed desserts.

45) In the past month have you eaten Sushi: Not in the last month, but I actually like it! Hmm, we should do that soon.

46) In the past month have you been on Stage: Umm, no, don't think so. Not since May Fest finished.

47) In the past month have you been Dumped: Nope

48) In the past month have you gone Skinny Dipping: No, not since high school! :)

49) In the past month have you Stolen Anything: No

50) Even been drunk: No

51) Ever been called a Tease: Only by my hubby

52) Ever been Beaten up: Only by my own body. My ankles give out a lot and I fall. . . a lot.

53) Ever Shoplifted: Nope, never.

54) How do you want to Die: Working in a garden, in my sleep, but definitely before my husband. I don't want to live without him!

55) What do you want to be when you Grow Up: A mom, a singer, perhaps a professional organizer.

56) What country would you most like to Visit: Next on my list is Italy. It might be a while before we travel to Europe again! :(

In a Boy/Girl:

57) Favourite Eye Color: Girl and boy: Blue

58) Favourite Hair Color Girl and boy: red or blond

59) Short or Long Hair: Short

60) Best Clothing Style: Don't know. For a boy, I like Carol's perfect man outfit.

61) Number of Drugs I have taken: I don't take drugs (recreation or medicinal).

62) Number of CDs I own: Hmm, maybe about 50 or so.

63) Number of Piercings: Four (two in each ear)

64) Number of Tattoos: None!

65) Number of things in my Past I Regret: Not kissing my dad "goodbye" on my wedding day. I still get a little teary thinking about that.

Long time . . . no post!

Sorry for the gap in between posts. For some people a month is a long gap, but several days is a long time for me, especially with this house. We have been struggling with a few sub contractors charging more than they had originally said. One guy has a (sort of) legitimate reason, so we are paying him a little extra, but I've got our consultant checking into the other one. I just get extra stressed, as I'm sure anyone would, if things go over budget, even a little bit. We aren't putting anything extravegant in this house (at least we think so) so I'm hoping out budget will even out pretty soon. This is a good test for me, to be able to trust that God has our best in store, even if I have to spend money, which is a hard thing for me to do. We've been able to cut many things out of our budget, but we were hoping those would be savings on the total cost of the house, not covering overbudget items from other subcontractors.

We are currently still working on installing windows and doors, and roughing in plumbing and HVAC. The siding guy said he would be able to start on the 30th and it will take him a week to finish. This timing sets us back a week but it is good for Andrew, so he will have more time to finish the windows/doors and the finish the electric. These things all have to be done before we insullate or drywall because we have to pass a county inspection first. We may not pass on the first try so I'm not getting my hopes up for drywall until the 2nd or 3rd week of November. Andrew is (thankfully) taking the next class off, since he will have lots of projects to finish next month on the house (cabinets, trim, and some flooring). We are hoping to be in our house, with a nice little office set up for him, by the time his next class starts. That's all for now.

Weekend Pictures

On Thursday night, I decided to clean all of the burnable material out of our dumpster (cardboard and lumber). I was alone at the house. When I went to get out, I realized I was stuck! Thankfully Andrew came along soon.

Windows are in the garage!

Looking toward the car from the front porch.

Installing the front door!

The front door is in!

The front door (closed).

Don't the shingles and windows look nice?! I'll take a closer picture of the shingle color (Thunderstorm Gray) which we LOVE!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to my sweet husband! I'm so thankful for you and all the hard work you do for me, even on your birthday (he installed three windows and our front door). I hope you had a wonderful birthday and I look forward to celebrating many more with you!!

Friday the 13th

I haven't been out to our house today but I assume that the roofing is working, the HVAC guy is working, and the plumber is working. I believe they are all done framing (until we tell them what to fix). The windows are supposed to be delivered tonight and Andrew will start installing them tonight. I am so excited to have windows!!

And last, but not least . . . Happy birthday to my mother-in-law, Susan, and my aunt-in-law, Linda.

Roof

Andrew called from our house at noon and said that the front side of the garage roof has been shingled! I'm so excited. I wish I could have gone to see it at lunch today but I just can't drive over there every day. Hopefully it will be looking much different by the end of the weekend with shingles and hopefully a few windows installed! I'll post pictures soon!

Roofer Ramblings

I'm sure you are all dying to find out what happened with our roofing situation, right?! :) He He! Well, I'll tell you anyway. I called a company that was recommended to me by a family member. This family member's company had stopped using this roofer because of quality issues with their work but the roofer had done a good job on their house. So, I decided to just call and see what kind of pricing we could get. We met a guy out at our house at noon and he gave us a decent price. Later, when the head dude called me, he said that there was no way they could do it for that low of price. I talked to him until I was blue in the face but he wouldn't come down (his suggested price was still very good and lower than I thought I would get). Our consultant recommended that I call the original roofing company, Nord, and see if they would come down on their price, once they heard who got the bid and how much they were charging. So, that is what I did. Nord is the company we originally wanted but were just two pricey. They had only knocked off $200 from the original price for all of Andrew's work. Let's just say after a long day of negotiations I got Nord to lower their price to match the other roofer's price! If you didn't understand any of that just know that . . . it all worked out the way we wanted it to!

Today we have HVAC and plumbers still working on roughing in pipes and duct work. The framers should be out today or tomorrow to finish framing up the mud room and laundry room. The windows are going to be delivered on Friday, so hopefully Andrew will have some time to get them put in this weekend. We don't want them to get stolen, so we are pondering tricky ways to hide them or possibly keep them in Wayne and Susan's shop for safety. We'll see what happens. Andrew should be able to begin the electric next week and the siding guy is probably going to come out in the middle of next week. Hopefully, we'll be able to seal everything up there soon. It keeps on moving quickly!

More Pictures from 10-7-06

My apologies, these are not in order. I'm having such a struggle with Blogger Beta right now that I'm just happy these will be posted at all, even if they aren't in order. Things continue to move right along with the house. The septic was mostly installed today (waiting on an inspection). The rough in plumbing and HVAC go in tomorrow. We only have two things we are dealing with right now. We are trying to find someone to finish the roofing (and save us time) for a decent price. I have a call into someone hopeful. I should know more tomorrow. And . . . our stairs are wrong. There is an extra "step" or technical term being "tread." I had the step guy out today to see what he could see. He said he'd check with the guy who built them and get back to me. They won't pass code the way they are built right now, so we are hoping that if fixed quickly and that the framers won't charge us extra to install that a second time! :0

If we find someone to do the roof for the price we want, things will continue to progress rapidly and Andrew could be installing the windows sometime soon. If we can't find anyone, Andrew will continue with the roofing project until it is complete. We think that might set us back two to three weeks. We'll see what happens tomorrow. Ok, now on to the pictures.

Nick handing Wayne a board. Nick did get on the roof but my camera battery died before that. Just wanted to make mention, since Nick witnessed me carrying packs of shingles, which are very heavy, and which Andrew said I couldn't carry! Ha! No pics of that, sorry!

Wayne, Graham, and Andrew working on the felt/tar paper on the roof.

Handy Andy

(only don't really call him Andy, he HATES it . . . I just had to rhyme in this situation)

Garage floor with freshly poured concrete. See the before pictures below.

Pouring the porch concrete!

Starting on the tar paper for the back of the house.

Starting to pour the concrete in the garage. They offered to let me help and now I wish I would have! :(

Looking into the garage before concrete. I told you these were backwards!

The excavation company starting on our septic system (which they finished today!!). The mist was neat.

10-3 and 10-05 Pictures

I am finally putting new pictures on. Enjoy!

Andrew and Wayne putting on the tar paper for the roof. Sorry this picture is so dark but well . . . it was pretty dark outside! Our neighbor, Herb, is watching and helping.

Blogger is being stupid and I can't click where I want to so this is the caption for the picture below. Our house on Tuesday 10/3/06

Our house at lunch today (10/05/06)

The front dormers are in. Now they just have to frame walls in upstairs and finish the dormer in the back.

We're FINALLY backfilled!

I have yet to witness the backfill with my own eyes, but our trusty spy, Grandma Myers, reported to Andrew this afternoon, that there was indeed a "big truck pushing dirt around." It seems like we've waited on this a long time, but in reality it's only been a week since my first call. During our site visit with our consultant this morning, I shared a bit of my frustration with the fact that the excavators have told me that they would be out to backfill but they have not and have not called. One call from him, and we had a definitive time and the carpenters were busily cleaning up the site. We were remarking again today how we only started digging on our house three weeks ago today. Things are going so fast! So, here's an updated schedule:

Today: Backfill and framing
Tomorrow: AM, meeting with the septic excavator and beginning to trench, PM Porch and Garage Concrete poured, steps installed inside
Friday: Finish framing (maybe), continue to work on roof, and septic excavator work
Saturday: Roofing Party!
Tuesday: HVAC and Plumber beginning rough in

That's all for now. Hopefully, I'll get pictures up later today. It's changed already!

We're on the fast track!

We had a great planning meeting with our consultant this morning. I always feel so much better after those. Our consultant has built a lot of houses in his life, and he said that we are on track to be done by Christmas! The timing will mainly depend on Andrew now. These next few weeks are going to be full of jobs that he has decided to take on himself (shingling the roof, installing windows, and the electrical work)! I'm hoping he doesn't wear himself out and I wish there were more physical labor that I could do to help!

I give thanks every day for this house. I have sent up many prayers throughout this whole process (many of them being, "Dear God, Make this cheaper!"). We have both wanted the same things from the start which is a very conservative house, in which we can serve God. We weren't picky about the things we didn't feel mattered much in the grand scheme of things, such as colors, finishes, the size of the house, fireplaces, building the master suite, cabinets, flooring, and other things we consider a luxury! Not to say that there hasn't been stress but I think we'll come out of this process much stronger and more knowledgeable people! One can only hope and pray!



I am usually ready for bed (at about 10:30 pm or so) and think "Oh no, I forgot to post the pictures," so I will run down to the computer and do it then! It is really a pretty quick process.

10/01/2006 Pictures of our trusses

Taken around noon inside the house, looking up through the trusses. Pretty good picture for my cheap camera!


Looking into the garage from the kitchen "door." There are lots of supports in place . . . which is a good thing!


Looking at the house from the north west side. Hopefully, backfill will be done tomorrow.

Pictures from the back of the house.

From the south west side of the house. The workers are waiting for the plywood to arrive!

Slight Delay

We've had our first slight delay. Our excavator went out this morning to try and backfill our house and there was just way too much stuff in the way, such as lumber, trusses, and carpenters(I figured as much and even called him this morning). They are going to backfill tomorrow instead, this also pushes our concrete guy back a day. To be honest, I'm glad that it's slowing down just a little bit so I can get my feet under me. They are still going to set the trusses today, which means like the whole second story of our house will go up. I'm going to race over at lunch to see it. It takes me about 25 minutes to get there (one way) but I like to check on the progress, even if I don't have a lot of time there. I came in early today so I can take little extra time at lunch. Of course, I am teaching voice lessons tonight because . . . I'm absolutely crazy!! Should be more pictures of the trusses coming soon.

Pictures from 9/30/06

Andrew and I spent most of the day just cleaning up around the construction site. We started a fire and burnt a lot of scrap lumber and such. Andrew also saw cut the concrete to control cracking. Sorry, no pictures of that. I was lucky to make it down in the basement just to help, let alone to bring a camera. The framers were there from before 8:00 am to around 5:00 pm. They mainly put up interior walls and framed in the garage. We are pretty sure they are putting up the trusses tomorrow (yes, on Sunday). I am teaching Sunday School both hours tomorrow so I won't be able to be there. Andrew is going to early service so he can be out there to catch the action. We'll post more pictures when we take them. These are the pictures from today.

This is the where the sliding glass door in our kitchen/dining area will go.


Looking into the kitchen. Cabinets will go along both walls.


The kitchen window. Our sink will be below it!


Looking into the basement. No stairs yet. We used a ladder to get down there. You can sort of see what Andrew cut today if you look at the line in the concrete.



The view out of our bedroom window (for now, we may move upstairs once we finish that).

A picture of the whole first floor framed. It is amazing how much different it will look by next weekend, when Andrew will probably be working on the shingles.

The Promised Pictures

The promised pictures are below!

A picture of our basement/foundation before the concrete was poured. We forgot to take a picture of the concrete floor but you can imagine. Picture taken on 9/26/06


A rainbow we saw out by our house one day. Andrew says it's a sign that God will not destroy our house with water . . . high winds or a tornado maybe, but we're safe from the water.


The framers beginning to lay the sub floor. This was taken on 9/28/06 at about 1:30 pm. They work so fast that it makes my head spin!


This was taken about 12:00 pm on 9/29/06. The ground is still too muddy to get close to the house, without the proper shoes.


Taken this evening 9/29/06 (by Andrew, I was at my jewelry party). I can't believe how fast it is going. They are ready to set the trusses tomorrow. You can see them laying on the ground in this picture.

Andrew's dad admiring the framing this evening.

The framers are planning on working tomorrow, so I'm sure we will be out there most of the day to see them work, so we'll get more pictures. Surely these pictures are good enough to warrent several comments from my beloved friends and family! :) :)