Framing Begins Next Week

I'm sure you all are excited to finally see a new picture up here instead of me whining about something or other, right? Actually, several things have been done this week, but not much visually until today, so I opted not to waste gas running out there daily and to just wait until the end of the week and make one trip.

On Monday, they filled the block walls with concrete. In fact, two of them are filled solid. The walls that are 12-inch block and which will have dirt filled up against them needed to have concrete every so often if they were over 6 ft. high with more than an 8 ft. span (or something to that effect). As is typical with inspectors, Brad checked several different times with a couple different inspectors as to what they preferred and got a different answer each time. So basically, instead of filling one cell every so many inches as the codes require, two of the walls are just filled pretty much solid. Bet I won't be getting any cell phone reception in the basement, huh? But if there's a tornado, guess where I'm heading?

By midweek, Brad bolted the treated lumber caps onto the walls. This is where the framing is attached. I just know that it sure is nice to see some lumber being attached to the block--a nice step in the right direction (upwards, that is). Then Thursday, the basement floor was poured and sealed. We took these pics right after the sealant was done, so it still looks pretty wet, and it smelled pretty fresh, too. By the time I walked around to the basement doors, I was getting a little contact high, felt like I'd been sniffing a few too many markers! You remember the old-fashioned Marks-a-lots that were just a little too toxic? Ah, the good old days!

Anyway, depending on the weather, Brad is ready to have floor trusses delivered and begin framing on Monday. Like usual, the weather forecast has changed three times already today. Here's hoping for pretty weather. Everyone promises it goes quicker once the foundation is in place, so I'm counting on all of you to be right. If the weather holds next week, I'll head out there a couple times and post more pics, rest assured!

As suspected....

You know what really irritates me? When Philip makes some smartass comment like, "You know nothing will get done this week," just to irritate me, and then he turns out to be right. Of course, as Thomas puts it, he is rarely wrong. Thanks, Thomas, for having my back on that one!

Anyway, earlier in the week Philip made that comment about the concrete not getting poured this week, so I was ecstatic to find that it would be poured on Friday. And since I didn't hear anything to the contrary, I drove out to the site to see the newly-hardening concrete on Friday night to find NOTHING! Need I say I was furious?

Not only was I irritated that it didn't happen yet we didn't know, but I was also irritiated to waste probably a gallon and a half of gas. What's that, like $5 or more nowadays? Suffice it to say, I was mad enough that Philip didn't argue with me about who was to call Brad this time. I think he realized I was past the point of civility and reason.

Turns out, Brad didn't realize until late in the afternoon that the concrete would not be poured, and it was because the concrete pumper (or whatever) had broken earlier in the day. He did line up someone different to be out there Monday morning and has a full week of activity lined up for next week. I hope so, but I'm learning that it's a toss up as to whether or not it will really happen.

I realize that my posts probably don't paint my contractor in the best light. I shouldn't do that...you just have to realize this is a venting tool for me in addition to an update for you all. I do trust him and his work; otherwise, I wouldn't still be working with him. We are just very different people. I think I should get a daily phone call update to ease my mind, and he apparently has it all under control and doesn't think it's important to give me the blow by blow. And yes, I know I could call and bug him a couple times a day, but I don't want to be totally irritating either.

Many of you have assured me that once they start the framing, the construction will go much quicker. I hope you're right. I do have to say that at this point, Brad has been relying pretty much on other people and their timeframes, like the masons and the concrete company. So many of the delays are not his doing. Just to be fair...

Wish me luck next week to see some concrete pouring and some framing beginning. I'll post new pics when something out there looks different.

Fixed?

Hmmm.....well, the dirt has been dug back out, and the wall is back in place, still braced mind you. But I have been assured and reassured that the wall will be fine once it's poured solid with concrete and braced with the wall trusses. I'm going to have to take it on faith that these people I've consulted know what they are doing.

I doubt the concrete gets poured this week, just because that's my luck. A whole week of little or no rain, and nothing will get done. As usual, I'll keep you posted if and when there's any progress.

Two steps back?

What's that saying about one step forward and two steps back? Well, I think that's where we are this weekend. We went out to the house this evening for the first time all week because we were thinking nothing much had been done. Brad had said last week that he was waiting for the basement walls and floor to be poured before starting on the floor trusses and that when he got the trusses in as support for the walls, he would back fill those walls.

So when we got out there tonight we noticed he had already started backfilling the walls. We wondered why he did it before all the other stuff, and then we noticed the braces...yes, the braces, the ones keeping the wall from falling down. Yikes! Yes, when you look carefully at the pics you see how the wall has bowed in under the pressure, cracking some of the blocks. I'm thinking this cannot be good. Just when I go trying to relax about the time frame, he goes and gets in a hurry and screws up big time.

We called and asked him about it, and yes, it is his fault. He doesn't understand why it did it cause it's never happened to him before. But it goes against the whole order of events he laid out for me last week, so it seems like he'd have figured it was a possibility.

I'm trying to decide if this is going to worry me to death or not. I'm concerned that there is no easy fix for the problem. Brad is going to have to dig all the fill dirt back out without damaging the wall, then crank the wall back to plumb (or whatever), and I guess see if it holds??? I am concerned that whatever fix we use is going to cause problems in the long run, if not in integrity then in waterproofing at the very least. But if his fix doesn't work, the only other option is to tear the wall down and rebuild it

Oh well, so much for my rushed timeline. I have no idea how much this will cost in time or money. I spent this evening taking my anger out on dustbunnies and cobwebs. This might just bode well for my spring cleaning!

(Sorry about the picture quality--these are from my phone.)

No Progress

No rain this week, yet no progress to speak of. I don't really need to go on a rant about this, do I? At this point, if you've been reading, you know how I feel.

Basement drama?

Well, not really, but Philip did get a little pissy about the basement bathroom. The plan for the basement is to finish it eventually, as in years down the road. But we did talk a little about going ahead and planning in advance for plumbing down there and maybe some roughed in electrical.

Well, turns out that planning ahead for a utility sink and a fourth toilet in the basement might be more costly than we really want, as in $2000-3000 more. Apparently a fourth toilet requires a bigger drain pipe and more trenching, etc. This is one of those areas that's a little too technical for me. I just do a lot of nodding when Brad goes on about this stuff. Instead, he recommended a pump system where the toilet has a pump that allows it to drain upwards (or whatever). Those apparently work very reliably nowadays, and they only cost $600-700 and include the toilet. Sometimes they involve a raised floor, but not always, and I can live with that.

However, when I tried relaying this to Philip, he got pissy with me, so I just told him to call Brad. But, according to Brad, I did relay the info correctly (yay, me!). So Philip does the "Fine, nevermind then" thing with Brad on the phone. Brad, good sense of humor that he has, basically tells Philip to think about it and call him later. Philip gets pissy again, and Brad says something to the extent of, "You can't get like this already. You've got a long way to go to be acting like this this early on." I LOVE IT!!!!!

By the way, Philip told me this story verbatim later in the day, and obviously, I'm highly amused. I get to see the pissy Philip all the time, and I'm used to it, but for him to get called out by Brad....priceless! Doesn't that break a rule in the man handbook or something???

In case you're wondering, Philip was amused by it later, too. That's a good thing since I was laughing hysterically at him when he was telling me the story. I don't know if he knows I'm blogging about it, but he ought to know me by now. There are no secrets with me....

What's the point in 10-day forecasts, really?

So my friends all know I've become rather neurotic about checking the weather lately. And I know it's spring and all, but seriously, the 10-day forecast changes more often than Braxton changes clothes, which is A LOT! Earlier this weekend, it was supposed to rain one day next week, then it turned to two, then three, then four. And just when I was beginning to think the rainy season was here to stay, now the rain has disappeared from the forecast. As best I can tell, the forecast changes every couple hours or so.

In the end, who knows really what the weather will be? The lot is a mess, so even with the pretty weather, I don't know how long it will take to dry out enough for them to get big trucks in there. I don't think today was enough to do it.

Our bank tells me that they have deposited our first draw, though, so tomorrow, I get to write the biggest check of my life so far, $22,000. I just read an article on CNN about all these people losing their jobs, homes, and just not able to pay their bills in general, and I wonder if the timing of this was a mistake. I guess there's no way to know that now. With my previously mentioned financial worries, I'm all too aware of how the well can be drained dry. But there's no turning back now....not that I even want to. I am so ready to move into this house!!!

About that "little progress" idea...

....well, maybe not. It's not anyone's fault but Mother Nature. I told everyone that we would single-handedly end the drought, and they didn't believe us. Well, what do all you doubters think now? LOL

I did go out to the site today, my only time this week, for those of you who are counting, and saw that there's a little gravel and creek sand out there, but no concrete has been poured in the blocks, and the walls haven't been back filled, and we're no where close to pouring the basement or garage floors. All that will need to be done before the framing starts. And unfortunately, next week's forecast has changed to include rain four out of five days. (A couple days ago, it looked like the week might be mostly sunny. Too good to be true, I guess.) I know Brad's been trying to get things done, partly because I've talked with him a hundred times this week and partly because the yard out there is torn all to hell from the trucks trying to get in and out with the ground so soggy. Today was the first day I wondered if my car would get stuck or not, and no, it didnt! Thank goodness.

I've been too whiny lately

I know I should be using these rainy days to focus on getting the current house on the market, but I have so much to do, here and for work, that I'm just frankly paralyzed. I am going to spend the next several days planning for a huge yard sale, probably the first of many! I've been analyzing the forecast daily for the last couple weeks, promising to be out there the first sunny Saturday, and I went ahead and put an ad in the paper for next week, but who knows if the rain will hold out or not. The last two Saturdays have been a bust, and there's a 100% chance of rain tomorrow. So we'll just keep crossing our fingers for next week.

I'm in the mood finally, after being bummed all week, to get some things done. Those of you who are close to me know that we went through a period about 4-5 years ago where it seemed like everything we owned that was expensive broke. We had to replace the heat pump, the well pump, the pool pump, the front door, the dishwasher, the washer and dryer, and God know what else in that time period. We were financially scraping for a while there. Well, my luck can only hold out so far, so in addition to the house building expenses, we are also experiencing another financial trial of sorts. I had to have massive work done to my car recently, including a new transmission, amounting to the whopping total of $4000. Then Philip needs a crown replaced--$800. Anna is starting orthodontic treatment--$750 for now. Braxton has some dental work that needs to be done--$900. The bank suddenly decided we needed a foundation survey--$300. Anna's summer camp and girl scout camp fees are due--$1100 total. And today's news was the worst, just because he's the member of the family least able to help himself, but the dog has developed more bladder stones, only 8 months after his last surgery, confirming that this is something we will be dealing with for the rest of his life since apparently the prescription diet is not working. There is some medicine that we can try, but it's pretty much our last option, and even that still doesn't change the fact that he needs another surgery. That's probably another $800 total, not to mention the strain and pain for him.

But overall, we are all happy and healthy, and I do know that it's only money. I'm blessed to have a little savings to pull from, even if that is mostly tapped out now, and I still have a little available credit left....haha! So I guess with my luck that won't last long. And we still have our jobs and can still pay our bills. I guess it took the bad news about the dog today to really put it all into perspective. The money is just money, and who needs that???

Well, thanks to those of you who actually read all of this. If you made it this far, you really deserve a prize! Maybe one day soon I'll actually have more house stuff to blog about.

By the way, if you know my dog, Mac, he'd appreciate a visit from you to wish him well. And no, he really doesn't seem sick in the least. But we'll probably schedule his surgery in the next week or two because it really is something that will only get worse and could turn into an emergency very quickly.

A Little Progress

Because of the rain this week, there has only been a little progress. I'm not sure where we are with pouring concrete for the walls, but I know we are waiting for the rain to clear for a delivery of gravel or creek sand to back fill against the walls. I also know the bank inspector has been out and approved the first draw, so we're 10% complete. And now I'm 100% anxious about needing to get on the ball and get this house on the market. I'm such a procrastinator...ugghh!

We had to get an unanticipated foundation survey also this week. The good news was that it was fairly cheap and done quickly. We also now have home owner's insurance, which is incredibly cheaper than our current house/policy. Some of that I'm sure is the lack of pool, but my goodness, this is twice the house and only one third of the premium. That's about my only good financial news this week. I have been telling people that I'm hemorrhaging cash this week between all of us at the dentist, Anna's various summer camps, the dog, etc., I'm about done for.

The windows have been ordered, so I got to make some fun decisions about that. The most interesting window set up is actually in one of the kids' rooms, probably Anna's room because she likes the window, heehee. It'll be a triple window with the center being an arch top. It looks pretty neat. I also added a double window in the dining room and took out the arch top there. That would be too hard to do because of that being a load bearing wall, or something like that. And in general, I asked Brad to size up the windows wherever he could. I just like big windows and think that bigger is always better.

I guess I'll get back out there to check tomorrow evening or Friday afternoon. Tomorrow is crazy with appointments, so it will probably be Friday. To be honest, I really have to focus on getting the current house on the market....forget the new one for a while. That's much easier said than done!

House Plans

I've tried to upload the house plans here, but so far I can't figure out how to upload a .pdf file. Well, it's not that I cannot figure it out; there is just no way to do it in the blog.

If you want to see the plans, just email me, and I'll be glad to forward you a copy of the floor plan and elevations. How's that?