HSH Interior Renovation Update

For the past few days, I believe we are going on day 4 now, it has been raining or the threat of rain. An area in the back part of the house had to be pumped out because it flooded due to the constant deluge of rain we have received. Mother Nature has decided that we need even more rain today and tomorrow too. Again, the back part of the house will be pumped out. When the rainwater has no where to go, that area floods and does not drain on its own. The flooding does not happen to often though. John has a great little water pump that sucks out the water of that entire area in a matter of maybe an hour or so. Well, the little pump will be working double and triple duty to keep the area dry this go around.

John has one more day of teaching then he will be done for the semester. He will have a 3 week reprieve, then teaching resumes in conjunction with tax season. With Christmas a little over a week away, our plans for getting away are not concrete yet. We have been keeping busy with the house. Among John's many talents, he enjoys acting. He played Dr Stahlbaum in the Dublin production of  'The Nutcracker'. It was a tremendous success this year as in years past. Being this was John's first time in a non-speaking musical, I was extremely proud of his performance. The acting, dancing and costumes were first class. Two professional ballet dancers came to do certain parts of the show. Very entertaining. The backdrop in the first scene was a painting created by local artists of John's materal grandmothers birth home. Another reason to be proud. I went with John saturday night, after the first showing, to meet some of the cast members of the show. Very enjoyable. Mr and Mrs Griffin Lovett, the current owners of John's grandmother's birth home, local newspaper and other businesses around town, were at the party and I spoke to them briefly.

Jamie, from rebath, came today to finish building the linen cabinet/closet. There are some cosmetic flaws to the work that need to be corrected before we are 100% satisfied.

The doors to the utility room were not latching when closed. That was repaired today. The washer and dryer are now in and working! I even did 6-7 loads of laundry. It took me two days but what the heck, it was worth it. No more laundry mat! Well, the washer and dryer fit into the area built for it, just barely, like by one inch! John had to cut into the wall and part of the trim on the doors, after I applied two coats of fresh, white paint, so the back of the hose connections would allow the washer to go in. As you can see, the washer had to go in first, then the dryer. John said, 'you don't want to look at the hole I made, it is not a pretty sight.' I hope no more critters come into the bathroom through that hole! Now, I can do laundry in the privacy of my own home, like a normal, modern person.

Also, a picture of our lovely shower, so we no longer have to go outside to turn on the hot water!

Most of the lighting fixtures have been purchased and ready to be hung. The electrician has to come back out to do that, hopefully this week. The remaining lights are the bathroom and ceiling fans that are missing the appropriate lighting kits. Once the light kits that fit them are found, then all of the remaining lights will be purchased. We are about ready to finalize our bid for the installation of kitchen cabinets, which includes basic kitchen appliances and ceiling fans for all rooms in the house. The installation of stairs in the back part of the house that will give us additional storage will begin soon, most likely after Christmas. In addition, in order for the kitchen to be functional, the plumbing needs to be done. The kitchen flooring will most likely be done after the new year as well. We anticipate the floor will be tiled, but much larger tiles will be used than the bathroom obviously.

So as I sit typing this entry to my blog today, I look out and see a foggy, soggy sky, with puddles of rainwater on the ground everywhere. At least it is in the 60s and not freezing. I am glad the mosquitoes are gone. Once we had those below freezing nights recently, that was the end of them. So keep checking my blog for updates to the house and what I have been doing lately.