One Sixty: Pleased as Pie

Pleased as Pie

After waiting so long to start on this list, I'm amazed at how quickly we've been able to cross things off of it. In just last weekend and this week:

~~1. Mow the lawn (dang, it was at the point of seeding itself on the side and back lawns)~~
~~2. Jess muffler & Tailpipe (yes, I lost my tailpipe last week. LAST WEEK)~~
~~3. Jess wheel bearings (these have been bad for over a month now)~~
~~4. Jess oil change~~
5. Jess wheel spacer & new wheels (I've been wanting to get this taken care of since I got that flat tire.... oooo, more then two months ago)
~~6. Remove current 4Runner soft top~~, package in a box, and put back on ebay to sell.
~~7. Put on other 4Runner soft top.~~
8. ~~Purchase parts~~ and fix the old 4Runner #1 - SELL
9. Wire the farmer's porch for lighting, fan, speakers, and outlets. (Speaker wire already on order.)
10. New windshield for Mike's truck
11. Fix up Dodge #1 - SELL
12. Fix Dodge #2 - SELL

AND, if that weren't enough, the guys came by to do the garage addition roof!!! But we didn't have any drip edge. So Mike purchased that this week and now, hopefully, we are 100% ready for them to return and knock it out. (Again, it's been super hot and humid, so I don't really blame them for the delay. Plus, they've been working on another house, getting it ready to sell ASAP - so again, no blame again. I know they've been super busy.)

Tonight, Mike is going to finish up the repairs on 4Runner #1 and it will be ready to tidy up and put on Ebay for sale. The old soft top is back on craigslist (Click here to check it out!) Although Mike's been having some technical difficulties bringing home a giant box to pack it in for Ebay purposes. Once someone threw out the box on him. Another couple times he was on the bike and couldn't bring it home. Another time it was pouring rain out.

Today, he's on the bike again, so no box. But he's going to set aside a BBQ grill box for me. That's disappointing. I was hoping to be at the PO this morning to weigh that thing so I could get it up on Ebay.... At least it's on craigslist. No bites yet though. Amazing. These things are so rare, especially in New England. There must be SOMEONE like me out there who's desperately searching for one.

Anyhoo. Sunday will be a wash since we have a clambake, followed by a bday party. The following weekend, we'll be back on the job (hopefully!!)

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Blog Story

My now husband Mike and I purchased this quaint home back in spring of 2004 - our first home - and, being the handy folks we are, expected to have the entire thing renovated in about a year or so.

And here we still are... renovating away.

This house needed a complete overhaul. Its plaster walls were uninsulated, its attic floor covered in 2" of bat guano, its basement - dirt and snakes, its exterior - asbestos siding, and lead paint windows in every room. The electric had not been updated and light sockets hung bare from the ceiling. Plumbing featured cast iron radiators - and only one for the entire upstairs.

We began by gutting almost the entire house from top to bottom. (sans bathroom - we needed to pee) We rebuilt the entire upstairs, with a new floor (not new carpet or wood - the once unstable framing underneath) and turned 3 small rooms into two. We reinvented the downstairs by turning a closet into a hallway and eliminating interior exterior windows and doors from old half-assed additions.

New insulation, windows, electrical wiring (including phone and CAT-5 internet), plumbing and baseboards, and drywall were all added.

We purchased kitchen cabinets from a yard sale. (None existed previously.) Our families helped us replace and purchase new appliances including the once also missing washer & dryer.

Then we had the entire house lifted - straight into the air - dug out the dirt, and had a real basement foundation poured. We updated our oil tank and burner and created heating zones.

Outside, we took down trees and planted grass. We dug out an awkward hill to create a 2nd part to the driveway and used the rocks our house once sat on as a retaining wall. We electrified and repainted the garage.

And of course, we spent many an hour on finish work like paint, trim, closet doors, lighting fixtures, hardwood floors, curtain rods, dimmer switches, and many other things everyone else takes for granted. We are still working to complete all this final finishing, but happy to report that we are FINALLY nearing completion of all little things in all rooms!

In 2008 we began overhauling the exterior by creating a new french door entryway and building a farmer's porch and garage addition. We replaced our roof and then stripped off our siding and replaced with new clapboards. We then planted two new flowering trees and a maple in the front yard - our first major landscape purchases. I'm happy to report that here in 2011, the porch is nearing completion and the back yard is on the road to recovery with some new loam and grass. More plantings soon to come!

In 2012 we plan to attack the last MAJOR (emphasis on major) job in the house - the dreaded BATHROOM! We plan to first add a second bathroom in the basement. Then, demolish our current bathroom and rebuild it, adding a second bathroom on top for the upstairs.

And that pretty much brings you up to date. The battle continues day to day as we try and complete everything.

One Sixty

Pleased as Pie

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