One Sixty: The Roof The Roof The Roof Is On Fire

Well, not really. But I do want to raise the roof because believe it or not - it's better then half done.

Doesn't that look awesome? I had an insider tip that the guys were planning on coming yesterday... but I didn't want to jinx it by posting it up on the HB. (house blog)

And here's the other side - soon to be completed - tonight!!! (That is, unless severe thunderstorms roll through... because the forecast has just been all over the place this week and I have no clue what's going on and neither do highly paid meteorologists. )

Unfortunately, all this good news comes with a little bit of postponement news. We won't be able to purchase the rest of the wiring materials for the porch on Thursday. Turns out, Mike needs to do some work to the tractor to get it race ready for the big tractor race event on Friday night.

So how much more redneck could we get?! Hard to believe we're from New England, isn't it? Cracks me up - I love this lifestyle! Never a dull moment!

Also - Mike FORGOT MY BOX again. Oh, I'm sorry - I need more emphasis. AGAIN!!!!
At this rate, I'm going to need to show up at his work on Saturday and pick up the durn thing myself... wait, I have a potluck dinner to cook for. Thwarted again!

Ok, back to good news. With the roof on the GA nearing completion.... wait for it.... the porch is next! Woo-hoo! And I don't want to rush the guys who are helping us out - but I am so psyched for this. What I will be rushing on is the completion of the wiring and purchase of raw materials. Next week deadline. I'm pushing for it.

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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.

3 comments:

Liquid Roof said...: Your roof gutters are looking in very bad condition. I think you should try to replace your roof gutters first and then move for any other repair work.; 6:44 AM
kitrainia said...: Yeah, I do agree with you...they're old and have taken a lot of abuse in the last few years. But honestly they're the last thing I'm worried about at the moment.

And that's horrible, I know I know. But it is only the garage, after all.; 8:42 AM
Derek said...: Thanks for sharing your stories on your blog. It is always great to read local opinions and stories and I would like to welcome you to use http://www.YourTownSpace.com as another means to post your blog. YourTownSpace greatly cares for local business and culture and I believe your blog would add very much to the website.

Thanks,
Derek; 10:21 AM

One Sixty

The Roof The Roof The Roof Is On Fire

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