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The grass is turning green, tulips are finally blooming, the robins are prancing about for worms, and our kitchen is finally complete! It took almost 4 1/2 weeks from the day it was torn apart, but worth every minute of plastic spoons and bowls! We still need to pick out new curtains and lighting fixtures, but at least I can now make my cup of tea without having to fill the cup from the bathroom sink! woo hoo!

Posted by bunger at 8:29 PM | Comments (0)

You know when you have to go to the bathroom really bad? I am talking about the feeling that results in your run-walking like a penguin to the bathroom and makes your toes curl up a bit? Then you finally get to go and you are pretty certain you can hear your insides giggling because they are so happy that's out of there? Well... I finished the room today and the feeling is pretty much the same!! The carpet should go in just after Memorial Weekend and then the furniture, but it's finished for the most part.

I didn't post anything last weekend because it was so close to being done that I wanted to post the finished (sans furniture and carpet) room. Last weekend was a big 3-day weekend as I took Friday off to work on it: put in a new closet door, put up all of the trim and shelving, and final coats of paint on everything.

This weekend I had to "modify" the bifold closet doors - and by modify, I mean hack the snot out of one so they would fit in the 1 and 3/4 inch less-than-standard opening - paint them, install ceiling vents for the air, and put up all the face plates. Of course, it didn't go smoothly - it never does! As I mentioned before, one of the bifolds ended up looking like I tried to cut it cross-eyed and I also was successful in tearing a bit of ceiling out when installing the vents - yeah... that's almost as good as a cracker jack prize. Needless to say, it was a frustrating weekend of finishing up... sort of like quickly penguin walking to the bathroom, only to make a little mess just before getting there. It's all good in the end, but you still have to change your shorts.

ps. to anyone assoc. with child services: the saw Will is playing with is NOT plugged in and he was under close supervision at all times...

Posted by bunger at 3:32 PM | Comments (0)

As I mentioned in my previous post, we got a ton accomplished this past weekend. I spent Saturday sanding the drywall and priming it, so it would be ready for the first coat of paint on Sunday. I had used the Dust Control joint compound from USG and it worked like a champ! Don't get me wrong, it was still a bit dusty... but I didn't look like a powderball had exploded next to me. Most of the dust fell to the floor instead of floating in my eyes and ears, so it was definitely a good buy. This guy gives it two enthusiastic taping knives up.

We had originally planned on painting the room a sort of light, slate blue color but a test patch proved that it wouldn't flow very well with the other rooms. So two quick trips to Home Depot later and we had our Dynasty Celadon, which is somewhere between a sage and a light sage. Jess put up the first coat on Sunday while Will and I scouted the Boardman river for some trout. We didn't see any (trout, that is), but we did feed some water spiders plenty of grass... which, come to think of it, was sort of a Dynasty Celadon in color...

We will put up a second coat of paint during the week with the goal of having the trim painted and up this coming weekend. With a little bit of luck and some extra work, we could be ready for carpet just after Mother's Day... let's hope!

Posted by bunger at 8:23 PM | Comments (0)

It was an absolutely gorgeous weekend here and we got a lot done. In the "room," I finished hanging drywall on the south wall last weekend and spent this weekend taping and mudding everything. Given that it was my first time doing all of the taping and mudding on my own, I am feeling a bit puffed up (in a peacock kinda way) about the completed job. It definitely isn't perfect, but neither am I so I can't complain! :-) With some luck and sandpaper, we should be ready for primer next weekend!!

On the family front, we went to high school carnival Friday night and they had pony rides!! Will rode twice and loved it. We also went for a very long bike ride today and stopped for ice cream - gotta have some motivation to ride somewhere in there!

I will leave you tonight with this great quote I found that seems quite appropriate:

Man is a tool-using animal. Without tools he is nothing, with tools he is all.

Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881)

Posted by bunger at 8:54 PM | Comments (0)

I know it has been almost a month since my last post, but a rather dandy round of flu, sinus infections, and colds knocked us all down for 2 weekends?! We are now mostly past it all, but it was no fun while it lasted.

And speaking of no fun, I am still toiling away at the remodel project. :-) After two weekends of lost work, I spent last weekend re-wiring the room and installing recessed ceiling lights. It took most of the weekend, but the ceiling lights will make a huge difference. And since the wiring was done, I ordered up some drywall and managed to hang most of it this weekend. The room is about 12 and a half feet deep and about 23 feet wide, so I bought some big 'ol pieces - 14 and 12 footers (to minimize the number of seams to mud and sand)!!! And let me tell you... nothing quite reminds you how out of shape you are like trying to move around a 14 foot sheet of drywall. I always managed to win the fight, but they almost flipped me inside out at least once! After spending yesterday and today putting up the big sheets, I only have the south wall left and it will use 8 foot sheets - very manageable compared to those other ones... :-)

Oh yeah... while I was working in the room, Will got his haircut today! So I thought I would throw in a picture of him too...

Posted by bunger at 7:55 PM | Comments (0)

It has been nearly 3 years to the weekend that I last tackled any sizable remodel project, so I suppose it is time to descend into the darkness once again. We have decided to give our "office room" a makeover and more efficiently use the space - Will needs a playroom!

The project officially kicked off Saturday, though we (and by "we," I mean Jessica) went through everything in the room and either donated to Goodwill or shipped it off across town to Jess' parents for short-term storage (or at least that is the idea we sold them).

So far the project has gone fairly well, though the carpet was glued to the concrete floor (who DOES that?!?). It took a rented tile stripper (yes, that's a tool and not an exotic mahjong dancer) to remove most of it, but at least that is behind us. And Will has already proven a tremendous help. It is going to be alot of fun doing this project with his help!

See you on the other side and I will post update pics each weekend!

Posted by bunger at 7:31 AM | Comments (2)