9 Months to Build, 1 Day to Teardown

Here is a photo of the old house as I left for work on Monday morning.

Who would have guessed that it would take 9 months to build a carriage house and only 1 day to tear down the old house........

This adventure became weather dependent. With the snow on the ground Monday, Aaron called to say that he would start on Tuesday since they would not be delivering the first skiff until Monday afternoon.

And the fun begins....starting with the back bedroom.

Making progress very quickly. Bill took all the photos and was emailing them to me at work so I could keep an eye on things :)

It is starting to really disappear.

A final shot of the old house number......166 Oak Street

And the living room is gone. No more entertaining in the old place.

Working our way around the corner.

Kitchen Window hanging in there!

And finally the laundry room.

No wonder we were always so cold. I see very little insulation in that pile!

Amazing day. This only took about 6 hours with a lunch break. It is a day that Bill and I thought would never come. And it seemed so effortless once it arrived.

Good-Bye Old House!

Bill and I woke up this morning to see this magnificent rainbow.

It seemed really symbolic to me as it reached

between the old and new houses.

We are in the final days before the old house is going away.

Fortunately,we have found someone interested in removing

the kitchen cabinets, five panel doors and breakfront.

Slowly things are being dismantled.

As the layers are pealed away, the story behind

the house seems to be revealed.

Most notably in the wallpaper.

I knew the flowers and pitcher wall paper existed. I could see it

every time I opened the cupboard to remove something.

The rhododendron wall paper in the dining room was a SURPRISE!

So bright and cheery.

Reminiscent of some happy meals and gatherings, I am sure.

A delicate grey, pink and white paper was revealed near

the opening. Reminded me of my parents

wedding china from the 50's.

The front door has been removed.

The house is becoming one with nature.

It's in the Details

It has been a busy Summer. Most notably, Bill was made Captain of the 747-400 series airplane the last week in August. So with school and travel behind us, we could focus on the punch list that still needed to be done. Below are some of the recent changes with the house. There are few more to come - dependent on other schedules. I'll update when those changes take place in the near future.

House numbers will help the pizza delivery guy a lot! And that will make Bill happy!

This shot displays the deck railing and the full length of the rain chain. With the deck railing in place we can now hang out there and not worry that Pearl will go flying over the edge when she sees a flock quail or a deer.

It has been raining hard! Here is a close up of the rain chain in action. It really is one of the nicest features on the house.

The catch basin is in place and working well.

We also added a railing in the pool room. It is a safety feature and I now do not need to worry about my guests backing up and falling off! Now if I can just convince Bill it is not a drying rack!

Labor Day weekend we had a garage sale and really thinned out a lot of items from the old house. We transferred all our earnings into the painting above, a bottle of wine and a case for Bill's new iPad.

The painting above is by a local artist - Elizabeth See

http://elizabethseepaints.blogspot.com/

Our former neighbor and vintage fabric artist - Amy Kozma - made these for us as a house warming present. Do you see a theme?

Amy's wares can be found on her Etsy.com website.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/vintagehome

Finally my Pickard china creamer and sugar bowl have found a resting place on the kitchen window cill. They just make me smile.

I was turned on to these knobs - thanks to my good friend Dawn Lottsfeldt. She has used them in her home in Anchorage. They feel so good in my hand and add some bling!

One of the glass shelves is now up in the bathroom.

Chrissie, do you see the PortMeirion bowl you gave me?

We now have window coverings! Our neighbors must be so happy!

This is a gift from our contractor. Not many gals have an heavy duty electrical cord that matches their shoes! I don't think I will need to worry about Bill borrowing this!

Stay tuned - more to come.

A backsplash and glass shelves in the kitchen.

More shelves in the bathroom.

Closets in the bedroom.

AND, The demolition of the old house!

And we're IN!

So, thanks to Alan and his handy forklift, the larger furniture items were moved in while I was traveling and Bill was in school. Last weekend, Joann came along and helped me get the kitchen, bathroom and bedroom set up and functional. we still havesome things in the old house we need to sort before we say our final good-byes. But, we are so close!

I am so excited! We can now cook in a light, cool kitchen!

Coffee...we now have Coffee! A few details still left to take care of in the kitchen.

Modern technology has reached the house! Flat screen TV!

A room with a view!

The bathroom - very warm and efficient!

The laundry room - very compact!

Ah sweet rest....the bedroom.

Trimming the Carriage House

It is amazing what things begin to look like once the finishing touches are put on.....

The lighting was installed inside and out this week

(well, except the fixtures we forgot to get:) or on order)

We only have one gutter. It will keep us dry as we stand out on the deck.

And we only have one to clean!

The fir trim is done on the top floor...

Nice baseboards....really make the walls look hansome.

Tile complete in the bathroom!

Bill did a nice job picking out the materials.

Entrance, Laundry room and Bathroom doors.

Kitchen windows trimmed...just waiting for the countertops now.

Maple steps up to the living area.

Western Window trim.....

It all looks so handsome, cozy and clean.