23 January 2012

Stairs and Trusses

I thought I'd show off my great skills at putting in stairs.


Ok, not really.  I did help our contractor put the stairs in, and I was so glad all I had to do was hold things, add some glue, and then nail things in.  He did all the calculations and cutting.

Once the stairs were in, Mr. Pickup and I built the half wall to protect the stairs and to protect anyone from falling in.



Here we are...bundled up and working hard.


The next point of business was to put up the rest of the sheeting and prepare everything for the trusses.


Here are the just delivered trusses.  Love our port-a-potty too?


After some delays, our trusses were finally set in place.  Here is our contractor and his sons getting things started.



These photos were taken Sunday January 15:


You can see the vaulted ceiling over the kitchen and dining room.


Down the hallway that ended up narrower than I had wanted.  Oh well.


With our previous homes, we took a picture of our kids at the window.  So we had to take another for history's sake.  Unfortunately, this was the end of our good weather.


Rain is what we've faced for the last week.  Because of those earlier delays, our house still doesn't have a finished roof.  The predicted snow turned into at least 2" of rain.  To help drain the floor, we drilled holes with buckets to catch the water in the basement.  We also used push brooms to get the water off the floor.


Our lot is a soggy, muddy mess.  This is the worst kind of clay mud.  One step you're fine, the next you sink up to your knee, and get sucked down. Very hard to move around!


We've now swept out the house three times, emptying buckets of water from the basement, and using the shop vac on Friday to help remove water from the basement.  We sucked out over 50 gallons.


It snowed over night, and is snowing right now.  Mr. Pickup and I are very discouraged.  The roof should have been finished before all this came.  The windows are supposed to be delivered next week, and we won't be ready for them.


Oh, the joys and frustrations of building your own home.  Unfortunately, we're at a point where we have no control over what happens next.  We did our part, but things haven't worked out the way we hoped.  

12 comments:

  1. (((((Chris)))))

    What can go wrong... will! But this too shall pass... and by summer you'll hopefully be in your new home!

    Hang in there, gf!

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  2. Oh my! I'm sorry you've had all these delays. I can't imagine the work that goes into getting 50+ gallons of water out of the house, and all the stress that goes along with it. Hopefully it will be over in a blink of an eye, and you'll be in your new home laughing about all of this.

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  3. It looks like you've made a lot of progress! It's looking great! I'm sorry about all the rain and snow you've had to deal with, that doesn't sound fun at all! Good luck getting the roof on!

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  4. I am so sorry that the poor weather caught you. It must have been grueling work to clean the floors and push off the water. The vaulted ceiling will be wonderful and your staircase looks perfect! Staircases are so difficult. I worked on our basement staircase with my husband and sister and it took two times before it was right!

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  5. Darn rain! You guys are working so hard and then 50 gallons of water falls all over your masterpiece! I can see why your spirits are low... I would be frustrated too, darn it.

    Well I'm sending good-weather thoughts your way. Hopefully it'll turn around for you and get you back on track. Fingers and toes crossed!

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  6. Oh gosh Chris, it is looking so good. I know you are frustrated, but look how far you have come! You know what they say, Rome wasn't built in a day :). Frustrating to say the least I am sure, but it is what it is, you can only do so much. You guys rock the construction industry with your mad carpentry skills, I am so impressed! Emjoy your time off, and how far you have come, it will all come together. Oh and why is the hallway smaller than you wanted? Just curious.

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  7. Now I have to go get look up a few words. But I am excited for u!! Try not to fret over things u can't control. Think instead of the pretty curtains u will sew for that window!

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  8. I've been thinking of you, my lovely. How is it all getting on? We have a structural engineer coming out early next week. It's all moving soooo slowly. Grrr.

    Sarahx

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  9. Hi Chris,
    Your new home looks wonderful. We built our own home too! I found you through a comment you left on The Polka Dot Chair about the Hello Kitty Sewing Machine. I wanted to let you know I just bid on one on ebay, and now I have decided to go to the next level up of the Hello Kitty machines, so I am hoping someone will outbid me. They retail at 199, overstock.com and amazon have them for 119, and this ebay auction is currently at 50.99. Brand new, unopened, unused, in the box, and no damage. It is a great deal, and I am hoping someone will outbid me. The auction ends tomorrow. check it out if you are interested! It is listed as Hello Kitty Janome Sewing Machine Best For Kids. Hope this was helpful! Feel free to outbid me! the reviews on this machine were wonderful, I checked it out thoroughly before bidding. So nice to meet you!
    Julie

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  10. Hi Chris,
    Your new home looks wonderful. We built our own home too! I found you through a comment you left on The Polka Dot Chair about the Hello Kitty Sewing Machine. I wanted to let you know I just bid on one on ebay, and now I have decided to go to the next level up of the Hello Kitty machines, so I am hoping someone will outbid me. They retail at 199, overstock.com and amazon have them for 119, and this ebay auction is currently at 50.99. Brand new, unopened, unused, in the box, and no damage. It is a great deal, and I am hoping someone will outbid me. The auction ends tomorrow. check it out if you are interested! It is listed as Hello Kitty Janome Sewing Machine Best For Kids. Hope this was helpful! Feel free to outbid me! the reviews on this machine were wonderful, I checked it out thoroughly before bidding. So nice to meet you!
    Julie

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  11. The frustrations of life beyond your control...Amazing - so good of you to make sure and get a record shot!!

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  12. I can't imagine the stress of building your own home. Hope things turn around soon, friend :)

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How sweet of you to stop by. Kind words are always welcome.