And the beat goes on . . .

"All that noise, noise, noise, NOISE!"

- The Grinch

Air compressor, flooring nailer, air gun! That's the sounds of building a house, and personally I think we could all use a break from the constant pounding.

Progress continues on the timber frame. The flooring is almost done and it really looks beautiful. After much contemplation and many calls to our GC we were able to transition the floor from the living room into the bedroom without breaking up the run of the floor. We not only saved a lot of cash doing it our self, but beat the deadline for the kitchen installation. And although the noise was a little overwhelming at times, I think we can close the book on that chapter of this process!

The wood stove was delivered this week from a spa and stove shop in Lebanon. We commissioned the store to make a hearth pad as well, but the cut around the floor timber was backward and we had to re-order the piece. We can't use the stove anyway since the pipe isn't hooked up, so hopefully next week we will be enjoying a warm fire.

So now it's back to making decisions - Appliances! I'd love to put high end appliances into this beautiful kitchen, but I have this issue hanging over me - a BUDGET! I'm looking at the Frigidaire Gallery collection right now. The prices are good and I think they have all the features we will need for this kitchen. By the way, I'm always up for a little input from my friends, so let me know if you have any suggestions.

The kitchen cabinets are a shaker-style maple with a cognac finish. That was a BIG decision and took a great deal of time to put together. Our cabinet designer is Greg Chinn from the St. Robert's Lowes. Not only has he had to solve some pretty tough issues, but has been out to our house 3 times to measure and get ideas. We are now ready to pick out some granite for the counter tops, and will probably head to Springfield this week to pick out something from a granite yard. I have no idea what we're looking for, but like everything with this house so far, we'll know it when we see it!

So what's next? Finish the window trim and start installing interior doors. Lots of trim painting still left, but little by little we're knocking that out, too. To maintain our sanity we've booked a trip to St. Maarten for mid-March with our friends Mike and Delisa.

A well-deserved break!

A New Year

Happy New Year!!

With so many changes in 2010, we are both looking forward to enjoying all the hard work that has gone into our new home. The paint is on the walls (almost), the trim is on the windows (almost), and the flooring is just about half done. All those hours watching HGTV is definitely paying off!

So many of our interior design decisions have been influenced by the timbers. With so much white oak in the house we decided to trim the windows with primed and painted pine. The trim is 4" wide and although there is a lot of work involved in creating your own trim, it's a real cash saver and looks great! Some of the angles of those higher windows were challenging, but they turned out really nice. The secret: caulk! Caulk can make ANYTHING look professional.

After shopping for months for the perfect flooring, we finally decided on natural white oak pre-finished tongue and groove from Lowe's. And thanks to our general contractor Ron, we have the tools needed to lay the flooring. Can't imagine doing this job without the proper tools! By the end of a 10 hour flooring session you're feeling pretty close to death!! The results however, are totally worth it.

What's next? It's on to the kitchen! Not that the one I'm using right now isn't good enough, but it will be nice to not have to rinse dishes in the bathroom sink. Currently we have a fridge downstairs, and a coffee pot, microwave, and a Coleman camp stove set up in the future kitchen. I've become a creative cook and quite an expert with a crock pot.

With the loft floor finished, we've taken up residency upstairs. It's probably the most beautiful room in the house and will be a great spot for guests. At night you can hear the timbers "check" as they settle into their permanent position. Although checking leaves small cracks in the posts and beams, it's part of the mystique of a timber frame.

Now that we've reached the new year, springtime is just around the corner. It won't be long until we're floating down the river and finally enjoying all the hard work we've spent during these winter months. Until then we'll continue to paint, caulk, and hammer away!