Kitchen Ceiling

The scary leak from the master bath shower was repaired and the replacement heating panels were delivered and installed thanks to the assistance of Uncle Fred. The children were more than happy to kick us out of their bathroom. We still have a hole in our kitchen ceiling, but at least it is a somewhat tidy hole now!

Powder Room 2

It has been almost a month since our last post. Several parts of several projects have been tinkered with and then there was the BIG project... Removing Ken's gal bladder. So now we are back on track. The powder room has received much attention; the chair rail was installed and painted, the sink was installed, the toilet was lined to prevent sweating onto our wood floor (the jury is still out on that DIY project) and the BIG NEWS is that the plumbing and faucet were installed and we have RUNNING WATER in our little petal sink. YAY! So now we actually have a fully functional bathroom (not counting a few aesthetic details such as base molding). Just in time for our exchange student from China to arrive.

ICE anyone?

After years of replacing plastic hoses gone bad on the back of the refrigerator, and finally giving up for a while, a copper hose coil was put to good use. Yesterday, ken and hayden worked as a team to install and test to success. The day closed with an occasional happy little kerplunk sound of ice being made. ken, (Mr. "more ice please" was quite content. Perhaps he'll have ice for breakfast! HAPPY FATHER'S DAY TO ALL OF THE DADS!!

BIG NEWS - it bloomed!

This is not home improvement news, but worthy of a little cyber space of its own. The Chinese Night Blooming Cereus plant that we have been waiting for 14 years to bloom FINALLY had it's big moment tonight. It probably had a complex because it has been banished to the laundry room because the plant itself is... well... NOT pretty. It was a BIG event and we are glad the kids were able to see it. It is currently 9" accross (1am). Here is the address to an interesting time-lapse of a cereus bud opening i just found: http://www.bol.ucla.edu/~rfovell/cereus_bloom.html
The detail in this flower is so amazing, there is no doubt who the master designer of this wonder is!

This + That

Several projects were attacked tonight. Coach Mark spackeled the living room/dining room 1/2 walls and kids bath wall. Then Mark and Ken successfully (except for one corner) popped the big mirror off of the kid's bath wall to prep for the double-vanity and new mirrors. There was a surprise under there! (see photo)... looks like there was another mirror and different light fixtures at some point. Speaking of surprises, Ken decided to address the kitchen ceiling leak stain from the master bath. Cutting the dry wall away, he discovered that the shower drain coupling had come loose over the years and had not only wrecked the ceiling, but did quite a number on the radiant heat panel, which had to be removed (see water damage photo). The hunt is on to find a replacement.

Fireplace Log Bin 3

Ken and Fred made great strides on "the box" today... actually, short of some stain, a rubber seal and a bolt latch with lock, it is complete! The inside was lined with insulation, then oak. The door swings up as a "roof" to keep snow and rain out while loading. Looking forward to using it this winter!

Gardens

This afternoon, ken wrangled the renegade bamboo that strayed from the pack. It is a little late in the season to be transplanting, so we stuck it in a big bucket of good soil along with an orphan yellow rain tree and put it in the shade. We'll move it later if it survives. Hayden and Suzan conquered the out-of-control (especially the mint) herb garden and added some new parsley and rosemary.

Powder Room

The new corian counter top has arrived and was installed yesterday. We are not pleased with the cut job of the right wall side, so we will paint and silicone on a little finish molding to crisp up the wall edges.

Memorial Day

We took a little hiatus from our house projects for the memorial day weekend and took on other important construction matters. Thanks for a fun weekend Mom + Dad!

Fireplace Log Bin 2

Fred and Ken chipped away at this project all evening. Here they are trimming with the cedar... smells yummy. Next, they plan on finishing the inside with insulation and oak, then build the door and shingle the roof. Does this mean we have to start chopping wood?

FINALLY!

It is official. The new powder room corian vanity top has been ordered! Kenny sent in the template and they should have it done and delivered mid next week. The painting, hardwood floor and crown molding are complete. For room completion, we just need to install the vanity and sink/plumbing, build the mirror frame and install the chair-rail. Here is the current view of the lovely vanity.

Fireplace Log Bin

OK... this neat idea of ken's is actually becoming a reality. He has created a way for us to load the wood from the outside of the house without trekking the loads through the arbor, into the front door and across the carpet. This photo shows the inside arch construction and outside structure that he and fred started to build on saturday. The plywood outer-wall is just temporary. insulation and cedar are to come.

We have to start somewhere!

Many projects are being assessed. The ones that are rising to the surface and getting some attention this week are the fireplace log access "port", the powder room and the gardens. Weather for the week looks to be on and off sun, clouds and rain. perfect for the grass seed in the front field!