My Dad came out from Ohio on the 11th to help me with some home improvement projects before selling the house. We've had an extremely busy week. We got a lot accomplished, but we still have some left over. Josh will be pleased to finish it up when he comes home. In fact I think he would prefer I let him finish things so he can feel useful again. The first item of business was our crummy old garage door. The frame was rotting and had been broken into (not while we lived in it). It was also infested with carpenter ants. The carpenter ants actually had a nest inside the door. We ripped that sucker out and sprayed the thousands of ants above the frame. Then the exterminator came and took care of everything else while we finished hanging the new door.
The following day we did a whole lot of painting. The siding was delivered so we primed and painted all 11 panels and started to rip off some of the trim and a couple old panels in the back. We both agreed the most difficult part of any operation was keeping track of Noah and finding things for him to do. Luckily his birthday present from my mom came and that occupied him for awhile. He helped us paint everything... including a few things we didn't want painted. Overall he did a good job, though. Especially considering his age!
Sunday we were graced by the presence of Brandon and Vita and they helped a LOT! Brandon really knew what he was doing and he just doesn't stop moving and working. Vita forced me to eat and relax for a bit and kept an eye on Noah. She also pulled a few nails herself :) Once again Noah was right on our heels. He had to touch and try every tool we used. It was quite nerve-wracking. I'm sure he learned a lot though. He only has to see something once and he's quick to mimic. We bought him a huge pool which worked as a distraction for a couple hours. This was our most productive day as far as the siding goes. There was no way and old man and a pregnant lady could have finished this job. Thanks so much Brandon and Vita!!! :D The work stopped when we hit a water pipe with a nail and had a bit of a leak issue. Whoops! No project ever goes perfectly!! We had a plumber come to fix it Monday morning.
Monday and Tuesday Dad and I worked slowly but surely, putting up panels, taking down panels... putting insulation in certain spots, fixing holes, caulking around windows. There are a lot of little things that needed done that we saw once we have the panels off. Dad cut branches off a tree that was scraping onto my roof and swept off all the debris. He painted most of the trim, anything that required a ladder. The rest is easy enough for me to get to. Brandon and Vita came over again on Tuesday night and were able to finish the paneling. THANK GOD! I couldn't hammer any more nails. I know Dad was tired too. Once again, thanks so much for your help, guys!! We were treated to rainbows and a gorgeous sunset while we worked. We finally called it a night at around 9pm, had a few beers, and actually sat down and visited until nearly midnight.
The house has come a long long way since we first moved in. Both the front and back. It went from looking like a 26yr old house, to looking like a well-kept modernized home. I'm glad we did the upgrades. It will be a lot easier to sell this home and make a decent profit while we're at it.
Noah was sad to see Papa go. We've been having a nice slow, cuddly day. All I have done today is lay around and try to recuperate. Oh wait... I primed the upper trim after Noah and I took a 3 hour nap. It's been raining all day so we were blessed with pretty good weather during the week. God loves us :) My house is a complete disaster because the last thing I wanted to do was clean after days of outside labor. I am out of food again. I need to vacuum, sweep, and mop. The dirty dishes are piled all over the kitchen. Tools need to be put away. Painting and caulking still need to happen. I need to empty out the storage space and cancel it. I'll do it all eventually. Today I must rest. I can't wait to cash in those prenatal massages.
The following day we did a whole lot of painting. The siding was delivered so we primed and painted all 11 panels and started to rip off some of the trim and a couple old panels in the back. We both agreed the most difficult part of any operation was keeping track of Noah and finding things for him to do. Luckily his birthday present from my mom came and that occupied him for awhile. He helped us paint everything... including a few things we didn't want painted. Overall he did a good job, though. Especially considering his age!
Sunday we were graced by the presence of Brandon and Vita and they helped a LOT! Brandon really knew what he was doing and he just doesn't stop moving and working. Vita forced me to eat and relax for a bit and kept an eye on Noah. She also pulled a few nails herself :) Once again Noah was right on our heels. He had to touch and try every tool we used. It was quite nerve-wracking. I'm sure he learned a lot though. He only has to see something once and he's quick to mimic. We bought him a huge pool which worked as a distraction for a couple hours. This was our most productive day as far as the siding goes. There was no way and old man and a pregnant lady could have finished this job. Thanks so much Brandon and Vita!!! :D The work stopped when we hit a water pipe with a nail and had a bit of a leak issue. Whoops! No project ever goes perfectly!! We had a plumber come to fix it Monday morning.
Monday and Tuesday Dad and I worked slowly but surely, putting up panels, taking down panels... putting insulation in certain spots, fixing holes, caulking around windows. There are a lot of little things that needed done that we saw once we have the panels off. Dad cut branches off a tree that was scraping onto my roof and swept off all the debris. He painted most of the trim, anything that required a ladder. The rest is easy enough for me to get to. Brandon and Vita came over again on Tuesday night and were able to finish the paneling. THANK GOD! I couldn't hammer any more nails. I know Dad was tired too. Once again, thanks so much for your help, guys!! We were treated to rainbows and a gorgeous sunset while we worked. We finally called it a night at around 9pm, had a few beers, and actually sat down and visited until nearly midnight.
The house has come a long long way since we first moved in. Both the front and back. It went from looking like a 26yr old house, to looking like a well-kept modernized home. I'm glad we did the upgrades. It will be a lot easier to sell this home and make a decent profit while we're at it.
Noah was sad to see Papa go. We've been having a nice slow, cuddly day. All I have done today is lay around and try to recuperate. Oh wait... I primed the upper trim after Noah and I took a 3 hour nap. It's been raining all day so we were blessed with pretty good weather during the week. God loves us :) My house is a complete disaster because the last thing I wanted to do was clean after days of outside labor. I am out of food again. I need to vacuum, sweep, and mop. The dirty dishes are piled all over the kitchen. Tools need to be put away. Painting and caulking still need to happen. I need to empty out the storage space and cancel it. I'll do it all eventually. Today I must rest. I can't wait to cash in those prenatal massages.
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I can't believe Noah is going to be 3 in just a few weeks!!