We are back in Allegan.

We headed back to Allegan today to work on the clearing needed for the electric company and gas company to lay their services.  Of course it is suppose to rain all day tomorrow, won't that be a lot of fun.  But we got here and saw a lot of progress so here are some pictures:

Drywall work happening in the garage.

More work in the garage.

This is the pantry closet.

This is the 1/2 bath in the laundry area.

This is the electric for the half bath light over the sink.  Of course the plumber put the pipe dead center on the wall.  So Brent, our Fabulous Electrician, came up with a plan to get a electric box in the center of the wall.  Yeah!!! Brent.

This is the entry from the side yard into the laundry room and 1/2 bath.

Looking at the sun room from the kitchen.

This is the corner of the kitchen that the oven will be.  We should be ordering our cabinets early next week.

This is looking from the living room to the garage entry door.  On the left will be pantry cabinets and a bench by the door.

This is the family room and fireplace.  I wasn't sure if raising the hearth would crowd the room, but I'm glad I did it.  It looks great.

Here is another view of the fireplace and raised hearth.

This is a window on the stair wall going to the basement.

Front entry door.

This is my small office.

Looking from the office into the master bedroom and hall.

Master bedroom, I can't believe how much light.  Anyone who saw our Cobb house knows how much light we DID NOT have in any of our rooms.  This will be such a treat.

Master bedroom looking into the master bath.

Door from the master bedroom onto the deck.

They started putting in the deck frame today.  Mike and I really need to decide what deck boards we are going to use, like soon,.

Drywall is here

We are just back from a trip from Illinois to Allegan, and a quick day trip to Warren.  On Friday the Septic guy started digging the septic field and put the extra dirt in the driveway area.  Early Friday the basement insulation was delivered along with the deck framing material.  Late Friday the drywall was delivered and Saturday they started installing.  So we have a slew of new pictures of progress.  Here they are:

Deck framing materials delivered

Dirt from the septic field was moved to fill the drive.

Drywall is waiting to be hung in the great room.

Garage walls have been insulated and waiting for the drywall to go in.

Drywall waiting to be installed in the kitchen.

Electric panel installed.

Fireplace installed.

Sunroom insulated.

Ivan ready to start insulating the basement walls.

The master closet was insulated and is the first room with drywall on the walls and cieling.  We are on our way.

Matt cutting pieces for the basement wall insulation.

Mike's room with insulation.

Septic Field ready.

Septic Field dug out.

Kitchen Organization Ideas

This week they are putting in the insulation and then the drywall starts.  So as we wait, I'm browsing the web on how to organize the kitchen STUFF.  I anyone who knows us knows that Mike has STUFF and I don't like to have stuff cluttering the kitchen.  So here are some neat kitchen organization things I might be using.

I especially like the way they do the lids for pots and pans and the storage of the casserole dishes.  Since we will have mostly drawers and not many upper cabinets, I hope to be able to use some of these ideas.

12 Great Ideas for Organization In the Kitchen

Houzz- Kitchen Design, Bathroom Design and More»

Find Home Improvement Professionals- For Example:

New York Architect · New York Interior Designer · San Francisco Contractor · Los Angeles Landscaping ·

Inspections Done

We had the inspections for the Electric, Plumbing and Heating/Cooling done last week and everything is good to go.  The framer was coming yesterday and today to do some last punch list items. 

We are waiting for the fireplace to come in, we ordered it a few weeks ago from Cosy Warm Fireplace & Patio in Holland, thinking that a local company would be good.  But some delays are occuring, they aren't scheduled to get the fireplace until late this week, so the install won't be till mid next week at best.    We have the insulation scheduled for late this week and the drywall to start mid next week, so things are moving along, slow but still moving along.

Of course we can't have a new build without some drama, ours started last week.  The HVAC guy decided he doesn't want to finish the job.  Luckily, his contract is with Pierson Gibbs, not directly with us, so Pierson Gibbs will be working with him and the legal issues involved.  I'm sure they will get us HVAC one way or another.   Of course, Mike is the worry wart, so until it is resolved, he will worry.

So hear are a few unexciting pictures of plumbing, wiring and HVAC.

So Much Going On

It's been a few weeks since our last post.  So many things have been happening, I'll try to get everyone up to date.

We closed on the Dearborn house last Wednesday.  Picked up a moving truck Friday night, had two movers over Saturday morning and loaded the truck. Mike drove the truck and Cocoa and I followed in the Vue.  We got to Patti's house in Allegan about 6 and Patti got here about 7.  We went out for a quick dinner and then all crashed.  Saturday morning two more movers came and unloaded everything into Patti's garage and basement.  We headed back to Dearborn to pick up a few things and drop off the keys at the realtor.  When we walked in with the keys, the new owners walked in behind us to pick up the key.  They are a nice young couple, who will hopefully enjoy the house for many years.  It's hard to believe I had the house for 3 years before Mike, so a total of 27 years in that house.  So good bye to that chapter of our life and on to the next one.

So now onto the new house.  The trades, Electric, Plumbing and Heating/Cooling are in the house doing their things.  We hope to have them all completed and ready for the inspections by Monday.  Following are a couple of pictures of the doors that were put in in the Great Room, Laundry Room Entry and Front Doors.

The doors are finally in on the lake side of the house

This is the laundry room entry door.  I wasn't sure it was worth the extra cost to have the tall door, but it sure looks good with the sun shinning in.  Can't wait to see it with the walls, floors, cabinets and washer/dryer.  You know that gypsies don't have washers and dryers, so the thought of having them at my disposal is a wishful thought.

Here is the door from the master bedroom to the deck.  This was a last minute addition to the plan.  So glad we did it, it looks great and the sun cooperated for the picture.

Basement bath tub is in.

Here's an exciting picture, the HVAC runs are getting put installed.

We hitched a ride back to Dearborn on Monday to pick up the car and turn in the keys for the house.  Mike is sleeping on the van floor and Cocoa has the comfy seat for her nap.

Here are Mike and Cocoa sleeping on the way back from lunch after we helped unload the truck.

Here are the front doors.  They look great and you can see through the house out the deck doors and to the lake.

Doug stopped by Patti's this afternoon and we talked about the schedules and he thinks we may be in late May.  I'm not holding my breath, but early June would be good.

In the mean time, we are staying at Patti's in Allegan.  Of course, her house is waiting for flooring, painting, trim work, bathrooms completed, kitchen, etc.....  But it's a place to sleep close to the build.  We're off later this week to Urbana, IL.

My Outdoor Shower and Exterior Doors

Not too much new looking this past weekend, but here are a few pictures of the garage exterior doors and my outdoor shower.  We're headed back tomorrow and plumbing and HVAC are working today, so we should see more visible progress. 

I've always wanted an outdoor shower, but ours got cut early in the budget.  We found this sitting in the snow for the basement bath.

The is the back garage door.

This is the entry door from the garage to the house.

This is the garage entry door on the front of the house.

Garage entry door from the outstide.

This is Mike's workroom door to the outside world.

Yesterday we had the appraisal for the Dearborn house.  Hopefully, by week end we'll know that all is well with the buyers financing.  Then we set the close date and go.  Today I'm starting to pack.