I have been waiting for a Saturday like this to come around. One of those Saturdays when I do not have any plans and can catch up on sleep. It has been a long sad week and sleep has been fleeting. Not only did I not have plans, but we had loud rain storms most of the afternoon which puts me right to sleep. I’m going to miss this tin roof over the RV after we move into the house, especially when it rains.
Speaking of house, how much is finished? A LOT has been done this month. All the inside framing for the rooms is finished. The ceiling joists for the bedrooms/floor of the loft are done. The stairs and safety railings for the loft are finished. The rough-in plumbing for master shower, my tub, toilet, guest bathroom, kitchen sinks, and pot filler are done. The rough-in for all electrical boxes, outlets, ceiling lights and fans, porch lights and fans, back porch lights and fans are all done. The fireplace hearth is finished and the fire place man will be here Monday morning to construct the fire box and smoke stacks through the roof. All of those were delivered yesterday.
In the next few weeks, we should have the fireplace done, the insulation blown in, and all the electrical wire pulled. That will leave the drywall, outside vinyl, nailing up the shiplap in the main vaulted kitchen/dining/living room, cabinets+bookshelves+counters, painting inside and mudroom, and finally….flooring. When is the projected move-in date? I’m hopeful before Christmas. With Stephen working 4 days at his day job and then working 4 days on the house, progress is slowing down. Most of the contracted work is finished and he’s doing a lot of the other construction himself.
In all honesty, if the steel industry was still as dismal as it was in October, I think he would have taken a leave for a few weeks to quickly get the house finished and converted to a mortgage to save these months of interest payments on construction loan. In October, he would have spent MORE money on just the gas driving to work than he was bringing home. However, in November and December, steel orders poured in and we definitely needed the extra income since most of 2016 was so so bad. With steel, we must budget and save during the years of feast because a year of steel famine can break you if you don’t have reserves. We managed to sell our house and start construction on this house with very little income coming in each month.
And now that the rain has stopped, I’m taking my newly-created bitmoji to sleep. Tomorrow, I’m going to actually meal prep and take my first trip to Aldi. I’ve heard great things and I have my quarter and bags ready to go.
