My Dear Friends At Lowes

So construction has been moving along quite smoothly. The plumbing, electrical, hvac and central vacuum components are just about completed. The exterior has been wrapped in preparation for the stucco and the tar paper for the roof has been laid.

In order for the next round of inspections to be completed all the exterior doors must be hung. Unfortunately our dear friend's at Lowes messed up the order for our exterior door and did not order the transom. We should have it early this week and the inspection can proceed.

I say Lowes is our dear friend because we had one heck of a time using them to install new kitchen cabinets in our old home. First, the sink cabinet got "lost" for 4 weeks, then the contractor realized that they had goofed on the measurements and ordered cabinets too large for a space. Then they damaged our new dishwasher and jimmied two electrical outlets while installing the new cabinets cutting out the power to both outlets. They also ordered the wrong molding twice. In the end, to reimburse us for having to get an electrician out to fix the two outlets and a technician to order a new part for the dishwasher Lowes gave us gift cards for the money we were out. I will never EVER recommend using Lowes for this type of service again. Get your own contractor because the Lowes' contractors stink and the people at Lowes are horrible about managing these contractors.

So in the meantime, we have made a trip to one of the tile shops my contractor uses. There we picked out carpet, tile flooring, tile for the baths and showers, and granite for the kitchen and baths. We still need to decide on the back splash for the kitchen, but by the end we were completely exhausted! We could not make another decision so we will save that one for another day.

Church Music

I have mentioned previously that my son loves tractors. He also LOVES music. Many of my friends find it quite amusing when he spontaneously bursts into song. It could be "Row, Row, Row Your Boat", "Where Has My Little Dog Gone" or "I've been Working on the Railroad" just to name a few. So it is no surprise that my son's favorite part of our main church meeting is the hymns.

Unfortunately, my son doesn't know the words to most of the church hymns. A few weeks ago I began to notice that my son was singing more than "oohs" and "ahs" during the hymn. He was actually inventing words of his own. And what words would be more appropriate in church than names of tractors? That's right, in the middle of a hymn I would hear o/~ "Aaah, Bulldozer! BullDOooOZEEEER!" o/~ So those of you who attend church with us and read this blog now know why my husband and I are snickering through the hymns. We mean no disrespect, we just can't help ourselves.

One Tough Cookie

I have to say that my daughter is one tough cookie. She is always on the go. Unlike her brother, she was crawling at the normal age of 8 months. My son was never in a hurry, he didn't begin to crawl until 11 months old. My daughter, now 10 1/2 months old, can really fly across the floor. And, if a door is opened, watch out! She is going, going, gone (squealing and giggling all the way).

In the backyard of our rental there is a lot of concrete. This can be hard on the knees so my daughter has perfected what I call the three point crawl. She uses one foot to propel herself forward so she doesn't have to have both knees on the ground. This has been fairly effective, especially since she can switch knees when one gets tired.

We also have a large gravel area in the backyard and a smaller gravel area in the front yard. These used to be barriers for my little Cutesie, but she has decided that they will be so no more. A few days ago she played for a brief time in some rocks in the front yard, but I figured after experiencing the sharp jabs of the rocks she would no longer venture there. Wrong.

Yesterday she decided to take an extended trip in the rocks in the backyard, traveling a good two to three yards to get from my mother's room to the concrete. Later, she returned by taking a round about way through the rocks, stopping to play with various tractors along her path. I can dress her like a little princess, but I know she is one rough and tough little girl at heart.

Meeting the Cabinet Maker

Our builder had the cabinet-maker over today to take measurements for all the cabinetry in our home and there is A LOT of cabinetry. My mother is having the cabinet-makers create a built-in TV entertainment unit for her room. It was either have them build it or buy another piece of furniture. We also added a small desk in the kitchen and a broom closet in the HUGE laundry room (my mother wanted a large laundry room and this one is enormous). Otherwise, the cabinets follow the original floor plan.

We have been debating whether we would use Maple cabinetry or Hickory. The cabinet-maker said the price is comparable so we went with Hickory. When we remodeled the kitchen in our old house we used Maple and I still think Maple is very nice, but Hickory has so much character. Hopefully we love it as much when it is installed in a couple of months.

Rough Framing

The rough framing of our home is nearly complete. The work site has been cleaned in lieu of the framing inspection that should occur this week. Our windows were installed last Friday and they are beautiful! Our builder is using CertainTeed casement windows. We decided to go with casements because of the tighter seal versus the standard sliders that are common in California. They are truly gorgeous.

Another thing of beauty is our roof. The builder has installed radiant barrier roof material. Rather than regular plywood, radiant barrier roofing has an undercoat of aluminum which reflects the heat off the roof. The difference walking under the roof line is amazing. The radiant roofing continues to the patios that follow the roof line. I know we will be very thankful for this investment during the terribly hot summer months.

We caught a couple things that had not been finished yet--my mom's corner shower still needed a side wall and seat (the original plans had glass walls on all three sides and no seat). Also, we noticed the toilet drain was too close to the powder room wall so the floor will need to be jacked and drain moved about a foot. Otherwise things are moving smoothly. Our builder figures most of the house will be finished in 3 months, so we will probably be able to move into the home in 4 months.

Farmer's Market

Every Thursday a Farmer's Market is held at Victor Valley College. Since moving to the victor valley area 2 years ago this market has been an almost weekly adventure for my little family. I remember our first trip to the market. It was the first time my son tasted a strawberry. I still remember him sitting on my hip in the sling, savoring each juicy bite, strawberry juice running through his fingers and down his little arms.

My husband hasn't been able to go with us to the market lately because of his work schedule, but we still plan our weekly trip. Over the winter the market slows down quite a bit and I only go about every two weeks. Last week I missed the market, but when I went to the grocery store and found peaches that were ripe I had a feeling that things were going to be exciting this week. It seems to have taken a little longer to get really exciting this year, but the market has finally arrived!

Yesterday I bought apricots, peaches, cherries, strawberries, tomatoes, asparagus, green beans, broccoli, new potatoes and lettuce. My daughter had her first apricot. Oh how she loved that apricot! By the time she was done her little face was bright orange. My son loves apricots as well. I bought 8 and by the time we reached the car I had 3 left. One went to my daughter, the rest to my son. I just can't say it enough, I love the farmer's market!!

Under Roof

Another week has come and gone and work continues at a feverish pace. Since so much has occurred, I thought I'd outline day by day:

Last Wednesday - The slab foundation was poured.

Thursday - The framers outlined the base of the walls in a dry run to ensure the walls would go up smoothly.

Friday - Despite fierce winds, the framers erected the walls of the house.

Saturday - Framers plumbed the walls in preparation for the trusses.

Monday - Truss work begins.

Yesterday we took a grand tour of our home. Finally we can get a better feel for the layout of our home. With things moving so quickly, my mom joked with the framers that we would be ready to move in two weeks.