Almost There!

The end is in sight! Over the course of the last couple of weeks, it felt like it would NEVER be done, but thankfully we are nearly there!

I did the final walkthrough with the builder on Wednesday. There are still a few things that are incomplete, but some of those have already been addressed. Touch up painting is done, and gutters and downspouts were installed today.

Closing is a week away - what a relief!

Getting Closer

Terry was able to get the weekend off because they are in-between projects at his job (west of Fort Worth), and he will move back to the day shift after working nights for a couple of weeks. We took a picnic lunch to the lake and enjoyed the view from the porch. It was a beautiful, warm, sunny day with a nice breeze - perfect for porch-sitting!

Carpet has been installed as well as all doorknobs, doorstops, and kitchen knobs.

We are getting close...I feel like the rest of my life is on hold, so I am ready for this to be done!

Morning Becomes Electric

...with sincere apologies to Eugene O'Neill...

I was happy to see that the electricity to the boathouse was still intact this morning! Not sure where that electric line runs, but it is obviously not where the septic lines are. Thank goodness!

While I was there, a neighbor walking her dog came by. From her comments, I believe she has taken the liberty of walking through the house during various stages of construction! (This practice seems to be fairly common...but still strikes me as very strange!) Even though she was obviously already familiar with my home and the floor plan, I cordially asked her if she would like to walk through. During our tour, she asked me if I had heard of the Camp Creek Ladies Club and wondered if I would be interested in joining them for one of their monthly gatherings.  Ummm...thanks for the offer, but I believe I'll have to decline...

Sing A Song of Septic

My serenade to the septic guys was successful! I assume they started yesterday because the tanks were already in the ground when I arrived this morning.

As I was leaving, I advised them that the direction they were digging was getting close to an underground electric line that goes from our boathouse up to the electrical meter. They did not seem to be particularly concerned, so I guess I will have to go back tomorrow to see if they cut it or not.

The Tilson electrical guys were also there today getting some of the wiring problems straightened out. In addition to the living room lights not working, they found some problems in the way the dishwasher was  wired...they said it could have been a dangerous situation if they had not caught it before the dishwasher was used for the first time. Glad they caught it!

There are still a few things that need to be done - touchup paint inside, painting on the porch and ramp railings, carpeting, and gutters/downspouts - but I think we are getting close! Sure am ready to be finished!

Where, Oh Where, Have The Septic Guys Gone?

Waiting for the septic guys...where are the septic guys? Sure would like to see those septic guys! Don't you know that you are holding up the whole operation right now?


No sign of the septic guys today, but the gas men were prompt and prepared! We have our new propane tank and the connection to the house is in.

They were able to check the connections to the furnace and water heater, but the electrical to the stove was not working so they will be back later for that. There are also electrical problems in the living room and master bath WC. The electrical guy is supposed to track down the problems tomorrow.

Oh...and did I mention that the appliances were installed yesterday? Stove/oven, microwave and dishwasher. We have ordered the refrigerator, but it will not be delivered and installed until after closing since it was not included in our house deal.

The final touch for the ramp - a bench on the landing - was also added yesterday. It will make a nice sitting spot to watch birds and deer!

I'm glad to see the progress made, but I am ready for it to be DONE! (I sense that this will be a recurring theme!)

Lookin' Good!

It was a beautiful day for a trip to the lake! There were three guys working on the ramp railing today. By the end of the day it was just about finished and looking very cool!

I moved wood from an old shed that had gotten thrown on a way-too-big trash pile...only injury is a fairly large knot on my leg where a heavy piece of wood bounced back and hit me. I'll live!

Progress Is Slow

Things seem to be crawling along right now. There is no sign of a septic system yet, and we can't get our final survey until it is in. Still have some sharp edges on my kitchen counter tiles, although all my duct tape arrows are gone. I think they got some of them but not all - seems like all that smoothing should have been done before they were installed and that a lot of time has been spent trying to fix it after the fact...and it's still not right! Electrical is all hooked up but the meter is not in the meter box. The builder told me it was okay for the electric company to disconnect the temp pole to get the permanent connection made, but when the electric company was out to do that last week the people working told them not to disconnect. I contacted the electric company today and hope that they can get out to take care of this tomorrow! Tomorrow I'll check with the builder to see about some of the other things.

Even though progress seems to be at a snail's pace right now, some forward movement is apparent.

The porch railing is going in, and the ramp is being readied for rails as well.

The glass for the master shower has been installed...

...and the fixtures have been modified. I still don't think it is exactly what I picked, but I guess it will do.

The windows have even been washed!

I am really ready to get this place finished!

Oops!

What did you say? Did you say "oops?" I've said "oops" before, and I know what I've done when I've said "oops", now what did you do saying' "oops" there?
~ Bill Cosby


There were a few "oops" said during a quick run to the lake house after work...


OOPS! That ceiling fan doesn't belong in that room! (Said TWO times...once in the living room and once in the master bedroom...)

These are the standard fans that the builder uses. I really didn't care for the style, so we moved them from the living room and the master bedroom to the two spare bedrooms. We will then purchase fans more to our liking for the L.R. and Master B.R. In addition, the living room is going to require a bigger blade due to the size of the room. I guess the installer did not get the memo about the change!


OOPS! That is not the shower fixture that we selected for the Master Bath shower!

We should have a regular shower head plus a handheld shower head. This one might be a little more difficult...but I'm sure it will get fixed!


OOPS! The cut edges of the granite tiles on the kitchen counter are sharp! I cut my finger as I ran my hand over the counter, so pieces of tape now mark each edge that needs to smoothed!

This picture does not show all my little pieces of duct tape with their red Sharpie arrows pointing to the offending edge, but it does show the kitchen sink! All plumbing fixtures (right or wrong!) are in, as well as the water heater.


There will be plenty of light in the kitchen, I think...no oops here!

I also like the dining room and entry light fixtures. Here is the entry...