Our New Home Being Built

We purchased our land in March and so we were ready to get going on our house in May.  We got some bids and ended up choosing all our contractors in just a few weeks.  I left in May to go to Texas for 5 weeks.  They were supposed to be finished framing our home in 2 weeks, so I thought that by the time I got home, it would be finished but it wasn't even close. Our framers overbooked themselves and so they were stringing everybody out for weeks and weeks. This is the second time we have hired slow framers.  But they finally got the job done and we were able to move on.

Everything else just fell right into place.  The other contractors showed up when they said they would and they got the jobs done quickly.  I was really amazed at the quality of work that we received on this home.  My kids love to go over to the house so they can see the daily changes that have occurred.

We had so much help from family on our home.  Bryce also spent many hours working on it after he worked all day at Casper's.  He was so exhausted as each day came to an end.  I did the general contracting so I was in constant communication with our contractors. Bruce came over multiple times to help with the closets, null posts and doors.  Roger spent countless hours helping with whatever was needed.  He built our platform down in the theater room.  He also built all of our shelves in the cold storage room.  He also did all the shelves for our pantry. I am so grateful for his willingness to help us.

I had help from Jacqui, Steph, Jocelynn and Tawni doing the worst job of the entire house....finish work!  We caulked all the doors and baseboards.  We puttied all the nail holes on the trim and baseboards.  We taped off the windows, doors and baseboards for paint.  This was so time consuming and crappy, but at least I had great people to help me get the job done.  I can't forget Marilyn because she helped me with Parker for hours and hours these past few months.

Kyle helped us get started on the tile.  He did the pantry and our Master bathroom. This was a huge job, but we were able to move through it quickly.  I would cement the floors and the back of the tile pieces and then hand it off to Bryce. He would lay them down evenly and scrape off the excess cement.  We moved along pretty quickly once we had this little system down. After it was all down, it still didn't shine like I thought it should.  Turns out that I had to get down and scrub the tiles one by one with a vinegar/water mixture that helped take off the cement haze.  This was bad on the back and knees but we all survived.

Loved Living with Grandma and Grandpa Douglas

We have been lucky enough to live with Marilyn and Roger these past 5 months.  They are so good and make things to easy.  I love each of them so much and its been nice to get to know them better as we have lived with them.  One thing that I have learned from Marilyn's example is that she is completed devoted to her husband and she would do anything for him.  She is also very dedicated to her callings both in primary and in being a visiting teacher. She is always willing to help and you rarely hear her complain about anything.  She uses her amazing talents to serve others. I am grateful for her example and for the love that she continually extends to me and my family.

Our kids have such a special relationship with each of them.  They have dedicated so much time and love into developing these everlasting relationships with their grandkids. Parker loves waking up in the morning and going into their room to lay in between them in bed.  She just feels so comfortable in their home. Every night, Grandma would put a little lavender oil on Parkers neck and she had her very own chapstick by the side of her bed for Parker.  Grandma also would take the time to paint Parkers nail on a weekly basis.

It has been such a busy time in our lives.  The boys head off to school and Roger and I usually head over to the house to work on some project.  We installed most of the closets, baseboards, and trim.  We have spent hours upon hours working on the house.  I have done most of the general contracting for the house.  For the most part, I have loved working with all of the contractors.  Our framers took 2 months to complete the job, but after that, things started really rolling quickly.