I inherited a very old deck with this house.
We removed the rails and all the boards which were unsafe to support weight the weekend before I moved in. I was determined to save the majority of the deck and began to look for ways to extend its life.
Category: Home Improvements
Better Child Proofing
When my children were little the market for child-proofing gadgets was just beginning. The best thing any parent could do was to put dangerous items out of the reach of a child and lock doors.
Then came the advent of lots of plastic gadgets to protect children from household dangers. Some work some of the time, but not all work for all children and some children open these gadgets easier than their parents do.
More Bathroom Reno and Teaching the Next Generation
Things on my house came to a bit of a stand still for a while this year thanks to my boys. I figured since my oldest was working construction now I’d hire him. Problem was, he was took the fact that his brother legally owns my house to ask him what he thought of the work I wanted him to do. My youngest decided that I shouldn’t put my money into the house, and told him the house was fine and I should live with it as it.
Continue reading “More Bathroom Reno and Teaching the Next Generation”
Bathroom Updates on Halloween
The bathroom is driving me nuts. The last I mentioned this room the floor had been laid, toilet set in place and new shower ready to go. The contractors promised to be back in a couple of days to repair the plaster and install a larger door.
The delays began almost immediately. The workers were supposed to complete the work last Wednesday but never showed up. I heard they got tied up on a job and it was relayed to me that they would be here on Saturday. Saturday my son sends me a text telling me they would be here Monday instead. Monday, you got it, no phone call and no guys showing up to work.
Bathroom Update: Surprise after Surprise
The bathroom remodel was supposed to begin Tuesday morning but was delayed until Thursday due to the death in the family of the contractor. They arrived as a crew of five and I quietly chuckled knowing they weren’t all going to be working here at the same time. At the most two workers could stand in my bathroom at the same time.
Like most rooms in this house, things are being completed in stages. For the bathroom the first stage was to clean, hang new shower curtain and add a seat riser to the toilet – enough to move in.
Painted Tile Update and Another Remodel Coming Up
Today all the news is about the bathroom. Here’s a reminder of what I started with in the only bathroom in the house.
This room needed a lot of work. The maple cabinets didn’t fit the style of the house and screamed “bog box, cheap” to me. The purple walls had to go and that floor tile….it was gross.
Not only did they install unglazed tile in a bathroom but renters had let dogs use this room, as well as the living room, for their toilet. The urine smell was god-awful and no amount of cleaning eliminated it.
As my disability is a progressively worsening type I knew any remodel of the bathroom would have to take in to account physical limitations not only now but down the road. The biggest problem was that I have no idea what those limitations may look like when considering the best layout for the bathroom.
Continue reading “Painted Tile Update and Another Remodel Coming Up”
Kitchen Storage and Another Old Window
Time to get caught up on sharing with you all the projects we worked on this summer. Today I want to show you the latest updates in the kitchen. Before I do I thought you might like a peek into my day so far. First thing this morning little guy arrived with his mom to drop off some supplies I needed and their dog – they are taking a weekend trip.
Little guy found the last of this year’s strawberries. This bed was planted just for the children and it’s a good thing because I might have had a dozen berries all summer from this bed – when they were willing to share with me. 🙂
It’s Been a Busy Month
It’s been a crazy summer. First there was the infestation of cicadas which brought with them lots of clean up from dead cicadas covering every surface daily to the damage they left behind. Then came the storms. The flooding was bad and took its toll on both the gardens and the property itself. This was just a few miles from me.
I was lucky in that for once the sump pumps worked like a charm and I had no further flooding in the basement, yes, I have two sump pumps in my basement to handle the water problems that result from living on a steep hill and improperly installed gutters and bad landscaping design.
Theoretically Nothing Could Go Wrong
Today was the day to break out the new saw and get to work on the railings. I set everything up had the first piece of wood on the saw and then hesitated. Theoretically I couldn’t get hurt but Murphy’s Law, popped into my head. The saw came mostly assembled from the manufacturer but what if the blade wasn’t securely attached, all those what if’s.
I decided to proceed cautiously. I called a neighbor and asked if she had a minute to stop over. I asked her to just stand there while I made the first cut, if everything went fine she could leave, if not and I was severely injured to please call for help. Plus, I figured it was smart to let someone know I was about to operate a powerful saw in case of an emergency.
Murphy avoided me today and I was able to get work done without injury. 🙂
Checking off the List
Progress on the house came to a halt for a while when family needs took priority and I diverted the funds from the house to helping family. Now things are getting back on track and that long list is becoming smaller.
The upstairs floors have been a headache. We removed the carpeting to find worn floors, plaster and glue spilled and walked through. Let’s just say the only thing worse would have been finding out the original wood floors were not salvageable.
This is what we found in the pink room, instantly renamed the girls’ room by the little ones.
And this is what the girls’ room floor looks like today.
