FRIENDS! Fret no longer! I have not abandoned ship and left you to meander the tumultuous path of home building alone! We are, however, in survival mode so bear with me :)
As you can imagine, as LOT has happened since I left you :) Let's get to it:
The basement is already proving to be a hot spot for friends/neighbors. One of the major reasons we wanted to build was for people to fill it! Notice the beams/posts. Gotta have those things sporadically to hold up the upper floor...think about that when you are thinking about your future basement and that layout. The beams/posts affect that. This is step 1 for the framing crew.
Next comes subfloor! Dangerous time to be bringing children (or clumsy adults) around. Also, for the first time the house seemed huge!
WALLS! THOSE ARE WALLS! And this is where it all changed. It finally became a house (to me) that's not a legal description! :)
Trusses (the framing portion that creates the roof) are custom made off site and brought in. They are set with a crane. Fun to watch. The boys and I sat in the car munching chicken nuggets & watching the live movie! :)
THAT IS MY HOUSE! Taking shape now, for sure. Framing is quite a process but wow! Makes a huge difference!!! After the framing is done foam board (the blue stuff) is attached to the 2x4's and then covered in Tyvek, then covered with siding. That's it....seems weird, no? Plywood is added over the trusses to create the roof. Felt is laid and then the shingles. Also got the front entry beams/gable done which is super fun! Columns come later. Such a muddy muddy mess! When the framers feel like it they come back and put in the windows and temporary exterior doors. Temp ones are used so the pretty new ones don't get banged up. Also true of the interior stair way. Right now it's a temporary staircase/railing. Better than the gaping hole that caused me GREAT anxiety with the kiddos around.
And now let's take a tour inside and play a little game: name that space! Based on only the framing see if you can guess which spaces are which. Answers below. Please notice the puddle of water on the floor. When you don't have a roof and it rains the inside of your new house gets wet. It's a little alarming but apparently ok. Also notice the blue foam board that is now the exterior AND interior of your home. There are parts of it that are super muddy from people stepping on it and such. Apparently that's part of your house forever...not a big deal but a strange thought nonetheless. GAME ON:
Name that space: 1 What areas do you think Zeb and Silas are "cleaning?"
Name that space: 2 Silas (shirtless because construction workers leave A LOT of 1/2 full energy drinks around. Silas found one and dumbed it on himself) is peering out of???
Name that space: 3 What have we here? And why the red boards? That I don't know, btw...
Name that space: 4 Hint: it's where the "magic" happens. Or so they say...
Name that space 5: If you can't handle the heat....
Name that space: 6 Obviously that's the stairway....what's to the left & right?
Name that space: 7 Who shall rest their head here?
She's pretty. I hope she comes with the house :)
Name that space: 8 More wee ones MIGHT rest here
ROOFING!
SIDING!
And as of tonight, the drywall is hung! Waiting for it to be mudded and taped! Before they could drywall Seth had to insulate the walls & spray foamed pipes & wires going through the attic/exterior. Plastic is stapled over the insulation and drywall over that. Can't wait to get pics -- that REALLY changed things. I can't see through my whole house anymore! We have windows and doors and hoping to wrap up siding this weekend! We also now have a driveway. A lot of stuff can go in different orders depending on who's available when (driveway/sidewalks/siding/garage door/etc.) Siding wouldn't normally be done unit later but since Seth is doing that he's already started. We will also get to work on the deck ASAP so we can get some sod down before the snow flies!
A few product notes:
-WINDOWS: we went with Pella windows and Seth does use Pella for most of his jobs. He's not opposed to other brands, but does believe Pella is quality product with lots of options.
-SIDING: for our sliding door we opted to have blinds IN the widows because let's face it: vertical blinds are a HUGE pain and I HATE curtain shopping. Easy peasy. Another product Seth HIGHLY recommends: Hardi siding. Cement board siding: maintenance free/durable! We opted for a pre finished product because "ain't no body got time to paint" :) haha. But in the end we did discover it ended up being a few hundred $ cheaper to go that route. Something to consider.
-EGRESS WINDOWS: we did the metal window wells but had we known the cost we would have done poured. I do hate those corrugated metal window wells. Ah well....I won't look.
And now...the moment you've all been waiting for: ANSWERS!!!
Name that space:
1. Zeb is standing in the living room & Silas is cleaning the dinning area.
2. Silas is standing in the pantry in the kitchen. To the left is the master bed/bath/closet area.
3. Mud room. Entry from garage on the left side. Washer and dryer will be on one side of the window and sink/cabinets/lockers on the other side.
4. Master bedroom!
5. Kitchen! Pantry on the right, bar/island thing straight ahead. Dinning area beyond that.
6. Front entry to the left of the stairs, closet to the right and kids wing (bedrooms/bathroom) after that.
7. Grace's room/big closet!
8. Boys' room!
Oh you guys, you're fun :) I'll try to update again after this weekend so they don't get so long next time! :)
