Ducks in a Row

I'm having abandonment issues. As much as I've been dreaming of living in this place, and even though I've actually been living here for 2 weeks, it still doesn't seem like mine. I still have this urge to ask the builders if I'm doing everything right. The problem is, they aren't here any more. They have left me here to figure it out my own!

Some of the guys have been here to load up stuff and take it to the next place. J remarked yesterday that "all the diggers are in a row!" Today, only the "Lull" is left, since they need to put another coat of paint on the rafters under the prow next week.

I'm trying to get my ducks in a row too. We have our first guests coming tomorrow, and I still need to hang drapes in the guest room. I've cleaned the bathrooms and tried to organize the chaos as much as possible. We're still not able to claim the storage room, so stuff is piling up in the Family Room downstairs.

Yesterday, J and I swept off the deck, porch and patio. Then we found the pool and filled it up. Here are my two little ducks out for a swim.

Polishing the Silver

I felt quite hoity-toity today putting away the china. This was JP's mother's set, and is very pretty and delicate appearing. It has been in storage for a long time: some of the pieces were wrapped in newspaper from Oregon in 1976! In any case, the china is seeing the light of day again, and has a new home in the built-ins in our great room. I am determined to use it too...if it's here, it has to be functional...that's my new rule.

But I diverge...I opened 5 boxes of china and other fragile doo-dads today, and put most of them away. This means we are to that point of dealing with the not-so-necessary things, the finishing touches: we're polishing up the silver. Hooray!

The building crew is finishing up too. Over the past several days, they finished up the trim on the beams in the front of the house...

...and the porch. They also cleared a truck load of stuff from off the porch and out of the garage.

The trim is finished up on the garage too, and a new light was installed by the door. Today they worked on leveling out the area in front to ready it for the concrete pad that should be poured the beginning of next week.

I finally got around to transplanting my tomato and pepper plants in 5 gallon buckets, which have been in abundant supply around here lately. They are finally blooming, so perhaps we'll even get fresh tomatoes and jalapenos this summer to make salsa.

The central vacuum was installed today. I used it downstairs, but haven't had a chance to use the hard floor attachment up stairs, or to try out my "vac pan" in the kitchen to suck up the stuff I broom up. This is the unit in the garage. The clearish bit underneath is what we will empty every couple of months. There is even a hook-up here, along with another hose and attachments to use on the vehicles in the garage!

Tonight, we watched fireworks from our deck...a late celebration! And now I plan to go to bed before midnight for once, and finally use my beautiful new shower in the morning.

I can see clearly now (the rain is gone!)

On this beautiful Thursday, the UPS man delivered 3 BIG boxes to our tiny apartment. Most of the lighting has arrived (check) and the gas/propane stove top (check). This necessitated a trip to the property since they took up most of the room in our kitchen/dining room!

Out at the house, the shingles are ON (check)!

Did you notice a bare spot on the garage? That is for the cupola to hold my flying pig weather vane. I forgot about it until I saw that our wonderful builder had not.

The siding is going up on the front of the house, with help from the "Lull". Here is one of the crew in a box working up there.

It is completed underneath the deck, including the first set of green french doors (check).

The dry wall is almost all up. It should be ready to paint in another week. I am so excited I can almost taste it!

Take #2

It is a glorious day!

The sun is shining after 4 days of rain, and everything is green again, from the tiny new leaves on trees to the lawns that folks have been out mowing. (Guess what? Hubby is NOT sad to miss the lawn mowing action this Spring!)

I am finally getting around to doing my new kitchen appliances post. The delivery truck actually made it to Poplar Ridge yesterday AM. The 2 men from Sears, in their shiny black shoes, and starched blue uniforms obviously felt out of their comfort zone out in our neck of the woods. The driveway was muddy, and they used the excuse that they were afraid they would get the truck stuck to park in the lower drive instead of up by the house. Our builders were good enough to take the appliances by forklift to the garage and unload them there so that the Sears guys could keep their shoes clean. Our double convection ovens, refrigerator and dishwasher were delivered, but somehow the range hood was not.

After several phone calls, the hood was located back at the outlet store. Instead of suffering through yet another delivery attempt, we will go pick it up this weekend!

I baked the builders a 5 Flavor Pound Cake for going above and beyond the call of duty.

Five Flavor Pound Cake

1 c softened, unsalted butter
1/2 c shortening
3 c sugar

5 eggs
3 1/4 c flour
1/2 t baking powder
1 tsp salt

1 c milk

1 t vanilla extract

1 t lemon extract

1 t rum extract

1 t coconut extract

Cream butter and shortening, gradually add sugar, beating well on med. speed.
Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.
Combine dry ingredients. Combine milk and flavorings.
Add dry ingredients to butter mixture a quarter at a time, alternate with milk mixture, beating after each addition.
Pour batter into a greased and floured 10" tube or bundt pan, or 2 loaf pans.
Bake at 325* for 90 minutes (bundt) or 70 minutes (loaves).
Cool cake in pan for 10 min, then remove to wire rack. Spoon over and brush sides with glaze while still warm.

GLAZE: Combine 1/2 c sugar and 1/3 c water in small saucepan and bring to a boil, then add 1/2 t almond extract.


The Central Vacuum guys are at the house today. They are putting in the "plumbing" for a 50' hose on both floors which will retract back into the pipes when not in use. They will also put in a kick plate in the kitchen, which allows you to kick open a door with your toe, and sweep crumbs into it with a broom. There will also be a hookup in the garage for a 30' hose. They will install the unit and hoses right before we move in.

The builders have been working on the furnace & AC duct work.

I think the intestines in the girls' rooms are falling out!

They also put the decking on. They used special fasteners so that there are no nails showing on the surface.

Drywallers are due to come out a week from Monday. But first the builders have to put all this insulation that is stacked in the Master Bedroom into the ceilings!

Bits & Pieces

Our trip to Poplar Ridge this week was mostly for a fishing trip. I fished around in the garage for a couple of hours, looking for summer clothes and shoes, cotton sheets, suitcases, arm swim bands, speaker wire, etc. I was mostly successful, although I couldn't find my summer clothes, and in the process found several boxes of china on their sides, or under stacks of books...oops!

Our doors are here. The front doors are all wrapped up so I can't see what they look like. These are the 2 sets of french doors, the inside side is showing, which will be finished wood. The outsides of all the doors are forest green.

They have been preparing this week to pour the patios on the West side of the house and on the South side under the deck. This photo is taken from the South-West corner of the house, looking toward the garage. One area of fill, on the right front of the photo has settled a bit. The other hole, in front of the garage, will be all concrete. This is to reinforce it for the stone fireplace we hope to build there at some point.

The deck is also framed out. It will be an interesting shape to mirror the roof prow. This shot is from the Great Room.

I didn't realize that I cut off half the roof of the house in this shot.

We are looking at decking samples. We are using composite decking because I am tired of staining the deck every summer...I don't want to do it ever again! We are the most interested in the 2 samples on the right.

I have been pondering how to decorate the tray ceilings in the Master Bedroom and the Study. I found these ceiling tiles, and a paint technique that looks like copper that I really like!

The concrete truck is supposed to come on Tuesday morning, so we try to be there for that. I guess the builder is planning to work on plumbing and duct work for the next couple of weeks. Once the duct work is in, the central vacuum guy will come out to do his bit...they are estimating the 9th or 10th for that. The tubs and showers are to arrive this week. I can hardly wait each trip to see what is new!