Loose Ends Abound

Some photos from the last 3 days ... we are still moving in Saturday, believe it or not! Stressful, exciting, exhausting, amazing, unbelievable. Did I mention exhausting?

~ brackets are in place - still need stone and columns ~

~ adding the brackets ~

~ red bar stools from Pottery Barn arrived! ~

~ railings are in and so purdy ~

~ Larry and his dad, finishing up ~

~ pendant lights ~

~ where or where is our mason to finish the stone?? ~

~ pieces coming together amidst the chaos ~

~ barn as seen from dining room windows ~

~ another barn shot ~

~ our excellent electricians ~

~ view from the kitchen ~

~ minus stone and columns but still so handsome! ~

~ barn as seen from driveway ~

~ cupola came today! ~

~ toilets are in ~

Week of Loose Ends

It is almost impossible to believe, but we will be moving in this weekend!! This week will be nuts, with lots of "little" things getting wrapped up:

• Switch plates and ceiling fans
• New hunk o' granite to replace the poorly seamed bar top
• Toilets and sinks
• Carpets
• Appliances
• Cleaning service
• Invisible fence
• Stone
• Goat Fence
• Barn
• Trim
• Garage door opener

Somethings that will need to be touched up after we move in:

• Stair rails
• A bit of paint
• Anything else that doesn't get finished!

Sadly our current house has not yet sold so most of our furniture will remain there until we have a buyer. This weekend will be a "soft" move. BUT we will have our new table, hutch and bar stools - no couches or comfy chairs. I think Adirondack chairs around the fireplace will be fun for a while, at least :) We are getting our new bed delivered this week so we will sleep in comfort, and the bathrooms will be totally stocked as well as our closet. Most importantly the bar cupboard will be moved over as well as out kitchen supplies ---- we should have all we need to live happily. 

It seems unreal, this whole moving thing. The house is painfully beautiful, and it seems impossible that it is ours. Jim is my hero.

~ from this summer, when moving in seemed years away ~

Barn Raising

Our barn has begun!

Before

During

Time Lapse Video

5 months in 1.5 minutes :) 

This video begins with a west-to-east panorama of the lot last fall, and then continues with the digging of the foundation and ends with the house as it was pre-siding. The siding is currently going up in the back of the house, but should be in the front and finished (minus the stone) by the end of this week. Fun!

Whirlwind

Many are asking how the construction progress is going, and I can sum it up in one word: awesome.

Updates:
-- Alden State Bank has been lovely to work with, getting us our draws quickly and without hassle
-- Parco has our barn order in and they will begin construction soon
-- Rough plumbing and electrical systems are in
-- Drywall is nearing completion (which means the exterior can go up - thank God - I am sick of looking at Tyvek, especially the upside down sheets)
-- Porches and sidewalk have been poured, and today the garage and back patios will be poured
-- Septic is in
-- Propane tank is in and buried (it looks like a military submarine)
-- Mom's house has been sold
-- Our house is being listed today with Harriet Flanagan, an agent with MJPeterson - hopefully we can sell it soon (fingers crossed)
-- Jim and I are still having fun and we still like each other!

Along with this huge project, I am back in the classroom and Chandler is away for his first year in college. Yes, we have been busy but it's all good, and part of our survival has been about making decisions regarding priorities. We still make time to enjoy life but we go to bed early - reeeeally early.

LOVE our stamped concrete!

"Cobblestone" with some kind of "aging"

scaffolding in the living room

sunroom

fireplace, ready for stone

our bedroom - I love the view

Mom's beautiful windows in her living room

basement

guest bedroom/office

view from where my desk will be :)

looking down from the loft

future home of Lake Orchard Farm's BARN!

Alden State Bank

Our construction loan closed today and I just deposited our first draw. Alden State Bank has been amazing to work with!

First of all, owner-built construction loans are few and far between so even finding Alden State Bank wasn't easy. Their application process wasn't too scary, and I called late last week to tell them we were ready for the first draw (50% of the loan) as our roof is on, windows and doors are in and everything is locked. "Cheri" (a real person that we really met, not an operator in India) said the inspector would drive by over the weekend and that we would close this week - and she was right.  We have been so pleased, and our attorney said they were great to work with, too. Of course our attorney had his ducks in a row so that were were ready to fly as soon as the bank released the funds, but there was absolutely no delay by the bank at all. So now we can finish paying our current contractors and breathe a little easier. Until the next bill arrives ...

~ a mom-n-pop bank that specializes in construction loans ~

Appliances

Our appliances are selected and ordered, and I thought it would be fun to look up the specs and list them here to admire whenever I feel like it since it will be a few months before I see them in the house :)

We are purchasing our appliances from Murphy's Appliances in Lockport. Could we have shopped around and found better prices at the big box stores? Maybe, but I'm not so sure. Local businesses have to compete, so they tend to give you a good deal when you are purchasing in "bulk". As far as service there is no competition whatsoever: buy local!

Oh, and no stainless for us. I have yet to talk to anybody who loves their stainless, so we decided to stick with a timeless black. Actually, I really wanted white appliances but we didn't like how they would look with our creamy colored cabinets. The stainless trend did not lure us away from practical.

Dishwasher:

Whirlpool WDF750SAYB

Refrigerator:

Whirlpool GI6FARXXBL

Range:

Maytag MGR8880AB

More Contractors

This isn't exactly a contractor, but they keep Jim's old backhoe up and running. 'Very important.

Jerry Roberts is great to work with, and has excellent options and resources (like red windows!).

This is a housewarming gift from Glen, a member of the Parlier Developments "Dream Team". 'So sweeeet!!!

Um - those afraid of heights need not apply.

OMG

Where to begin ... so much going on ... so much money being spent ... so much happiness with Jim and I ... so much excitement and planning ........

Updates:

The house is roofed, exterior doors and windows are in, garage doors are in, and everything is locked.

Our construction loan is closing on Thursday, and THANK GOD because we have been spending money like it's freakin crazy. I am officially broke. Until Thursday :)

We have recently selected kitchen cabinet hardware, where the lights and switches are going, and where the shower faucets will be located (2 people can comfortably take a shower in the master bath - just saying).

Next is the installation of rough plumbing and then electric and then insulation and then drywall.

We are excited!

Our garage doors are more beautiful than we could haver imagined. THANK YOU, Sunrise Doors in Gasport! They are super nice people and their doors are excellent quality.

Finally, we have had multiple crews on site these past weeks, and by far the best crew so far is Larry Parlier's ... hardest working, most skilled, most likely to pick up after themselves, most likely to make me laugh!! The framing is now finished (on time) and we miss those guys already.

Here are a few exterior pics - we love the red windows and most of the feedback has been positive (although one of the roofers made it clear that he was not so sure about red windows. Whatever, roofer-man) :

back

Mom's entrance

front

Welcome!

Larry Parlier, his dad (84 and still working hard!) and his crew ----- love these guys!