Realities of a Rehab

Here are some realities of rehabbing an entire 3,000 sq. ft. house (while working full-time and taking care of a 2 yr old):

• We normally eat dinner between 6-7pm (to keep Mary's bedtime at 8pm).
• Last night we ate dinner at 9.
• The night before I met Tom straight from the airport at a diner and we ate at 9:30.
• A few nights before that, we ate dinner at 10 (Mary was at grandma's).
• I keep forgetting when the last time I showered was.  I've actually been smelling myself and realizing its been a while... :/
• I got 4 hours with Tom at home the other day (floors were being polyurethaned).  We were updating things with our new address, canceling utility service, and doing that type of 'stuff' at home.  Was totally quality time with each other though!  I was loving it!!
• I've heard you should add 30% to your estimated rehab budget, as well as 30% to your timeline.  Well, for us - it would be probably add 50% in costs and 100% to your time.  Do that math.  That SUCKS.

So, some updates on what we have been working on:

• It has taken 2 weeks to refinish the hardwood floors - originally estimated 1 week.  They look great!!  They don't look exactly like what I was hoping for, but I can be okay with that.
• Furnace installed upstairs.  YAHOO for a home warranty!
• So, the guys  have not been able to access the house.  They have spent two weeks stripping interior doors of paint and sanding.  Two doors have been stained - but two whole weeks from them was spent just stripping doors of paint!!!  Whew!!



The Noble Crew!  I FINALLY was there when all the guys + Tom were there.  They weren't too thrilled about taking a photo but I don't care.  Left to right:  Tom, Rick, Josh, and Dave!!  Rick has helped ~30 hours/week and here since Sept.  Josh has helped ~50 hours/week and here since July.  Dave has helped ~15 hours/week and been with us since Sept.  Don't know where we'd be without them, they are SO helpful.  But when I think about what I just typed - Holy Moly.  Do that math!!!!  This was the Fri. before Thanksgiving.

I have PICKED OUT countertops!!!  WOOT WOOT!!!  Thanks to Rick for being my 'designer' and helping make one of the most expensive purchases yet.  Yeah - actually THE most expensive.  I started looking about 1.5 months ago.  Visited all the granite 'stores' - or installers.  Visited quite a few of them but none had what I was looking for.  Granite is one of the hardest stones you can put in your kitchen so that is why we are going with it.  It will last a life time.

So, then I visited their suppliers.  Monte Granite was thankfully down the street!  Vangura was quite a drive, and they put on the dance when I showed up.  Don't care for that.  I had to wear safety glasses in their 'warehouse'... I am ALL about being safe, but there was NO reason for that.  PLUS, I couldn't even see the stone easily since they were so scratched.  Pft.

The granite suppliers warehouse.

Went to Dente - awesome experience.  Highly recommend them if you are picky like me - GREAT selection.  CHECK OUT WHAT OUR COUNTERTOPS ARE GOING TO BE!!!!!!!!!

That is Dennis.  There were 6 slabs of the color I liked - so we looked at them all!!

Blurry picture, sorry, but this is going in our new kitchen!!

I feel like once the countertops are in - it will feel SO much more complete.  I'm hoping 2-4 weeks.

Things are going to start flying by!  (I HOPE!  A little more than 1 month left, and STILL NO completely finished rooms.  Uh-oh).

Tom is working his tail off today.  Woke up at 6 on a Saturday.  Went to lumberyard, got $500 more worth of pine/poplar to make baseboards and went to Lowe's to pick up our 2 kitchen cabinets we had to order.  Whew!

I'm going to Giant Eagle today or tomorrow to get gift cards to spend at HD & Lowe's (20cents off fuel perks!).  Also going to buy the tile for the kitchen backsplash.

We ordered our stove too!!  AND our hood for over the stove!  Yippeeee!!!  (all these decisions are not easy.  I mean really - how many types of stoves are there?  TOO MANY)

Okay, I need to go shower.  Seriously.   :)