Grand Central Station

Today was a very busy day at the house.  I'll break this post down into sections.

Stone
The brown keystone was replaced with a gray one this morning.  While the mason was there, my husband talked to him about the number stone.  Doug also talked to him about it.  We expected it to be light gray with dark numbers based on conversations we had with some of the WH people. 

The mason took pictures of the number stone and listened to our concerns with the lack of visibility from the street and the brown color.  While he didn't know for sure how they would fix it, one possibility is a new stone with shallower-drilled numbers.  He said that would help increase the visibility of the number.  Doug is working with the company on a solution.  Thanks, Doug!

Paint
The painters were also at the house today finishing the second coat of paint everywhere.  They also painted the front door and sidelights and the garage service door.  I think a third coat may be needed in the main living area.

Countertops
Tower Industries came in today to install the kitchen and bath countertops.  Dean at Tower Ind was great at explaining our options and helping me pick out colors and the remnant.  The kitchen is Hanstone Quartz in English Toffee with a Silgranit II sink in Anthracite (black).

The bathrooms are also quartz, but I'm not sure of the color name.  I picked a remnant slab big enough to do both bathrooms.

Garden tub ledges

Dylan's bathroom

Close-up of tub ledge

Electrical
The electrician was back today to install the remaining 2 ceiling fans and finish tweaking some of the switches and breakers.  The doorbell was also installed.  The basement has a good amount of lighting and will be a great place to send Dylan in the winter to play.  He's already calling it the "man cave."

Dylan's space fan

Good Storage Nook

Well
The well company came back today to hook up the well to the electric.  He also tested the water again after draining the tank so we could get a good idea on what type of water softner to get. 

Our water has a significant amount of iron in it, so it needs a stronger water softener.  The one we chose has a larger capacity and runs more efficiently so it can handle the iron without using a lot of salt per month.  The softener will sit right next to the holding tank in this nook in the basement. 

Rough Grade of Yard

The excavator came in to finish the rough grade of the yard.  We will still need our landscaper to de-rock and add additional top soil for the grass.  The rough grade allows water to run away from the house and gives the yard its basic shape.

We also ordered all our appliances tonight, including the new washer and dryer (yay!) to be delivered next Thursday after the flooring is done.  The driveway is now scheduled to be installed 8/13.  The movers are scheduled for 8/23.

I also want to give a shout-out to Doug for sweeping the entire basement and front porch.  Maybe he can come back before we move in instead of hiring a maid service.  ;)

The plumbers will be in tomorrow to finish the plumbing and install the sink faucets.  The water softener will be installed tomorrow too. 

Don't forget about the open house this Sunday 8/5 from 1-4 pm.  Doug will be there to give tips on sweeping techniques.  Jenn will also be there.  Click here to go to the Wayne Homes website with more details.  Look for the "Litchfield Tradition."

We're Cool

The air conditioner was installed today and other HVAC stuff was finished.  The electrician couldn't come out today, but will be there Friday.  They have 2 more ceiling fans to install and some other tweaking with the breakers.  And the well guy had to reschedule and will come tomorrow. 

Our old house that we lived in for 9 years didn't have A/C, so this is a welcome sight.

Great Room

Office, Master Bedroom, and Spare Bedroom Fan

The house number block was finally put in today...but it doesn't look right to me.  It looks brown and I thought it was going to be light gray with dark numbers.  Plus the numbers are super small.  You can't really see it driving down the street, which is the whole point, right? 

This was something I ordered directly from the same company who put up the stone, so it wasn't technically through Wayne Homes.  Stupid me, I ASSumed it would be made to match the stone.  But maybe my expectations were too high given we currently still have a brown keystone. However, I called Jenn at the Akron office and she was so helpful and reassuring and is going to talk to Doug and help us figure out what we need to do to get it done right.

If all else fails, the porch posts are large enough I could put black numbers on them.  If I do that, I'd want to replace the brown house number stone with a regular stone.  Thanks, Jenn, for helping!!

Countertops are tomorrow.  And don't forget about the open house this Sunday 8/5!!

Let There Be Light

We have working lights and outlets now.  When we were there at 5 pm, the electricians were getting ready to hang the ceiling fans.

Sides of Garage Door

Breakfast Room

Main bath and half bath

Back Sliding Door

Dining Room

Front Entryway

Master Bath

Whole House Surge Protector

The Home Stretch

Nothing happened Friday.  Saturday the painters came and hung the doors back up and installed most of the handles.

Today, the painters trimmed over the white from spraying the trim.  They'll be back Thursday to finish the full second coat on all the walls.

We're estimated to close 8/16, so we will have a lot of things happening quickly here.

Tuesday & Wednesday 7/31 - 8/1: Electrician comes in to install microwave, ceiling fans, outlets, switches, & covers
Wednesday 8/1:  Finish HVAC, well hook-up and test, & final grade of yard?
Thursday 8/2:  Countertops & painter to finish second coat
Friday 8/3:  Finish plumbing & gas meter install

Sunday 8/5:  OPEN HOUSE 1-4 PM  Please come and say hi!
Monday-Wednesday 8/6-8/8:  Flooring
???:  Cable company to run line underground to the house
Thursday 8/9:  Paint touch up?, garage door opener install?, "specialty work" (we don't know what this is exactly, maybe closet shelving, etc?)

Monday 8/13:  Driveway install (tentative, may try to squeeze this in earlier if it's okay with Doug)
End of the week of 8/13:  Landscaping--finish grade & de-rocking

Thursday 8/16?:  Close, clean, and appliance delivery
Friday 8/17?:  Possible moving day

September:  Hydroseed the lawn

Somewhere in there, I need to schedule to have window blinds measured & installed.  I'm just getting 2" faux wood blinds for every window.  Home Depot will install them all for $118.  I'll work on curtains later. 

We also need to figure out what we're going to do about a water softner.  My husband is going to talk to the well guy on Wednesday.  The security system also needs installed sometime soon.

I'll try to keep the blog updated through all this craziness.

More Trim & Paint

Yesterday, Wednesday 7/25, the trim crew finished installing all the trim.  When we got to the house in the evening, it looked like the painter had also come back and started to spackle all the trim and some dings in the drywall.  He left the can of spackle and metal spatula thingy, so I went around and spackled some more spots he missed.

The trim people also installed the steps off the sliding glass door, the handrail on the basement stairs, and the columns on the front porch. 

Keystone still needs replaced

Today, the painter came back and sprayed all the doors and trim white.  He will be back Monday to do the final/second coat of paint, re-hang the doors, and maybe install the hardware.  After the flooring is installed, he'll be back again to touch everything up and fix the window issues.

I also have another issue and I think OhioMags did too.  I'm sure it's a common thing and I need to let it go, but it's bugging me.  The first time the painter came in, he rinsed out his paint cans and flipped them upside down inside the house on the subfloor to dry.  So I have big paint/wet stains in the great room and sunroom.  Then today, this big spot was in the entry/great room.  I'm guessing it's from the paint sprayer.  Logically, I know it'll be covered up with flooring, but it still irks me...a lot.

Reminder...we're having a Wayne Homes Open House on Sunday, August 5 from 1-4 pm.

Gutters, Trim, & Doors...Oh My!

We're happy the gutters were finally installed today.  We're supposed to get some storms Thursday.

Much of the interior trim was done today and all the doors were hung.  The crew will be back tomorrow to finish the trim.  Thursday and Friday the painter will come back to spray all the doors and trim white and finish the second coat of paint on all the walls.  They will also paint the outside of the front door and sidelights dark gray.

Small coat closet to the left; Double office doors

Close up of trim

Bedroom Closet

Basement door to the right; Bedrooms straight ahead

The countertop company came in today to make the templates for the kitchen and bathrooms.  They're supposed to install them 8/2 or 8/3.

Cabinets

I'm so excited!  The cabinets were installed today.  They are Spring Valley Square Maple.  When I find the name of the color, I'll update this post.  All the bottom cabinets have shelves that pull out.  I didn't realize it until my husband told me.  How cool is that?  Our old house had no cool stuff, so it doesn't take much to make me happy.

Update: The color is Sedona.

Master bathroom

Dylan's bathroom

Laundry!