Catching Up Again

It's been pretty busy the last few days, so I'll try to catch up here.  It may be a long post.
Friday 8/3
The plumber was at the house all day finishing the plumbing and installing the faucets.  The pedastal sink in the half bath and all the toilets aren't installed yet since flooring has to be done first.  We just kept all the standard fixtures except for the shower head in the master bath.

Hot water tank

Kohler rain shower head - Home Depot Clearance!!

 The water softener was installed too. It's supposed to only use 80 lbs. of salt a month, so about $10. Cheaper than city water.

Sunday 8/5 - OPEN HOUSE
The open house was a huge success!  I can't believe how many people came through, and only 4 were neighbors.  I'm not sure if any of you blog readers came because no one mentioned it to me.  While we were there, I made a to-do list for Doug of items that needed fixed.  Most were paint touch-ups.  Some were annoyances, like the silver ring at the bottom of the sink on the garbage disposal side is crooked.  Doug tried to limit me to the back of one note card, but it didn't work :).

We also noticed a leak in the office when we got to the house Sunday.  It had rained really hard earlier in the day and there was a little bit of water on the floor in front of the window.  Doug looked at it and thinks it's water getting in between the mortar and the window.  The stone on the outside is surrounding that window.  He's going to have the company come back out and caulk the area really well.

Monday 8/6
The cabinet guy came back to put the shelves in the pantry and install an end panel by the fridge that didn't come with the original shipment of materials.  I also talked to him about installing crown molding on the top of the cabinets.  Honestly, I never thought of it until the open house.  I think it will really give the kitchen a finished look.  I'm waiting for him to call me back with a price.

The flooring was started today.  They stayed until 9 pm and installed the tile in the entryway and the vinyl in the bathrooms, kitchen, and laundry room.

Half bath

Master bath

Laundry room

Close up of laundry room

You may remember an earlier post debating on whether or not to take the tile to the columns, as was in the standard plan.  We decided to stop it in line with the wall.  I'm very happy with our decision.  We paid for tile to the columns, which amounted to 3 extra boxes of tile.  We asked the flooring guys to leave the extras, but they only left 1 box, so we're waiting for them to bring back the other 2.

Tuesday 8/7 - SAFETY BULLETIN

Kids, if you're going to paint the garage ceiling, safety glasses may be useful.  Otherwise, you may end up with a glob of paint in your eyeball, calling your wife at work, dropping the kid off at the parent's, and driving to the eye doctor's office for an impromptu visit where you'll get numbed, cleaned, and sent home with antibiotic eye drops. 

In addition to that excitement, Doug stopped by the house today and spackled wall dings from the flooring guys in preparation for the painter to come back Thursday.

Someone from the local flooring store that Wayne Homes uses stopped by to inspect the installer's work from Monday.  He noticed one very small bubble in the vinyl in the kitchen.  He's going to send the installers back to fix it.  We're impressed because we didn't even notice it, can you?

Tomorrow Friday the carpet will be installed.

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