House Construction Summary - Part 3

Here’s the last part of the three-part house construction summary. As I mentioned in the previous parts, I’m slowly moving everything over from the old site to this new configuration. The bright side is that I get plenty of practice at using the new system, as well as show off some of the fancy bells and whistles.

This last part will take you through November and December. Also, in addition to what I had previously posted, I’ve found a few pictures of the sod and landscaping, so I’ll toss those in at the bottom. You’ll also get to see more trimming, painting, finishing the hardwood floors, and installing cabinets, lights, and more! If you missed the first two parts, follow these links: Part 1 | Part 2

More Trim - 11-11-06

Trim work continues… lots of work going into the trim. I figured it would take a while to get done, but I didn’t think it would take longer than 2 weeks. The trim guys are getting close to finished. This week all of the arches (great room and dining room) where installed, the fireplace trim is in place, and both of the built-in book cases upstairs are done. Other than trim, I noticed that the pocket doors to one of the upstairs bedrooms were in. On the outside of the house, one of the big trenches was filled in and the gutters where installed. Oh, and they finally hauled off some of the remaining brush and debris that was piled up in the front yard.

Painting Begins - 11-18-2006

Painting began this week. The builder allowed us to use four colors (excluding the ceiling color)… Kennye could probably tell you all the different names. I call them blue, brown, and two gold-ish colors. Of course, all the trim is a high gloss white. Its all looking pretty good. Hopefully the painters will put the finishing touches on soon so that we can stain the floor and bring in the cabinets and lighting.

Hardwood Floors Finished - 11-25-06

The hardwood floors were stained and sealed this week. It took a few days to for it to be dry enough to walk on, so we could only see the kitchen by standing in the garage door. Once it dried, we (took our shoes off) and walked around. I managed to snap a few pictures, of course. Another note of interest is that the house is finally locked up, which makes me feel better. Oh, and as for this week, I think that the cabinets will be installed. I’m also hoping that this beautiful weather we’ve been having will be used to pour the driveway, garage floor, sidewalks, and patio.

Cabinetry Installed, Some Concrete Poured - 12-02-06

Well, it looks like quite a bit of work has been going on this past week. All of the cabinets were installed. The kitchen still lacks the counter tops and appliances. All of the bathrooms, however, have the cabinetry and faucets installed. We also noticed that all the shelving was installed in the closets and utility room. On the outside of the house, we saw that some gravel was spread out for the driveway. Also, the front porch was poured as well as the pad for the AC unit on the side of the house. Mark’s email detailing all the work for next week puts the house being nearly complete. The only thing that he hasn’t mentioned is the carpet and landscaping, which I would expect to be towards the end of this whole process anyway.

Counter Tops and Lighting Installed - 12-09-06

The countertops in the kitchen were installed this week. They also installed all the lighting and ceiling fans throughout the house. We’ve been a little anxious about how the chandelier in the foyer was going to look. I think it turned out really nice. Outside of the house, they’ve put up the forms for the driveway, patio, and sidewalks. Hopefully all of that will be poured in the coming week. Oh, they also built some steps in the garage going into the house. I’ll be glad to use those instead of the board they had nailed to the wall for sure.

Driveway, Patio, and Sidewalks Poured - 12-16-06

This week a lot of work was done outside. The driveway, patio, and sidewalks were poured. They did a nice job of curving the sidewalk and patio to make things more interesting. Speaking of the patio, we were able to pour around one of the trees. Hopefully that will give us some extra shade in the summer. In addition to all the concrete being poured, they also laid the brick for the steps in the front and the back of the house. Lastly, they brought in some top-soil and leveled it out. We shouldn’t have any trouble growing anything in this yard… the top soil they brought in smells like they got it from a cow pasture. On the inside of the house, the only notable thing was the trim was finished on the stairs. Really, the only that needs to be done on the inside is the paint touch ups, carpeting, and a final coat of polyurethane. We expect these last remaining things to be done in the next coming week as well as laying down the sod.

Sod and landscaping - 12-23-06

We’re at the end of the road here. As you can see, the sod and landscaping have been put in. If I remember correctly, most of it was done (amazingly) in just one day. I’ve done my best to keep the yard thick and green like you see here… quite an accomplishment considering the cold snap and drought we experienced in 2007.