The Browns of Bellaire

Apr 29, 2013

The Girls at Work

Daddy's back at work at his day-job today, so it's our turn. Time for some detailing of the dining room.

Gwyn got to work with the shop-vac.

Charis took care of the sweeping.

And they used almost a whole bottle of Windex "cleaning" the doors.

SO, once we were done cleaning, we headed out to the backyard to play. And we may or may not have locked ourselves out. Nice.
The deadbolt hole was yet to be filled, so we figured it would be an easy fix -- the girls' arms fit through the hole and could reach the knob.

But each one took a turn and no one was able to turn the lock...

After a call to let Daddy know, we realized that, thankfully, I had opened a window just before we came out. So, with a ladder and a brave Charis, we got the door unlocked. Time for lunch!!

Apr 28, 2013

Dining Room: Part 5 (The End. for now)

Well, the girls and I went to church while Daddy stayed home and worked. When we came home, there was a ceiling!

And by the time we got home from church in the evening, the temporary wall was out, everything was cleaned up and the girls were giddy.

LOVING THE VIEW.

(There will be windows above and on either side of the doors)

BEFORE AND AFTER

We decided to eat dinner on the newly-wonderfully-accessible porch. What a fun night. We had visits from Poppy and Granbee and Papa and Grandma, coming to survey the finished project. Way to go, James!!

Apr 27, 2013

Dining Room: Part 4 (Ceiling)

With the back doors in...

it's time to get to work on the ceiling (well, technically, the attic floor, then the ceiling, which are two intertwined systems).

the first joist goes in!

Surveying the day's progress. Planning tomorrow's.

Apr 26, 2013

Dining Room: Part 2.5 (Sheet Rock)

Well, a HUGE part of the planning/expense for the dining room project involved sheet rock. Not necessarily the sheet rock for that room, but for the entire upstairs. James had determined that it would be nearly impossible to get sheet rock upstairs unless it was lifted through the dining room (non)ceiling. SO, we scheduled the sheet rock delivery to happen as soon as the ceiling was torn out. And as soon as the 2 guys arrived with the load (about 150 sheets), they quickly called their supervisor. They were NOT excited about the plan.

Over the next 2-1/2 hours, 6 men worked non-stop to pass 150 sheets of plywood up to the second floor THROUGH THE STAIRCASE in the garage. That's right, they refused to put it up through the dining room, choosing instead to slide it along the staircase, having to bend some of the sheets almost 90 degrees. James had to remove some studs for it to work, but after much belly-aching from the guys, the stacks were in place upstairs. And not one of the sheets came through the hole in the ceiling...

We were a bit frustrated, considering the money we had just laid out to get something we really didn't have to get at this time, but the fact is, it's done. It's ready when we're ready. And it looks awfully pretty. and promising.

Dining Room: Part 3 (A Stormy Night)

Well, a long day has turned into night. And a major thunderstorm is going on outside. Lots of lightning, thunder, wind, rain, hail. The usual. Fortunately, the porch roof extends far enough out that James doesn't have to slow down.

But the storm kept a couple of little girlies up, so they came to hang out for a while.

James called it a day after getting the door frame in and putting up plywood on the temp wall, just to prevent critters from joining us overnight.

Back to work in the morning. Glad we've got some good cheerleaders!

Dining Room: Part 2 (Bye-Bye Ceiling)

Well, everyone finally got their "Christmas stuff" on. It's about 50 degrees outside AND inside. And it's loud, if you can't tell from the picture.

The back wall of windows came out quickly...

And the second tarp went up in preparation for the ceiling removal.

Within minutes, we heard loud crashes as James cut free the ceiling joists from above. Sheet rock and insulation and joists falling to the floor. A beautiful sound.