After an interlude...

We're pleased to report that our renovations made having and enjoying the company of 40 on Thanksgiving Eve and 22 on Thanksgiving a piece of turkey.  Of course not quite everything is finished but we're getting there.
P1 - Debby & John hung the curtain rod from Debby's previous home.  It's nice to have friends who had big windows and never throw anything away.  P2 - look closely to see "the rod".  The proper curtains, or should I say "window treatments", are still under discussion.  P3 - Our new solar panel is now installed but not yet operational.  A bit more electrical work needs to take place before it begins generating electricity.  P4 - Debby, queen of decorating, screwing the Thanksgiving turkey into its lofty perch.  Some folks have mistletoe.  We had turkey toes. P5 - Mr. Turkey flew back to the attic and has now been replaced with Gabriel.  P6 - Closet in the raw.  P7 - Making progress on the closet.  One day soon it may actually hold something other than tools.  P8 - The rest of the bedroom is a wreck but Bertha remains unperturbed.

More odds & ends

P1-5  Last post left you/us with a pole in the ground.  Since then the digger came to bury the conduit for the electrical cable from that pole to the barn.  Although the digger tried to cover it up neatly, the ground was very wet and there's going to be A LOT of yard work to be done in the spring.

Meanwhile life/work goes on inside.  P6 - more work on the closet.  P7 - the top step of the stairs got glued and screwed into place.  That odd board on the top step held it tight while the glue set.

P8 - They came to do a home energy test on the house complete with a blower door test - that's the red contraption.  P9 is the meter that shows where we're lacking insulation (and where the mice tunnels are).  Guess what?  The part of the house we did NOT work on, needs work.  Where will it all end?

What now?

After rushing around hosting B&B guests, then rushing around preparing for Sandy who spared us, I thought I was only going to be able to report that Bertha snoozed through the week P1.

But then... it seems a little rain is no reason to stop the guy who came to install the gutters P2 & P3.  It's not something I would choose to do on a rainy day but I guess it's one way of knowing right away if they're working.

Then today P3, P4, P5, the photo-voltaic installation crew came to install the pole that will hold the panels to generate part of our electricity.  A BIG hole, a BIG pile of muddy dirt (they too do not let a little rain stop them), a BIG sonotube (a big cardboard tube like the one in a roll of toilet paper except that this one is blue, 10 feet tall and 30 inches in diameter) into which a BIG, tall 20 foot steel pole is placed and a BIG truckload of concrete is added.  The dirt is pushed back in the hole around the sonotube to hold it and the pole in place.  You might also note the yard, or what was the yard, in the last photo.  If you think it looks bad now, just wait with us until next week when they come to dig the trench to run the electric cable to the barn...

Now take a deep breath!

We actually got the finish on the kitchen floor AND dried AND the kitchen back in order, P2, before our guests arrived.  John even had time to screw on the metal strip, P1, that covers the crack between the concrete floor and the wood floor.  (The floor looks a LOT better than the photo.  Your amateur photographer here just doesn't know how to take the photo so reflections don't occur...)

A few dry hours over the last couple of days also let the house painting go on (mostly thanks to John - my time was relegated to cleaning and, dare I say, the fun activity of going to the regional farmers market with Susan of the tea party to stock up on provisions for the winter).  P3, P4, P5 - those walls are all done.  P6 - John is finishing (now done) the grey on the back wall.  He still has to give the trim one more coat of white.

So is that it?  Not quite.  Stay tuned.  I'll do another post at the end of next week to keep you in the loop.

The unexpected...

 If you were expecting to see photos of the finished outside, you will be very disappointed.  Rain, fog....  However, life and birthdays still go on.  Today was our friend Susan's birthday - Happy Birthday Susan!  And to all of you who also had birthdays in October (Rita, Joey, Peyton and probably a few more), Happy Birthday to you too.  It was only because Susan came over and told me it was her birthday that I managed to shove aside enough paint cans to make room for a tea party P1 for Susan and for Gus P2 who's birthday is also in October.

P3 - Taken in Sept. you can just make out the kitchen.  Today we decided to clear it out P4 so we could redo the finish on the floor tomorrow.
P5 - The cats had never seen it so clean and were dazzled by their reflections.
P6 - I needed another photo so threw one in of the dining room - cleaned out of "extras" stored there as well.  No "before" shot of that one.
P6 - The Adirondack room as you last saw it the beginning of October and P7 now that it's finally back together.
P8 - The music room filled with stuff we had moved there while we renovated.  P9 - after sorting things out again.
P10 - The new room as it was yesterday.
P11 - The new room today filled with all the stuff from the kitchen.

We have B&B guests coming on Friday.  Will we have things back in order?  Stay tuned for my next post on Saturday...

And since I almost certainly missed it, Happy Birthday to you too!

Where to paint...

First things first - John finished caulking today.  That means everything between the windows and their casings got caulked; where the siding meets the trim got caulked; where the soffits meet the roof on one side and the trim on the other got caulked; and, for good measure, his hands, fingers, pants etc. also got caulked.  And this was in spite of what felt like 40-50 mph winds, strong enough that he couldn't keep his hat on.

What needs to be painted, you ask...  While we used mostly pre-primed wood, any exposed cut edge such as the trim under the roof line has to be primed before it's painted.  I managed to at least prime everything that needed it on the door wall of the sunroom.  After caulking and priming, everything needs at least one if not two coats of paint.  I started painting the white trim on the front of the porch (you can see it's now white instead of the yellowish color) but the wind forced me to give it up.  Painting will have to take place another time.

Back inside, Gus was hard at work testing fabric being considered for curtains? slip covers?

Because painting isn't very exciting and because rain is predicted and because this project is winding down, I won't be posting again until next Wednesday.  Hopefully by then I'll have some great pictures to show you...

Let the caulking begin...

It's hard to believe but finally finally finally the siding is all up and nailed down so there won't be any surprises tomorrow!!!!  Of course that doesn't mean it's done.  There's still the little (or perhaps it's not so little) matter of caulk & paint.  However we're VERY happy to have gotten this far!  We're keeping our fingers crossed the weatherman will be right - no rain tomorrow during the day.

Changing our minds...

P1 - At the end of yesterday.  We weren't happy with the siding above the window and door which is one reason I didn't share this photo yesterday.
P2 - At the end of today.  We took off the top clapboard & cut a new one slightly wider.  Also decided not to put any siding above the door but instead fill in with solid wood.  With a little paint we think it should look better.
P3 - It's a two cat night...

PS - I picked up paint today so keep your fingers crossed the weather will stay warm enough for us to actually get in on...

Fall scenes...

P1 - The siding is now up on the end of the sunroom (although no one is likely to see it except you in this photo).
P2 - Our side yard with leaves waiting for collection and shredding for the garden.  (And you thought we only had this house project to keep our attention.)
P3 - Our old barn where's there currently a lot of junk that occasionally comes in handy.
P4 - Camouflage kitty.
P5 - Another yard photo.
P6 - Almost got the south wall done but then the rains came.
P7 - The last of the fall leaves on the road past our house.  Please note ALL the trees on the left side of the road John & I planted many years ago from seedlings we dug up in the woods.  I'm not quite sure whether I should feel awed or old.
P8 - Tag along kitties with the newer barn in the background.

To the person who commented on the last post... Yes, we do go away but try to make up for it when we get home.  The photos requested of the last of the fall leaves make me suspect we aren't working nearly fast enough.

Home again, off again...

While we're home at the moment, be forewarned there won't be another post until Monday.  And, for the person "out west", I'll try to post some photos then of our beautiful fall foliage.

P1 - We reached the peak on the big window wall even though I had to climb a ladder to help.  My brain said "would you rather be scared of a little height or go through a winter without siding?"  The siding won.  Also started work on the "old house" wall.  Ladders are one thing.  Standing on roofs quite another.  I did the cutting firmly on the ground and John did the nailing above the roof.  Please note the angle over the roof as well as the angle on the other end of siding that went under the eaves.  Miracle of miracles it actually worked out so the siding came out as it needed to next to the window upstairs.  I forgot to take a picture of that section finished today.

P2 - If you look very close on the roof, you'll see John putting in the last bit of siding "up there".

P3 - Also started the siding on the short wall and to the left of the back door.  Our first frost is predicted for tomorrow night.  After that I'm counting on a full 2 weeks of Indian Summer to wrap up the outside.

Where have they been?!

Where have they been?
a) Marooned...
b) Just old & tired...
c) Distracted...
d) Unsetting sail...
e) All of the above...

You're right!
a) We were/are marooned at least until Wednesday when the phone company is scheduled to fix/restore our internet line.  Does that mean we get a week's credit on our bill?  Wishful thinking.
b) Oh so true.
c) There were potatoes that needed digging and laundry that needed doing and and and...
d) Columbus weekend is the time to put the boat to bed for the winter.  Sailing in 40-50 degree weather may be bracing but...

Back at the homestead the siding nailer finally arrived and in between showers we've at last started putting siding up.  The upstairs window was taken out (P1), painted, and put back (P2).  And the end wall of the upstairs bedroom has been primed and is awaiting further "messin' with".

It looks like it will be Wed. or Thursday before you'll see more.  From the windy shores of our little island, over and out...

Cut off at the...

The old porch post (cut off years ago by who knows who for who knows what) seemed to be just the ticket to hold the bottom end of the handrail.  Compare this photo to yesterday's and you'll see I painted the blue wainscoting  and filled the holes in those old stair boards (the white spots).  I'm waiting for the filler to dry so I can stain it to match.

Lots of other things going on tomorrow so don't expect a post...

Step this way...

A bit more trim went up in the room you saw yesterday but nothing picture worthy (mainly because I forgot).  The room is not done though... Just wait.

Meanwhile, remember those stair treads I sanded eons ago?  We finally put the risers in today and put those babies in.  The first coat of varnish turned them beautiful.  They're not done yet but at least you can see the potential...

Just wait...

Silly me.  I didn't take a photo before we started work today and only now realized I didn't have a "before" picture.  So.... the top photo is from Sept. 2 when Bruce & John put in the new window upstairs.  However, putting in the window was all they did inside the room.  Today we spent time and energy getting that room back together again.  Lost count of the number of times we went up and down the stairs and out to the garage.  When we'd made 4 trips for the top trim over the window we decided it was time to call it a day.  I know that wall looks a bit cobbed together at the moment but just wait.  The next time I post a picture of this room it's going to have a whole new look.

Coming home to roost...

How on earth could I forget yesterday to take a photo of "Debby's chickens"?  They look perfect perched on the porch posts.  In case you're wondering, they won't fall off.  There's a double ended screw securing them to the posts.

P2 - Finishing the last, we hope, of the trim on the door wall.

P3 - My artistic shot of the day.  I call it "John's World"...  (Actually, he's putting in the last piece of base molding we had to replace.)

P4 - Upper left corner - Yesterday there was a hole; today it's a carpenter's answer to a patchwork quilt.  Now for a little paint, a little caulk, or is it the other way around?

P5 - Out with the chairs; up with the clothes hooks.  John's "wardrobe" takes a step up.  Personally, I'm waiting on a closet...

A rainy day...

Nothing new that's exciting to report unless you agree with Bertha that getting your basket back by the window is exciting.  Gus is still trying to figure out where his seat of choice is.

The rest of the day is a blur not unlike these photos.  Hung the mirror in the bedroom; installed the door closures on the storm door, top and bottom; primed and painted odd bits of trim for here and there; decided to put the pencil sharpener under the desk. (Bertha thought this was great fun but my bet is it will probably not make it to your top 10 fun things of the day.)  What's John doing on the ladder?  That's anyone's guess.  He did mention something about wondering where his gloves were...

We're back!

Our "show me" friends, Jeannette & Don, decided that watching our progress on this blog just wasn't good enough for someone from Missouri.  Their visit was a perfect opportunity to enjoy some great fall weather with friends while we wait on our siding nailer to arrive.  (Sorry I forgot to get their photo...)

P1 - The trim is now around the upper window and work continues on the corner to the left of the ladder.
P2 - A few more clapboards up, enough to allow the wiring of the outdoor outlet.  VERY important since the electrical inspector was coming.  We passed.
P3 & P4 - Thanks to Debby & Susan the furniture got rearranged this afternoon.  Seems to be much more sociable.  The 3 of us didn't have a problem conversing, i.e. no shouting across the room.  Of course John has yet to test the new arrangement out during nap time...
P5 - Can you see them in the photo?  The geese are V-ing up and going on practice flights.  At least we gather this is a practice flight.  They were heading due west...

And then there was the treat of rain...

The trim on the porch front is now complete plus, wonder of wonders, we even put up the clapboards and did the caulking.  On a roll, the porch ceiling was a piece of cake.

P2 - can you see what's different?  The first clapboard went up.

So that's it folks.  Between the weather and guests and other obligations there won't be another post until next Thursday.  Expect us to return refreshed and ready to wrap this project up before the snow flies.

Back to trim...

If you think this task of trimming will never go away,  trust me, you're not alone.  However, the trim on what I'm now calling the "odd end" is now all in place (we hope).  And the porch has been started.  Company brought today's project to a halt just in the nick of time.  John's knees from going up and down the ladder were just about to rebel.

Thank heavens for cats!

Whenever I forget to tell you we'll be up to other things, I can always fall back on a photo of the cats.  Gus is beat.  Early this morning he caught a mole and left it at the door for us.  (So far we've seen his "gifts" but it's probably only a matter of time before our feet...)  A bit later we looked out the window in the right of the photo to see a deer standing there snorting and stamping her foot.  Sure enough.  There was Gus on the porch having a stare down with her.  This afternoon he had to chase away a stray cat.  No wonder he's asleep while Bertha is on guard duty.

A little rain, a lot of rain...

Rain sent John into the basement to finish the plumbing on the heating system.  It's now all hooked up and tested for water tightness.

Rain saw the TV installed on the "short" wall and our first piece of art hung.  It's by Leigh Yardley; one of her early pieces.

Rain saw the cats racing back and forth throughout the house, then going out, only to want to come in again minutes later.  Didn't we know it's wet out there?!  They've had a hard day.

What's new pussycat?

Gus knows but he's not telling.  He's a very thoughtful cat though.  Today while I was having lunch on the patio he brought me a chipmunk (live of course).  Dropped it in my lap.  The chipmunk proceeded to run up one arm, across my shoulders, then take a flying leap into the asters before disappearing into the lilac bushes.  I remained seated.  Just call me cool, calm and collected.

Someone asked yesterday what the siding will be.  We'll be using cedar clapboards that will hopefully blend with the rest of the house.  The good news is that they were primed at the factory rather than by yours truly.  Yes!

Today we finished the trim on the window sides of the new room... the trim right up there under the roof.  Don't ask how many times we went up and down the ladders...

How many ways?

Perhaps I should make this into a puzzle.  Rather than telling you what we did, let you compare to "pictures of the past" and find the changes.  There are only so many ways/angles I can take photos from and it must be getting a bit boring for you.

But I'll be nice.  Look low and you'll see we got the rest of the base trim in place.  Look high through the branches and you might be able to see we got upper trim over the large sunroom windows.  And the unseen work continues.  Connecting pipes for the heating system.  Painting ceiling bead (also called wainscoting if installed on the walls) in preparation for putting up the ceiling of the porch overhang.

Planning ahead...

3 more windows trimmed out this morning before we were out and about doing other things.  Looking at this photo I just realized the more trim we put up the less space we have to cover in siding.  Oh, the possibilities!

New meets old...

On a roll this morning - trim around the big window; the "last" corner trimmed; the sheathing up on the ceiling of the back porch overhang; figuring out and trimming the back side so it marries nicely with the old house.  All this after John finished hooking up the supply side of the floor heat in the new room.  Wonder of wonders, we even had time for a coffee break.

This afternoon we decided to tackle the corner on the front (the one behind the yellow ladder in P1 on the left).  It turned out to be a problem child.  Nothing was straight, level, matched.  I cut back the clematis (they've never really been satisfactory anyway) and took down the trellis on that white wall behind the yellow ladder.  John took down the gutter and pulled off the old trim.  By trimming and fudging and holding our mouths just right, we finally got the old trim back and a piece of new trim in place on the "green" wall by quitting time.  We still have a bit more to do on the lower corner but that will wait for another day.

A friend from NYC commented yesterday they still have 12.5 hours of daylight.  Would we like some?  Are you kidding?!  In our youth perhaps but we were more than ready to quit for today!

The race is on...

Finally - photos of the outside.
Bottom flashing is complete (can't believe we actually completed something).
Some of the corner trim is up.
Two of the windows are trimmed.
The door is trimmed.
The siding was delivered.
Cool weather is on its way and the days are shorter.  (It may be John will have to shorten his nap time too...)
John got the return side of floor heat hooked up this morning.
The race is on to see if we get done before the snow flies again.  Do you remember?  It snowed just after we started this project oh these many months ago.

And then it was night...

P1 - Even though I didn't want to paint the door again, the white just didn't look right.  So while John was opening wide for the dentist I turned the door the same color as the woodwork.

P"not there" - We started work on the outside trim but I had a meeting and forgot to take a photo.  Then it was dark.  You'll just have to remain in suspense.

P3 - Cats in overflow mode...

Rearranging...

With errands to do followed by rain, we "played" with moving furniture around.  P1 - the bed in a new spot.  Somehow I think John's idea of a closet (3 chairs in a row) might have to be reconsidered once the siding is on.  For now it will have to do.  P2 - We're still moving things around in the new room.  If you thought one of the legs on the "coffee table" looked a big wonky, it is.  It turns out NOT to be one of my better purchases.

We'll be otherwise occupied for a couple of days so don't look for another post until late on Wednesday.  Have a good few days!

Now what's John up to?

I thought one room was relatively safe from construction but it was not to be.  Because we took out the cast iron radiator and replaced it with a thin line wall version (soooooo much easier to clean!) the plumbing to it also has to be replaced.  With fall on the way, that little project has finally come to the fore.   Because the wall with the radiator sits on a 2 foot stone foundation, the tubing to the radiator has to come up in the room about a foot from the wall.  The only way to do that "discretely" is to bring it up under the platform the wood stove sits on, a challenge in itself.  Luckily John likes these types of construction dilemmas.

P2 - Tired of looking through the plastic coating on the windows, we peeled it off today.  A room with a view!  Finally!

P3 - Our siding has been back ordered but there are still things to be done. Today we started putting the flashing along the bottom of the walls.

Multiple choice...

P1 - Suspect you don't see much of a change from yesterday but it does have the second coat of blue paint.

P2 - What is John up to now?
a)  Looking for the jumper cables he knows he put somewhere.
b)  Playing hide and seek with the cats.
c)  Doing yoga stretches in the privacy of his own closet.
d)  Trying to find the easiest route for the tubing to connect the radiator.
e)  All of the above.
f)  None of the above.

And then there was blue...

Nail holes filled - check.
The "odd" crack caulked - check.
Everything hand sanded - check.
Everything dusted - check.
Blue paint on all primed surfaces - check.
Second coat of blue on blue surfaces - check.

Need I say more?

Meanwhile Gus, with those saucer eyes captured on camera, practices for Halloween.

White...

And then there was primer...
(And a little BBQ & wine because it was Labor Day after all.)

A room with a view...

P1 - At last!  Photos of something different. (Weren't you all getting a little tired of looking at the same old, same old?)  P1 is of the upstairs bedrooms betterly (Google tells me that's not a word.  What do they know?) known as the Adirondack room.  The view from that room had to get a bit smaller because of the new room downstairs.  Up until today, that room has had to make do with a construction tarp (not too inviting for guests).  Oh, yes.  That's Bruce on the inside.
P2 - John on the outside.
P3 - Bertha inspecting during coffee break.
P4 - Bruce securing the new window from the inside.
P5 - John doing the same from the outside.
P6 - Recognize that?  Just thought I'd toss in a photo to show folks other than us have projects.  Bruce has been replacing the mantels over the windows in their beautiful old barn & is doing a great job.  And, in case you're thinking that's a bluebird house, it's not.  That's a kestrel house where a pair of kestrels raised their family this year.

Awaiting paint...

Finally (I thought this day would never come) the trim in the new room is all in place (every last pesky little piece I hope!).  We were almost ready to send out the word that we needed a wood stretcher for the baseboard when John located a scrap that was just long enough (we only needed a foot).

On the hole in the yard front, John brought in 16 buckets of dirt from our spare dirt pile (doesn't everyone have one of those?) and raked it over after I took this photo.

And, yes, it was another beautiful day in upstate NY.  As a friend likes to say, "We are soooooooo lucky!"

Moving to the outside...

Some things you may not notice in P1...
  - The soffit has now been fixed where it was pushed down by the foam insulation.  (Do we get a passing grade now, Randy?)
  - The weeds that had grown up around the foundation are gone in prep for putting up the siding.
  - John is sitting down on the job while he foams around the pipes to the outdoor faucets (so the mice can't join us this winter).
  - And when I took this photo it was still in the shade.  We gave it up when the sun and high temps reached us.

P2 - If you squint you might be able to see the trench I raked over (during the "big fuss").  The weeds from around the "hole" got clipped back this morning and the piles of rocks from the raking got carted away.  One of my flower beds got the first weeding of the season and, in spite of total neglect, actually looks pretty good.  Perennials truly are the "energizer bunnies" of the garden.

Coming up short...

Anyone have a wood stretcher?  We were working merrily away (no grumbles today) on putting up the rest of the wainscoting when, hold your horses, we had no more.  Only 4 pieces short and we couldn't conjure up any more.  So P1 is still an "incomplete" picture as is P2.  You got two today of the same thing because of all the clutter.

On other good notes...
This is our one week anniversary of using only hot water made by our new solar heating system.  I'm also pleased to announce that John & I & the dishes are still clean.

John got out the lawn tractor and "pulled" the scoop for the bigger tractor out of the ditch and back to "safety" behind the barn.

And... we ordered the siding for the outside to be delivered next week.  Fall & winter is coming after all.

A no photo day...

It was an absolutely beautiful day in upstate.  Since we're sure to eventually get some rain from Isaac and today was relatively cool, we decided to rake over the trench and do some filling.  I started the raking while John got the tractor going to get some dirt for fill.  I raked.  John fussed with the tractor.  I raked.  John fussed with the tractor. I raked.  John fussed with the tractor. I raked.  John & Stan fussed with the tractor.  And so it went.
Bottom line - I got the raking done.  John with Stan's help finally got the tractor out of the ditch (you don't really want to know) where it had stopped and refused to start again.
PS - I was not to take photos or make any comments - is this a comment?  However, now it's a beautiful evening in upstate.

MM...

Finally... a little wind, a little sun, a little (but only a little) water in the sailboat.  John was a happy sailor this weekend.  If you really quint and use your imagination you can see him and Terry sailing toward the back of Grindstone Island in the St. Lawrence.  It was all I could do to drag him away to put his nose to the "grindstone" here at home.

MM (that's short for "more muntins", those little strips of wood between the window panes - will they never end?).  At any rate I painted the last of them today although you'd never know it to look at the photo.  Antique white on white primer isn't very showy.  And we got the last two window casings in place.  Don't cheer yet.  We still have a ways to go on our "inner" project.

The bar scene...

After one evening and two stiff necks later, we decided we were too old to "enjoy" the bar scene.  This morning while I wasn't looking, John garnered his strength and brought the TV safely back to earth.  Now we're "exploring" the possibility of mounting it on the wall pretty much where you see it under that little half wall.  This time we're trying it out first on a box before hiding the wires and making a decision.

P2 - John has been busy mending the water pipe to the garden that had to be severed when the line for the solar hot water was run.  And he started filling in the trench where it was left open for him to do bit more work on the connections.  Our hot water is now into its second day being heated solely by the sun and so far we haven't frozen in the shower and the dishes are clean.  (Seems appropriate we get it up and running just as Romney announces his neanderthal energy proposal...)

P3 - Meanwhile the painting crew (otherwise know as me), got the first coat of blue on the trim of the big window and the finish coat (I hope) of antique white (white that one does not expect to look clean & new) on the windows.

PS - Don't expect a post until after the weekend as we have other things going on.

How to hang a TV...

P1 - Take the TV off its pedestal and put it somewhere safe.  If you're really worried have your cat lay on it to keep it from falling.
P2 - Invite a friend over and convince them this is going to be fun.  John is getting really good at this so, once again, be warned.
P3 - Heft it into place.  Yep, you see it right.  We're putting it above the opening between the two rooms.  Just think bar and you get the general idea.
P4 - Heft it down again so you can plug it in.  Bruce did suggest this initially but...
P5 - Walla!  TV - if there was only something worth watching.  Yes, Mother, it's well secured so it won't clunk any of us on the head.  Bertha studied it atop the ladder just to make sure.
P6 - Since the TV went up so quickly and Bruce has been working out at the fitness center and it was so much fun... he also helped John carry in and mount the new radiator for the sun room (white thing on the wall in amongst the clutter).  Thank you Bruce!

Just in case you got so involved with the TV mounting, please note that I did get the trim around the opening painted blue.  If you don't believe me just check yesterday's blog where it was only primed.  And, once again, no pictures of the solar hot water but John did complete the installation today and so far it's working fine. The real test will come when we hit the shower...

Stalking the wild...

P1 & P2 , even though a bit fuzzy because they were taken through the window, are for George & Joe.  The white spot in the road is our little Gus intent on stalking the deer in the field.  Size is no object to his, even littler, brain.

P3 & P4 - our guests are all gone so it's back to priming the woodwork (and making a mess).  Meanwhile it was back to the basement for John.  One would think he's been a bad boy but he's just putting the finishing touches on our solar hot water system. Someday soon...

Diggin' it...

John pressurized the solar hot water connections and deemed the pipe ready to bury.  Thank heavens for Tony who lives just up the road and his little backhoe!  P1 - digging the trench. P2 - filling it back in again.  (Please note they did remember to put the pipe in before P2.

P3 - The ground ended up a bit too high next to the back of the house so...
P4 - Smoothing out the dirt.

Some of you seem to think we work hard but it's nothing compared to Tony.  He's a roofer by trade and was on the job (roof) at 5:30 this morning (about an hours drive away) and came over here after he got off work.  Meanwhile John & I slept in until 6:30, cooked breakfast for the last of our guests etc. etc.  We have life easy!

PS - I hear that some of you may not remember Earlville's "house in the hole".  This is the blog link that has a photo I did in an earlier post.  http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=33215318#editor/target=post;postID=115849632668164455;onPublishedMenu=overview;onClosedMenu=overview;postNum=4;src=postname

Gone...

Even though John's did some plumbing with the solar hot water system in the basement yesterday, it's nothing I wanted to look at yet alone share.  So today (just so those of you who read this on regular basis don't give me a lot of grief) I thought I'd share the following news article John wrote.
(PS - No post tomorrow)

Date Line:  Earlville, NY

After nearly a decade of being high on the list of Earlville, NY tour sites,  the now  dubiously famous "House in the Hole"" is no more.  We gasped as we took our B&B guests to see this site last night only to find that in the last week it was filled in and is gone forever.

We all know that change is good but this was a special place that will live in our memories for a long time...not unlike the use of six charcoal briquettes to roast a T-Day turkey.  It will be missed.

Uncle John G.

Will they never learn?

Don, Charlie & Gil dropped by today just to say hello.  Sure enough, before they'd barely had time to have a cup of coffee, John was showing them his "little project".  The task was to get the additional length of piping for the solar hot water through the plastic sleeve to protect it when it's buried.

At 3 in the morning a little angel had whispered in John's ear to use his shop vacuum to "suck" a lightweight line through the tubing.  It was barely light and John was out giving it a try.  It worked!  He used the light line to pull through a heavy duty line that he hooked to the piping.  The "boys" happened to show up at just the right time (for us or should I say me) and before long Charlie & Gil, with appropriate supervision from Don, had made short work of the task.

When west comes east...

Tom Sawyer may have tricked his friends into helping with a fence but Uncle John has taken that technique to a whole new level.  Hmmmm, Bridge is here from Seattle.  Hmmmm, Kenny is here from Boulder. (Both strong, both willing to help with John's "little" projects.)  Hmmmm, the solar panels to heat our water just happen to need installing.  I understand Bridge was a master at digging the post holes (sorry I missed getting a photo) and Kenny was a master at engineering the framing.  (Sarah & I muscled those panels into place and if you believe that...)  Walla - at the end of the day the panels were in place and ready for the piping.

Of course the real action took place on the croquet court.  There were the guys = Bridge, Kenny, John & Dave.  There were the gals = Patty, Joey, Renee, Sarah.  Not to rub it in or anything, but let's just say the guy Gus was "helping" lost first, followed by the rest of the guys.  Then the gals "politely" finished with Sarah the grand champion.  Way to go Sarah!!

A "W" day...

Busy, busy, busy...
P1 - The trim is up around the big window and the wainscoting is on the wall.  Whew!
P2 - The trim is up around the opening to the new room & that little bit of wainscoting to the bottom left is painted.  Whew!
P3 - The trim around the opening on the new room side is also all up.  Whew!
P4 - The two hanging lights that go over my work table are installed.  (John put them in while I was away having ladies night out with... the ladies.)  Way to go John!

Just to let you know we're taking the next few days off to clean and organize for family, friends and B&B guests who will be staying with us next week.  Somehow we have to whip things into presentable condition.  Wish us luck and lots of energy...

Triplets...

"Our" doe had triplets this year.  This is the first time I've seen them out on their own.  They were no where to be seen this evening... probably getting an ear full from mama.

I actually got the faux painted wall in the kitchen to match what was there - a bit difficult since I mix my own and your guess is as good as mine what the proportions were the last time I did it.  The yellow walls in the new room are the same color.  The flash just made them look darker.

And the trim goes on...

Tall Texans...

P1 - Tall Texan?  No, that's John installing the storm/screen door.  The flies have decided that summer must be nearing an end so are looking for winter accommodations.  Hence we've ended our "open" door & window policy and put the screens in.
P2 - Painted the trim and the first coat of paint on the inside of the door John is at.  Remind me again why I insisted we have true divided lights? They take an eon to paint.
P3 - The green wainscoting is all painted (I hope!).
P4 - Aw! (or is that Awe!?)  When Oletta volunteered her husband & two teenage sons (Dallas folks & all fit, strong & over 6 ft.) for heavy lifting we didn't think twice.  Although the room isn't finished they moved our sofa & chairs into it for us.  Yes!
P5 - The kitchen side of the opening to the new room.  Because of the "trauma" to that wall I'm in the process of repainting it.
P6 - At one point over the weekend the kitchen looked fairly neat and tidy.  Today it's back to the mess although the floor is considerably cleaner.

Paint etc...

P1 - At last!  The lime green closet has turned the same color as the wainscoting.  (Don't think it's done.  Darn!  It needs a second coat.)  Note too, the trim around the window has now been painted.  It does have two coats!!!
P2 - The plank for the desk is now in place and just got a second coat of varnish.  (For some reason the photo makes it look like it's installed crooked but it's spot on level.)  The wood around the soon-to-be stairs has been installed and varnished.  The clapboard wall has a second coat of paint.  And John parged the foundation wall that's exposed.
P3 - The very long window sill is now in place.
P4 - Our friend Jen sent the kitties a Zhu Zhu chipmunk because they loved the one her daughter brought out.  It chirps and scoots about (children under 3 should not play with them so it only took me about half an hour to figure out how to turn the thing on..)
P5 - Gus, "Who me?  Share?"
P6 - Gus, "Mine, all mine."  Bertha, "I'll go play with my own toys..."
Thank you Jen!  It's a big hit.
Don't expect a blog report for the next couple of days as we have guests coming.