Day Fifteen: Wait, we're moving? We need to pack up the old house?!?

I was hit today by the sickening realization that we will be MOVING in to the new house next weekend... which means that we will be MOVING EVERY SINGLE LAST BELONGING WE HAVE next weekend.

And I have just started packing... while 34 weeks pregnant... or is it 35? Either way, it is *super* slow-going.

Today I took some time to organize much of the baby stuff that we have been accumulating over the past few months. I washed and folded a sickeningly-adorable pile of newborn clothes that we have been blessed to have handed down from friends ('cause they only wear this size for a minute!) Do you know how TINY newborn socks are?!?! Do you have any idea how bizarre it is to fold postage stamp-sized onesies? (And exciting... we're entering the home stretch!)

Our wonderful friend Jon came over to the new house tonight to help Matt with bathroom demo and framing. It was great to get him out to the house and use his enthusiastic manpower! I gave the boys plenty of room (as the bathroom is pretty darn tiny... particularly once you add in two working stud muffins [I can call your husband a stud muffin, right S?] and power tools.)

The greatest part of Jon's visit was dinner - hell froze over, and we got pizza. Wahoo! Due to Matt's dietary constraints we *almost* NEVER eat pizza... this was such a treat! Dinner was also fantastic because it involved conversation with Jon... He and his wife are two of the most beautifully social people we know. Getting together always means laughter, easy conversation and a reminder that we need to get out more often with awesome people like them!

So... not much of an update on the house, but we're still going strong. Dead on our feet, panicking that we won't be ready in time, dazed by the remodeling process... but still going....

Day Eight: Why is a visit from the cement truck as exciting as Christmas to me???

Today was CONCRETE DAY!!!!!!! That’s right, folks, we (hired professionals who) poured nine yards of concrete on our property today… I had been looking forward to this as we saw the formboards take shape, but I was really giddy to see the actual truck, pumps and workers who transformed the broken slab blight at the back of the house into an amazing new patio that overlooks the river. They also shored up two new retaining walls, filled walkway cracks and reinforced the back corner of the house foundation (where the previous owners had oh-so-brilliantly dug out the supporting soil to make more room for storage. Good grief.)

This marked a big day for us, as these two problems (foundation and back concrete slab) were probably the biggest factors that allowed us to bid on and purchase this property. Others might have been scared off by the prospect of the house sliding down the steep slope, but not us!!! Problem solved… and we still have money to fix the roof!

The main worker bee pouring and spreading the concrete was a gentleman named Jon – with a giant rose tattoo on the back of his shaved head (to go with the giant old-English script of his last name across his back, and a myriad of other such tats.) This guy was *busting* his butt while others looked on… I felt guilty for not jumping in with a pair of boots to help spread the muck evenly. In between pours we had a lovely conversation about the property, the upcoming arrival of our daughter, the state of the health care system and the latest books we’ve read. He was unbelievably polite – a statement that has been true of the entire foundation team. We’ve really lucked out on this contractor! He even left a designated space for me to doodle in the drying concrete – and provided a really long nail for my etchings.

Mom and Dad tirelessly painted in the kitchen and both bedrooms. We all took occasional breaks to watch the concrete progress – can you tell how much I loved watching the concrete day?!? ;o) Jon came down from Humboldt to help out – we went back to the SC house to dig out some of my favorite plants for transplant. It was pretty hard work and I think I may have overdone it a bit… but the plants are ready to join their new bedmates in the mountains! I am anxious to see what does well in the new climate… Will the salvia collection thrive? How about the native grasses? The herbs? What will the gophers eat first? Only thyme will tell… (Oh wow, so bad…)

We all trotted off to Taco Bell for a gourmet dinner in our grungy clothes, covered in paint splatter and sawdust. I am thrilled beyond belief that we will soon welcome our daughter in to the world… but as we race to fix up our house and move in by the end of the month, I find myself wishing I could take her off for small stretches of time to get more done. Ah well, at least we always know where she is at this stage in the game!

Day Four: I Love Wallpaper...

...but I love it even more when it comes off the wall in nice, easy, wide swaths. Our bathroom? Not so nice, easy or wide.

I spent Monday holed up in the tiny bathroom that will become grand central in a few weeks, starting the demolition process that I have dreamed of since I first laid eyes on its rather gross interior. Think plastic "tile" sheeting, mismatched vanity and mirror, random universal handgrips in every direction, 3/4 sized tub with tile border that overhangs the tub edge by a good half inch, wallpaper so horrid it is guaranteed to cure you of your hiccups at first glance... But other than that... Oh, and a window that opens out to the enclosed porch room. Lovely.

When I pulled the vanity off the wall, two condoms fell out of their high hiding place, making me wonder just who was getting some in our house lately... since the previous owner passed away in 2007... at the age of 98... Hmmm... The step-grandson, the almost-20 son of our neighbor, perhaps? Eeeewwwww....


Matt cut off and capped the shower pipes on Sunday (I married a total stud muffin...), so we will be ready to do even more intensive demo work on the bath when someone who can actually lift a crowbar is around. I'm trying not to overdo it, but it is so hard to look around the house and helplessly count the unending projects that I would *really* love to have finished or at least started by the time we move in... The bathroom is DEFINITELY near the top of that list!


The foundation crew continues to build retaining walls, pour concrete posts, reinforce the perimeter and prep for the BIG POUR coming up on Friday... That's right folks - a massive load of cement is coming our way at the end of this week! Stay tuned for pics... Maybe we will write our names in the slab!!! "Sara was here." So original.


We did not make it up to the house this evening, as it was the return of our small group after a lovely summer break. It was great to get caught up on what has been happening for each family (...and there is altogether-too-much going on...) and to have a little break from the stress of the house. But I found myself making lists in my head as I was munching on Cassy's delicious chocolate chip bundt cake (OMG...), contemplating kitchen skylights as I tried to focus on what each couple had been up to over the past month, even mentally running through painting technique pros and cons as we talked about how excited we are for our daughter to arrive in the next six or so weeks. Does this make me a bad person? Or just a really focused remodeler? In my current state of "preggo-brain" I seem to only be capable of contemplating one topic at any given time... Lately it seems that the old adage is true: The house always wins.

So it begins...

I haven't been on here much (at all) in months... there is too much going on in our lives, and a brief pause from cataloging it all online seemed appropriate. I just couldn't get in to the whole "blog your way through pregnancy" thing... particularly since ours has been a bit of a doozy.

Bottom line at this point: we're due September 23rd, and we just bought a house.

What?

Yes, a house. In California. With a baby on the way. In the worst recession in decades. With construction jobs still unstable. Because we like to live on the edge (of reason...)

In a few weeks we will move in to our new home - a 1940's cabin that is more of a project than a house at this point.... but it is ours, nonetheless. If I wasn't the size of a manatee (and just about as mobile) this wouldn't be a problem: Matt and I love to work on home renovations or upgrades and are incredibly excited to be able to transform this "charming" and "rustic" cabin into a home for our growing family. BUT I happen to be very large, very uncomfortable and very limited in the scope of projects I can tackle at this point. I'm trying to do all that I can, but combine my size with a difficult pregnancy and I really should be resting at home on a couch with a book, jug of water and a fan. (Sounds heavenly. Not realistic.) Did I mention I'm large? I'm sure all pregnant women feel this way at this point, but COME ON! My frame is not meant to be carrying an extra 45 pounds (with more to gain as the weeks continue.)

But I digress...

The house. Yes. Here we go. Onward. Home.

Let's start at the very beginning...