It's Starting to LOOK Like a Home

Well the past two weeks have gone by quickly in some respects and not in others.
In either case, much has been accomplished and the first floor of the house is starting to actually resemble a place that is actually inhabitable. But I will definitely not take credit for the mojority of the work, that has been the blessing of friends and family.

The first floor has it's final colors chosen (this was more of a hurdle than anticipated because in the paint chip-form colors look great, when you put them on a wall next to colors of wood and different lighting, it can go sideways) and in a lot of cases is actually on the walls and ceilings. A majority of the painting was done by Brittany last week when I was taking in a bit of sunshine and frosty Coronas by the pool. Brit has also agreed to finish the sun room this week while I'm away on business in L.A. It really was amazing walking back into the house and the places I left half 'cut-in' before vacation, to find them completed and perfectly completed really was a fantastic finish to a much needed vacation.

I took Memorial Day then to play a little catch up before I leave for L.A. Shana and her boys, Jake and Sam, as well as Ellie also chipped in and we really had a great time chipping away at some of the smaller things that have been hanging on the todo list for a while.
The living room with clean floors and no furinture

Views from the entry into the living room

Jake carefully cuts the two carpet anti-skid pads

One of two completed pads/The kids prepare to 'roll out the carpet'

Testing out the carpet/Having fun on the new floor

Setting in furniture near the window

Near the fireplace/Jake takes a well deserved break

Shana & I discuss window treatments/Shana & Jake enjoy the sun

Everyone horses around on the new carpet

I start to trim the dining room bottom walls

It's slow going - but the color will look great!


We took a great step forward to making the first floor more live-able over the weekend and it gets me excited that other rooms can't be too far behind. I need to think about window coverings now or my furniture will fade in no time because of all the sun, but that is already swishing around in my head. We need to finish painting the base of the dining room which is no small task because of having to cut two times all of the woodwork - once a grey primer and once the actual red color. It's a test to see just how bold I like the dining room to be and what kind of statement it will make, but I think it can be pulled off to be just that - 'bold but not obnoxious'.

With more painting being done by Brittany over the next week, I should be able to come back from L.A. and set more furniture and actually start to use the rooms. That is only after I mow the yard which is growing like CRAZY with all of the rain we have gotten in the last two weeks. When I left a week ago for vacation the yard was at that 'a bit too early to run a mower on without leaving tracks' to now being overgrown. It's to the point that it's so long that it will take an extra day to dry out - when ever it does stop raining - before I can bring a mower on to it. That of course after I BUY a mower. I waited after last fall/winter to not buy a new mower thinking I could easily find a good used one this spring. Well I'm a bit behind there and I have only found 1-2 decent options and am now in desperate need of one. Not a really great position to be in as a buyer who wants a deal.


Things are trucking along and I'm really starting to get anxious to get back to the task list and knock off a few more rooms. I will be starting to send out the usual email list again when I get back as I think I'm putting the to do list together again after a little break - and that's really fantastic to think about.

The Wait Continues - For a Reason?

This past weekend was a good one again. I only had two volunteers, Shana D. and on V. Even though we were a force of only three, we got quite a bit accomplished. I picked out some new door handles for the first floor - so they will all be functional now which I'm looking forward to. Then picked up more paint readying for the crew.

Ron started on the ceiling in the dining room and Shana set to work on the entryway ceiling. We got through the ceilings and even moved onto the first coat (of the third color choice) of new color for the entryway walls that will start in the back entry and continue up to the second floor landing. The new color really works much better than the previous two with the wood work and pulls more yellow out of the wood than mostly the red that is usually pulled out by the paint color selections.

Meanwhile, I was working in the 2nd story hall bathroom, installing the plumbing. I ran out of material twice and will hopefully finish Monday evening. I then will need to lay the 3/4" subfloor and then it's back into Meredith's court to take it from there. I hope it won't take more than 3-4 hours, but as everything else has proven, I'm sure it will take longer. No problem, I'll just keep pushing.

That brings up what I really wanted to discuss, the timelime, the lack thereof and maybe some iseda on possible reasons for that. I talk with my pastor every Friday morning and proceed to get amped up on medium Skim Mochas for the day and discuss what's new that week. That weekly time together has proven to be truly critical for me in my healing. Often times he is able to position things in my mind that I cannot seem to conclude on my own. Folks often ask me all of this will be completed and I often tell them that I have 'this day' as deadline or 'that day' as a deadline, but in the end really have no solid clue. There are days that I'd LIKE to set as a completion date, but too much is out of my hands for me to be able to say those things.


Which leads me to a discussion I had with my pastor a few weeks ago that I have been kicking around in my head a bit. Maybe the Lord is using this project in a way that is beyond the 'no crap moron' response that is running through your head right now. Looking at the entire project, this is taking WAY longer than I ever thought. Even with all of the help, volunteers, donations, advice, etc. this seems to be stalling a bit since the first of the year. That got me thinking, maybe the Lord wants me to slow down.

I have spent so many of my years running at full tilt chasing this and that. Ask any of my good friends and they'll tell you that at any time in my life, it has always been 'a challenge' to get a hold of me, let alone plan something. My natural response I think would have been to push through whatever grieving I may have thought appropriate at the time and then get back to chasing all of the other trappings of life. I think the Lord has reasons that: 1. that Leslie and I found this house only 3 weeks before her crash 2. that Matt Strelecki wrote that wonderful email and SO many people at Meredith got behind this project, including so many friends and family and people in church and in circles that I wasn't even a part of 3. that when I was nearing completion of the demo and rebuild stages that someone from Meredith stepped in to take on so much of the decorating and final touches 4. that there are now more challenges facing the final touches and I'm being tested in new ways of how to finish this while continuing to not step on toes, be appreciative and still get what fits my house and our dream.

Yes those are 4 large areas and I don't plan on hitting all of those here, but I think they all have a common thread. While I have said many time other people have been touched or changed by this, I most certainly have as well. I can feel the Lord putting His hand on my shoulder that keeps me seated on the chair as He gives me a lesson as a Dad would to a busybody son. Softly and calmly I can hear Him say things every now and again. they are not profound nor overly complex. Sometimes it's a simple 'be still John' or 'just wait John' or 'find the priority John and follow only that'. Many times these moment happen when I'm frustrated the most, when I can no longer take the stress. In all instances I hear him saying, "simplify". It's one of those moments in life where the less said means the most. I know what he mans by 'Choose the path of your heart'. I think we all know what means - differently to everyone- but deep in our hearts we cannot lie to ourselves and we cannot lie to the Lord. We know ourselves and He know us even more intimately than that. Follow your heart to me says that He has taught me things throughout my short life, take those things and follow his word. He uses everyday life events to give us illustrations of how His word is true. It's our job to take those illustrations and share them with others. That's how he connects with every generation and every people - life experiences.

My house project definitely qualifies as a life experience. What then are some of my illustrations to share? Love with all of your heart - all of the time. Don't apologize for loving someone too much because you can't. Family is the closest thing we have on earth to God's kingdom. "Family" can be defined in a lot of ways, but in all ways the family is love without limitation or judgment, support without hesitation and community without exception. It's also where we recieve a small glimpse of how special we are to him when we have children of our own. What an amazing thing we must be to him because I realize how amazing my little girl is to me. There are so many 'illustrations' that I have seen - some I'd like to keep to myself... and will share when appropriate.

While I most assuredly would like this to end TODAY and many around me would like it to end soon, I think the Lord is doing many things with this project for his kingdom, not just my life, that for now I just 'be still and wait'. I know he is here and he is not done yet.

The Old Man Takes a Break

Yep, Buddy was getting tired and needed a rest.

Seriously though, I apologize for the back-to-back long disappearances. There have been quite a few personal obligations as well as relatively large snags in the overall project process that has consumed quite a bit of my time lately. Let's start with the good news though and maybe move on to some of the other junk at a later time.

As of this morning I now have carpet in the basement and the 3rd floor large room, I have TWO - count them - TWO working toilets (no sinks to go with them though), I have tile in the 2 1/2 baths, I have some more yard work done, I have rugs on order for the first floor and I have chosen the final color for the dining room and entryway (I hope). It's really been a busy couple of weeks and sometimes being mired in the details I lose sight of that.

I also have a VERY large headboard sitting in my master bedroom and we'll start there today. This headboard was built off-site for the story of the master suite. The person in charge of the project never thought it important to measure the stairs (or the window) openings in my house. Nor did the recommendation by several cabinet makers resonate to build the unit in smaller pieces and complete the final assembly in the room. Consequently we were left with a headboard that is 8" too tall and about 12" too wide to go up the stairs and roughly 1/4" too tall to go through ANY of the windows in the house. Two lift rentals later and roughly 18 man hours later, the solution was to grind the window frame down to allow for the needed size - this only after one of the window frames being busted by a large hammer and block of wood.
The SECOND lift/Lifting carpet

Carpet in the 3rd floor/Then the headboard...

Coming in Ellie's window/Carpet being yanked in the 3rd floor

Everyone wonders how it's coming in/I go and get it

Jeni helps it into place/I climb off the forks (in the rain)


We are now making great strides in the basement and the entire first floor. It's awesome to see colors other than white on my walls - even if we don't quite hit the right color out of the box. In the basement we have the carpet laid and the tile in the 1/2 bath completely installed now. There is a toilet but unfortunately no door installed as of yet ;-) We have painted the walls in all the rooms except the fitness room and the bar top has been manufactured. I am still trying to get to creating the template for the back-of-the-bar counter top and need that before installing the bar top, but that isn't too far off. I was really hung up with the flooring and plumbing of the two 1/2 baths.
Trying to get the form JUST right/bar top's gotta be right

Basement carpet looks great/So does the paint job

I install the basement tile in the 1/2 bath

VERY slowly it all gets installed


Meanwhile though, Grandpa Case, Grandma Helen, Shana, Brittany, Caryn and a few others concentrated on painting the first floor dining room, entryway and living room as well as cleaning the dining room buffet. I have to be honest, I never fully appreciated that buffet until Grandma put a lot of elbow grease behind cleaning the hardware and glass doors and Grandpa finished the varnishing. That is truly a highlight of the entire first floor. I can't wait to finish the lighting in the top of that to make it really 'pop' as Shana likes to say.
The buffet after Grandma's great work/Down to the details

It's a great piece of furniture/Hook on the front door mirror


In between all of this Ellie had her 3rd birthday and had a surprise visit from Shrek. After nearly peeing herself out of fear (and I took off the mask) she settled down and we had a great day of cake, presents and green punch! She is growing SO quickly that I am REALLY trying to push through these last stages so I can start to l-i-v-e with my little girl. More and more she 'helps' me on the projects. Just last night we went to the hardware store for a shutoff valve pressure fitting for the basement 1/2 bath and I showed her what we were looking for. As I was perusing the isle I heard 'Just wike wis one Daddy?'. I'll be darned if she didn't find the exact same thing I had/needed. She's so amazing and I praise the Lord everyday for her. So, being three has already proven to have it's 'moment's - it has already shown there will be many great moments.
The decorations were everywhere/So were the gifts

Her artwork from school was on display

Here comes Shrek/To Ellie's horror!

She doesn't like a real-life Shrek/Even when begging

And selling it.../and more selling...

Even without the hood.../still not so sure

Moving on the the cake/LOTS of candles for three years

And lots of blowing/Of course lots of frosting


The kitchen has been a huge blessing in that we are having more meals together and thankfully I'm no longer stuffing the pockets of local food chain owners;-) Hopefully that means we're eating healthier as well. With gas prices sky rocketing lately I also bought a trailer for my bike so that Ellie and I can bike to school/work everyday this summer/fall. Since I have no showers yet, this works really well in speeding up the morning routine as well. Hopefully I can shave a few sizes off my backside and Ellie can have a great time going to school in a very unique way! Things are starting to have more of a rhythm, but we have a ways to go and unfortunately this project is dragging out a bit. I have a few thoughts on that and maybe I'll save those for the next entry and stop the never ending keystrokes for a while.