It's the little things...

Most of you will look at this picture and think, "Tara, that's just a vent." But it means so much more to us. It's a small sign that things are really moving forward. That vent cover? To me it means that this time next week our new home will (most likely) have heat. And that my friends and family is a BIG deal. :)

Fireplace

A few posts back I made mention of issues we were having with our fireplace.  Let me take a moment and record the "fireplace journey."  Can you feel the drama?  No?!?  Oh well...read on.

When we designed the house we knew we wanted a fireplace.  A WOOD BURNING fireplace, preferably with a blower (to distribute the heat).  Why not gas you say?  1.  We don't have any natural gas in our neighborhood and don't want to deal with propane.  2.  This is Oklahoma and chances are that we will lose power in the winter at LEAST once every other year.  For any non-Okies reading this blog the loss of power usually coincides with some severe inclement weather...like a layer of ice coating every surface outside.  The first year we were married we lost power at our home for almost 4 full days.  Besides, who doesn't love sitting by a fire in the winter months?  If you don't you are maybe a little crazy or live somewhere ridiculously/awesomely warm like Hawaii.

So we decided to have a fireplace and place it in the corner (I have a soft spot for corner fireplaces).  We fill the rest of the back walls with windows on the plan and BAM!  Design done.  Framing starts and we reach the point where the framer needs the dimensions of the fireplace unit.  As I said before, I was hoping for a blower and possibly a medium efficiency model to reduce utilities in the winter months.  Armed with my very thorough list I head to the stores. SCREECH!  At the first shop I am forced to slam on the brakes.  At first glance there isn't a single fireplace that will fit the space we have and still meet code requirements.  We shopped around online and in town.  A lot of people tried to sell us a product we didn't need, couldn't afford and frankly didn't listen to anything we said.  When we would question them about hearth sizes and clearances they gave us vague and sometimes INCORRECT responses.  I was getting extraordinarily frustrated.

Finally, I came back to the store where the search began, The Hearth Shoppe in Edmond.  They are a small store, but they know their stuff!  If I asked a question they knew the answer or were pulling code manuals off the shelves to find the answers.  We ended up getting the smallest box they had, but it has worked out PERFECTLY.  One of my concerns was that it wouldn't provide enough heat in the winter months.  However, with the insulation we installed in our house, it will be more than enough heat to get us through any short periods of cold.  I can't wait until we move in (in 6 weeks) and can RELAX!

Quick update

There is a whole lot going on, it's hard to take time to update the blog. We've had lots of help and could not have made it this far without it. I feel like we are rounding turn four and heading towards the finish line! The problem is that there is still a lot of stuff to do before we can call it done! 

Here are some pics to give you an idea of what is going on: 

Concrete finishing

Light Fixtures

Building closet shelves

Lots of trim and tile

And who wants to miss out on picking up 1134 pounds of capstone?!?! Pictures coming soon of where this will end up. 

Just Loving Life

The title is a direct quote from my amazing husband Phil. Made just now, at 11:15 pm. Yes, it was with a bit of sarcasm. Why?

Because he is digging a ditch. Yes, at 11:15 pm. We are in the final phase of construction. A lot of exciting things are happening: cabinets have been installed, tile has started to go in and the house is (mostly) painted. More posts will follow with more pictures.  

But right now, in spite of his sarcasm, we really are enjoying life. Maybe not loving the 14-18 hour days and consequent dreadful lack of sleep, but I can't help but reflect on the many blessings of the day and past weeks. We worked side by side with our parents laying tile and have had many friends sacrifice their time to help us along this journey.  My mom lovingly tucks my children in at night when I can't be there.

These wonderful blessings are compounded by the excited smiles of our children as their rooms come together and the way Phil still makes my heart overflow when he looks at me. Yes, I am definitely loving life.

Labor Day Painting

Labor Day weekend was packed full of family, friends, painting and cleanup. An affordable scaffold rental and a couple ladders made for some quick painting with the sprayer. Trim painting and a few other projects rounded out the weekend, an some of us even managed a dip in the pool! 

Harlan working the scaffolding! 

Robert hanging some doors. 

Painting trim. 

"Painting" with water. What a helper! 

Chimney chase finished. 

Finished colors look great! We love this shot because you get the full effect of the stone, brick and siding. 

It's pretty close to our inspiration: 

Waiting

We are almost done with trade (plumbing, electric, and HVAC) inspections and I feel like its been dragging on for way too long. 

By the end of the week, we should have all our rough and final framing inspections passed. Then it's on to insulation and drywall. Now it's the time to start really putting in the sweat equity! We will be doing some insulation, then lots of paint, flooring, and trim work. It is getting close to looking like a real house! 

We are still here!

It's been almost a month since our last post. Don't worry, we are still moving along, just too busy to sit down and write. It seems every time I sit down I start to fall asleep. So before I snooze tonight, here are some of the progressions since our last update: 

Electrical rough going in

Levi "helping" our electrician/cousin Chris

Clean-up! 

Exterior doors

Fireplace

Brick and Stone

More stone 

For now, enjoy the teasers. We will update details on these improvements soon! 

Rain and a Roof

Yep, more rain. But this time we have a ROOF! Which means in the mornings when the thunder rolls and the lightning strikes (did you sing it too??) we can sleep easy knowing that most of the rain isn't getting in our house. Now I just need to remember to close the windows. :)

Contractors

A large part of the UBuildIt process is choosing your own contractors. For the most part we have had great success. Our dirt work, foundation and ground plumbing went in without a hitch.  Our roof...it's going on today (finally) and for that we are thankful.

But this post is primarily about Jeremy Gary and his crew from Rock Creek Homes.  His company is the one we selected for framing and they are outstanding! He and his crew of 2 worked diligently and meticulously to build us a home with good, solid bones. We couldn't have asked for better.  They communicated well, were punctual, and respected our budget by using materials wisely.  They rocked out to a Christian radio station and were sweet to my kids.  When I dropped a ball that affected their work (nope, I'm not perfect people) they were kind when they informed me of my lapse and didn't make me feel ignorant.  When the weather came and messed up areas of our cornice, they took it upon themselves to fix it...not because they had to, but because they hold themselves to such a high standard.  Bottom line? If you need a good framer, I have the company for you! Thanks Rock Creek Homes! 

The Best Part of Building

If you asked our sweet pirates what the best part of this process is you would get a smattering of answers.  They love watching the "workers work", seeing their rooms grow before their eyes and gathering random "treasures" (scraps of wood and nails) from the site.  

On Friday, Levi even got to earn some money for himself.  Both boys were hired as a clean-up techs for the whopping rate of 1 penny per nail!  Levi thought it was pretty awesome and immediately went to Target to spend his $1.50 paycheck. Nate's $.25 was dropped in the piggy bank. 

He is, of course, very excited to make more money and might even save his money to go towards a "big toy".  I am NOT holding my breath.

But, by far the boys' favorite part of the build is the leftover pile of dirt and sand in the front yard. Hours of entertainment folks! And hours of extra laundry. But those smiles? Totally worth it! 

Staying current

Building codes are updated frequently which means builders have to stay on top of changes. Last year the City of Edmond adopted the 2009 edition, which had some significant changes in wind shear/framing requirements from the previous version (2006). The 2009 edition was set to be enforced beginning Feb 1 of this year, but enforcement had been fairly lenient up until the last month.

So, it was a bit shock when we failed our sheathing inspection last week. I knew codes had been adopted (it is pretty clear on the City's website) but I didn't know the specifics that were required for us. Since we aren't "seasoned builders" we were completely caught off guard and frustrated when we found out our homewasn't  up to code. After a few discussions with the building inspector, our consultants, suppliers, and a couple other local builders we finally were able to remedy the concerns and get an approval for the sheathing inspection. 

As an Owner/Builder, the inspection process is a bittersweet aspect of the house. From the builders viewpoint, we lose time and money dealing with the inspectors and what seem to be insignificant details. But more importantly, from the owners standpoint, Codes and the inspectors are there to make our home as safe as possible. That's a good thing to me. I want this home to be the best it can be to raise our two boys and withstand all that the Oklahoma weather and time can throw at it! 

Losing almost a week of production time is frustrating (and costly) but we did learn some lessons that will help in the future. If this was easy, I suppose more people would do it. The challenge is tough, but the reward will be great! 

The next week should complete the framing and have the house dried in... Which is ironic since there is an unusual weather pattern (including rain) in the forecast for the 3rd week in July. You really can't make this stuff up! 

So for now I'll catch up on the next sections of the International Residential Code for one and two family dwellings, 2009 edition. If you're looking for something to read, I don't recommend it. It's really not as fun as it sounds! 

Who has time to blog?

The past couple of weeks has been a whirlwind, and today started another week of crazy! 

Framers are moving along nicely, roof is decked, and inspections are called in for this week. Hopefully we will get some new pictures up soon along with some more detailed blog posts. 

Tara had to fight some fireplace issues, there were some questions as to who would fix anchor bolts, and we made some other big decisions on the house... All things we can go into detail on when we take the time to write a post about it. 

For now, It's time for me to get a few hours sleep before hitting another day head on! 

Framing Fun

We have walls!

What a week.  After so many days of no changes, to see the house literally grow before our eyes in a day and half was pretty incredible.  We have a wonderful framing crew.  They are patient with all my questions, sweet to my kiddos and their craftsmanship is superb.

The day walls went up...Levi and I ate lunch in the "dining room."

This stage is SO EXCITING!  I just want to spend every moment down there, walking the halls and looking out the windows.  The view out of every window is spectacular!

Panoramic view of the great room

The stairwell to our unfinished bonus room.  For now it will be our very fancy attic access.

View from the top of the backyard and newly installed safety fence

We did have a few design issues creep up on us in this part of the process.  Those gorgeous windows I mentioned earlier?  Well, they are a little too big for the type of fireplace we had originally envisioned in the space.  This means we are having to change gears on how we will style our fireplace (more to come when we make the final decision).  The plumbing in the master bath impedes on the space needed for the pocket door we were going to put in.  So unless I want to have an off-center shower (that would be a little odd), we will need to make a small adjustment there as well. When we first discovered the "issues", it was tempting to have a pity party.  

But then, I step outside my woe-is-me-moment and really look at the house.   I then remember how extraordinarily blessed we are.  This home is more than I ever thought possible and I never want to take any part of it for granted.  I want to cherish every moment and every memory we build with our boys, family and friends.

And before you ask...yes, we have already started using the pool.  I am convinced our boys are half fish.  We went swimming twice today.  We enjoyed an afternoon swim with my mom and an evening swim when Phil got home. The boys are worn out, and so am I!  

- Tara

Happy Father's Day

There wouldn't be a way this home would be built without our dads! Sure, they will help with the physical labor and giving great advice, but it's more than than. 

The 30+ years of advice, example, love, teaching, loving, patience, and countless other things from our dads have made Tara and I what we are today. Without them, we would know so little about life, construction, work ethic, and perseverance that we would be crippled during this process. 

I am so blessed to have both these men so close to me. To the Dad I've known my whole life and the Dad I got 7 years ago, THANK YOU! 

On to stage 2!

After almost 2 weeks of weather delays, there was significant progress made is the last 24 hours!  Yesterday evening, sand was filled and our electrician laid out the floor outlet and lines to the kitchen island. Between 6am and Noon today we had a termite treatment, slab poured and lumber delivered. The slab looks great, and even got a personal touch in the garage:

Sand filled: 

The first pour: 

Lumber: 

Checking out the finished product: 

Levi kissed the floor of his room (I'm still trying to figure out where he learned that!?!)

Walls start going up on Monday for the beginning of stage 2!!! 

-Phil 

No change, no news

The rain has been wonderful. Really, it has been.  The grass is gorgeous and lush. My garden is going crazy.  The weather has been cool.

Unfortunately, the foot or so of rain we have had in the last month has severely cramped our building "style".  

Ground plumbing went in smoothly and then, before we could get it inspected, the rain came (again).  If it is muddy inside the footings, if the inspector can't access the areas he needs, or if sand packed around certain areas has been washed out we will fail the inspection. 

So we wait. We are hoping to see some major changes this week and to start framing early next week. Big changes! And very exciting. We just have to hang on to our spirit of patience. And figure out where to possibly make up the lost time later. :)

Aaron, our UBI consultant, helping review the ground plumbing. Notice our lovely "ponds" inside the footings. 

Lemons You Say?

Fine. Then we will make lemonade. The rain keeps coming. On Saturday, after a 7 inch downpour, we had a small pool inside our stem walls. Which, of course, meant no progress.  

The plumber is headed our way as I type and then we will be able to finish pouring the foundation. Unless of course we have more downpours (like the one forecasted for tomorrow).

Until then the boys are enjoying the extra sand in the front yard.  Some people would look at that pile and be frustrated. Not us. To us, it is another part of the adventure.  Another memory to have as a family. Sure nothing changed over the weekend. But our morning has been filled with exploration, mountain climbing and excavation. Pretty sweet deal if you ask me. 

Hide, Seek and Save

The last few weeks we have been waiting for the weather to clear.  After the destruction of the tornado in Moore last week we are more thankful than ever to have a roof over our heads during this time of transition.
At this stage of the build, we have to have fairly dry ground so that concrete trucks don't get stuck (again) in all the muck.  During the (very) wet and rainy days we have taken the opportunity to check some more items off our list.  We visited a few lumber yards to set up our construction accounts, did an initial review of our door and window orders, and made our decision on which framer to use.
We also cleaned up a few of the trees on the property and took time as a family to just play.  We are so blessed to have this beautiful land where we can build our home and love taking every opportunity to start building memories NOW.  The boys love running around the front yard!  And who doesn't love a good game of hide and seek?!?

Levi was long overdue for a trip to Texas, so on Friday we all loaded up and made our way to Gigi and Papa's.  While the boys played and napped at the house, we (Phil, Larry and I) made our way to a marvelous place known as ReStore.  It is a Habitat for Humanity resale shop.  We have one here in the city, but I have never had great luck finding anything.  We hit the JACKPOT at the Dallas location.  We have $4/sf in our budget for wall tile in our showers.  On Saturday we found a 6X6 white tile for both baths for $.63.  That is more than 80% UNDER budget! I still get giddy thinking about it.  We stopped by another store and found the accent tile for both baths.  The accent tile we decided on is a grey penny round for the boys bath and a white penny round for the master.  I expected to pay over budget for the accent tile, but again...UNDER budget.  Only a 25% savings, but every little bit helps. :)

On a side note, our dear friend Christa is saving my sanity right now.  She is a super busy, super awesome woman who takes time to answer my texts and phone calls when I am freaking out about one decision or another.  She reminds me that it is okay to pick things that aren't "the norm" and isn't afraid to tell me when I am totally crazy. We are slowly checking design items off the list, but the journey is far from over and I am so thankful I have a friend like her to help me.