Week 1

Here is the progress we've made after one week...


Andrew and Derek glued the sub-floor down in the bathroom. Those glue guns are dangerous :)


This view is from the doorway of the bathroom. The closet is on the very left behind the framed wall, the toilet room is in the middle and the shower is on the right. That door will get framed in of course. The vanity will go along the right wall.


Molly was tired from painting. She even got some on her nose and paws.


We had much needed and appreciated help on Friday. Our friends Caleb and Lori came over. Caleb, Dad P., and Derek's brother Byron helped Derek frame the walls for the closet and toilet room. Lori helped me prime the office. Andrew came and helped too. Things go so much faster when we have help. We are so greatful that we were able to get so much done that day.


This is the office pre-primer.


This is the office post-primer and half painted. We are going to pull up the carpet. The original hardwood floors under it are in good condition.


This has nothing to do with the house, we just thought it was funny. I've mentioned that she sleeps in weird positions. She fell asleep with her bone in her mouth!

Derek has started the process of installing the electrical switches, plugs, and places for lighting. We've experienced minor setbacks this week. Derek and to move the door opening to the bathroom over because we didn't leave room for a light switch right inside the door. He also got sick yesterday with some sort of flu. So we didn't work at the house today. Also next week Derek is taking a road trip with two of his best friends to Minnesota. They are all in their other best friend's wedding on the 28th. While he's gone I will go home to stay with my parents for a the week and my Mom and I are going to visit Michael, Amber, and Audrey for a few days. After we get back Derek will finish the electrical wiring and put in the insulation and we will be ready for drywall! That's a huge step. I'll keep working on the office. The built in book shelf is taking a lot of extra time to paint.

There are a lot of things that we need to start doing like picking out tile, lights, paint, hardware, etc. that we haven't given a whole lot of thought to because it's seemed so far off for so long. Our goal is still to move in by August before school starts again (on the 15th). At this point that is looking like it will be very doable. So we're very excited! Derek has been working very hard each day and is learning so many things. I'm very proud of what he's done and what a great attitude he's had in the face of something that's so overwhelming. We are loving spending time together working on the house even though we're in different rooms all day :) It's fun to break fo lunch each day and talk about all the plans and dreams we have for the house. We have a lot! I'm going to try to post pictures each week, but we'll see how that goes. At any rate I'll update when I can!

Beginning of the End

This is it, the time we've been waiting for and taking about and looking forward to since we bought the house...no, no we aren't moving in, we're on summer vacation! Derek and I have been looking forward to it because we can work on the house everyday now as opposed to only once a week. Our progress will be off the charts! We hope. Our goal is to move in by August. The latest is we decided to pay a guy that works for Derek's dad to finish the plumbing in the bathroom for us. It was taking a long time and holding everything else up, plus this guy knows a lot about plumbing and could finish it easily. So we did that and it is all ready. The next step is framing the wall for the closet and the toilet room. Then we have to do the electrical which will be a big job. In the mean time I will be working on getting the office ready (repairing cracks, painting, etc.). There's a guy that Derek plays racquetball with at the gym who offered to help us out with the drywall. Derek's dad has contracted work out to him so we know his work is quality. So we may be able to save a little money there. There is also another guy at the gym who does tile. He told Derek he would do our bathroom.

So I finished student teaching last week. I had a really good experience and feel like God blessed me through that situation. My master teacher was a great teacher and she gave me a lot of freedom and support at the same time. I am not technically done with my credential yet though. I still have to complete a couple of lengthy assignments that are new requirements for the program this year. When I have passed those I will officially be done. I'm not concerned with rushing to get them done because I don't have a job for the fall. The district is in such bad shape that they probably won't be hiring any new teachers. There were two positions in districts that were close by and I did apply for those but 100 people applied for one and over 200 applied for the other. It's a unique time in education. So I will sub next year which is a disappointment but it's steady and offers me a lot of flexibility. We are thankful that I have that option.

In other news, last friday we got a puppy. She's a boxer and we named her Molly. I love dogs and we always said we would get one someday and knew the summer would be the best time so that we would be home to train it and not have to leave it alone all day. I've always wanted a boxer and I happened to see an add in the paper for boxer puppies. Anyway, Derek actually said yes! He knows how much I love dogs and just wanted me to be happy :) She's been really good. She doesn't cry at all at night but does wake up about three times to go to the bathroom. My sleep has definitely suffered this past week, but she's worth it! Anyway it was a big decision for Derek and I. This is something that we will have for another 10 years and limits the freedom we have now. We are excited though and wanted to share her with you :)

The first night we got her she fell asleep with her whole face in my gym shoe.



When she's not sleeping in her crate she sleeps in really funny positions. So much for her bed :)