Lots to report!

Ooops, the week got away from me and I forgot to update everyone on what Charles brought home for me! Sorrrry!!

Ok, so here it is! My very own pink tool bag! Complete with all sorts of tool-goodies. I've already used it to hang pictures and do a few little odds and ends around here :) Thanks Babe! ;)














































I also need to update about a few other things that have happened here lately. We have gotten some 'finishing touches' done a little around the living room and kitchen/dining room area.

First of all we sold our dining room table on Craigslist, so we're tableless for a bit until we find another one..maybe this week. But in the corner of the dining room we wanted to put the main computer that the kids use but we were just so tired of the clutter and mess that collects around it. We found this wood corner unit at Ikea and it has been the perfect thing!

Now you see the mess.......























Now you don't!




























I hit the Pier 1 75% off sale recently and found this super cool...thing...to hang above the fireplace lol. I wanted something simple ...and cheap and it was both! Only $12 :)











































Also this week I finally completed my latest furniture re-finishing task. We had our old entertainment center that housed our old tube TV and the matching end tables. We bought another TV so this until became useless to us. Charles told me to put it on Craigslist but one day it occurred to me that it would go GREAT in the guest bedroom. But the finish was wearing thin in places and was all around worn looking. So I go the bright idea that I'd refinish it and the end tables and we'd stick it in the guest room so our company has a TV and when there are no guests, the kids can have a movie/video game room. And, during the week it also serves as our classroom. I sit on the futon, I have a kids sitting on each side of me at the side tables, which doubles as their desks and I teach. When we're done w/ the work, we store all the books in the entertainment center where the stereo used to go so books aren't left out and spread everywhere. It has worked perfectly this week! Here is was and is! We bought a black stain (I thought the room would be black/a but no matter how many coats I applied, it came out this...espresso finish, just like all the other wood in the house lol. Oh well at least it matches.



Pieces before:


























Walking in the room... you like the tables?























































































Sitting on the futon directly in front of it:











































What a PAIN that was, but worth the effort I think! It looks pretty nice in that room.
The only thing left to do in the guest room is the crown molding, hanging a few pictures on the walls and getting some guests in there! lol



We've had our furniture in for a while now but I haven't taken pics b/c some of the living room and the breakfast bar area has been used for storage of anything from tools to unpacked boxes and I couldn't get around it all to get a good angle for pics. But I did today and here it is!


Couch: (DUH? right lol)
























































Charles' Chair. He had this type of chair in mind all along and we were able to find it!























This is sort of a panoramic view from the front door..seen as you walk into the house. Living room to your right:























french doors straight ahead





















kitchen up and to your left,






































Looking from the kitchen out to the living room
(back splash (where the cords are) being done this week)





















We finally got my curtain rod/curtains hung on my french doors. I wouldn't normally have bothered since the privacy fence in the back yard goes high enough so that no one can ever see in, but the afternoon sun comes through those doors and blinds me daily so we put something sheer there to cut the sun out. I love it!




















And the latest as of tonight is the handles we have FINALLY put on the kitchen cabinets. We got these at Ikea too and at about 1/2 of the price anywhere else, which makes me HAPPY :)
















It's starting to feel HOMEY and functional around here! YES!

Ok, so there is STILL lots to do! This week Charles is taking a few days off to do some stuff and then this next weekend we'll be working hard too. We will be doing:

1. The back splash in the kitchen to include the whole wall behind the stove.
2. The roof in the kitchen needs to be repaired where the cabinets came down and retextured, painted.
3. The kickboards all around the bottom of the kitchen cabinets need to be done as well as the molding along the top of the cabinets.
4. There is still some tile that needs to be grouted.
5. All tile needs to be sealed.
6. Kitchen counters need to be sealed.
7. Living room and dining room need crown molding.
8. Charlie's room needs the crown molding finished ..we started but stopped along the way.

Then this weekend, the kids bathroom will be gutted and the work begins of redoing it. ARE WE DONE YET!!!!????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

Excitement! Not just any old Friday night.........

Let's play a guessing game. Last time we did this, it wasn't all that hard. I think we were trying to figure out what was happening ...here. Now, let's try to figure out what happened tonight. LOL..........here we go...............


Still working on the kitchen.... we all had a realllly busy day and Charles and I both got home around 5 pm. I start putting away groceries and a little while I hear quite a little commotion from where Charles is. So...............what do you think inspired THESE responses:

Need more clues? Look very closely at the above pics..............see anything out of the ordinary?

I'll give you a minute.......

Still nothing? Check everyone's shirts. Does someones' seem...wet? (Charles'??)

........and the next pictures.......

what's the around the edge of the tile!??

Fan in the kitchen? (It's leaning to focus on the sheetrock)

Any guesses... anyone? Bueller.........Bueller??

Something to do with a sink?

Sink is gone......that WAS actually in tonights plans...about the ONLY thing that went right LOL

Whatever it was, Charlie doesn't approve LOL

I KNOW some of you have some pretty good guesses by now........ with all the water on the floor?

Welp, Charles busted a pipe under the sink and we had a minor flooding situation. (ACtually an old pc broke off in his hands. When I say these people did NOTHING to this house since 1965, I mean it!)

So what happened?
I'm putting groceries away, kids are helping. All of a sudden I hear something I can't repeat . I look over and Charles jumps from under the sink to the middle of the kitchen, then jumps back under the sink. I'm thinking, "WHAT in the world??" The mental image is kinda funny now . All in the same second, I see water spraying EVERYWHERE. What does Zak do? Runs to play in it. That boy..... (shaking head). I scream, "GO GET TOWELS AND LOTS OF THEM!!!!" and I run to the garage as Charles is shouting what to bring him. I run outside (detached garage) and the door is locked! I run inside, the kids and I are scrambling for keys. FINALLY found them, I run to the garage, and naturally I bring the wrong wrench. HEY.. I was close at least! I run back, bring the right wrench and get under the sink w/ him to try to attach it to the valve that shuts the water off there. It is JAMMED! We are getting soaked, the kitchen is filling up w/ water on that side..ug, a mess. Finally finally FINALLY Charles gets the wrench on the valve good enough (in all it's slippery-ness) to twist it shut. Here is how the conversations were going here at that moment......

Me: "I can't get the wrench to tighten on the valve........here you do it while I try to clamp it off"

Charlie, "Here, I'll spread my ladybug blanket down..will this help?" as she puts it WAY over on the dryer tile.

Zak, "An EMERGENCY EMERRRRRRRGENCY!" as he screams w/ glee and slaps his bare feet down in water.

Charlie, "Is this a big deal?"

Charles to me, "Go over there and keep the water from getting on the carpet!"

Me..running with more and more towels, trying to stop it from FLOWING onto the sheetrock or carpet, "MORE TOWELS, KIDS! GET EVERYTHING YOU CAN FIND!! Is it turning, can you get it off?? Do I need to call the city to get out here and shut off the water?????"

Charles..............silence, grunting, laying sideways under sink.

Me, "Is there a shut off to THAT pipe?"

Charles, "Yeah, out at the street and I don't have a tool for that. If I can't get this off, you'll have to make a phone call." More twisting....

Zak, "OH NO, THIS IS A FLOOD!" as he LAUGHS! What is the MATTER w/ this child!???? lol

Charlie, "What about our toys?? Are they going to float?? Is this serious?"

Me, "YES it is serious! GET ME SOME BLANKETS!"

Charlie, "My ladybug one is there"...still on dry tile, she drags it over.

Charles, "Fleece doesn't absorb water!"

Zak, "OHHH it's still spraying!!! Look Charlie, it's spraying straight out!!" more laughing!.

Charlie, bringing me her Carebear, asks, "Will this float, do I need to put it up high?"

I don't know exactly how long this went on but of course it seemed like F.O.R.E.V.E.R! And I just kept thinking...NOOOOO, not WATER!?? And even though it was spewing and spewing, and I'm talking in full streams, as Zak said, STRAIGHT out........... and even though in places there was a good inch of water, it managed to stay close to the tile and old walls and only crept up to the new walls. We have fans out everywhere. The pics were taken well after the cleanup took place so they really look dry compared to what happened here tonight.

Charles opened up the wall this pipe was on (once we got the old sink out of the house) so it would dry inside there and everything should be fine by morning. The one thing it DID do, was put us behind in a big way because tonight we had lots of other plans that didn't include THIS! He has 3 day weekend and the timeframe was tight on what we wanted to get done in the first place!

Oh well, every remodel doesn't go w/o at least ONE major set back. So far we have been pleasantly surprised that there hasn't been anything .........until now! GAH! I guess this wasn't so bad and quickly remedied. SHEW!