Photos around the house

Standing in the front doorway looking down the hallway. The kids thought this was HILARIOUS! (and of course wanted to look at themselves in the camera afterwards). Standing in the doorway of the theatre room looking back at the lounge (Pink and Blue are surfing about where the couch will be), which goes out to the alfresco. Back past the bracing frame (which won't stay there!) is the dining room and more towards the right is the kitchen. Blue's room... will have a great view over the pool! Pink's bedroom windows... can't you just imagine a little corner seat there?? Pete washing the dishes in the sink in the butlers pantry ... what a well trained husband! The bricks (well half of them anyway, more to come...)

Frame and windows ... it seems REAL!!

How exciting to see something that was in 2D lifted out of the ground and brought to life... amazing! What surprised me most was how excited I was about Pink's windows... they looked even better than I'd imagined! The only issues we had were:

- the dwarf door into the garage

- we thought the bathroom window was too low, but it was just trickery of the eyes

- front windows ... not quite right. Were too low, so we hoisted them up further. Looks better from the outside but now the windows don't suit the front. Back to the drawing board - may need to buy 2 new front windows. Will see how we go... Other than that, looks fantastic!!!

Quick update

Sorry for the lack of updates, but I've had a pretty full-on couple of days. Dad suffered a stroke a couple of days ago, on the same day that Max broke his arm. Both are well, Dad is progressing day by day so it's just a waiting game at the moment but it looks quite positive. Amid all the sadness, somehow, we magically have a frame up on the slab (courtesy of the bikeman fairy and his cronies)! Real walls, and rooms you can walk through. It's very exciting seeing something that you have created on paper all of a sudden in 3D. It is really, really cool. I have photos but I'm too tired tonight to upload, sorry!!! I'll try to get to it over the weekend. It looks great, the frame went up really quickly, in 2 days so the boys worked really hard. Pink has already fallen out of her room, backwards through the hole in between the fram trusses. Apparently forgot that there wasn't actually a wall there. Blue is most impressed with the house, being able to wander through the middle of walls is very appealing! The only issues were the door into the garage, they measured it from the bottom of the garage floor rather than the elevated level of the second section. So it appears to be a door for the seven dwarfs. Luckily the chippie can fix it! And the windows at the front don't look quite right, we requested them a bit low so they are going to be moved up a little as well (again courtesy of chippie). Windows have been delivered, and are being installed tomorrow. All systems go!

Current Photos....

Well, the first load of trusses were delivered today (you can see them to the left of the photo, where the pool will eventually be). Stacked up neatly, ready to go.

The orange around the perimeter is termite protection. Seems we had a bit of overkill, termite protection of the slab as well as termite protecting the truss, well at least we know we won't get termites!

All ready for Bikeman and the chippy to get to it nice and early tomorrow morning.... how exciting!

And then there were 'sticks'

I had a funny discussion with the blue one yesterday. I was explaining that the frame would be delivered tomorrow (Tuesday) - **as an aside, it is actually being delivered today !yay!** and he was very excited about being able to walk into his room and have a look. Do you know how hard it is to explain to a 6 year old what plaster is? And what it will look like when it isn't there? Me: "Well yes the frame will be up, part of the walls, but there won't actually be a wall" Blue: "I thought you said the walls were being delivered" Me: "Yes well they are but you'll be able to see through the walls as there won't be any plaster yet" Blue: "What's plaster" Me: "Well it's these boards that go on after the frame has gone up and all the electrical and plumbing .... (now I'm confusing myself) Blue: "So I'll be able to see through the walls like a super hero" Me: "Yes well kind of." Blue: "Oh, I understand now. I'll only be able to see the sticks. The rest I will be able to see through" Me: "Yes! (thank god for 6 year old logic) So we have sticks. Bikeman has headed up to the block right now to welcome the delivery of the frame, now all we need is for the chippy to arrive tomorrow and we'll be set. How exciting! Oh and we also have termite protection. Not so exciting (and also the invoice was more expensive than quoted - grrr - waiting for a call back with an explanation) but gives a lovely orange border around the edge of the slab. I will post photos soon!

Did somebody just apply the brakes???

Yes they did. The truss manufacturer has just advised that there will be a delay of a week before the truss will be delivered. So that list I had before..... now all those people have to be advised that we have to push their products/services back a week...... and it was all looking so promising up til a mere hour ago!!! Ah well, hopefully they won't mind. Not the end of the world, it's only a delay. We can cope with that! Although now Bikeman has to go back to work straight after Easter instead of having holidays.... poor guy!

The calm before the storm

While it doesn't feel like anything is moving to quickly at the moment, in about a week all hell is going to break loose (I'm big on the cliches recently, will have to get myself some new material :)).... The frame is due to arrive the week after Easter, along with: - Windows - Bricks - Pest Control - Lintels (metal bars to hold the bricks above the windows) - Front door, garage door and frame (not roller door, other door) and laundry door Not to mention that the chippie, sparky, plumber, brickie and Mr Termite will all be paying us a visit within the next couple of weeks. And of course the famous Bikeman will be flexing his muscles moving about some shiver me timbers. Now as long as they all arrive in the RIGHT order we'll be fine..... hmmmm! At least now we have a meter box for our electricity and real, working electricity for the chippie! And we have running water - nearly enough to just put up a tent and start living there now! Apart from the fact that with the huge downpours in the last few weeks there has been a bit of scouring out of dirt around the slab, which we need to fix pronto - our next job for this weekend! Some 'boxing out' apparently. Whatever that means, although I have been assured it doesn't involve boxes. Or even bits of wood. Just dirt. I learn something new every day!

There was movement at the station

After a long couple of weeks, we had some movement today! The truss manufacturer has confirmed that the frame will be delivered just after Easter, so the wheels are in motion and the chippie has been notified, as well as the brickie and the brick company (thanks to the fabulous Aunty Annie!), and the windows are set to be delivered around the same time. So bikeman will have a couple of weeks off work hopefully to help put up the frame and roof, which nicely co-incide with the school hols so the kids will be able to watch some of the hard work. Blue, in particular, will be most impressed.