Our builder told us that we can start moving in in a couple of week. We can hardly wait but would like to skip the moving part. We have been moving boxes full of stuff for the last few weeks to a storage shed we have rented there so we wouldn't have so much to move later and we can move that stuff when we need it. The lights we got for our bedroom look pretty good. We and the builder didn't realize that they would be so large and hang down so far, I think they should be a couple of logs highter up. We ordered these from a catalog so couldn't tell very well how big and long they are but they sure look like real gas laterns. They have the pressure pump a pressure gauge and a brightness adjustment knob but are actually electric lights.

This one is by the bedroom door that goes out to the loft the stairs and the media room.

A couple of posts ago we saw this being installed. It looks much better now. We didn't get a light kit for it tho because we couldn't find one that looked good with this fan and we really liked it just like it is. Maybe later if we find one that looks good with it we might get it.

The medicine cabinet without the light bulbs and doors with mirrors.

A better view of the sink, counter and cabinet withhout it's drawers. Most things look better with its drawers.

A view of our main heating source without the chimney which should be hooked up today.

A close up of our new stove. It's soapstone and iron and I'm real glad that I didn't have to help bring it in. The pad its on is pretty heavy too. It will look better when it's cleaned off, it's really dusty right now, and the pipe is hooked up.

Yes, we already have a stray cat which is in the family way. It's a pretty good cat tho she definately earns her keep by keeping the mouse and rat population down. She comes in quite often with dead mice and another good thing about her is she is an outside cat and is still pretty friendly, we'll keep her but will have to have her fixed and take the kittens to the animal shelter. She has been named Butter, I guess because of her color.

Another of the cat.

Some shelves that Carol picked out but I had to put together and thats her ironing board cupboard on the wall.

Carol's stacked washer and dryer.

The walnut plugs that I put in the screw and bolt holes can be seen in this picture. I bet I put in over 250 of those plugs and still have some left to do, also Carol put some in on the stair treads.

The hallway looking from the living room to the bedrooms on the left and right of the hall and the bathroom at the end, the kitchen is the first opening to the left and the dining room is to my immediate left but not seen.

Here is a picture of what the individual steps to the basement look like before they were installed. These treads are made from the leftover oak profile siding used on the walls behind the stairs from the floor to the ceiling and look just like the real logs. Our builder didn't like the looks of the original cheap looking pine boards furnished by the log home kit builder so he decided to use the oak that was left over and it looks a "heckuva" lot better as shown in the next 2 pictures, I haven't gotten the walnut plugs in them yet tho.

Looking down to the basement.

Different angle.

We went down to the house on Thursday the 24th and decided to go back on Monday the 28th for a few days to do some odds and ends (touch up painting, etc.) to the house so we decided to wait until then to take more pictures. There have been several things done tho, the hardwood floors have all been finished, the oak stairs to the 2nd floor are done, the guard rail to keep people from falling into the basement has been finished, the front guest room is completely finished, the back porch ceiling is done, most of the trim around the floor, wall corners and ceiling is done. We also put walnut plugs in all the screw holes of the loft railing, stair railing and the stair treads themselves, it looks pretty good. I cut out all of the plugs, 250 of them 2 different sizes, from a couple of walnut boards while I was in Montana when Dave was making the cabinets. There are several things that need to be done before we can close on the construction loan and convert it to the mortage loan but we have been told that it would be ready by the 1st of Sept. More pictures will be posted by Wed. or Thur. of next week.

My dad and mom asked me to add a link to their blog for Jen and my website that we put up the other day. It's basically a place for Jen and I to put more pictures of their grandson (Austin) than what we can easily put on our blog. You'll find the link over on the left side of this blog. It's the one that says "Our son, daughter-in-law, and grandson's website". The address for the site though is www.tjamimms.com. So check it out if you want to. Right now there are pictures of him from newborn through 3 months. I'm sure we'll get in some other pictures than just of Austin, but for now that's all that's there.

Finally the hardwood floor is almost done. There are a few more odds and ends to be done and we should be able to move in within the next 2 or 3 weeks. All volunteers to help us move will be welcomed but you can send money instead if you can't help with the move.

The upper right is part of the dining room and the floor had been laid in there before we left, also the short hall way and front guest bedroom floor has been done. All that's left is the back bedroom and it should be done by now.

The tile at the front entrance. The hole to the lower left goes to the basement. Also the temporary stairs to the loft have been removed and the permanent stairs to the loft should be there by the time you see this. Carol was the one that sealed the oak risers and she also painted the cedar boards that will be used for the backporch ceiling which also should be put in by the time you see this.

The florescent light in the right center is temporary and will be gone soon.

Here are pictures of the guest bathroom after the wainscoating was put in, the toilet seat cover matches the wainscoating, is everyone sufficiently impressed with my interior decorating genius?

Putting the door hardware in the coat closet door by the front door. I did the 4 doors upstairs and there are 3 more to do down here.

Helping to lay the hardwood floor in the front guest bedroom. The area to the right of the picture is part of the closet.

Sealing the grout around the tiles in the kitchen. I had to do the kitchen, utility room and the guest bathroom and my knees are still killing me.

Another 10 pictures this time. This is a view of the duct work in the media room after they enclosed it. You can see what it looked like before in some of the earlier postings.

This is kind of an optical illusion. This is the doorway from inside the media room looking at the ceiling/wall/roof line and the stairs going down to the living room.

Hanging the ceiling fan.

The door on the right is to the balcony and the other is to the bathroom in the master bedroom. All of the upstairs doors have been hung but no hardware yet. The downstairs doors are next.

The door on the right is to the walk-in closet and the one on the left it to the loft and the stairs.

A door maze.

Looks like they made their way to the utility room while we were gone, they were sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor in the last posting. That's the pocket door leaning against the wall in the doorway, it had been installed once already but there was a technical glitch so it had to be taken back out for now.

Almost ready to use, shortly there will be no more behind the tree trips and poison ivy toilet paper.

The garage being used as a work shop for now.

Ten pictures this time and we hope to get more this Thursday. The new front steps are a lot better than what was there before and now Carol can get up on the porch without any help, she really likes that. There will also be some steps at the right side of the porch. Also the new water softener has been installed in the basement.

The tile has been installed in the utility room and and the kitchen. We also picked the sam tile for the guest bathroom. The pocket door that goes here has yet to be hung.

The kitchen tile has been installed.

The washer & dryer that go in the utility room just to the right behind the white wall in this picture.

A view in the guest bathroom of the ceiling trim which isn't quite finished yet

The tile in the bathroom is the same as the tile we picked for the kitchen except I wanted a darker trim next to the walls here. I actually wanted it all the way around but it looks like it just got done on the side walls.

A picture of the light we got for the loft. It had to be a hanging light to look half way decent with the slope of the ceiling. The globe matches fairly good with the globe that goes on the ceiling fan in the living room.

A closeup of the light for the loft.