On Saturday we organized an official painting party at our house (aka the "Swamp House" or more recently our "Island Paradise"). Since we want to be back in the house by the end of September (and Dave has already given notice on our rental~yikes!) we are really pushing the metal to the pedal! So, to get all the painting done...we invited our friends and church family to help. We even included lunch, (but I failed to get a picture of the spread)--meatball sandwiches (your recipe, Jill! :->), chips, watermelon, grapes, and drinks. Stefanie cooked up the meatballs in our crockpots and it was the perfect meal after several hours of painting.
Well, to our surprise we had a wonderful turnout! Carolyn and Red Keen, Sally Rosier, Leah Smith, Amy Watson, Pete Moody, Linda Johnson, Andy and Heather McKane, Stefanie, Danny, Ethan, Emily, and ourselves got the rest of the house painted! It was amazing! In about 3-1/2 hours of work, the house was done. Now it just needs some last touch-ups on the walls and ceilings, a closet still needs "cutting in", and we still need to get the burgandy paint for the one wall in the guest bedroom. This group completed the game room, the living room, the entry way and hallway, the hall closet, the exercise room and closet, and finished the master bath, kitchen, and touch-ups of the kitchen and den.
I am truly humbled. These folks worked hard and sacrificed precious hours of their Saturday to help us! Thanks to everyone, you are all so special and your generosity has been truly appreciated. Last week we had the Mitchell Family--Travis, Jenn, Shelby, Abby, and Emily out to help us! There is no way we could have done everything that was accomplished without all of this help. THANK YOU!!
Here are some pictures I captured (Amy got some too, so there may be more coming soon). Unfortunately I didn't get pictures of everyone (sorry!):
Leah Smith (front) and Keens in back working on the game room. The color is "Gold 3"
Sister Sally Rosier painting the hallway--"Khabuki Clay"--it's kind of a creamy beige
Amy and Leah working on the game room - only Amy could paint with a camera in her hand!
Stefanie and Amy with their "smiley faces" Each cheek was lovingly smacked with a paint lid and then the face was painted in ---we all laughed til we cried!
Leah teetering on our rocking step stool. She painted the hall closet after they finished the game room
Dave, Ethan, the Keens, and Sr. Rosier
After the party, I went around the house and was just in awe of the work. The house is looking really good, and I am really beginning to love all the colors (a couple I wasn't so sure about at first, but now I love them all)
The kitchen in "Toasted Coconut":
A couple of different angles of the game room in "Gold 3" (one of my favorite colors)
Living Room in "Khabuki Clay"
I am standing in the living room and looking at the entry and hall in "Khabuki Clay" and a sliver of wall from the game room
The den in "Olive 3" (and this color is my favorite)
Looking down the hallway from the 3/4 bath (in "Gold 2") off the kitchen, in the one picture you can see the light gold wall of the bathroom, a sliver of green from the den, and the toasted coconut of the kitchen.
And, Dave decided it was time to place the first piece of water resistant furniture in the living room (;->)
You can also see from all these pictures that Dave finished laying the 2nd layer of subfloor! Whoo hoo! The week of August 24th the installer will begin laying the hardwood floor! Yay!
This picture is from the living room down the hall to our "Cameo" bathroom:
The house is really looking like a house again! Yippee! We are really excited!
Yes, we have made the decision to move back in. Here is our rationale:
1) The house is paid for - free and clear.
2) Every month we can live in it rent and mortgage-free is money back in our savings.
3) If we can live in it for 18 months without flooding --we will recoup our costs of the renovation.
4) We love our home and our property.
5) Nothing (precious) will be stored below the 4 ft level and very little will be stored on or around the floor.
6) We have no plans to buy a lot of furniture (we did buy a used dresser and triple dresser) or other "stuff".
7) The house is insured.
8) Our dogs love our home and property.
9) We want chickens again.
Now the big question:
Are we scared or nervous? You bet...that first "storm" will probably about torture us, but we have a few other things to consider:
1) When we moved in in 2004 we (aka our house) was hit by: TS Bonnie and Hurricanes Charley, Dennis (I think---he may have been another year, but I know all the other storms are from 2004), Francis, Ivan, and Jeanne and IT DID NOT FLOOD!
2) TS Fay was a slow moving storm--she only moved at a rate of 4 mph and dumped 33 inches on us in less than 24 hours.
3) If we are flooded again we will do the following:
a) Collect the insurance.
b) Bulldoze the house so that we don't have a structure we have to pay taxes on.
c) Find a new place to live
d) Periodically go camping on our land. :-)
In the meantime, we will be hopeful that all will work out at least for awhile. The county has been dredging around our area, and we are also looking at escavating the back of our property and creating a levee. Maybe all these efforts will keep our home safe, but maybe not. But, just think, how safe are you in your own home? Anything could happen!
The next activities planned:
Hardwood floor installation
Danny and Dave will install the tile in the bathrooms
Carpeting installation in the bedrooms
Cabinets in kitchen and baths
Fixtures (toilets, sinks, lighting in the bathrooms) and appliances (we found a scratch and dent Maytag dishwasher that matches all of our other appliances for over 50% off!! I can live with the scratches on the front (that you don't even notice unless you are actually looking for it). The best part of this find is that it is a nicer and higher-end dishwasher than the one we were planning to purchase anyway! Whoo hoo!!
We move in.....
then we work on doors, baseboards and moldings.......
And once the house is done...then we begin on the yard!
Whew! I think we need a vacation!
Oh, that's right--we're going on a vacation for our 30th anniversary!
Where you ask?!
The Mediterranean! Yes, we are flying into Rome, Italy (where we will wander for a day and a half before embarking on our cruise ship)---the Celebrity Equinox (see it at: http://www.celebritycruises.com/ and
http://www.celebritycruises.com/plancruise/ships/ship.do?shipCode=EQ) and going to these wonderful locations:
Cruise Ports:
Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy, Naples/Capri, Italy, Athens (Piraeus), Greece, Rhodes, Greece, Ephesus (Kusadasi), Turkey, Haifa, Israel, Jerusalem (Ashdod), Israel, Alexandria, Egypt, and back to Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy
The best part:
Dave got a wonderful price (as usual) and I get to see the Pyramids and the Sphinx in Cairo, tour the Holy Land, and see the wonderful ruins in Italy, Turkey, and Greece. All of these places are on my "bucket list" (things I want to do before I kick the bucket). I asked Dave if he had upped my insurance and was planning to knock me off after we get back so he can collect the insurance.
He said "no" and I think I believe him: There's still too much work around the swamp! :-)
We are SOOOOOOO blessed!
