11.12.2008

1235 Allerton: Before

Finally getting a few photos of the house posted! Here is the house from the outside...click here to see a handful more of the interior.

These photos were taken a few weeks ago....so there has already been a lot of progress. It's a huge one-man job, and Joe is working long hours to try to get everything accomplished. Our hope is that the upstairs (3 bedrooms and a full bath) will be done in time for us to move in with a few weeks to spare before the baby comes.....my due date is Dec. 31, so we're shooting for the middle of December. This is our hope, anyways--we'll keep you posted as things progress. The downstairs won't be done yet by mid-December....but maybe started on....and we'll just deal with a make-shift kitchen for awhile.

Joe has spent most of his time so far doing things that you can't really see...but it's all important foundational stuff to get the house ready for the cosmetic changes. He's completely shored up the basement....tore out all kinds or junk down there that wasn't needed, fixed several beams, did mold remediation, re-wired the whole basement, re-plumbed, re-did all the gas lines, tore out old duct work, and painted the whole thing. He's also been playing general contractor and trying to decide which jobs to hire out and which to tackle himself. He ordered all new windows for the house this week...and he'll install those when they arrive in a few weeks. We'll hire someone to do new insulation on all exterior walls and the attic. Joe says he is enjoying himself....and it amazes me how he can work on such a huge job and not get overwhelmed. He's doing SO much work, then coming home at night and spending a few more hours on the computer doing research for this or that, figuring out his game plan for the next day, who to call, what equipment he needs, etc. It will be fun to see this place as it transforms!

11.11.2008

Halloween and Pregnancy

I have woefully neglected the blog!
This is going to be quick---a few photos and updates. I'll write a longer one later.

We had a fun Halloween--Rowan insisted on being Cinderella, and I figured I could indulge her for one day or revelry. The only time Rowan will endure clothing that isn't completely comfortable is when it has to do with princesses, barbie, hearts, and maybe pink. Where did she come from? Anyways, she was supremely itchy and uncomfortable all night (was over the top with plastic high heeled glass slippers that left pretty good blisters!)....but INSISTED on keeping everything on and in perfect place the whole time. Wish she was that way with all the other clothes she owns but won't wear...

We were invited to a neighborhood pizza party/trick-or-treating on our new street on Halloween...we got to meet several new neighbors and children, and it made us even more excited to move into our house on Allerton. Really cool group of people. After that I took Rowan to a "No Fear Here" Halloween party at Tom and Stacia's church...they had all 4 kids and we thought it would be fun to join them, and it was.
I'm also including a quick picture of my growing belly. This was actually from a few weeks ago...so I'm definitely bigger now. I'm 33 weeks along....everything is progressing fine and normal, I feel great, and the 7 weeks left until we meet this child seem really short! In addition to neglecting the blog, I've been neglecting good documentation of this pregnancy. With Rowan, we took pictures every few weeks of my belly....now I have to really remember to do it, and we've missed many many weeks. Is this what's in store for a second child? I'll work on better photos/reflecting on this pregnancy, I promise!

More to come...