This Is Not A Mouse Hole

It's the "vent" for our dryer now that's on the sun porch behind the kitchen and not on the back patio...

The Good Life

We are now the proud owners of an automatic gate. I love the remote a little more than I should...

In the Trenches

In the Dahmer Dungeon they are digging a trench parallel to our foundation. I don't fully understand how this all works, but I think the plan is to pour the sister foundation and then dig out the rest of the crawl space to make the above ground basement.

This morning there were three guys standing in that trench, digging away. I sure am glad the weather has been mild for them.

Recycled Brick

I used some of the bricks from our fireplace to make a better wall around Rob's tree. I sure hope this little guy survives all the construction...

Now Finish Your Homework Or Else...

This desk was down in the Dahmer Dungeon when they started digging it out. I'm sure hoping no one was using it down there...

More Crappy Things Go Bye Bye...

Let's see, we are now minus one crappy cinder block retaining wall, one horrible concrete patio and one trashy patio cover.

Looking at the pictures, it's hard to see that that's an improvement, but trust me, it's getting better every day!

Bye-Bye Fireplace!

They started work on the foundation last week while I was away. The fireplace in the dining room, which didn't work anyway, had to be taken out.

Rob decided to have them save the bricks to use for???

Phoenix Lives!

That's a new leaf on one of the roses we transplanted. All of them are showing some sign of life. Amazing what a foot of rain can do!

Rob got so optimistic, he dug up the rest of the plants and moved them. I wonder if new plants will spring up in the old locations.

What A Nice Surprise

The previous owner had a nasty habit of punching holes in the walls.

When we got back from our holiday travels, we discovered our contractor had patched the holes when he patched the walls where he had cut through the plaster to pull the electrical wires.

This was a double surprise because all the bids we had gotten from electricians specified that they did not redo plaster. Todd never said one way or the other so to come home to nice smooth walls was awesome!

If You're Ghetto and You Know It

We haven't broken ground on the basement, so our new washer and dryer are on the back porch. And yes, they're mismatched colors, but I don't care.

The rinse water dumps directly into the backyard. I guess this is the beginning of our gray water system.

To make us even more white trash, the washer "walks" on the spin cycle because the ground isn't level. We have to sit on top of it to keep it in place. But. who doesn't love a good spin cycle?

Let There Be Light

No, I haven't been arrested and am about to be interrogated by a chain-smoking detective under a bare bulb. This is the new (temporary!) light in our living room.

We no longer live in an ice cream parlor, which I am actually a tiny bit sad about.

Now to hit the antique stores to find the perfect fixture...