Project Day 108 - Hanging the Mirror & Installing the LP Gas

Two days ago, Brad masterfully measured where to hang my “fancy” bathroom mirror. This was another of those tasks that went beyond his job description; but, for which we are eternally grateful. He is tall, which makes the project so much easier. With the not-so-tall men in my life, it would have been so much more challenging to hang.

Here’s Dave at least putting in the molly screws that we picked up at Home Depot yesterday on the way home.



And, here’s the beautiful results of their combined efforts. Again, thanks, Brad.



DJ also re-installed the spa tub surround. It looks superb.



Another look at the finished floors and dining area. I just love the floors and we are so glad that we spent the extra bucks to have this surface, rather than a combo of carpet and vinyl. Nice job Dennis, Kenny, and Donna on all the floor surfaces.





All the windows along the back make the living area seem so open and refreshing. I dread putting in furniture because it will make the room seem less open. But, it would be nice to have a place to park the backside.

As you can see, the countertop to the left of the stove has been fixed so that the stove snuggly fits. Brad said they decided not to trim the countertop, but instead “carved” out the drywall to the left of the countertop. I guess they removed the top and then scraped the drywall. They were afraid that if they cut the countertop, it might splinter. It looks great—no matter how it was accomplished.



As we were all taking a break in the garage observation station and waiting for AmeriGas to arrive, Dave noticed this elaborate spider web.



And, the Georgia trees are starting to turn. Love this time of year!



At about 10:30 AM, the gas guys arrived.



First order of business was to off-load the tank and get it set in the vicinity of its final resting place.



Next, the trench had to be dug to bury the gas line that goes from the house to the tank. No sooner had they started to use the digging device, when it stopped. They had to work quite a while to get it fixed. I am not exactly sure what was wrong with it, but we were told that someone had left the digger out in the rain some time ago, and it has never worked correctly since.



Finally, they were off and digging. However, we were also told that the digger had a flat tire and therefore it took the two men to drag the device through the Georgia red to get the trench dug.



They ran into one tree root that caused a little bit of a snag.



The other day, Brad had burned some of the lumber scraps from the flatwork. So, today he had this handy, strong, magnetic “rake” that pulled out all of the nails from the burn pile.



The gas guys busied themselves with hooking up the tank to the line.







Next step was to get the stove hooked up to the gas and make sure it worked. None of us knew how to hook up the stove, so we paid him to do it for us. Had the stove been delivered from the store we purchased it in, it would have been included. But, alas. Here you see the gas guy pondering the instructions for our particular stove.



I was also surprised that AmeriGas’s hydraulic “crane” arm was leaking hydraulic fuel. At first it was just a little drip, but by the time they finished the job, it was a steady stream. I was sure glad it wasn’t leaking on the new cement. It leaked just off the rear of the RV pad (you can't see the puddle in this photo). I included this photo because it's a good view of the finished RV pad where the wheels of the trailer will rest.



LD came over to help us unload the washer, dryer, and freezer from the utility trailer. Here's the washer in the house--waiting for the dryer to join it.



As the guys began to look at what was needed to hook up the dryer, they realized we needed a longer dryer hose and a longer pipe inside the dryer. So, the washer will have to console its lonely self until we can get to Home Depot for the necessary parts.



In the afternoon, Shannon came to paint the front door. I was so busy with other things on my mind; I forgot to take his picture. So sorry, Shannon. But, the door looks great. We opted for a lighter color door as the entryway is dark and the door is recessed. We think we made a good choice!



We will be back to the property on Monday when the final, final grading is scheduled. In addition, the screened porch will be finished up. Yippee! Have a great weekend--we will be packing and packing and packing!

Project Day 106 - Perusing the Driveway & Uncrating the Stove

Today we arrived to heavy drizzle and rain. But we also arrived to see our new “CVS Parking Lot,” as Brad aptly named it!



Notice a good photo of our brown garage door. We weren't sure it would look good as most garage doors are white, but we think it looks really nice. The dark door makes it stand out less, we think so anyway!



This photo was taken from Pam's Office window, looking at the corner of the garage and the curved walkway up that leads to the front door.



Dave admires his parking lot!



This is the RV parking side of the house. The pole that is in the sidewalk is for the fence gate that Dave and LD will install in the upcoming months. The RV will be parked behind the fence for safe keeping and easy access from the backyard. With the RV behind the fence, our 4-legged children can easily access the RV when we do our "pretend camping." The fence will be installed just in front of the RV so that the remaining "flat" space can be used for guest parking.



Dave and Brad uncrated the stove (well, it wasn't exactly a crate, more like a carton) to see what needs to be done before AmeriGas comes to install the lines. Another snag was discovered. The opening in the countertop is too narrow at the rear, near the wall. After Brad pondered the situation, he decided that the countertop to the left of the stove needed to be narrowed a bit. That meant removing the countertop and trimming its left edge, then reattaching it to the cabinet. So, Brad called DJ to come out tomorrow to tackle that task.



Here’s the fix that was done to the trim on the bar. Great job, DJ!



As I've mentioned previously, Dave’s office has glass French doors. They are now hung and painted. They add light to the hallway, as well as "open" Dave’s office visually. His office is only 10x8; if the doors were solid, it would feel even more cramped than it is.

Here’s a view of the doors from the living room, looking down the hallway.



Here’s a view of the doors from the bedroom end of the hallway, looking toward the living room.



In addition to Brad helping with the stove, I coerced him into helping us hang the "fancy" mirror over the master bathroom sink. Of course, he kindly said he'd help. Such a masterful job. He measured, leveled, and marked the location of the screws we would need to install. Unfortunately, we didn't have mollies or screws that would work for this project. So, Dave and I will stop at Home Depot on our way home to get them. (I'll have photos to share in the next blog entry.)

We will not be out to the new house tomorrow as the cleaning crew will be there. We do not want to hinder their attempts to clean up by coming in and out of the house. So, stay tuned for Thursday's blog. In the meantime, be good--if you can!

Project Day 103 - SWAT Team Loads the POD

This morning we set up the coffee pot, set out the donut holes, and readied ourselves for the guys that show up to help us out.

As I mentioned in the previous blog entry, the SWAT team is an ever-changing collection of folks from our church who volunteer for various tasks as they feel led, based upon their availability and skill set. They want to help out in the community. Today, we are the folks needing help. So, they certainly came to help. Seven wonderful men showed up to assist. And, we even told one other guy, Bob, not to drive over because we had so many show up, we'd be done before he could arrive.

Here's the group in action. And "action" is what I mean. They were completely done in 1.5 hours. We truly couldn't have done this without them. We are blessed and honored to be among such wonderful folks.

And, here they are:

Inside the POD: Lewis (L) and Phillip (R).
Outside the POD: Jeremy (L) Lewis' grandson; David (pastor's son); & Joe (our pastor)

Inside the POD: Lewis (L) and Phillip (R)
Outside the POD: David

Inside the POD: Bill (L)
Outside the POD (L to R): David, Lewis, Joe, Jeremy

Phillip in the Garage

L to R: LD, Bill, & Ronn

In the background: Joe and David
L to R: Lewis, LD, Bill

David and Lewis

Biker Dave



Note: The bike belongs to Ronn. You go Dave!!

Thanks again, guys. You'll never know how much we appreciate your help!

Project Day 101 - Delivering the POD

Dave cleared our driveway in anticipation of the POD being delivered today.

Having the POD delivered brings forth the reality that we are truly moving. We have such mixed feelings about leaving our current home. We have to leave a beautiful home with Dave's stream and 1.25 acres of mostly wooded property. We have wonderful neighbors, a FLAT driveway, and most of all, we hate leaving our church: Arbor Pointe Church. This church has such loving and giving people, who are dedicated to serving their Lord and Savior. We have made friends that we shall always cherish. They want to make a difference in the community, and they certainly do. But, we feel God has something else in mind for our future. So, move we must. And, we will do so with glad hearts as He calls us to a new chapter in our lives.

OK. Back to the move at hand. We had decided not to use a POD, but when Dave developed the blood clots, we decided this would be a better option than a million trips with the utility trailer.

Because Dave is not supposed to get overly tired (yea, tell that to a work-a-holic), we have gratefully accepted our church's offer of assistance in this move. The SWAT (Servants With A Task) team in our church will come on Saturday to help us move the heavy items into the POD.

Dave can then take a week or so to load miscellaneous boxes and smaller items into the POD.

When the POD arrived, we were quite fascinated with its delivery and set up. I took more videos than snapshots. The videos are embedded below the photos.

The driver has a control pack on his belt. He pushes various buttons to control the framework that moves the POD off the truck and places the POD in its final resting place.

Here are the photos.

Note: There is a series of videos later in this entry if you care to view the delivery in action.









TURN OFF YOUR SPEAKER VOLUME IF YOU DO NOT WANT OTHERS TO HEAR THE SOUND TRACK.

Click the each of the videos below in sequence to see the delivery system.

Note: As you view each video, it may stop and start. After a video has been viewed once, you can replay it without the stopping and starting (loading delays).

Truck Backs Up into Our Driveway



Frame Spreads Out from Flatbed



Going Down...



The Lift System "Walks" Back to the Truck



The Lift System Attaches to the Truck



We will not be back to the house until next week. In the meantime, the final trim and paint touch-ups will be done; housekeeping will come and pretty-up everything; and we must get the stove unboxed and ready for installation.

Project Day 100 - Preparing the Flatwork

Dave loaded up "my" new gas, double-oven range last night onto the utility trailer. Because the driveway is being poured tomorrow, we needed to deliver the range today. The gas company is coming next Thursday to install the gas lines and tank. That day will be the first day that the driveway can be driven on. We are trying to stay ahead of the driveway traffic!

It was a bit tricky getting the range off the trailer because it was at a tipped-down angle, which forced the guys to push it upward to get it off the utility trailer. But, with much grunting and huffing, it was accomplished lickety-split.





The insulation crew was just finishing up blowing the insulation into the attic space when we arrived.





Brad arrived at 8:30 AM and he said the load of gravel for the RV pad had already been delivered.



As you'll see in the following photo, the dumpster was removed last night.



Brad had been sweeping the inside of the garage, so while the guys were out surveying the day's plan of action, I set to work. Yes, I said WORK. When Dave and Brad returned to the garage, not sure who was about to faint first at the sight of me working.



As you can see, Brad couldn't stand it, so he took over. I very reluctantly (wink, wink) gave him the broom.



Kevin, and his flatwork crew, gathered the framing lumber and set to work.



There was some smoothing of the surfaces that needed to be done...



Including at the feet of those sitting at the Garage Observation Station...



There was some digging at the street edge that needed to be done (that's Kevin)...



And there were many forms that needed to be laid.



Note: In the above photo, there is a square area that is framed. This is where the wheels of the RV will be parked.

While the flatwork was being done, Brad, as usual, kept busy. Here he painstakingly scrapes mud from the foot stoop.



More flatwork...







Kevin set to work leveling the gravel...



And doin' a little showin' off with the wheelies...



But, in the end, it looks great--a level gravel parking pad.



Let the inspections begin! Unofficial Inspector Dave and...



A rogue inspector...



As we drove away for the day, we could see the enormity of the concrete pour that will commence tomorrow.







Kevin, you deserve a special thanks for rearranging your schedule to complete the flatwork today. This allowed us to arrange for the concrete pouring tomorrow and be ahead of the massive rainstorm that is predicted for Friday.

The POD (moving storage unit) will be delivered tomorrow to our current home. Therefore, we will not be going to the property for the massive pour. But, I predict that the next blog entry will be a "moving" experience!