Wednesday, January 13, 2010

moving day

Quick recap: just about six months ago, my husband and I bought a fixer-upper. No really. A real fixer-upper... complete with raccoons in the attic, lots and lots of cat poop, and a nasty smell that permeated just about every inch of the property. {you know, not trying to sugarcoat things here or anything...}

We started the demolition work in July--ripping out floors and subfloors {before now, I didn't even know what a subfloor was}, most of the walls and ceilings, and all of the plumbing, electricity, ductwork, and windows. With lots {and lots and lots} of generous help from our family and friends, we started putting the house back together in September... and it's taken us until now to get it all in. New subfloors, walls, ductwork, electric, plumbing, cabinets, windows, doors, soffits, tile, trim, insulation--you name it, we replaced it. {Some have asked if we might have been better off ripping the whole house down and starting from scratch. Honestly, though, where's the fun in that?}

We plan on officially moving in this weekend {and really, not a moment too soon... our little guy is due in less than 2 weeks! ha!}. There are a million projects left to finish... but it's cozy, and livable, and 100% completely ours.

Here's a picture taken back in August, on the first day the guys started ripping out the floors. {Look at our expressions. Marty had just started to understand the gravity of the situation, but I clearly still had no idea what we had gotten ourselves into...}


And here's an "after," taken a few nights ago:


For a full recap in pictures, check out my facebook album :)

8 comments:

Sarah S. said...

Wow, your living room looks gorgeous!

Congrats on getting things mostly wrapped up. You will will certainly have a great story to tell your children someday.

Joy said...

It looks fantastic! You are such a visionary and hard worker... and you got yourself a HANDY man. ;) Congratulations, and welcome home. I can't wait to see another photo album in a couple weeks...

Rochelle said...

I love it! You guys have done such a fabulous job!! Way to go with all that hard work, it's certainly paying off. :) So glad it should be all done when the little guy enters the world. :) Soooo happy for you!!!!

Allie C said...

you guys are seriously SO amazing....and it just contributes the GOD'S amazingness! :) I'm so excited for you both!!!

Sherah said...

Thanks, all you lovely peeps ;) We're definitely excited! {but gosh, looking at that last picture reminds me that I really need to paint the fireplace. Stay put for a few more days, Baby!}

marcia tumminaro said...

congratulations sherah!! i checked out all your progress photos on f.b., and it's unbelievable what you have been able to accomplish!!! i hope you guys will have at least 1 full day of quiet and relaxation to enjoy the fruits of your labor...before the baby g makes his grand entrance! :)

CZ said...

Love it!

Diane P said...

Holy Déjà vu! I've done this before, and it is interesting. I had to keep checking my medical records to make sure my vaccinations were up to date. Uuugghh. Actually have remodeled a few more times since then, the main one was about 17 years ago.