Update on the House, Chapter 4

What?! Another update in less than a month?! They must be making great progress! If that is what you are thinking as you read this, you would be incorrect. It is still slow moving here but I must admit that I can see an end in sight. I can walk around this project and pick out the handful of things left to do. I'm not sure when those handful of things will get done, but the list is shrinking. I am happy to report that my closet is finished! It doesn't have carpet because that will come when they carpet everywhere else, but I have been able to move our stuff back in which has freed up quite a bit of space in the bedroom. I am also happy to report that the pantry is mostly finished. Enough that I have moved the microwave in and it has become a makeshift kitchen. They have to add the adjustable shelves and grout the tile, but I do have a small area that I can kind of cook and keep some food. The trim is nearly finished. They have promised to be done by March 1st. If they continue how they have been I don't see it, but I have been told they will finally bring in the whole crew to wrap it up. I have been told that before so I am not holding my breath. The guy that has been coming everyday (make note I said guy, not guys) to work on trim has been doing a great job. I really like what has been done. The tile downstairs is finished except for the doorway where they ran into some trouble with an uneven floor and have to get creative. Here are some pictures of where we are.

Our closet-




The Pantry--



The ceiling in the dining room-



The living room--




The family room--



Ceiling as you go downstairs--


Bathroom downstairs--


Luke's room--


Lindsey's room--

Dancing With the Stars

OK, maybe they aren't stars yet, but one day... Lindsey and a lot of friends her age, participated in a ballroom dance club this year. Their team headed a ballroom dance competition where they competed against many other schools. While the Bluff Ridge Elementary team came home with a small number of the ribbons, they had fun and it was fun to watch. Because this club is optional (they have to commit to going before school and in our case, agree to go even when they are off track) no one is there that doesn't want to be. You could tell by watching that the kids were really enjoying themselves. As I watched the competition, I was very impressed with how the kids handled themselves. Boys were escorting girls where they needed to be, kids were dressed modestly, great etiquett was shown, and everyone-- tall, skinny,short, fat, popular or not was having fun. I loved it! I leaned over and told James we should take a ballroom dance class-- he just laughed. I'll have to keep working on him.

Update on the House, Chapter 3

I'm finally posting some pictures of the house. It is still slowly but surely moving along. They are working on the trim right now. The master bedroom closet is finally done and I am in the process of moving things back in. The arcade has been painted and the pantry is all put together, it just needs to be painted. One day, it will all come together.

A Berry Good Idea

The annual science fair came and passed. Lindsey won first place! Her project on delaying the rotting process of berries proved to be very interesting. If you take your carton of berries, drop them in 125 degree water for 45 seconds, they will last twice as long. The temperature of the water kills the mold spores but doesn't affect the texture of the berry, except for raspberries (they get a little mushy). I saw another interesting project at the fair that was along the same lines. If you use the green bags and/or green plastic boxes that are designed to keep produce longer actually don't work, in fact, they are the worst at preserving produce. Now you know the ins and outs of preserving produce.