Some Sod & Appliances

Progress on the house slowed down a tad bit just before Christmas but there's still been some happy action!  

Our two Shumard Oak trees are in, 

one on each side of the house.

Some of our neighbors have gotten three of four trees but we were only offered two. We're not sure why but that's okay.  We were only able to select from four trees and were not thrilled by the choices. We've planned all along to add more trees anyway and we will.

They have started putting the sod down too. It's close to the same color of the dirt behind it but you may be able to see the little bit of sod that's in these two photos.  

Our super helpful and observant neighbors tell us that a front loader dropped them off so we're pretty sure they were leftover from another house. That means we were next on the sod list.  

Sod list?  

It doesn't sound like a list that 

one would want to be on, 

does it?    

We're fine 'n dandy with it!

Very much to our delight though is that our appliances have been gently placed into their designated homes.

Here's the dishwasher installed in the island 

next to it's teammate, the farmhouse sink.

Will there ever be technology that 

rinses the dishes , 

moves them to the dishwasher, 

and starts it? 

A girl can dream, 

can't she?

 

The fridge and two wall ovens.  

Oh my, those ovens fill me with joy!

Our RV oven doesn't maintain 

heat properly so we quit using  

it about a year ago.

The Gas over Glass Stove.

Be still my heart!

Stove and Hood.

As you can see, above the hood, 

there's some venting work to be done yet.

With the addition of our new appliances, 

it is really starting to look like home.

* * * * * * * * *

In a previous post, I commented that I'd post some better photos of the master bath's curbless shower. 

Here's a couple of very similar 

photos from slightly different distances.

 

The L-shaped wall at the bottom 

of the picture will have glass on it.  

* * * * * * * * *

Here's a couple of the home front...

...with Geo mulling around, checking it out.  

That's about it for this post.

* * * * * * * * *

I hope you all had a 

Very Merry Christmas! 

&

We wish you a 

Joy-Filled,

Healthy,

Happy

and

Very Blessed

New Year!

* * * * * * * * *

29 days until closing!

See you soon.

Smiles & Blessings,

Donna

Christmas, The House & Big News

Well, here we are folks--Christmas is only a week away. It's truly a merry and bright time of year with joy filling the air just about everywhere we go. I sure hope that's your experience as well!  Tis the season...

...to be jolly, fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la! Oh no! Now I've gone to singing. I apologize and warn you in advance that my singing has the unique ability to injure your eyes. On the flip side, be glad you can't hear it!

Progress, Progress and More Progress

Almost every day, we drive over to the house, and almost every day, we find something new has been completed or is in the works. 

First, a little setback.

While looking at the floor near the big sliders...

...Geo noticed these instructions.

Apparently, they weren't able to complete the floor because the sliding door needed to be moved an inch!  

One measly inch!

Apparently, in the floor world 

an inch is not measly.

I'm happy to say, however, it 

was fixed in a timely manner!  

The front door is in. 

It needs to be painted yet 

and hardware attached.  

It will be painted black.

Sinks are in throughout the house.

This is the master bath.

And faucets too.

All the tile work is nearly done as well!

Master bath shower.

It's a curbless shower (no door). 

On the right, you can barely 

see the still-untiled seat. 

I'll be posting better photos soon. 

The guest room bathroom.

Before shower head.

With shower head and knob.

Is it called a knob?

I bet it's a 

Water-Control Thig-A-Ba-Bob.

And

I bet it's an industry insider term.

No, I don't know what industry

 but it was probably invented 

by a guy named Bob.

 

The kitchen faucet we selected back in January was no longer available so we had to pick another one. 

We like it better than our first selection!

It has a couple different sprays.

Here's a crazy spray! 

I love it! 

Kitchen backsplash.

More love!

💗 

The lighting over the island and in the 

dining room has been installed as well!

Dining Light Fixture

Island Light Fixtures

The stonework on the house is 

almost completed in this photo.

Stonework has been completed 

on the back patio fireplace.

The tile on the patio floor above is the same tile that's throughout the house with the exception of the bedrooms.  They'll have carpet. 

The patio extension.

The sprinkler system has been started.

As of a couple of days ago, 

it is almost complete.

The driveway has been poured!

And it's dried.

We get two trees and they only offer four kinds to choose from. A couple of days ago, they asked us to make our choice and mark where we wanted them.   

We chose Shumard Oaks and opted to put them in the front, one on each side of the house.  We'll add more trees after we move in.  

And that brings us to... 

The Long Awaited, 

Really Big 

and 

Very Exciting News! 

We meet our Super for 

Buyer Orientation on January 20th

and

we close on January 27th! 

Woo-hoo!

More soon.  

Feeling Grateful & Smiling Big,

Donna

A Big Surprise!

On Saturday, we received our weekly email from the  Superintendent.  He stated that the interior paint had been completed and the cabinets should arrive anytime. He also said that installation is schedule for this week.  

About an hour later, we went to the house and found that the cabinets had not only arrived but they had already been installed!  

Happy Dance!

Kitchen

As you can see, they are being 

protected by cardboard boxes.

The Kitchen taken from the Dining Area.

They will all have black hardware.

The room in the distance is the Butler's pantry.

Utility Room

The cabinet on the floor will house a sink.

Linen closet in the Master Bath

Sink cabinet in the 2nd bedroom's bath.

On Monday, we ran into our Super. He told us the floor was next and it could start this week.

We drove by today.  

Several men were in the garage, 

boxes were stacked high and bags too.  

It appears the floor installation is underway!

We can't wait to see it.  

All Smiles,

Donna 

Encouraging Progress

Every day there's been something different being done at the new house.  It's quite exciting and encouraging!

Right after we returned from 

Tennessee, the drywall went up.  

Soon after, the walls were textured.

Next up was the trim.

And window sills.

As well as the closet shelving. 

I'm smiling at the pantry!

Moving right along, our next surprise was 

finding all the trim and closets painted.

Window sills too.

The best part though...

all the walls were painted 

when we dropped by yesterday!

Woo--hoo!

Happy dance!

This alcove in the living area

 is for the entertainment center.  

The model home had a built-in entertainment center but we deleted it.  That way, it'd be much easier to change and/or rearrange if we decide to do so on down the road.

Today, we drove by and the 

outside is being painted!  

This is not the real color though.

It was a primer. 

 Now it's looking more like 

our light silver/gray color 

but it's really hard to tell.

In no time, a bunch of the outside was sprayed. 

We wonder if there is another coat to come.

Notice the stacks of stone and brick out front?

The stone is called Austin Stone.  

It will be where the black section is in the middle, 

and the brick will be used as an accent.

The Austin Stone and brick accent 

will also be around the back patio fireplace.

We wonder what's next--cabinets or floor?  

Neither one has been delivered but we've learned that the workers and supplies can often show up about the same time.  We're certainly not picky about what's next!  We just hope and pray things continue to move along at this same happy pace.

Be back soon!

Big, Big Smiles,

D~~~~

A Little Tennessee River Time

In September, we made a quick trip to Tennessee to meet up with Jack & Middy for 3 days on their boat which is docked in a marina on the Mississippi / Tennessee border.  For those of you that don't know, Jack is Geo's brother, and we love getting together with them!

~~~ THE OUTPOST ~~~

Before venturing out of the marina onto the river the first morning, we drove up the road for breakfast at a rustic and very cool place.  

The Outpost Pickwick Dam

John Wayne eyeing the buffet.

Can you hear him saying in John Wayne style,  

"Hey Pilgrim, I'm hungry!"

It looks like they have entertainment here.

Middy and I absorbing the 

sun on this slightly chilly morning.

Cute little outpost shops 

in the building next door.

It's off season now so the stores 

are only open on the weekends.

It was Thursday so we missed out.  

After breakfast, we wandered the grounds.

A cute water wheel next to a creek.

Can you see the crocodile that's been

carved out of this fallen tree limb?

There's a lovely little wedding 

venue on the grounds!

Middy and I peeked in the window.

It sure is cute!

The back of the wedding venue.

Bigfoot is hanging around here too!

~~~ THE BOAT ~~~

Geo engaged the drone off and on 

during the trip to nab some pics.

We cruised to Pickwick Dam the 1st day. 

The weather was perfect the entire

trip with cool nights and warm days.

On the 2nd day, we left out of the marina and took a peaceful, easy voyage down the Tennessee River to Florence Harbor Marina in Florence, Alabama.  We would spend the night on the boat at the marina.  

Middy and I are on the front.

Gentle whitecaps leaving 

a trail as we cruise along.

Brothers enjoying the laid-back ride!

I'm sure there's a nautical term 

for this side view of the boat.

I call it: 

"A side view of the boat."

We're having fun along the way too!

We're here! 

Florence Harbor Marina. 

And docked on the very end.

 

From this view, the marina is behind us.

McFarland Park is on the other side of the harbor.  

We took a nice walk over there one afternoon. 

The walk led us between 

these gorgeous, tall trees!

The marina has a courtesy car 

which we took advantage of one evening. 

We drove across this bridge 

which is next to the marina.

Our destination was 

The Old Railroad Bridge.  

It's a walking bridge these days.

It doesn't go all the way across the river 

but we meandered our way to the end of it.

 

On the way back, we caught a stunning

sunset behind the bridge next to the marina.

We also went into downtown Florence where residents were busy partaking in all that the quaint town has to offer on a Friday night. 

I forgot to grab some photos of it though! 

 

Geo captured some drone pics before we left the marina to head back. 

Waving bye!

Thank you Jack & Middy. 

It was good to see y'all, and 

as always, we had a great time!

Still Smilin', 

D~~~~