Big Week In A Small Room

Last weekend, after I removed the wall oven from our kitchen, we just couldn't resist tearing out its boxy support framing that had stuck into our tiny pantry. Then I left for a five day business trip. I got home expecting to pick up where I had left off.

But in the meantime Lee Ann had really gotten going. She had removed the rest of the makeshift pantry shelving, dug down to the original floorboards, pulled a million staples and nails, filled and sanded and painted the floor, and repaired the holes in the walls with new tongue and groove material. (Did I mention how much I love that girl?!)

I spent all weekend building new shelving, doing trimwork and painting. We aren't quite done but as luck would have it I am traveling again this week. By the time I get home Lee Ann should have this project knocked out.

Kitchen Project

The first big change in our new kitchen will be removing the black wall oven and almond ventless hood, leftover elements from some previous versions of the kitchen that don't match the other appliances. Once these are gone we can install the drawer base (shown sitting in front of the wall oven) and a cabinet above, and a new white combo microwave and ventless hood over the range. That will be much better use of this space.

The wall oven is recessed into the adjoining pantry and messes up the space there too, so removing it will allow us to fix two problem areas.

Since I took these photos I did get the wall oven out. It is sitting in the carriage house with a growing pile of old appliances waiting to go to the scrapyard. Maybe next week I can begin the other work. Cha-cha-changes.

Fast Forward To Now

So we closed on the house, spent an excruciating three weeks moving in the pit of winter, and now we are practically settled in.

We have been making the most of our unusually warm February weather. Today Lee Ann and I took turns hewing away at the undergrowth behind the carriage house. By evening all the stringy honeysuckle you see in the photo was gone.

Closing Is Set

Today we got word that our house purchase is ready to close, and we settled on Friday afternoon to sign the papers and collect the keys. There were a few snags and delays en route which have kept us waiting for two months, and now we are anxious to get moved in to our big pink house!

Coincidentally, I heard from the people who are buying my five acres in Georgetown (with tumbledown farmhouse) today too. They scheduled that closing for February 5. I am selling at a loss, but given the real estate market am happy to have lined up a buyer so easily. These are the farmers who own the land on two sides of my plot on Gardner Road. I am selling to them directly, without a realtor to pay, so that makes the deal a little better. And I look forward to paying down some of the new mortgage debt with the Gardner Road proceeds.

"The Gothic" - Update

That house we have been trying to buy, locally known as "The Gothic," still is eluding us. We have cleared some hurdles, though, and are getting closer.

The original catch was that the bank accepted our purchase offer before receiving title from the previous owners. We waited through the title fix, then found that the property could not convey to us without a legal description update, requiring a survey. This further delay blew our purchase contract, which expired on 12/31, along with a great Fannie Mae buyer's incentive also set to expire at the end of the year. Finally, our mortgage rate was locked only until January 4 and we feared that recently rising interest rates would leave us with a higher payment.

Update: Our contract was extended until 1/14; The seller agreed to honor the incentives past their expiration deadline; we relocked our mortgage for another 30 days at a better interest rate (4.25%) than we had before; and the survey is done and in the hands of the county, pending review.

Warren County is known to be slow in handling stuff like this, but with average luck we could close in a week.

New Year's Jigsaw Puzzle

For most of New Year's Day and a few hours into the day after, I was locked in battle with the bits and pieces of the lighthouse image you see here. This puzzle was a loan from my friend and co-worker Michele. At 500 pieces it was one of the smaller puzzles we have worked, but it proved difficult enough.

Traditionally the New Year's jigsaw puzzle is a family activity, but this year Lee Ann showed less interest and Annie none, so we may have to come up with some other fun/exasperating thing to do on New Year's Day like - I don't know - watching football.

Bringing the New Year In Wright

This is the Westcott House in Springfield, notable for having been designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Lee Ann and I enjoyed our warm and sunny New Year's Eve by touring the house and learning about its history and painstaking $5.6 million restoration.

The look and feel of this house is very different from most any house we have seen before, and we really enjoyed the chance to visit.