update :O)

  Hey there everyone :O)  been awhile again but I am still here. I've been really busy of late, cold weather had motivated me immensely lol   I do know that I'm not done with the house at all but got it close enough to move into it on the 22 nd. :O)  gave myself a birthday and Christmas present this year that I wont be forgetting anytime soon.  Such a amazing feeling it is to be moving into a brand new house (unfinished)  that you have built yourself. :O)  Haven't been working much, too cold but I have been working pretty much none stop on the house. 

 

I moved into the RV on Feb 5th 2011 and then moved into clayts and Penny's fifth wheel last Dec and then on Dec 22nd 2014 I moved into my house :O)  I am so happy with what I have accomplished. Its a very good feeling to tell people that I built my house, I didn't buy it, didn't have someone else build it, it has my blood sweat and tears in it.... 

 

 

 

 

 

all the sheet rock is in place, mudded, sanded, and getting ready too primer and texture the ceiling.

 

start of the primer

 

ceiling is primered arms were sore and tired from all the sanding and mudding and sanding and even more sore after the primering.

 

painting the walls now, the ceiling is textured at this point as well. 

 

my wood stove. It doesn't take much of a fire too make it hot in the house. the house with the insulation that I had sprayed in is amazing...  to say the least..   for a month all I used to heat the house with was a 20000 btu vent less heater and I had the water heater going too and it only used 25 gallons of propane.  at 1.69 a gal comes out 42.25   I don't feel that is too outrageous.  considering there was some really cold days and night during the month.  allot of going in and out of the house and having some of the windows open allot of the time too.   now that I have the wood stove going I will be using even less propane.

 

seem odd to see a picture of a sink with dirty dishes in it :O)  but there is such a joy I feel when I get to use the sink With running water thank you very much :O)  No more heating water on the sink to do dishes :O) 

 

That's a picture of my cricket dog and two pictures of my dad on either side. 

 

and this is the kitchen, still need to put this end of the counter top on it and build the wall around the outside edges of the counters, and some flooring, and a kitchen light, and some other stuff too but who's keeping track anyway?  :O)

 

 

 

Okay, laugh now and get it out of your system :O) this is my bed. Yes the mattress is resting a a cut down piece of plywood and its resting on yes, sheet rock mud buckets..  6 of them to be exact. :O) but you know what? It works just fine until I go back to work and start making some more money. I don't mind my redneck bed and the cat doesn't seem to mind either :O)

 

here is one of the essentials also :O)  I bought a TV the other day :O)   need a entertainment center to put everything on and in but not yet.    

 

yuuummmmmm    enough said :O)

 

breakfast, listen closely and you can hear my arteries hardining and plugging up :O)  but damn its so good..  Every ones gotta die, might as well go happy ..

 

Fat cat hogging the couch and her front feet are on the tv control as well.     and That is carpet in front of the couch too :O)  a friend and his wife had some extra carpet hanging in their barn and they brought it over and gave it too me :O)  Thankyou very much mike and anita :O)  already have it down and its really nice :O) 

 

The kitchen again, the space on the left of the stove will have more shelf and counters tops that will go to the lazy susan and around to the frig.

 

our little snow storm we had last week.

 

the chimney for the wood stove. clayt came over and helped me that day put up the chimney and then we put counter tops on in the kitchen. Thanks for the help clayt :O)    thx

hi all :O)

 

Well all, all I can say is that I have been busy busy busy plus a nap or two here and there lol

As you all can see I have been busy with the house, was working allot too but with the cold weather things have really slowed down. Works out in my favor for being able to have lots of time to work on the house but not so good for the checking account.  Currently I am hanging the last of the sheet rock in the bedroom and large closet. I should be done tonight or fri at the latest.

I'm in at my sisters today making home made rolls and deviled eggs for tomorrow. I should soon have my own kitchen going :O)  going fri or sat to pick up the cabinets and order the counter tops, paying alittle extra to have the store cut and put the ends on, I have never cut or worked on counter tops so I chickened out lol  they will have 2 45degree corners that will need to be cut and I know that it is most likely beyond me and my skill saw :O)  So I'm getting pretty excited about all that is happening with the house. 

  about a week ago the propane guys showed up and we upgraded the tanks valves and lines, wasn't too bad. No leaks so I guess I did good. Was worried about that. They checked all the fittings and appliances then turned the gas on and lite the hot water heater, cook stove, and the vent less 20,000 btu heater. That little heater heats the place just nicely.  700 sq ft and on the mornings that its 10 degrees outside its 65 inside and that's on the lowest setting and it comes on for a short while then goes off for a long time. The insulation is working great. The only problem I have had is that the house is too tight. I was having a prob with humidity until I cracked a window open, just barely mind you. Didn't think it would be enough but it was. went from 68% too 32% in a matter of a few hours.

So now I have a flush able toilet, and shower that I can use with hot water :O)  yeeehaaaa  .  its the simple things in life now that make me smile big.  So now I can take showers at my own place now. So Thank you so very much too my family that put up with me for so long taking showers at their places.  Thank you so very very much you all.  Never will you guys know just how much that has meant too me.  Thank you again.

 

Now I am in the process of still mudding taping and sanding the sheet rock joints. uuuuggggg.  but will be worth it when its finally done. Trying hard to be giving myself a present for x-mas.  A house too live in :O)    plus a bigger tv...  

  maybe some carpet too but rugs will work for now.

I need some suggestions on paint colors, I am not a interior decorator.  I know a person that is great at that stuff but....   all I know is that I want it to be relaxing colors, nothing harsh or dark. 

 

 

 

 

that's the begging of the ceiling sheet rock job. the dark thing in the ceiling is the chimney piece that goes to the bigger chimney on the outside for the wood stove.  I have to still put the other pipe in but will do that as soon as its sanded and painted.

 

 

That red thingy is the Sheet rock jack, its worth its weight in gold if you ask me lol  ex specially if your doing it alone..

 

My new vanity and vanity top. doesn't match anything else in the bathroom but I like it :O)

 

the ceiling in the living room.

 

ooops got two of the same pic

 

this is the before sheet rock

 

 

the after sheet rock, it was a major pain in the ass to be blunt.  and it was my own fault too.  it would have help if the room was square lol  as you can see by the towel that I have been using the shower.

 

this is in the bedroom today, the one piece is attached but I had to leave and make rolls so when I get home I will attach it and put some more up yet tonight. once these two room are done I am DONE with hanging the sheet rock :O) 

 

I really haven't been doing much else, just work and work.   Got to go for now, rolls need pulled out of the oven and get back home to the sheet rock :O)  I hope everyone is doing great and that you all have a wonderful thanksgiving and be safe :O)

2 years

 

it was 2 years ago that I lost the company of my little friend, I still miss her terribly bad. Cant seem to get myself in the frame of mind to have another friend.  Not yet anyway.  

Miss you and love you Cricketdog :O) 

update :O) finally.

 

No words needed lol

 

 

or here either, except that it would be nice if it was warm too :O(

 

getting ready for the foam to be sprayed!!

 

looks  funny but it really works great..

 

and then the sheet rock going on the rest of the walls.

 

here I have been mudding and taping the walls.  Theres allot of screws there :O(  hence, allot of mudding and sanding :O(

 

The foam really is some great stuff, it sound proofs it and makes it really easy to heat too. I have been using a little buddy heater to keep the chill off in the house,  left it on one nite to dry the mud and it was 37 degrees in the morning but in the house it was 76 degrees!!!   I'm really happy with it.  The guy that owns the company said I would b e happy with it in the winter but the summer is when I will be truly impressed with its insulating ability's. said that it will keep cooler than a regularly insulated house by a long ways and be cheaper too.  I hope so. 

  So this is what I have been doing mostly, putting up sheet rock which all of the walls are done now, going to town one of these near days and buying the last of the sheet rock. Them last pieces will be for the ceiling.    

 

I have also fixed all the gas lines in the house and they are ready for the propane to be hooked up. Just have to get the propane tank updated :O(    Oh yea, I have to put in the stove pipe and hot water heater vent pipe in still too but that's not going to take much.  Things are coming along pretty good, just time consuming.  But its getting soooo close :O)  

 

 

oh my :O) its been a while.

 Well to begin with, no I'm not dead :O)  

 

I have been busy though, between work and the shouse I don't have a lot of time anymore :O)  But things are coming together with the house. The spray in insulation guy will be here this week to spray the roof ceiling and the three wall on the inside :O)  yay!!!!!!!!!!!   Once that is done I could by all rights "move" into it.  Not going to though, going to wait so I can get the ceiling put in and get all the walls sheet rocked as well. Debating rather to wait until I get done with the mudding of the joints and screw dimples and painted or just say piss on it and move in and work around things as I go :O)  Really getting excited about getting moved in.

 

Nothing has really changed for me, still doing the same schedule, work, work and oh yea, :O) more work.   Been really busy at work, everyone is trying to get all their concrete work done before bad weather sets in so that makes us busy trying to keep their rock bins and sand full. Makes for a good paycheck but short days to get things done on the shouse.

 

this is the first load of sheet rock, so far I have put up  28 sheets.

 

 

The very first (actually second ) sheet that I cut and hung.  Yes, I messed up on the first one, put a perfectly good plug inn hole right almost where it needed to be lol  when I sat it up there and realized what I had done (cut on the wrong side of the line) I thought to myself that this is not the way to start out sheet rocking....

 

standing in the bedroom taking a pic into the bathroom.

 

standing in the wood stove area.

 

 

 

standing at the front door, kitchen will be too the right, and the living room is too the left.  doorway on the left is too the bath room and the doorway straight in front goes into the bedroom.

 

pantry and closet plus storage.

 

oops,  just a repeat pic.

 

I found these imprints in the  osb board I was using for a work table. guess someone forgot to pick up some bolts after they had works on the press..  thought it was neat.

 

In other unrelated things, the other day I was driving to the quarry and I saw hundreds, and I mean hundreds with no exaggerations of hawks, they were on both sides of the road in a cut bean field.

They were all facing south for the most part. I had never in my life saw that many hawks gathered together in one spot ever. Tried taking some pics with my phone but they didn't come out very good. 

Still alive :O)

Hey there all :O)  truly sorry that its been so long since I have been on here updating the blog.  Its been a busy time, it finally stopped raining awhile back and I have been really busy hauling materials for the ready mix.  Trying to make up for the really really short pay checks during the rainy time.  Its been nice to be busy and making some good money so I could buy more stuff for the house. 

 The kidney stone is still with me :O(  flairs up once in a while. Just something that I have to deal with when it happens.  Other than that I have been really good, no colds or anything but the usual aches and pains.

 

  I got all of the stud walls up, all the electrical done but put the porch lights up but I have to repair them first and then sand blast them so I can repaint them. They are some antique lights that I took off a old house. They really are cool looking, will have to take a pic of them. A before and after picture.  I insulated the west wall today, and I bought most of the gas line stuff I need the other day but still need to install. after that, I will be able to call the spray in insulation guys and have them insulate the interior of the house and the interior roof of the shop.   very costly but worth it I believe.  Then I can put the rest of the ceiling boards in place and get busy with the sheet rock. 

  its been hot here lately, summer came back that's for sure.  Looking forward to fall weather, trying hard to be moved into the house before winter really sets in. I know that it  wont be done by any means but it will be enough to live in it :O)  will finish as I go.  Still need to put the stove pipe for the wood stove in also. oh yea, the dang end gable vents too.  You see, there is still allot to do lol 

  The house is really starting to take shape and is getting closer and closer to the move in date :O)  getting excited about it.  Still a ways off but I can see light at the end of the tunnel :O)

 

 

 

 

The wall dividing the house from the shop. all closed in and waiting for some siding.

 

just the insulated wall.

a shot from the corner of the house showing the west wall and bathroom.

more insulation shots. theres my air conditioning unit in the lower left corner of the pic.  :O)

the coach was given to me by a friend, they were going to toss it out so I took it. the bedroom is behind the couch.   the kitchen will be where the couch is actually sitting.  Will be a galley type kitchen. 

 As you can see in the pictures, there are allot of plug ins lol  a lot of them...  Wont have to worry about not having any place to plug something in that's for sure :O) 

 

Again, sorry that I haven't been posting as much, just been busy with work and the house. I will soon have a Internet connection of my own in my own house :O)  I will be able to keep you all updated a lot easier.  Got to go all, be safe and be patient waiting for my updates. :O) 

 

Oh yea, got some deer hanging out at my place, a couple of squirrels and even one black squirrel.  The ground hog is still living under the van trailer, it comes out just about every morning to get a drink of water out of the stone watering trough my grand father made years and years ago. I honestly don't know just how old it is but I'm 47 and its been in the family a lot longer than that.  I think they are cool so I make them for others as well.   anyway, better go for now.  :O)  like I said, be safe all :O)