The Renovations

Missed me?! I've missed writing - that is for sure, but I DO have to admit that I haven't missed the computer in general. My 'hiatus' (I loosely use this term because I was far from computer-less) has taught me that I need/want to pare down on my online time. We hooked up the desktop again and it's sat for almost a week, completely unused. I figured I better give it a test drive today, so, here I am.

The reason behind my hiatus is simple: Renovations.

I didn't want to chronicle it every single day - because that would be kind of boring and redundant, so I figured I'd wait until it was finished, and well, it IS finished. SO . . .

Tuesday March 8: DAY 1

No one showed up. I admit it, I was pissed. In THEIR defense they said Tuesday OR Wednesday, and it wasn't Wednesday yet; but in MY defense, my frickin' house was upside down and I was EXCITED. And hormonal.
My Sanity Level: WAY hormonal and bothered. Not as in hot and bothered, because hot and bothered could actually be a GOOD thing . . .


Wednesday March 9: DAY 1 - AGAIN.

Like a whirlwind, several cars and the great big truck pulled up in front of the house and into the driveway at about 8:30am. It WAS beginning. I was like a little school girl - I could hardly stand it. I may well have squealed right out loud (and embarrased Teen in front of her friend) as they pulled up and started carrying stuff into the house. Did I mention that I was excited?! They came in and quickly decided to tackle the entry/living/dining and hallway first (it's all connected and is the biggest space they had to do). I moved myself and any of my little charges to the basement (where we spent A LOT of time. OYE!) Note to self - and to anyone else who looks after kids, DON'T do this amount of work and still take the kids in . . . it is NOT easy and WILL pretty damn near cause a nervous breakdown. Not that I was ruffled or nervous or crabby or ready to throttle anyone the entire time the workers were here. Abso-freakin'-lutely not!! I was calm, cool and collected, the entire time. Even when someone put their hand on the freshly painted wall; or they knocked over a bucket of patching material; or dumped their lunch on my area carpet in the basement; or peed on my couch; or when I had to put 3 young kids down to nap in the SAME space - alongside another that DOESN'T nap, and me. And then there was the fact that we couldn't go outside - it was raining; and the snow was melting - it was a puddly/muddy disaster. Or the fact that my house was in a complete state of chaos. No siree, I was cool as a cucumber. Some might say I walked around more like I had that said cucumber shoved up my ass (THEY all think I was kind of grumpy and irritated - but what do THEY know?!), but you know, it's all a matter of opinion and everything.

Anyway, back on track here . . . whirlwind, decisions, me in the basement . . . the workers started. Nothing 'exciting' happened the first day save for some patching; although they did a boatload of patching, and honestly, they are MIRACLE workers. I don't know what kind of crack the people that lived here before us smoked, but they appeared to have done some 'do it yourself' reno's years ago, and holy shit, you can tell they were 'do it yourself' jobs. We've been finding bits and pieces of their 'handiwork' and 'craftsmanship' for years - and it takes a lot of work and money to fix it. I guess there's a reason why they guy is in computers and NOT into home reno's. Good grief!! Seriously . . . I hope their excuse IS that they were stoned or high, or at the very least drunk, because the quality of the work that they did on this house is UN-FREAKIN'-REAL!! WOW. Anyway, these contractors completely fixed up all the screw ups. I was and AM impressed. After they left this day, and I wandered through the house, I started to panic at the chaos in my space . . . I couldn't go anywhere that was in tact or 'tidy'. I never thought I was quite THAT anal, but clearly I am (this is something that would probably humour my mother . . . because when I was younger, tidiness was NOT my best quality. NOT. AT. ALL). My other half reminded me that it was temporary chaos, and that was the only thing that got me over it. Well, that and the fact that we packed ourselves up and went out for dinner. When we returned home, my other half and I decided to kick that ugly-ass furniture to the curb, or at least up next to the house. Imagine how ghetto we looked when the kids were all sitting on it the next day. Oh yeah - nothing but class in this household!!
My Sanity level: Panic stricken



Check out the mess! And you know, EVERYONE has their little girls green cast and 'shoe' in the middle of their living room decor, right?!



Patching in the living/dining room areas



Patching up the stairs



Patching at the entry way



I am ashamed to say that *I* actually picked that awful green colour on the wall. But in my defense, look at the butt fugly furniture . . . really now, what options besides green and pink did I have (and you all know my thoughts on pink, right?!)


Thursday March 10: DAY 2

The workers arrived bright and early again. And they busily continued to patch and repair things. I had an out of town appointment with Banshee that day, so 1) I had no extra kids for the day; and 2) I got out of the house. While I was gone the contractors painted several coats on the ceilings in the entry/living/dining hallway. And once dry, they started sanding the patches. Any idea just how much dust this generates?! It is UNREAL. When I arrived home with Banshee and opened the front door, a cloud of dust came billowing out. For real! THIS my friends, was when I FOR SURE became the conductor of the CRAZY TRAIN!!! YIKES!!! I was panicking at the thought of Banshee walking into that. We've got her asthma pretty well controlled, but I certainly didn't want this to tip her over the edge. I escorted her to the basement and made her stay there. The dust throughout the ENTIRE house was INCREDIBLE. Didn't matter how much I dusted and swiffered, that dust just kept reappearing. I was starting to freak out at the fact that my new furniture was set to arrive on Saturday - and NO painting had been done at all. Then I ran to the rec centre for a Zumba class . . . because I needed to work out my frustrations. That was something I sort of regretted the next day when I could barely move . . .
My Sanity level: Barely coping

No pictures from this day . . . it was much the same as the first day, except everything was covered in dust.

Friday March 11: DAY 3

This was the first day of March Break for my heathens . . . I mean darling children. Oh yeah - good times in store for this day. Not only did I have the typical few extra floating about, I also had another school aged child AND my own 2 little ones. AWESOME! Actually, in all honesty, it went pretty well. The kids were pretty good about it all (although don't kid yourselves, there was PLENTY of arguing, crying and tantrums. And from the kids too). This day the contractors continued sanding. Which meant more dust. THEN, after they vacuumed and dusted, they started and finished painting the entry/dining/living room and hallway. They also did the patch work in the kitchen (WOW - talk about IMPRESSIVE!! Although they weren't able to fix the "WOW" in the wall/ceiling entirely, they certainly did a great job minizing it!!!) WOOHOO! 5 mins after they finished painting the first little section in the entryway, the kids came in from outside, and despite my constant nag of "don't touch the walls. Walk RIGHT into the kitchen before you take your stuff off. DON'T TOUCH THE WALLS", a little someone did just that. He reached out and touched the wall . . . leaving a big old ugly handprint on the wall. THEN, to add insult to injury, he WIPED the paint on his hand on my oak cupboards and white fridge. You'd be proud of me. I didn't freak out. I may have spoke in a squeaky voice as I herded them all downstairs, and then I sat on the stairs and burst into tears (something that I think I needed to do for a few days - you know, to relieve the stress and such). Besides, I didn't need to freak out . . . my own 2 children chastised this poor kid when they saw that I was crying (they were accusing him of making me sad). I regained myself and assured them it was an accident and that it wouldn't happen again and that I was crying because I was stressed about the reno's as a whole, not because of that one incident. The contractors quietly fixed it all up AND they cleaned the paint off the cupboards and fridge. Crisis averted. My Sanity level: Temporarily balanced.


Entry way



Living room. And yes, those ARE Christmas gifts. They were sitting under my tree during the holidays, and then we just haven't connected with the folks they're for (we WILL get together - we WILL). For the record, there is a wedding gift AND a birthday gift sitting around for this same family as well. Soon I hope, SOON!






Saturday March 12: DAY 4

We got a call early in the morning. We were to expect delivery of our new furniture anywhere between 9:00am and 6:00pm. AWESOME! Because everyone wants to spend their entire Saturday sequestered to their home while waiting for the Brick to make their freakin' delivery. Nothing like 'narrowing' up a time window. Oh well, it DID allow for the paint to dry just that much more. The furniture arrived during the window of time when I was off with Banshee at the gym. While she mastered a cartwheel on the balance beam without any assistance or spotting (I was SO proud of her! I am NOT ashamed to admit that I sobbed when I saw her accomplish that), I was texting my other half, ensuring that the ass-monkeys that were delivering the furniture didn't mess up my new paint job. The good news? They didn't make one single mark on the walls. The bad news? The sectional for the basement had 2 rips in it. It needs to be replaced. They decided to leave it here until a new one arrived for delivery on Tuesday. Whatever . . . didn't matter to me. I just was more concerned about them replacing it. We also took a trip to the dump to get rid of the old flowery green shit. I can't say that I was sad to see that go . . . not one little bit. We also cleaned up the space the spaces that they'd finished - well, as much as we could with all their equipment and stuff floating about, and tried to bring some 'normal' back into the house.
My Sanity Level: HAPPY that we've rid ourselves of that fugly furniture.


That fugly furniture waiting for its voyage to it's final destination: The Dump.










Sunday March 13: DAY 5

This conductor packed up the Crazy Train and drove them to Great Wolf Lodge (a complete surprise to the little kids . . . teen and her friend knew). We met up at a rest stop with some friends that were going with us; we managed to keep the kids seperated - their kids knew where we were going; mine didn't, and managed to get all the way to the resort . . . and as I pulled into the parking lot I said "Well . . . no shopping mall here, think it would be alright if we just spent some time here instead?!". Banshee got a smile on her face that remained there until we checked out a couple days later; and Imp was fist-pumping the air and hooting and hollering about it all. That was SO worth the surprise (even though I had to sit on it since JANUARY - and it damned near killed me having to keep that secret). We had a GREAT time with our friends!!!
My Sanity level: COMPLETELY balanced and rejuvenated

Monday March 14: DAY 6

We weren't here. We'd left the contractors the keys and let them have it.
My Sanity level: Still completely balanced and rejuvanated

Tuesday March 15: DAY 7

We arrived home and were pleased with the progress. The kitchen had been sanded and the first coat of paint done; AND our bedroom had the first coat of paint on it as well, and the patch/repair work in the kids rooms all started as well. WOOHOO! Things were FINALLY starting to fall into place and were looking as though the end was in sight. Well, sort of, we still had a LONG way to go, but . . . it looked like progress, and when you're as stressed about reno's as what I am, that's a GOOD thing. More good news?! I took Imp to an official weigh in with the peditrician, and he'd GAINED some weight! YAY! That was a HUGE event for him!

We also got a phone call about the couch . . . it's BACKORDERED until April 16. They offered us some money back on the couch instead. $50. Really?! I'll wait thanks-so-much.
My Sanity Level: Frustrated that the couch has 'issues' and annoyed that they offered us $50 back instead of replacing it.


The kitchen; first coat (of FOUR!)






Our bedroom. As you can see it needed WAY more than 2 coats.






Wednesday March 16: DAY 8

The owner/head contractor called to say that they'll be late today - they needed all workers to help with a ceiling somewhere. They said to they'd arrive between 11:00am and 12:00 noon.

My Other Half's interpretation; also known as the optimistic view: The contractors will be there between 11:00am and 12:00 noon.

MY inerpretation; also known as the pessimistic (and more importantly, CORRECT) view: They had no intentions of showing up at all.

Can you guess who was right?!

Yeah, my other half had a rude awakening about contractors and their 'word' and adherence to timelines. Oddly enough, I was sort of 'calm' about it. The reality is they DID call, so in my head, they might as well have said "we're not coming". My other half wasn't so calm and level about it. He was also on March Break (as a teacher he obviously gets it off as well) and was tired of the chaos going on in the house. He just wanted the project done. He actually ended up calling the contractor that evening to ask what happened and reminded him that we needed this completed as quickly as possible. For a fleeting second it felt as though the tables had turned . . . I was the laid back one, and he was the anal uptight one. But it was just that . . . a fleeting moment.
My Sanity Level: Not-so-stable. Life in limbo is NOT easy.


See what one must resort to when the kitchen is totally out of commission, yet the kids still need to eat (darn them anyway!). The kids LOVED it!


And just because she's so gosh-darn cute . . . here's Banshee. I love that she's regained some of that sparkle in her eye and that sly little smile.


Thursday March 17: DAY 9

Contractors arrived bright and early. They finished the kitchen and our bedroom, and started painting Imp's room. And they started some patching in the girls room. Things were zipping along! The dust was still flying. Have I mentioned just how much dust there was with this project?! Because there was quite a lot. A WHOLE lot!! I'm sure that my other half was cramping their style because he kept wandering in to check up on what they were doing. Me?! I just steer WAY clear of them - I feared that interrupting them would cause more setbacks, etc.

After they left that evening, my other half and I were busy dusting and moving our furniture back into place. I realized that the bedroom needed another coat. Or 2 (in fact it ended up being THREE more coats it needed). We had to pull EVERYTHING back out of place and then had to deliver that bomb to the painter the next day (he actually took it well).
My Sanity Level: Frustrated. I was SO hoping that our room would have been put back together and that I could actually sleep in a bed again.


Imp's Room. His bed takes up A LOT of space in an already little room, so it was hard to get many pictures.




Friday March 18: DAY 10

Again, the contractors were all here bright and early. They got right to work finishing Imp's room, and refinishing ours (they were great about the fact they had to redo that room); and then they started the girls room. There's not much I can add to the fact that I needed to wear sunglasses entering THAT room . . . I'll let the pictures to follow tell THAT story. Just for the record . . . I can NOT take ANY credit for the colour in that room; although I admit, it is WAY cool. My parents NEVER would have allowed me to do something like I allowed in their room. Because there are 2 of them, and agreeing on one single colour would be next to impossible, I allowed them each to choose a colour. The only stipulation was that they had to compliment each other. They definitely 'something'd' each other; that is FOR SURE!! The first coat in the girls room wasn't drying fast enough for them to do anything more that day, so the contractors packed it in early and headed out mid-afternoon.
My Sanity Level: Kinda good/kinda not. Knowing that we were going into the weekend with the girls room in limbo was frustrating.


Teen's 'wall's. And YES, it IS that bright. That is a pretty accurate picture of the brightness level.


Banshee's 'walls'


How they look together. Yes folks, it IS bright. But one cannot say that their room isn't 'cheery', right?! If you're feeling kind of blue, you just need to walk into that room and it'll instantly cheer you up. Or make you vomit. One of the two anyway.


Saturday March 19: DAY 11

Cleaning and dusting and getting the basement ready for it's transformation.
My Sanity Level: A tad stressed . . . our main living area was unavailable.

Sunday March 20: DAY 12

More cleaning and MORE dusting. We did the final moving of everything in the basement, including disconnecting the computer and cable (which meant no PVR . . . and in this house, that apparently is HUGE business. Judging by teens reaction, you'd think that it was the end of the world . . . OYE!). Just a little aside, have you ANY idea how difficult it is to move a 36 gallon FUNCTIONING aquarium?! Yeah, I don't advise it. NOT. AT. ALL.
My Sanity Level: REALLY stressed . . . my PVR was disconnected and I REALLY needed it back for Wednesday . . . and knowing our luck and all, it wouldn't be.

Monday March 21: DAY 13

The contractors arrived bright and early (they're definitely awesome about starting early). They worked away in the girls bedroom and started the patch/repair work in the basement. THAT was where the most repairs were needed. The drywall was all cheesed at the seams (splits), and they fixed it all - it's INCREDIBLE what they can do in terms of repairs!!! They also painted the ceiling in the family room. The informed us that they probably would be able to finish up the next day.

I didn't get pictures from this day. Getting back into the groove of things after the break left me a little frazzled.
My Sanity Level: Abso-freakin'-lutely Crazy.

Tuesday March 22: DAY 14

Again, they arrived early and got right to work. They sanded and painted; finished up the trim and doors; and then finished up the final coats on the family room and the stairway.

They cleaned up after themselves; moved all their stuff out and left.

And that my friends, was the end. They were finished.
My Sanity Level: Unknown . . . it was done, which was relieving, but then trying to figure out where to start with the clean up . . . IMPOSSIBLE!!!

Anyway, here we are a week later, and we DID get it all tidied up. We dust every single day, but it's getting less. We are LOVING it all!!!

SO . . . to sum it up; the finished product is:

Living Room/Dining Room/Entryway/stairs/hallway:
All painted in Coco Rum (Behr); although it was colour matched to Benjamin Moore. There are no pictures on the wall yet (we have to decide what we want and need to find the perfect pictures); and no draperies yet, although I'm hoping to remedy that this weekend.









KITCHEN:
Painted in French Creole (CIL), but colour matched to Benjamin Moore.










Our Bedroom:
Painted in Behr French Grape (notice the 'french' theme?!) colour matched to Benjamin Moore.







The Girls Bedroom:
Painted with Behr Limeade and Behr Disney Satin Ribbon, colour matched to Ben Moore (I feel as though "Ben" and I are THAT close now!).

***Please bear in mind that I DO have a teenaged girl and tidiness is NOT her middle name or a quality that is her strong suit. Not. at. all. Almost as though she takes after her own mother at that age***










Imp's Room:
Painted in Behr Sapphire (something or other, and at this point I'm too lazy and tired to bother finding it). But it's blue, colour matched to Ben Moore.










The Family Room/Stairs to basement:
Painted in Behr Brown Teepee (or as pointed out by another friend, it's Wendy's Frosty brown colour - from here on out, that's what I'm going to call it. Thanks Jen!!), colour matched to Benny Boy.


Going down the stairs. Straight ahead is the storage room; to the right is the laundry room. They aren't anything exciting to see . . . so I won't bother showing you. The laundry room is a DARK blue - Blueberry something - we renovated that and the upstairs bathroom in the past 2 years, so they didn't need to be done).


The family room.


The new furniture. This sectional needs to go back, but the 'new' one is on backorder. Funny story with this . . . we paid good money for it, and it has 2 sizeable rips in the back. They offered to deduct $50 off of it. Sure . . . thanks for the offer, but I think I'll take the new couch instead. Really?! What kind of dumbass did they take us for?!


The aquarium (seriously . . . I don't advise moving something like this when it's full).


My Scrapbooking/Cardmaking Desk


The computer desk. You know where I'm perched right this second as I create this post.



THAT'S ALL FOLKS!!!