Finding Direction: The Wind Vane Chronicles

These are photos of the building of our house, starting with our house plan.  It's "flipped" because we had to reverse the plan to fit it on our sloped lot.  We also totally changed up the master bath, moving a big shower to the back wall, leaving out a tub, incorporating that big garage storage area into our master bath as a big 9' x 9' walk in closet and making the double vanity 8' long. 

Hope you enjoy watching the progress of our house as it's being built.  We've been working on this since last August now, so it's taken a while here in Post-Katrina building time!  Enjoy!

Our House Plan.  It's 1,850 sq. ft., so not large, but just right for us:

Week 1 - In the Beginning - August 2006 out from Picayune, Mississippi:

Week 2 - Breaking Ground:

Week 2 - Me on the Porch:

Week 15 - Chain Wall is Up:

Week 15 - Me on the Porch:

Week 18 - Foundation poured; Tom on the back porch

Week 18 - Tom in the dining room

 Week 20 - Looking through the living room windows at me on the back porch

 Week 20 - From the front corner of the house

Week 21 - Me on the back porch

Week 21 - From in front of the house

 Week 22 - Roofing Goes Up - Looking Out to the Back Porch

Week 22 - Roofing Goes Up - From the Front of the House

 Week 23 - Looking out toward Tom on the back porch from the living room:

Week 23 - Here's the house from the front:

 Week 24 - From the front of the house; tarpaper in on the roof; windows are all in but one

Week 24 -  Looking from the back corner of the deck toward Tom on the  covered back back porch.  The bay windows are to the breakfast area and three across in the center are to the living room.

 Week 25 - The roof is shingled and the front door is in, missing the transom, which will be added soon.  And the plumber was out several days this week, so lots of progress is being made!  Yea!

Here's the front of the house:

Week 25 - Mark and Zoe on the nature trail next to our property going down to the creek full of fish!

Week 25 - Looking into the living room from the kitchen/breakfast area.

The house on 3/22/07 - I no longer have any clue what week it is - way too many is all I can say, but obvious progress is being made this week.

Looking into the living room from the breakfast area:

Looking from the front door in the living room toward the back:

This shot is of the dining room:

Toward the back porch:

It's been several weeks since I've posted any photos, so I need to correct that problem.  Here's some from this week, and you can see a whole lot has been done.  However, I forgot to take photos of the back porch and back of the house, which has all been sided with a taupe colored siding, which is really great looking.

In this first one, I know that it is difficult to see because of the angle of the sun, but nearly the entire house has been bricked now.  I have another photo further below that shows the front porch up close where you can actually see the brick and the progress that has been done.

This second one is looking from inside the front door toward the kitchen/breakfast area.  Notice all the bright white wood trim work around the windows and doorways and the baseboards.  The color on the walls is the same throughout the living area, but looks a little different on the different walls because of the way the light falls on them.  It is really kind of a medium color, which lightens and brightens from the filtered light from outside.

This third photo is looking toward the dining room.  The color you see on the dining room walls is more true to the color of the paint than the lighter color appears on the living room walls to the front.

This fourth photo is taken in our master bedroom looking into the master bath (and at Tom), which has now been tiled.  The color in the master bedroom is called "Moon River" and is a soft aqua color, which reminds me of the sea.  I am going to decorate this room in "sea" colors with aquas, pale blue greens, bright pinks and sand.  The color of the tile in the master bath (and other bath and utility room ) is off white and kind of sandy looking!  It has two advantages.  One, it goes with my theme to be "beachy" looking and the second is that it doesn't show dirt!

This is looking from the hallway to the master bedroom toward the kitchen.   The dining room is directly behind the kitchen while the living room is to the back right with the breakfast area at the right forefront.

This photo is looking more directly toward the living room.  The breakfast area in the foreground.

 This fifth photo is looking from the side of the living room toward the kitchen and dining room (to the back right).  You can see in this photo how high the ceiling is in the kitchen and see the white crown molding around the top of the walls throughout the living area.

This sixth photo shows the curved detail over the garage door walls on the front, that looks really good when you really see it.  It adds a very nice touch.

This last one is taken from the driveway looking at the front porch and the brick, which is nearly completely done.  And before you say it - I know the front looks funny right now with the windows so far away on each side from the front door, but that is because we are going to have "closed" louvered  shutters with white crown molding in the center in between the door and the windows on each side to make it look like a second set of windows across the front porch - one on either side.  There will also be white crown molding on top of each window you see and the deep New Orleans blackish green louvered shutters on each side of them.

Week of May 1 - More Photos!  Check out the screened in back porch:

Isn't it going to be great?!  The siding is clayed "clay" and is a good taupe color.  I'm going to have my white wicker furniture out there with the white windows and I think it will all look really good.  I hope. . ..  I want flowers and plants, too, if I can make myself work more on having a green thumb instead of blogging so much!

 Looking across the porch from the outside corner.

This is a view of the whole back porch from the corner of the deck.  You can see that the entire back of the house has clay colored siding on it.  It looks good with the brick, which is around three sides.

As you can see, we have a nice, big screened in porch, but of course, I don't think it will take long to get it filled up.  I have my white wicker furniture set and Tom has a double hammock on a stand we've got to put up - I'm thinking there on the inside of the porch to the right of the door, katy-cornered across the corner.

This is a view of the back porch more straight on.  I'll be glad when all of the mess is gone and we can have our furniture out there.

LATEST PHOTOS OF THE HOUSE - JUNE 7TH, 2007

 Here are 8 new pictures for you to ooh & ahh over along with us.  We're getting pretty excited.

The first picture is from directly in front of the house.  They've got all of the trim work done across the front except for painting.  The painters are still going to have to come back to paint the six pillars and paint the crown molding over the door, windows and shutters.

The second picture is also of the front of the house taken at an angle from the driveway.

 The third picture is of the kitchen and new cabinets.  You can see the microwave/hood in place over where the stove is going to go.  The appliances are all going to be bisque color.  The picture is taken from the middle of the living room.

 The 4th picture is another view of the kitchen and cabinets from a different angle.  This one was taken from the breakfast area end of the living room.

The 5th picture is taken from the breakfast area looking back toward the other side of the kitchen and the living room toward the front door.  The dining room is directly behind the kitchen to the left of the living room.

 Of course, I always have to get a picture taken from the deck looking back into the back porch (see directly below) because these two places are where we are going to be spending a lot of time.

 This next photo is from the corner of the back porch looking back toward the living room and guest bedroom, which is off to the right side of the porch here.  See the fan that's now in and the neat light fixture on it!
 
 

 The last photo below was taken from the front door looking back at an angle toward the kitchen and breakfast area.  See the new light fixture hanging from the 12' ceiling in the living room.  We also have recessed (can) lights in the ceiling in both the living room and kitchen.

 That's it for today.  Tom and I were both out there this morning and not a lot was going on today, unfortunately.  Not nearly as much as we'd hoped, anyway.  The next thing that is supposed to take place is to get all of the counter tops in in both the kitchen and the two bathrooms.

Please keep us in your prayers as we complete this huge undertaking and try to get moved in.  Things are really stressful right now and it's very wearing.

Father's Day - June 17, 2007

We've been out at the house all weekend working on details.  A lot got done this last week and the house is probably about 98% complete.  There are a very few electrical connections that still need to be made, including our light pole out in the yard and our door bells and chimes (which were stolen last weekend in the theft!), so we can welcome guests.  And we just found out the middle of Friday afternoon (at the same time our builder did) that our kitchen counter tops are on back order now for another three or four weeks!

So . . . our builder says that he can and will build us temporary plywood counter tops, hook up our sink temporarily in it and get our dishwasher running so that we can go ahead and move into the house next Tuesday on June 26, after the Mississippi Press Association convention we have to go to this week. 

So it's good news and bad news, but we are not deterred or discouraged.  The worst of that was last weekend after our theft and some other bad news.  We were very demoralized, but have recovered sufficiently to be optimistic about moving in and actually - maybe - getting settled in.  Eventually.

Here is the latest series of pictures.  A whole lot got done this last week and it's looking great!

STILL ONE AND 1/2 WEEKS AWAY, BUT A LOT HAS GOTTEN DONE.  CHECK IT ALL OUT!

 The top panel of each garage door is not correct and will be changed out, but I wanted to show you all how nice the house looks now with garage doors on it.

Oh - and I forgot.  We got grass this week.

We also got carpet this week and wood flooring in the dining room.  Above is Tom surveying the new flooring.

Above is our built in TV center which will have speaker cloth in the bottom doors and wood centers in the upper doors.  There was a mix-up on that part, but our builder is going to correct it.

Above:  Looking from the living room toward the kitchen/breakfast area.

Above:  Looking toward the dining room with the wood flooring in it.

Above:  Looking into the master bedroom bathroom.

Above:  Looking into the guest bedroom where all of you friends will stay when you come visit.

Above:  The guest bedroom also has a window out onto the screened in back porch.

Above:  This is a view from the hall toward the front "guest" bedroom, which will be my office.  Out the window is the front of the house.

Above:  This is looking from the front office (bedroom) toward the hall and the back of the TV center, which is in the living room.  The two doors open to the back of the cabinet where the TV will be so that Tom can work on the wires and all of the plug-ins, etc.

Above:  This view is from the kitchen looking out toward the back to the breakfast area, screened in back porch and back deck.

Above:  This will be the view from the kitchen over into the breakfast area and living room.  The hall to the two extra bedrooms (the one on the left of the hall in this picture is the front office, you remember) is to the other side of the living room.

 THE WEEK OF JULY 23, 2007 - WE'RE IN THE HOUSE!  FINALLY!!

First is the living room from inside the front door:

The second is the dining room:

The third is looking back across the living room from the dining room.  We still don't have our doors in for the built-in TV entertainment center, though:

The next pictures are of the kitchen, plywood counter tops and all:

Here's a couple more of the kitchen from different angles:

Here's the breakfast area with our little table and three chairs where Tom eats breakfast and lunch every day.  You'll have to excuse all of the extraneous pieces and parts still laying around everywhere!  We're still unpacking:

Now to the fun part.  Our all time favorite place in the whole house where we spend each evening out on the back porch together under the fan:

Here's a shot out the back screen to the hammock out on the deck:

The next shot is through the screen, too, to Tom's grill and smoker and little cabinet he keeps his wood chips in:

The next photo (only one more following) is the one y'all will be most interested in.  It's our guest bedroom for when you all come to visit us, okay?!

And finally - my "office" bedroom where all of this brilliant post writing I was talking about the other day takes place.  As you look at the desk, there is a closet to the right and a big long window to the left facing the front of the house and the woods across the street.  It's a beautiful setting and a peaceful place to blog out here in the country.  But please excuse all of the clutter you see in the picture (and the box and pillow on the floor next to the desk!) as we are still trying to unpack and get things put away because I like a very clean, uncluttered look around me.

That's it for today.  I'll post a few more pictures after we get our counter tops in.  In fact, we are supposed to be having the bar counter tops installed today, with the rest to be put in hopefully on Friday, after the next Thursday truck brings the last big section that is missing.  It all arrived this past Thursday except for one piece that ended up in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, for some unknown reason!?!  But we're supposed to close on the house this week, anyway, so wish us luck with that!

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