Memorial Day at the house!

So there has been a lot of work at the house, although none of it is very apparent in photos. Ryan framed the interior load bearing walls last week in preparation to frame the second floor this week. We both worked out there yesterday to frame the porch floors. The front porch was a piece of cake, but the back porch is one story up, which required us to set up planks to work on. So...after being scared to dealth on the plank, clinging to the wall of the house and attempting to hold the lumber in place so Ryan could secure it, I decided it might be safer for everyone involved if I don't help frame the roof!

The hornets seem to think that we have built the house for them - we (meaning Ryan) battled 3 or 4 nests. We met a very friendly neighborhood puppy. We also re-sized four of the windows on the first floor after changing our minds (again). Thank goodness we're building this house ourselves and not going through a builder - he would have walked out on us by now with all of our little changes we've made now that the frame is going up!

Even with just a few of the interior walls framed you can really get a sense of the layout of the house. I can't wait to see what it looks like at the end of the week!

GARAGE!

So I stopped by the "house" (I can call it that now since it has walls!) yesterday afternoon to see how far Ryan had been able to get with the garage walls. He though he might have one framed, but wouldn't be able to put it up by himself. To my surprise, when I pulled in the driveway, not one, but THREE garage walls were framed and up in the air, and a fourth was framed and ready to fly! My dad and Ryan were all smiles and it was apparent that they were happy with the day's work!

I got there at just the right time to help them lift the fourth wall. So, in my work clothes and work shoes, I did my best to help heft the wall into place. The wall was SO ridiculously heavy, and top heavy, I really don't think lifting with all of my might lessened their loads at all. I had no idea how they had lifted the three other walls with only the two of them. They admitted that they had built the other walls in two pieces and that they might have been a little over ambitious by the time they got to the fourth wall. In the end, we got the wall in place. We did a quick hernia check, applied pressure to a small flesh wound, and stood back to admire the beauty of the garage!


Ry putting the last nail in the fourth wall.

And the first floor is up!

Well, the exterior walls are up and mostly plywooded, so it actually looks like a house...without a roof! I walked through it this morning and I could actually pretend to be walking from room to room! It is SO cool! So here are some photos!

Ryan, my wall-walking hero!


Spidey?


Side of the kitchen and hearth room.


Back of the house - from left to right, hearth room, laundry room, and family room.


Family room side facing the garage.

This is a 360 degree tour of the house...spinning counterclockwise (the photos loaded backwards)

This is looking at the front door. A half bath with be in the right corner and a pantry where Ry is standing.

Then we're in the kitchen, looking out the front of the house...

Still in the kitchen looking out the side of the house...

Hearth room - the big unframed space is where the fireplace is going to be.

Another hearth room shot looking out what will be french doors onto the screen porch...

This is the family room...

And we're back to the entry, looking at the mudroom door that goes to the garage.

WALLS!

That's right I said walls! Yesterday after work Ryan and I lifted the first two walls on the first floor together. Well...Ry did most of the lifting while I held the wall jack and prayed that it wouldn't fall over or attract lightening - it's like a lightening rod! So we have a kitchen wall on the front of the house and a family room wall on the back of the house. I can't wait to see what walls are up after work today!

This is me, smiling out my beautiful kitchen window!



The back of the house, the double window will be in the family room and the shorter awning window is the laundry room.



Kitchen windows on the front of the house - from a distance.



View from the kitchen windows! Doing dishes won't be so bad!

Floor Joists - who knew they were so fun?

Ryan finished the floor joists yesterday. He will be plywooding the floor and the walk-out walls today and tomorrow - yes, he's working on a Saturday again tomorrow! Then he'll start the first floor walls next week!




The basement stairs will eventually be here...