Demolition, Week 2

We have all but one wall stripped down to the studs. The west wall was by far, the worst. Behind the lathe was blown-in cellulose insulation. It took us two trips to the dump to get all the insulation, lathe, and wall board out of the house. By that point we were to pooped to tear into the remaining east wall.

We have been making a "wish list" for all the things that we (I) would like to include in the office when it is complete.......things like carpet, lighting, desk, etc. However, unless I'm getting a 100% return on my federal taxes, we (I) will need to make our list a little shorter.

West wall before:West wall showing lathe exposed (notice all the dust in the air):

Blown-in insulation exposed:Hard at work:

Its Not Valentine's Day Yet

I usually start making fun of people who still have their Christmas decorations up once Valentine's Day. I figure I still have three weeks left to finish up my Christmas stuff, so I'm actually AHEAD of the game! Here are the rest of the pictures from our happy holiday:

"Favorite Prezzie" picture at the Albers:









Family picture at the Love's:














A few funnies to enjoy:

Office Space: Step one, Demolition

So what is the project for Casa de Albers in 2006?

Office Reconstruction: what once was a bedroom on the main floor (before we lived here) will now become a library and office.

We are tearing out everything in the room that Himself used as his office.
It took about a month, but Himself got all the books and stuff packed away and
moved to the garage. His desk and computer are sitting in the dining room
right now.

We have about half of the antique moldings taken off and the
majority are in one piece. We'll store that until its ready to go back up.
Now for the fun (and dusty) part: tearing out the walls down to the studs.
Woohoo!

Once the tax return comes in we will run new electrical and create floor to
ceiling bookcases and cabinets. I'd like to turn 1/2 the closet under the
stairs into a "wine cellar." There will be a wooden tongue & groove
ceiling, new lighting, new desk, new carpet........I can't wait!!!

Do you know how many fights (discussions) Himself and I will have during the
reconstruction process? Too many to count! Ha, ha.

A Friend to Dye For

My friend Lecia came up last night so that we could spend the day kool-aid dying some of the wool that I got from the Big Stash.
Check out the results!

Senior Wednesday

Today is "Senior Wednesday" and I have been rushing around getting tables set up and making sure that there is enough space between chairs etc. This can be a hard group to please. I am actually concerned that two of my tablecloths don't match...I wonder what they will say. The topic this month is geology so I have put table coverings on all the tables to keep them from getting scratched. I still need to go shopping and get refreshments such as fruit, muffins, etc. At least its not "out of pocket" anymore since the program received a Kansas Health Foundation grant. Still need to print out sign in sheets, make coffee, hang geology posters and pull out some rock samples. Whew...still have 3 hours until program time so I'm doing okay.

Resolutions

Short Term:
Update blog re: Christmas, New Years, etc. this week!
Complete 6 more inches on Himself's scarf...kudos to Lia...that pattern is awesome! It is the Irish Hiking Scarf and I'm doing it in a merino called "tree bark mix." My first attempt a cables and I'm hooked!

Long Term:
Lose weight (as always) and don't quit excersing once summer has arrived...remember last year....boo...hiss....down 10 lbs, ran 2 5k's and then pow...its was all sedentary from then on!
Eat better (makes the above resolution easier)
Quit bitching (money, work, jobs, etc)

Realistic:
Knit something for ME!
Work over "grandma's garden"
finish the terraces by the canoe launch
finish the garden by the shed
clean out the loft in the garage
remodel Himself's office

Am I destined for failure...nah...I'll just file a change order somewhere mid-year.