It's a Mailbox!

Our kids, Ian and Katie, gave us a wonderful and very thoughtful Christmas gift - a mailbox for the new house!  It was a huge surprise.  They noticed that the mailbox was not yet specified in the house plans.  So, they researched contemporary mailboxes online and found this one, made in New Zealand.  They worked with our brother-in-law, Don, a postal clerk at the Boulder post office, to confirm it met all USPS  requirements.  After unwrapping the base post, Dave guessed it was an umbrella and Mary guessed it was a birdhouse.  We were thrilled when we opened the second package to discover this beautiful mailbox, complete with the numbers, "500." 

From Out House to Yours...

Decorative Block and Sun Shade

This past week, the masons were onsite laying the decorative block near the main entrance.  The weather was variable and a few days were too cold for the mortar.  Also, the framing crew returned and installed the sun shade above the main deck at the rear of the house.  The deck faces west so it will get a lot of direct sun in the summer.  The shade will help keep the deck and great room cool.  It is architecturally interesting, too.

HUGE Milestone

Our family achieved a huge milestone this weekend, when our daughter Katie graduated from the University of Colorado.  She completed a double major in French and International Studies.  Katie is planning to spend some time abroad in the next couple of years. 

Way to go, Katie.  We love you and are so proud of you!

All About Flooring

 Work this week was devoted to installing the entire wood flooring and continued installation of the tile.  Here's a picture of the tile in the front entrance.

Wood Flooring and Tile

After completing the plastering of the drywall over the weekend, the installation of the wood floor started on Friday.  It is gorgeous - 6" wide planks of white oak from Coleman, WI.  Also, our tile contractor started installing the floor and bathroom tile.  He will be onsite for 2-3 weeks.   

Final Stucco

The final coat of stucco was applied last week and we can now see the final look of the house colors.  The grey stucco coloring was more taupe than we expected but it looks very good with the wood siding. 

Happy Thanksgiving

We have a lot to be thankful for this year.  Our family is healthy; Katie is graduating from the University of Colorado Denver next month; and the house construction has proceeded with very few, minor hiccups.  We solved one of those hiccups last Friday when Xcel finally connected the gas service.  After digging up the roadway three times, they finally set the gas meter and our furnace fired up.  We now have heat throughout the house.  This is important for we are priming and plastering the walls this week.  If all goes well, flooring installation will start next week.
 

We are looking forward to many celebrations in our new home, starting in 2015.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hanging Drywall

The last week was bitter cold.  The arctic weather system kept high temps below 20 degrees for most days of the week.  But, Mark brought in heaters and our drywall crew was able to keep working.  They hung the drywall throughout the house and, now, we can really see the rooms.  We worried that the house would feel a lot smaller but that didn't happen.  The windows and high ceilings helped maintain the sense of large spaces.  Now, we need the weather to warm up so the drywall can be taped and mudded and the final stucco coat applied.  Fortunately, the sun is out this week and the snow is melting, both good signs.

Sheetrock!

The sheetrock was delivered on Wednesday, all 400 sheets.  That's right, they loaded it into the house through the windows.  It adds at least 20,000 lbs to the house.  Our contractor will wait until all the sheetrock is hung before applying the final finish coat of stucco.  All that additional weight causes normal cracking in the stucco base layer.  The drywall crew started hanging the sheetrock on Thursday.  As they move
through the house, we can see the final size of each room.

It's Been a While

We know.  We have not uploaded a new post for over 2 weeks.  We blame it on travel and deadlines at work. Despite this, the construction has achieved several milestones.  Most notably, the mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and framing all passed inspection.  With that, the insulation contractor installed all the insulation in the exterior walls and ceilings, and a few important interior walls (e.g., bathroom walls). Most of the insulation was blown in, which gives a higher R-value.

The insulation makes the house retain the heat from the sun during the day.

Number 1 or Number 2?

We are so happy our dumpster is useful for the neighborhood. Mattresses, lumber, paint cans, and pipes.  The contributions keep coming...even toilets!!

Stucco Scratch Coat

Wow, it's been 10 days since we last posted to the blog.  During this time, the electrician has been wiring the house - geez we have a lot of light switches.  Also, last weekend, the stucco crew returned and applied the base scratch coat of stucco.  It's not the final finished coat with the light grey exterior color.  That goes on later.  Once the roofers finish installing the flashing around the edges, the house is weather proof.  Bring on winter!

Prepping for Stucco

The major work this past week was preparing the house for stucco.  The crew worked through last weekend to attach paper and lathing to exterior walls.  Their work passed inspection on Thursday and the stucco scratch coat will be applied this upcoming week.  Meanwhile, we walked the house with Karen and Paul, our architects, John, our electrician, and Mark on Wednesday and finalized the electrical and lighting choices so the electrical rough-in can be completed. 

Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty

Puma, cougar, el leon.  Whatever you choose to call it, the mountain lion is at the top of the food chain in the Rocky Mountains.  At a neighborhood party, Mary learned that the woman living four houses away, downhill, discovered a mountain lion and two cubs living under her juniper tree two years ago.  Also, a mountain lion recently left four fresh-killed deer carcasses in the yard of a house to the west of our new home.  And, last Tuesday, our stucco crew spotted a mountain lion on the ridge above our new home.  While we are not anxious to meet it, we call the mountain lion, “neighbor.”

Please Come In

Mary invites you to come into our new home through the front door.  The frame and window were installed today.  It has an alternating pattern of reed glass and black metal, with clear glass transom windows above.  The front door, to be installed later, will be the mirror-image alternating pattern of wood and reed glass.  It promises to be a gorgeous entrance.

Up and Away

After 3 attempts, the crane arrived and lifted the final large windows into place.  Yes, that is an attachment with 8 suction cups that lifted the windows.  All went well until the clouds rolled in and the wind came up, causing the large windows to vibrate and sway as they were hoisted along the north side of the house.  It was no small feat to place these 300+ lbs windows in their holes, even with the crane.  But, the finished product is beautiful.

Stairs - First Look

We got our first look at the steel frame for the main stairs this week and saw how they will fill the space in the tower.  Meanwhile, the mechanical rough-ins continued.  The electrician started installing light cans and wiring on Friday and helped us figure out how to light the downstairs hallway when most of the ducts and piping run through its ceiling.  The fireplace was installed in the living room on Monday.  The exterior finish crew continued to install more windows and doors, and cedar siding.  However, they ran into a problem on Friday when the battery on their suction attachment was not strong enough to hold our large windows so the crane could lift them over the house and into place.  We are awaiting Plan B. 

 

Beehive of Activity

We had 7 subcontractors working on the house this week.  The exterior finish crew installed more windows and started installing the cedar siding.  Mary is hoping that the siding becomes darker red with the second coat of stain.  Meanwhile, the roof-top HVAC unit was put in place.  Also, the fire sprinkler and plumbing rough-ins continued.  The framing crew returned to complete a few small items such framing in the ducts and plumbing chases.  The roofers installed sleeves around the exhaust vents.  And, the home alarm company walked the site on Friday to update their bid.  Whew.