Screw the pipes

One of the things we did this week was find a used microwave that would fit over our range- it is a bit dated, but worked well, and we couldn't beat the price.  Jake rarely lets a project sit for more than a day (note our speed in going from "should we?"  to "half done" on the basement).  We mounted the microwave late on Thursday night- an easy job for 2 engineers with lots of tools including a studfinder, right?

Well, as you can see from Jake's face, it didn't go well- one of the mounting screws needed to be placed just on the edge of a stud- which forced the bracket too far over.  Trying a second time, we located a bonanza of studs there to choose from, and opted to put a few extra screws in to help the bracket stay in the correct position.... except our stud finder is also a very excellent copper pipe finder...  those weren't studs!

You may not deem the enterprise lucky at this point but you'd be wrong- at least that is how we're determined to look at it.  We had several things on our side.  1) We punctured the pipes twice and the second time it was obvious- a hiss of water quickly told us we had a problem- no slow leaks to surprise us 6 months down the road with major drywall damage.  2) We know where the water shut off valves are 3) If this had happened next week, we would have had brand new drywall up for the basement ceiling and would have potentially ruined it.  4) Our plumber, who was to have finished his work Thursday, was called away on an emergency- meaning bright and early Friday morning, we had a plumber, and no need to call!  5) Our plumber is a good guy and didn't even charge us for the fix, since he was already doing the basement.

So at this point we have the patch in place and will be able to finish installing the microwave (and replace the cabinet) this weekend.  My guess?  It'll be done before noon on Saturday :) 

Basement Update

Remember that pretty new plumbing job and all those white pipes?  Gone.  Here's the even newer version.

And for our next magic trick... all the pipes are now hidden... this was a lot of work by a lot of good guys, and looks fantastic.  No one but our loyal blog followers will ever know how much work went into our simple little basement ceiling.  We are now ready for our rough inspecion: framing, HVAC, electrical, and plumbing.

Oh, and lest we forget, here is a shot of those same shelves that Jake was organizing 2 weeks back...It isn't as bad as it looks right now, but we are a lot more packed-in.  When the construction clears and we can put the tools away and the bed where it belongs, this'll look a lot less cluttered.

Basement Update... we have "walls!"

The framing begins...

Entrance to the new bathroom

 

 Main area- crawlspace access will move, as will all the pipes for water and HVAC.

 Here's a close-up of all those pipes- yes, it'll be a pain to move them, but we can eliminate soffits with the extra effort - and it'll feel less like a "basement" room.

The wall here had to be furred-out to the width of the I-beam, which is part of the soffit-removal effort and also hides the brown metal support pole seen on the left side of the wall if you look carefully). 

Our first plumber was very good but we made a mistake when we decided on our framer *after* the plumber started work.  The framer is awesome and has pushed  get me an extra 4 inches of width to the bathroom and an extra 5 inches of depth, which equates to a wider, more comfortable  shower door- but it also means that all the rough plumbing is getting redone, and now with a new plumber.  Ouch.    Here you see one of the tricks we've played to get the extra space- taking a chunk out of the foundation's footer so we can move the pipes back to the wall (The "old" plumbing shown before it was ripped out).

As we go, we are putting a lot of effort into insulation and air-sealing to make the room warm and comfortable, and energy efficient. 

There are different kinds of "firsts"

This is one of those "firsts" I could have wished to avoid.  It had to happen eventually.

I have been frustrated, overly tired, exasperated and even annoyed at Xander before- but he is a good, good kid, and I almost immediately realize that from his world-view, he is just trying to communicate and act the best way he can.  It is hard to be upset at him for more than the moment.

Today though, I admit it, I got honestly angry for the first time.  Xander somehow got a sharpee and in the time it took for me to write an email replying to a career prospect, one that I was so excited about I "just couldn't wait" on, he did serious damage to my custom staircase.

Luckily, rubbing alcohol has taken most of the ink off, and the rest we'll be able to salvage with some sandpaper and new varnish.  Xander spent 10 minutes in time-out while I cleaned (and cried)...probably too long for someone his age, but it was really more for me than him.

I did get a photo of some of the damage - you'll have to excuse the poor photography on this one- for obvious reasons, I wasn't going to spend any extra time on the photo composition or focus.

On the bright side, I think Xander is starting to like art projects more.

Starting the New Year with a Bang

Really it was more of a thud thud thud thud thud sound.  Xander took his first ever top to bottom fall down a flight of stairs.  Ouch.  I was working in the basement and Erin was in the office, we both realized that something was wrong by the third thud, it wasn't a ball going down the stairs.  I scooped Xander up nano-seconds after he hit the ground, and Erin wasn't far behind- she moves pretty fast (when she needs to) for a lady in her last trimester.  The little guy was pretty worked up, but shook it off amazingly quickly.  I was all ready for an ER visit, but there were no broken bones, and honestly not even much in the way of bruises.  This kid is made of pretty tough stuff.  This fall is a result of Xander starting to want to go down the stairs like a big boy, and walk each step.  He usually is very careful, and on the other set of stairs he can hold on the balusters but, there is nothing low enough to hold onto on the basement stairs.  He doesn't seem much concerned about the fall though.  Within about 15 minutes he was ready to go back down the stairs, although this time he wanted to hold Mommy's hand while he walked down.  There seem to be few lasting effects- he has been playing all day, and wearing Dad out, while Erin has had some quiet time to nurse a viscious cold she got yesterday.  Here's a shot of Xander riding Aslan the Lion and roaring away this afternoon.

-Jake

The Basement: part 2

So begins a secondary plot in our blog- the ongoing adventure of refinishing the basement!

Tile came in early- luckily- because the boxes were soggy and the mosasic tiles were all coming apart.  Back to Home Depot!

Plumbing demolition and rough in begin!

 Xander is absolutely fascinated by all the tools and construction.

Zoo Lights

The Denver Zoo puts on an annual light show at the zoo that is really amazing- and popular!  You don't get to see much of the actual animals, but the light displays are creative, often animated, and absolutely wonderful.  I'd been looking forward to this for months, and we finally got our chance to go this week- and it was worth it.  I was like a little girl at Christmas... oh wait!  It IS still Christmas! (Going on the 12 days of Christmas theory, and I don't see why not.)

Christmas Cutie

 Christmas is so much more fun with a little kid around!

Christmas Pancakes for all! (And scraps for the dogs)

Jake's favorite part of Christmas might have been putting the toys together with Xander- who now knows where all the screws are.  We learned that Jake tends to follow the instructions, while I tend to look at the picture and wing it.  Maybe that's why he's a better engineer?

We were able to Skype with Gran and Rod while opening up their presents, and even fed the image to the TV, which made it seem much more real to Xander!

What kid doesn't love new toys?  This is one of two similar but very different car/ramp sets that Xander got for Christmas- and he's already figuring out how to combine them into new games.  I do wonder though, what does it say about us that our toy drivers have cell phones?  Luckily, this one is using his phone to call the awesome tow truck.

Athletically inclined? Yes. Inclined to follow the rules? No.  Xander has a talent for "Calvin ball."  He also surprised us this week by taking his balance bike over a ramp- just like the older kids (and dad) in the cul de sac!

Xander got his very first laptop from Grandma and Grandpa McParland. It makes music, teaches animals, and letters, and even has pretend email!

Can anyone answer, without looking back at the photos, how many sets of pajamas (plus eventually a "real" outfit) Xander went through on Christmas day? 

Begin the Basement

Well, we have started preparing to finish the basement.  Erin has been hard at work coming up with the design, picking out bathroom fixtures and interviewing contractors.  Aside from all those things, we also have to consolidate all our STUFF out of the area to be finished, into a space one third the size.  When we first moved into this house, we built a huge set of shelves and a work bench.  Both needed to be moved out of what will be the finished area into the area that will remain storage.  The shelves of course had to be completely unloaded, moved and then refilled much more efficiently.  You can see me packing the top shelf tight with stuff, and Xander wondering, "What's daddy doing up there??".  The work bench had to be shortened to fit in the new space and in order to make up for the smaller bench, it needed more shelves.  Xander as always was excited to help.

Meg and Morgan visit!

You may remember several weeks back that we were afraid that by now I might be on bedrest- not a likelihood, mind you, but the pelvis was so problematic (painful) we were nervous.  Since then the chiropractor (specializing in pregnant ladies and this particular condition) has put me back on track (a little like snapping a dislocated joint back into place) and while I still get sore by the end of the day or if I walk to far etc., I am feeling just about as good as most women who are in their 7th month of pregnancy... as long as I see her at least once a week to maintain the "fix."  It is supposed to magically resolve itself a few weeks after Xander is born, and I won't have to continue seeing her forever.

So, back when I was first talking about the issue with my family, they decided that I really needed folks to plan on coming out even before Maya was born to help out.  My mother made a reservation for late January, and my sister Meg made a reservation to come out with her son, Morgan, who was born only a month after Xander in December.  Because I was feeling so much better by time they arrived, we were able to enjoy a few fun days together.  Mind you, Meg still helped out a ton by providing moral support, babysitting for us so we could attend Jake's corporate holiday party, playing with Xander while I studied for finals, and generally cleaning parts of my house for me that I haven't had time or ability to do in awhile.

Morgan and Xander quickly bonded like cousins, or maybe even brothers- meaning the fought, played, hugged, shared, failed to share, figured out how to cause lots of mischief together and huge messes, and made us laugh out loud a lot. 

One thing the did *not* do well- hold still for the camera!  We did get this one photo though- a keeper!

One of our best times was visiting the Denver zoo- both kiddos really enjoyed the different animals. 

We also had to visit Monkey Business before taking Meg and Morgan back to the airport- a great way (we hoped) to burn off some energy!  Morgan is a natural climber and showed Xander a thing or two!