September 10 - The hot tub arrives

One of the things we've missed most, living in an apartment the past year, was our hot tub. So we were very excited when our new hot tub came in from California and was installed into the new house.

We bought a Sumatran, from New England Spas (http://www.nespas.com/ ) and Mike, as accomodating as ever, allowed it to be installed now so that we didn't damage the landscaping that is going in.

The double wide doors in the walkout basement made it a breeze to install.


Our ever-so-competent electrician, John, will hardwire this in soon. He's already installed special lighting in the ceiling around it. We'd discussed this with Mike up front and he was careful to be sure that the area it is installed in is up to code and to the specs we needed to (eventually) make this a wonderful spa area. Water source, drainage and proper electrical source are nearby and the construction was carefully planned so that we can finish the area to our needs. It is really important to discuss your future plans with your builder, and to have a builder that listens!
So can you guess what we will be doing at the end of moving day!!

Interior Update

A very busy couple of weeks at Lot 4, outside and in! On the interior, the wiring, plumbing and ventelation have all been istalled and breezed through town inspection. Outer walls are insulated and ceilings prepared to be finished. Piles of wallboard and plaster are everywhere and start going up on Tuesday. This first photo is the kitchen and the door on the left leads through the laundry room and into the garage.

The fireplace is bricked . Just beyond you can see a bit of the sunroom (definitely our favorite room!)

And the stairs are completed into the basement, which has a floor and lights.

The last pic here is a shot of the very impressive ceiling in the great room. To the left is the kitchen and that will be the powder room to the right.

The kitchen is finalized and on order. We expect that to be ready to install around September 20th. The tiles, carpets and hardwood are all selected as well as the paint (did you ever realize just how many shades of white there are!!) Most of the lighting is purchased, although we are still deciding on the exterior lighting. Last thing on the list for this week is we need to order the hot tub, which needs to be installed in the basement within a couple of weeks so that Mike can begin the landscaping.

A nice surprise

Because of all the rain, we hadn't expected much to happen at the lot last week. But we stopped by anyway for a visit, and were pleasantly surprised to see the basement had been framed. This photo shows the walkout to the back yard and to the right of the picture you can see the large window that is going into the basement as well. We don't really have any plans to finish the basement, but you never know. Plus it will give me adequate light to use the space for the wetwork I do; painting, dying, felting and such and also for a workroom for Tom. Below are a few more pics of the framed foundation.

I've been asked why I haven't yet shown the houseplans. You may have noticed I've posted a line sketch of the house. Thanks, Gary for providing that! The house will actually mirror the sketch as the driveway is on the left. But it will give you a hint of what is coming. I will post the floor plans eventually, but not just yet!

We met Mike as we were leaving. He tells us that he needs to know where to put the stove ventelation... I thought I'd have more time to decide! We've been researching kitchens for weeks and still haven't come up with any decisions. I've even subscribed to a couple of magazines! We will be meeting with a kitchen designer in a couple of weeks.