This Old House...

... will be the death of me! And my marriage!

It has been a grueling week. It started on Monday, when B's parents were scheduled to arrive, and Victoria decided to kid. As I posted earlier, we had to call the vet, and though the babies are healthy, we have one bottle baby (for now) as he is unable to stand. The kids are working with him to get him to try and learn to stand so he can nurse on his own. He is making progress, but not yet ready to go back out to the barn. So his every-4-hour feedings are taking their toll. Since Monday. Even in the night. And everyone knows how much I like my sleep.

All week we have been scrambling to get the bathroom fixed-- at least workable-- so that our company does not have to share our delightful sawdust toilet. We were successful in getting the fixtures installed (on Thanksgiving Day), except for the clawfoot tub, which fell off of its claw feet. So we have no bathtub (still). This wouldn't be a problem, since we did fix up a shower downstairs, but M decided it would be fun to fill up the flexible hose on the shower head and watch it expand like a water balloon, and then BURST like a balloon. So he shower head is no more.

So here it is Sunday, church day, and we cannot shower. We will work hard to get it fixed today. And we do love the look of the bathroom-- pictures coming soon. We just have to do the tub, install some trim and crown molding, and then the finish work, which is fixing joins that don't meet perfectly, touching up paint, fixing a broken tile, grouting, hooking up the heating duct, etc. Those are small projects that are easily done after work or in an evening. Not these all day, 2 day projects that are crucial to get done asap.

We found last week-- the same week we had electricity fixed and the propane leak fixed-- that we had yet another water leak. This time it was from the washing machine, and it was under the crawl space. It was a small drip, and we decided that for the moment we would just turn the water on and off at the shutoff valve so that it would not leak. We would just turn it on when we did laundry. But we forgot how much laundry we do. And the leak got larger. So running new lines from the washer (through the icky crawl space), installing a new shutoff valve and testing our marriage again, was on the books for Friday night.

In (almost) hindsight, I am happy that we did not know the magnitude of this project. We would never have taken it on ourselves if we had known how long it would have taken or how difficult each step is. I think back to the cement board that was so difficult to install-- heavy, dusty to cut, unforgiving in composition, how dry and hard it is on the skin-- and it seems like we did that months ago. It was tough to get through that stage of the remodel, but we thought that once we got that done, a finished bathroom would be right around the corner. We didn't know we'd have problem after problem.

But we are both glad that we did this project ourselves. We have learned so much about the systems of our house. We are not afraid to do plumbing (though we leave most electric and certainly all propane to the pros!). (We did move a light fixture and cap off a couple of outlets.) The bathroom encompasses so many projects across the board: demolition, some minor framing, insulation, walls, window installation, sheet rock, cement board, tiling the floor, plumbing, electric, patching, painting, installing the exhaust fan, and on and on. there is no other room-- save for building another bathroom, which we are not inclined to do anytime in the next 5 years-- that will require us to use all of those skills at once. Even our kitchen remodel will not require us to gut and redo. We may replace cabinets, or move plumbing, etc., but no floor tiling, etc. So we have learned a lot and are thankful for that.

Today we shall attempt to install the tub! She's going in feet first... :)

Babies

The stork visited us on Monday afternoon. Yay! It wasn't without a bumpy landing, however, as we had to call the vet out to pull the kids. I couldn't make heads or tails of the hooves in there, they were definitely malpresented, but sorting it out was not easy, even for him. But, miracle worker that he is, he got them out and they were two healthy bucklings. I had hoped for more does, but these boys are out of a buck that is amazing, and I am excited, as they could bring a lot of money (or fabulous bloodlines to my own herd, should I decide to keep them). One negative thing is that one of the babies was born breech, and as such is having leg problems. They should work themselves out in a week or two, but until then he cannot stand and nurse, so we are having to tube feed him or pick him up to nurse every 4 hours. It's cold out there for all of us! A little BoSe yesterday and he should be okay in a few days.

I have tried to spend a lot of time noticing the goats' behavior lately. B and I had some thoughts about animal communication, and we decided that they understand human behaviors much more than we give them credit for, and we believe it is because humans rely so much on our ability to hear and speak with each other. We don't use body language or smell or sight as much to infer mood or intent. But with the "communication barrier" that we have with animals, they are forced to watch us and study us and get to know our body language to interpret our mood and intentions.

It was especially amazing to me to think of this during the whole kidding process. She started to kid outside, and I managed to walk her into the barn and into the kidding pen without a lead. I did not leave her side except to call the vet, and she clearly wanted me there to reassure her. Now that her babies are born, she does not permit any cats in the pen (she will headbutt and try to bite them), and if the dogs are too close to the pen, she will headbutt the pen as well. She has tried to drive the children away, though not as aggressively as the animals, but with B and I, she is very tolerant and needy. She stands to be milked, though she has never been milked. She is an amazing animal, and we give her credit for that-- do you suppose she knows?

I know that this all seems as though we personify her, and that's not really the case. But we do want to give animals the credit they deserve for being intelligent, sentient animals.

I saw a quote in a book once, specifically referring to a photo of a cat with a human. It said, "I stay because I am free to go." That is so fitting for my relationship with my animals-- it is an unspoken mutual trust. It was never verbally agreed upon, terms were never laid out or discussed. It just is, and it's just as powerful as any agreement between humans.

Very Very Close

Well several things are very, very close.

First, we are close to being done with the bathroom. Never, NEVER would we have thought it would take this long! But when we took time off from work, we sort of "blocked out" the rest of our committments for that week, and planned on completing the bathroom. However, when the time was taken up with fixing leaks, shoring up rotten supports and replacing subflooring. So, when we went back to work, those repairs had been made, but the actual renovation had hardly begun. For the past two weeks, then, we have been living without a bathroom and working on the renovation outside of work. And life went on, our committments returned and we just fit the reno in where we could.

So, while we are disappointed that it has taken so long, we are quite proud that it has actually come to a close (nearly). We are well over budget, possibly even 3x over budget, and certainly coming up on 3x as long in time budgeted. However, the bathroom is sturdy, done correctly, and is going to be just what we wanted. It is a very interesting mix of old and new. We tried to work the old into it, and even simulate the old in a lot of instances.

Secondly Victoria is close to kidding! Her due date was yesterday, and we are watching her carefully. We will have the goat cam up and running also. She is due to have twins.

Thirdly, B's parents come and visit Monday. We are looking forward to a great time. Oh, did I mention I was having company? Off to get my work done!

Bathroom Renovation: Day Gazllion

Well, it seems like a gazillion days have gone by since we started this project. Or at least a thousand.

Initially it had been one setback after another, until we got the "bones" fixed, and then started on the cosmetic. The end is in sight, and all that we do now provides an instant visual gratification. Laying tile was exciting, grouting was even more exciting. I skim coated the walls, and that was very gratifying, as it provided a light and airy backdrop for the bathroom-- something that the cement board did not provide. I am removing traces of grout from the tiles tonight, and patching the holes in the ceiling that remained where we removed framing. After that, I will prime and paint the walls and ceiling, and then put up the wainscoting. As soon as the wainscoting is trimmed out, then we can put the fixtures back in. We are hoping that it might be Thursday, but realistically it may be Friday. And dammit, I have reserved the bathroom for about a 90 minute soak and assembled the necessary accoutrements for said soak (in Kismet fragrance, thankyouverymuch)!

I imagine the soak will come even before the final touches are put on the room!

I am continuing to document with photos!

Let there be light!

And Hope!

After a month and nine days, the power is back on in the barn! It is so helpful, as with daylight savings time, it's getting darker much earlier. And we have a doe due to kid at the end of the week (she could go anytime), so if it gets cold, her kids will need a heat lamp and warming, which will require power.

The electrician came today and spent the entire day here. We have all new power hooked up outside, and 100 amp service! Yay! He said I could get a dishwasher tomorrow... :) (hear that B?) We have a new breaker box in the basement, and L does not have the breaker panel in his room anymore. That always made me nervous.

The bad news is that we seem to have a propane leak, which we obviously will get fixed asap, and we have a water leak in the crawl space. It's always something...

The better news is that we grouted the bathroom tile tonight. So we should be able to move fixtures in on Wednesday. I can't wait to soak in the tub. I will soak until the water gets cold.

What an amazing program!

It is amazing to see that there are still small companies out there that do the right thing...


Rolling Hills Bank Heifer Project

Babies Soon!

We had the vet out on Friday, and he ultrasounded all of the girls. All are pregnant except one, and most are having twins except for the two smallest, and they are having singles. That is good. So we should have 10 babies by spring, if we don't have a kidding season like last year.

They all seem to be due on holidays, too, or very near. The dates are:
November 16 (next week!)
December 26
December 30
January 2
January 24 (B's Birthday)
February 12 (right after L's b-day, and just before Valentine's day!)

The last doe that was not bred was with the buck this weekend, and if she doesn't come back into heat, she'll be due April 4, which does not fall on a holiday.

Can't wait for kids!

Bathroom Renovation: Day 5 Recap

Well, we are nearly finished with the wallboard. It looks great, and progress is being made! The big problem now is that life is going on: teacher conferences, doctors appointments, assignments that require mom and dad's help, etc. We blocked out a few days that we did not do anything, but B goes back to work tomorrow and I go back on Thursday. It has taken us so much longer than we imagined it would take.

I may take a break tomorrow from the work and clean up. Laundry and dishes continue to need attention as does the vaccuming and some grocery shopping. I am really torn, but I know that in time it will get done!

Off to bed, to get up and do it all again!

Bathroom Renovation: Day 5 Prognosis

Well, today is a little sunnier than yesterday, and not just in the sky. We made a LOT of progress yesterday, and finished most of the flooring. B has it so sturdy and level that an elephant could use the toilet without issue. The floor needs one section of plywood installed and then will be ready for Durock cement board for under the tiling.

I removed a boarded up window (and the siding on the other side), framed in the opening to accomodate the slightly smaller new (old home salvaged) window, and installed the window. Then I insulated the room with some mold-resistant insulation. It's ready for sheet rock now.

Today we will put up the wall boards, and maybe prime and paint. Wouldn't that be nice?? We could also put up wainscoting if we had the time, and then install some of the "cosmetic" things, like the medicine cabinet and connect the lights. It would be good to have a light in there, however, we do have a lovely window, and for the first time in a lot of years, that room is basking in the eastern sunshine.

So am I.

the light of day

Sometimes just the sun coming up offers you a new perspective! Today the drain in the basement "became" unclogged (with a little help from me and Liquid Plumber) and we are now able to take showers in the basement. If you have ever seen our basement, you know that this is one step above showering outside in the cold, and if it were summer, might even be a step below. However, it has hot and cold running water, a shower curtain, and a sprayer. But, it feels good to be clean!!!!!

And now, the time setbacks don't seem so significant. We both have more days off and will work hard to get a lot done in that time. Of course, the $$$ setbacks are still painful, we haven't found a remedy for that yet.

Off to work...

renovation update

It's 2:30 am, not yet giving ourselves our "extra hour" today. We have still not started constructing anything, and spent the day doing damage control. We had two water leaks, including one on the water heater. It was truly a sprinkler squirting out of the pipe. Thankfully B is very skilled at fixing plumbing leaks, and while it did take him a while (the leaks were in awkward places, and they were on curves and elbows, etc.) he did get them fixed perfectly.

We cut out all of the rotten subfloor, and some of the plywood on top of it. We need to replace the subfloor under where the toilet will go, but we can't really replace it and the plywood until we have had a fan on it and let some of it dry out. Apparently our previous tub leaked, and had been leaking for a matter of years. We suspected this, and that's why we tried to renovate asap. There is only superficial damage to the top layer of plywood, and we bough some to replace it. We cut it out and need to air out the subfloor. B is now finishing the day by scraping the old vinyl off the floor.

Hopefully tomorrow (today?) we will begin constructing. It is exciting to think about-- the hex tile pattern I picked out, the perfect light fixture, how we are going to eliminate the disgusting overhead light (without a cover) and exhaust fan combo that collected ladybugs and box elder bugs inside of it. It hung halfway out of the ceiling and looked terrible. We have a beautiful pedestal sink that looks perfect in the room, and a period faucet. I have picked accessories that will be perfect in the room, and have collected them for a few months now. We will put up wainscoting and paint the walls a light shade of blue. Thinking about all of the cosmetic things-- including that clawfoot tub-- is making me about drool, especially when I think that tomorrow we will be still stuck on putting in new floors. Tiling and grouting are going to take a matter of DAYS to complete, so that will also put a wrench in the plans. But putting in the floors needs to be done, and we are that much closer to a long soak in the tub. :)

Tomorrow will be a better day. Night.

i totally lied

This has been the worst day. When I reported this morning, all was going well, albeit slow. That continued to be the case until we discovered two leaks and rotten subfloor around the toilet. B stepped on it and nearly fell through the floor-- boards fell into the basement. We had to drive again to the home improvement store, spent 4 hours out, and are now back doing damage control.

But there has been no forward movement, just a lot of damage control. And a lot of lost time and LOTS of additional money.

Yuck.

I keep telling myself that bathrooms reap 100% return should you ever sell your house. And the mold in this room was causing me to worry about the health of my family. I was embarassed about how disgusting it was and how much it smelled. So this is really an investment in my sanity. Well, a LONG-TERM investment in my sanity, because for this short term I am out of my f-ing mind.

Keeping my fingers crossed for forward movement tomorrow... and we are working into the wee hours tonight.

Cranky

Well, today begins day 3 of our bathroom project. We have not even completely finished demolishing the room. It is very discouraging, and I am cranky. We have no bathroom facilities indoors, except for sponge baths in the sink and the sawdust toilet, both of which are not sufficient for more than a few days. B goes back to work on Monday, and I go back on Wednesday. Tiling the floor will take significant time-- both in the tiling process and in the curing time.

My husband is an amazing builder. He is very meticulous and precise-- both traits that I do not appreciate enough. Instead his lack of speed frustrates me. As I write this I know that I would not have it any other way, since I want a quality job that we can be proud of. But I am freaking out about the time remaining, and he continues to work very carefully and slowly, assuring me that we will get done in time. I am not so sure.

To our defense, the time we budgeted would have been enough, even with the few issues that came up unexpectedly (a broken water pipe, nonstandard size [of course!] that needed to be repaired), etc. However, the fire burned all of our tools. While we purchased the tools we knew we'd need, when things arose or we had forgotten about something, we had to run and buy more tools. It has also caused us to be majorly over budget. So I am cranky and bitchy today.

I know I will be much better when the bathroom is done! I probably will not blog again until it is finished. You don't want to hear me bitch! Not only that, but here I am typing and not working! I am taking pictures along the way, though. No exciting finds, except for the fact that our house is in nearly pristine shape. I am gobsmacked at how beautifully crafted this home is. She is amazingly sturdy and enduring. No mold, no damage, even a noticeable lack of spider webs and dust. It's almost divine.

Today we frame out a window (more marriage enrichment!) and put in the insulation, cement walls and flooring. Tonight we tile. If all goes our way.

On a positive note, all the girls are pregnant except one. We should have 10 babies by spring, if we are lucky.

Ever peed in a sawdust toilet?

Well, our house is Redneck Central for a couple of days. We are renovating our (only) bathroom, and during the chaos we have bathtubs outside, toilets elsewhere, sinks on the ground, etc. It’s quite the display of refinement, let me tell you.

While we can all get away with skipping a shower for a day or two (as long as we don’t go into town), it’s a bit tough with the toilet. November is a bit nippy around here, so it’s not like we can just go find a tree. The boys do that, but they look for any excuse to pee outside.

After reading how some of the hard core homesteaders live, we decided to implement the sawdust toilet. It’s really quite ingenious, actually. You take a 5-gallon bucket and fill it with a bit of sawdust. Put a toilet seat on top of the bucket, and each time you “go” you add a bit more of the sawdust to the bucket. It is the perfect height and the seat fits great. It doesn’t smell in the least.

So what could have been the worst obstacle to this whole project has been quite easy. Now we just need to hurry up because soon showers will be a big issue! Can't shower with sawdust.

The bathroom renovation is a true renovation—we have gutted the room down to the studs, are replacing the subflooring and all of the walls. The only fixture that is not being replaced is the toilet, as it is relatively new. We have a refurbished clawfoot tub as well a new sink, and of course the décor will be completely different. We can’ t wait for it to be finished, it has been a long time coming, and a sore spot for too long!

I promise to post photos—I’m documenting as we go.

Gotta get back to work!

P.S. In the midst of the chaos, the vet will come today and ultrasound all the girls to see if they are pregnant and date their pregnancies! Definitely more on that later…