HAULIN' ASS!

Howdy Y'all!

Another week has passed since our last blog post and we are as busy-as-little-bees at the ranch! Apparently, our builder has finished his Parade of Homes house, and can now devote all of his attention to our home. (I'll apologize in advance for any sarcasm.) A horde of subs have descended on the house in an effort to finish it by our drop-dead date, so at least we are seeing a credible push, at this point, to get done. There are a number of crafts working at the same time, so we hope we don't confuse you.

One principal effort started yesterday with the delivery and installation of the granite countertop pieces throughout the house. There are a number of countertops, so it would appear that this is a 3-day install, with a couple of other pieces (outdoor BBQ and the Prep Kitchen table) delayed until next week. It is pretty interesting watching the Granite Guys work since they drill all of the sink faucets onsite. (Kinda scary if they make a mistake.) They also install all of the sinks and bathtubs as they go along, which is a first for us; past houses have used the plumbers. In any case, accuracy is a big deal, so we stay out of their way while they are working.

Main Kitchen Island pictures, with appliances (below).

Kitchen cooktop granite counter (with dusty cabinets).

Prep Kitchen work counter. (Cabinets still to be antiqued.)

More Prep Kitchen work space.

Granite surround for Jan's bathtub.

The Water Collection Guys also showed up this week to install the pump and filtration system for our tank rainwater entering the house. We got a pleasant surprise when the team informed us that they were upgrading our 2HP pump to a 3HP pump at no additional charge. We're also wiring the pump directly to the generator ATS (automatic transfer switch), as well as to the house, in case of a power failure of any type. Gotta have water! In spite of the appearance of simplicity once the installation is complete, installing this puppy was a complicated 2-day effort.

Okay, this goes where now?? 

Uh-oh, I've gotta bunch of parts left over!

Hmm, this wasn't in my training class??

Pumphouse.

Filtration system.

Finished product!

We also saw the return of the Stone Guys this week to start the final push on the outdoor kitchen, compressor equipment wall, and Great Room/Foyer wall. They elected to start the outdoor kitchen first so that the Granite Guys can measure and install the tops. This also turned out to be a bit more complicated since we added a Big Green Egg to the initial layout. But, as luck would have it, it does fit, so they started laying the stone.

Measuring the BGE to slip into the granite countertop.

Outdoor kitchen cooktop BBQ range.

Partially finished outdoor bar top . Cooktop is on the other side.

Jan and Cindy critiquing the outdoor kitchen progress. (Poor stone masons.)

And, last but most definitely not least, the MOST IMPORTANT room in the house is now almost complete. All we now need is the wine!

Where's the wine??

But Wait, There's More!

Brief Artistic Interlude - I call it
"Tank in the Wild"  :-)

That's all for now. See ya later!
- Jan and John -