Progress

Everyday something magical happens at the Beckley house. I'm an extremely lucky gal that I have such a handy husband. Rich and I are even luckier that we have an Antonio. Rich began working on the house with the help of some local day laborers. They were great workers, however they were not skilled in construction. Rich researched a lot about remodeling, however he didn't have a lot of practical application. Thankfully one day Antonio appeared. He lives in our neighborhood and was walking by and asked Rich if he needed some help. Yes, he has a green card (for my immigration friends that may read this). Antonio has built houses for the past ten years, however since the economy has taken a nose dive, he hasn't had much work. Surprisingly nobody wants to build houses right now! So we are fortunate that Antonio decided to walk down our street and spotted our very needy house. He is amazing and has helped our house progress quickly. He calls Rich boss, however we all realize that Antonio is the boss. Here are some recent photos.

This is our new "old" tub and sink purchase from Sanford and Son. Really, we found this guy who does demo and collects items from his jobs and puts them in a junkyard. Reminds me of the show. He is uber cool and reminds me of a black Santa. He's extrememly friendly and is always happy to cut us a deal. He has a yard full of treasures. The tub and sink are being cleaned up and polished by professionals, so they will look amazing.

These photos were taken today, Friday. Notice the exposed cedar beams in the living and dining room; before it was a flat ceiling. Also notice something new in the photo on the right? We have french doors. That's also Antonio talking to Rich about what he did today. I had to steal Rich away from Beckley to pick out tile and countertops. It was his first time away from the job site since the remodel has begun. So Antonio really was the boss man today. He did all of exposed beams today!

The photo on the left was taken last Saturday. That was an exciting day b/c the subfloor was laid in the kitchen and bathroom. The photo on the right was taken today. The window and french door has opened up the kitchen so much. Another things that happened this week that you can't see, is the insulation. Rich did cellulose blow in insulation in all of the exterior walls. Next week we are getting soy based spray foam put into the attic. We are trying to be as green as possible. Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle! That's definitely our motto. I truly am amazed by the progress and I can't wait to document what happens next.