Super Bill warned me not to go in, but I couldn’t resist.  I had to see the cabinetry being stained.  It was so pretty!  And the pink elephants I was seeing after I spent 10 minutes in the polyurethane dome agreed with me.

So the deck is up, too, including the railings.  We chose ipe wood rather than cedar. It’s super pretty and durable.  It will fade to silver like cedar, but at least I won’t get a thousand splinters on my bare feet!

The stone is set for the fireplace, and we have decided to put a sealant on it to intensify the color and sparkle.  They also made progress on the outside.  All the “lookouts” are in (wood details under the eaves).  And remember those old bricks from the previous building?  We’ve cut some in half and have placed them decoratively on the outside and the house is showing such personality!  Today I met with Wendy from BrushMasters and we finalized outdoor stain choices.  I think we finally are done with all those choices!

Also met today with Water Doctors, about water purification.  Not sexy, but hey:  don’t want rust-colored laundry or eggy-smelling drinking water.  Monday hopefully I will a preliminary landscaping plan.  They removed trees this week which is sad, but needed.  They also decapitated (there really is no other word) my Magnolia tree.  Super Bill reassures me it is for the trees good.  It better be, or me and the pink elephants are coming after him!

The pickups (wood brackets) above the garage. The little square is part of one of the original bricks.

Another view of the garage detailing

Side of the garage (front of the house)

Hall serving buffet

Entertainment center in basement

Another view of entertainment center and bar

Drawerapalooza

Cabinet in Carter’s bath

Shelves in Frankie’s bath

More drawers — in front of the fireplace (the wood “box” is for the TV)

Deck railing

New deck is now a storage unit!

Baseboards?

A peek at the Ipe deck

A view if the back of the house from our newly created deck (top, right to left: our bedroom, our bath, garage window. Bottom, right to left: guest room, Frankie’s bath, Frankie’s room)

The wall of volkswagons

The kitchen island in foreground, with range area in background. The window to the right is in the stairwell.

A shot of the front hall cabinetry, looking towards the garage.

The front hall looking from the laundry room towards the entry and stairwell.

Our bathroom (the man in the background is making pink elephants)

Cabinet fronts