If you add a little Tyvek to the second floor, this is pretty much what the house looks like right now.
They had to extend the chimney and the two fireplace liners above the new second floor. We were really tempted to start the fire the other day (it was 51 degrees in the morning! After 97+ days, that felt really cold! BUT we didn't - I don't know if we have to get an inspection on the chimney...)
Here's a shot of our newly installed stairs - the lake is at your back, and at the top of the staircase there's a landing and you turn 180 degrees. When you enter the sitting room on the 2nd floor, you're facing the lake, with a view to die for! Also, you can see that 2"x4" supporting the landing - picture a wall alongside the stairs where it's started to get framed out, making a right angle to the 2"x4", then another right angle to the front of the house. The left window will remain visible, but there will be a door there to enter the lower staircase, to access the basement. Those stairs will go from front to back, into the basement, coming out facing the walk out door to the lake.
From the sitting room, this is one side of our double-sided-fireplace-to-be; the other side will be in our bedroom.
Here are our new sliding glass doors and windows in the living room, with all the grids finally installed!

Since I can't figure out how to add more than 5 pictures at a time (I don't think I can), I'm making two separate entries this morning, to catch you all up to date on the construction.

We have stairs.

Some stairs. Stairs from the first floor to the new second floor.

We don't have stairs from the first floor to the basement. Which means, gentle reader, that we have to go outside, down the rather steep hill, around to the back of the house, to the basement walk out door, and into the basement to get the extra staples DH needs for the stapler. Then we have to reverse the trip, climb up the rather steep hill and back inside the house.

Only to find out that there are two sizes of staples down there, and of course, I brought the wrong ones upstairs. Why? Because DH didn't tell me there were two different sizes of staples, and he was even wrong about where in the basement they were, but I managed to located them. [For the record, the second set wasn't anywhere near the first. For an uber-organized male, that was a big oops!]

Oh. Sorry. I didn't bring them "upstairs." BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE STAIRS THERE.

Now, going upstairs to the addition is a pleasure. Those stairs are wide, oak and beautiful. I love climbing upstairs, even to do work. I have to pick out a bannister and a newel post. And a chandelier. For the stair landing. It will hand in front of a window in the hallway and will look ever-so-nice at night...

This whole downstairs thing? The stairs they made to go from the first floor to the basement didn't fit. They "missed" the fact that our foundation wall has both 8" and 12" cinder blocks, and they change from 8" to 12" right in the middle of the staircase! I think we're going to put a ladder down into the hole in the floor that currently leads into our basement. Sigh. More ladders.

I absolutely promise to get pictures posted this week, no matter what.

Stairs.

I can't even guess at how many times I've moaned and groaned about having to climb up a flight of stairs. But as is true about other things, we really take stairs for granted.

As you know, if you're either (a) a reader of this blog, or (b) anyone who knows me or my husband personally, we're under construction at the lake house. It took only three days for the framers to put a second floor on our home.

Now, keep in mind that I'm not a fan of ranch-style homes. I grew up in a colonial style house, with living quarters on the first floor, and bedrooms/bathrooms on the second. That's my idea of a home. You shouldn't, IMHO, be able to just sort of roll out of bed into the kitchen. You should be able to go to sleep while your housemates (be they family or husband) have company downstairs and not worry about someone hearing you brush your teeth or go potty. It's sort of like separation of "life" and "home," or "day" and "night."

Well, we have a second floor at the lake now. It's not livable, but we can work up there. The only thing is:

I have to climb a ladder to get there.

Now, I know, dear readers, that you're thinking, "So what? It's a ladder. Climb it already and stop whining."

However, (1) I'm not a fan of heights, no matter how low they might be, and when I climb a ladder, I'm almost always climbing to a spot higher than where I start, and eventually I have to climb back down from a spot higher than I'm heading toward, and (2) my legs are too long to climb a ladder.

Yea, sure, go ahead and laugh. But I'm serious. When I try to climb a ladder (and despite my professed fear of heights, I do, to help DH do his work!), my knees hit the rungs or the sides of the ladder and it's very awkward. Can I clamber up said ladder with my legs spread wide and pointed outward? Sure. I look stupid and I'm unsteady, but it can be done.

I don't do it.

I take one rung at a time, one leg at a time (always the right one). And it takes a lot longer than a flight of stairs would.

The point of all of this?

They're delivering our stairs today and they're installing them tomorrow!!!

Life is good.

I started physical therapy yesterday. It was a piece of cake: a few leg lifts (2 different kinds), tightening my quads (2 different exercises), some icing (cool down) and electrotherapy. Then Lorraine, my therapist, enlightened me: "Of course today was easy. It's like fishing. We reel you in with an easy day, then put the screws to you next time!" Basically, it gets me back in the door at least once...

I understand I will be adding in some bike work, some treadmill time, and some weight exercises into my routine. In addition, she's assigned me some homework:

1. Hip/knee Strengthening: Hip Adduction - Isometric - With ball or folded pillow between knees, squeeze knees together. Hold 10 seconds. Repeat 10 times per set. Do 2 sets per session. Do 2 sessions per day.
2. Hip/knee Strengthening: Straight Leg Raise (Phase I) - Tighten muscles on front of right thigh, then lift leg to height of left knee, keeping knee locked. Repeat 20 times per set. Do 2 sets per session. Do 2 sessions per day.
3. Hip/knee: Straight Leg Raise with External Leg Rotation - Lie on back with right leg straight, opposite leg bent. Rotate straight leg out and lift to height of left knee. Repeat 20 times per set. Do 2 sets per session. Do 2 sessions per day.
4. Hip/knee Quad Set: Slight Flexion - Tense muscles on top of right thigh. Hold 10 seconds. Repeat 5 times per set. Do 2 sets per session. Do 2 sessions per day.

Of course, I have to do it for both legs, not just the right one. I'd look pretty darned funny if only one leg was developed/strengthened...

Tonight is Scrapping Game Night. Should be fun!

The plumber has begun. He thinks he'll be back even next week, too. We're hiring someone to insulate. The chimney should be done today. The sider will come next week, perhaps. It's getting there, it really is. In a couple of weeks, you won't know that we don't have walls inside, that it's not livable inside - the outside will look like a new house!!! I can't wait!

Happy Birthday, Mom!!! Today is mom's b'day - I hope it's one of the best ones yet! Jack and I are taking her out to dinner, and we're supposed to have cake at my house, but the heat and humidity might put the kibosh on that... Maybe we'll do that another evening... Mom will talk to C and let me know later today.

So the plumber came on Sunday to look at the work that has to be done. While we are putting a tub in the new bathroom, no one will ever use it - we're shower folk. But I really wish I could put a real tub in the space, not one of those hotel tubs that are only 14" deep... But because of the space restrictions and the places where the beams/floor joists are located, we're sort of stuck when it comes to running the drains and water pipes. So I suppose I'll have to decorate the bathroom with a full shower curtain, rather than just frame it, so you can't see the mini tub we're being forced to put in... Of course, if we wanted to delay the bathroom work until they ordered another tub, we could do that, but really, according to DH that's "NOT AN OPTION." Now, he really didn't say that, but I know that if I even mention delaying the work, his head will really and truly explode on his shoulders and I'll have to clean up all that gray matter. We have to have it done before the end of August 'cause he goes back to school and no one will be there to have the work done unless I take off and if I take more days off now I won't be able to take days off when we want/need them in November for Teachers' Conference or in December for my birthday or Christmas or even for Christmas shopping...

I visited one of my favorite blogs the other day: http://phopecj.blogspot.com/
I hope Miss Hope doesn't mind if I cut and paste the pertinent info here - to those of you who say the media isn't biased: WHY HAVE WE NOT HEARD ABOUT THIS HERE IN NJ? [Note from my mom: It was mentioned on whatever TV station she was watching, but no follow up story, and they don't know why these guys had the stuff they had in their car and there was no mention of the Naval base or the jail...]

We sat in silence when the story turned to two guys who were taken into custody for allegedly having bomb fixin's in their vehicle. Location of this incident? The local anchor stated it was Charleston, South Carolina. The banner on the bottom stated Goose Creek, South Carolina. A standard roadblock interceded and stopped these fellows. Now, here comes the good part. I'm not going to tell you any classified information. That's probably because I don't know a lick of it to begin with. But, do you pay attention? I mean, REALLY pay attention? Because if you did, you would know that we have the Navy Nuclear Power Training Command in Goose Creek, South Carolina. I know this because my husband was an instructor there for three and a half years. This is where we have a few thousand kids that are fresh out of boot camp. They are cramming so much knowledge into their young brains in a short amount of time so they can go out in the fleet and protect our country. I've had the honor of being on this base and, believe me..it's loaded with our smartest and brightest. It holds our hope for a generation that will love this country and continue to protect it and serve it well. I will give you the link of the article that I found online so that you may gleam more information. Plus, it'll save me alot of typing.http://www.abcnews4.com/news/stories/0807/444994.htmlHow about that? Are you surprised? Truly? This worries me. Of course, it worries me. I wouldn't have taken the time to write about it if it didn't. Let's just talk hypothetically now. Let's just say these boys were seriously thinking of doing harm. (Remember, it's supposed to innocent until proven guilty here in American...so for now...we'll just do some "suppose this or that" talk). Let's just say they managed some how to get on base. Let's just say they even managed to get as far as the school where our young men and women are sleeping in barracks....or even the building where they attend school. Let's just say they blast this rolling bomb of a vehicle and take out the school.Have you any idea what this could do to our Navy? Any idea at all? It could have the potential to severely damage an entire generation of sailors. I can't even fathom what the repercussions could be in the long run. But, I'll be more than happy to let you stew on it for a few.Because I have another concern I need to address.Again, I'm not giving out any classified information. My husband doesn't tell me stuff and I don't ask. I respect his job and duties and would never in my life ask him to betray an oath that he has taken. So, do you know what else is at our Goose Creek, South Carolina Naval Training Command? A brig. That's a jail. And it's a jail that holds some of the worst bad guys that threaten our country. Take for instance:http://archives.cnn.com/2002/US/06/10/dirty.bomb.suspect/If you hung with the article long enough, you would have seen where Mr. Muhajir is being held. Yeah, scary, isn't it? It's enough to make a person wonder. Were Two Bomb Suspects harboring thoughts of taking out some of our kids? Or were they thinking about breaking out this Muhajir character..or even taking him out so he can't rat on anyone? Will we ever know?Now comes the good part. This is where I once again spout my love for this country because I am getting ready to state some of my very own personal opinions.All you tree hugging jerks who keep talking out of your butt about stopping this war and cutting funding?Shut up.When you know every single little detail and get a full complete picture of what's going on? THEN, open your mouth to speak and just shut up again. You don't know it all. You seriously don't. The media will only show what is guaranteed to boost ratings and if that's something that slants against our troops and defense plans, what do they care? Anything to stir up controversy and keep viewers tuned in to their stations. Let the people do their jobs. Let them keep us safe. Let them keep OUR CHILDREN safe. Let them work to keep our country a "free" country for future generations. I'm all for everyone having an opinion. Unless it's a stupid one and I've heard too many stupid ones on this subject to last me a lifetime. If we are to survive in any capacity, we must remain diligent. We have no choice. We have to have surprise roadblocks. We have to have someone standing watch at all times. I welcome any and all comments and arguments. For or against. I reserve the right to delete stupid stuff. Cause I'm crazy like that. I love living here in the U.S.A.

My french doors are installed! DH came home last night (to see me!) and said that he can't wait for me to get there today and see what he did... Pictures to come next week! He says it looks great!

And all the window grids are in in our new living room, and the new window with the missing balance - fixed! (It's so nice to be married to a handy man!!)

The humidity here in NJ is getting unbearable. The few days in the year when we suffer this way really get to me. Thank goodness (drumroll, please!) I'll have central air in the lake house by the time I begin to suffer from menopause and hot flashes! I don't think I could tolerate it any other way! Of course, if I'm still working when I start suffering that way, I might have to relocate and commute from the lake house...

I got a call from my dr the other day - my fibroid tumors appear to be the same. One view showed a slight increase (less than a quarter of an inch) but he seemed to feel it might be the view only, not an actual size change. I'm still totally symptom-free, so we're not going to do anything about them. I asked about the pill; yes, I'm staying on it for a while longer. He said I would see a difference in my period if I started menopause, even though I am on the pill, so unless I want to practice safe sex some other way, I should stay on it for now. I'll continue to check in with him every six months.

I'm training up to the lake today. It's 1-1/2 hours, one way. Once in a while, it's not bad. I get a bit of reading done (I tried some writing but that's not happening - a laptop would work; the train wouldn't affect my typing like it affects my handwriting...) and of course, some people-watching...

Sometimes I hear stories about other people's families, and I'm so grateful for my own. Even with all our foibles and quirks and pesky pet peeves - we are so very normal! I have a friend whose family is, well, to put it nicely, nuts. And they make her so darn miserable that it's even hard, sometimes, to hear her tell her stories! I know, I know, I'm only hearing her side of the story - and I tell her that - but even when I try to look at it from "their" side - no way. They're nuts. For instance... she just called me, en route to work. She was in the shower this morning, washing her hair, sort of prepared for her dad to yell at her to get out of the shower, that she's taking too long, like he's done in the past for no good reason.

He did. Yell at her to get out of the shower. "RIGHT NOW! WHERE ARE YOU? WHY AREN'T YOU OUT HERE YET? I NEED YOU OUT HERE RIGHT NOW!"

When she got out of the shower (after shouting back that she just had to rinse the conditioner out of her hair - how long could that take? 30, 40 seconds? Her hair is barely shoulder length and it's very thin, from medication she's taking), she pulled a towel around herself and opened the door to see what was so urgent.

"WHAT ARE YOU IN A TOWEL FOR? WHAT DO I NEED YOU IN TOWEL FOR? I CALLED YOU BECAUSE I NEEDED YOU. I DON'T NEED YOU IN A TOWEL!"

Now, I'm no psychiatrist/psychologist - he's certifiable. He's also 70. I wonder if he's having moments of senility or dementia. Or if he's just nuts. Yeah, he's just nuts.

P.S. My friend went back into her room to dress and by the time she came downstairs, fifteen minutes later, he was in the car, leaving for Home Depot, never having spoken with her again.

Minneapolis Bridge Tragedy

Last night, at 6:05pm (local time), a major bridge on I-35 collapsed in Minneapolis. So far, 9 people are confirmed dead, over 60 injured, 10 critically, and 20 are missing. My heart bleeds for those families. The pictures are horrific. There was no warning. There was some work being done on the bridge, general maintenance and repair, apparently, and there is no evidence yet that it contributed to the collapse. It was a HUGE section of bridge that fell; I don't know yet how much initially fell and how much was pulled down because of the failure of that first part. A school bus was caught on the end of the bridge and didn't fall into the Mississippi River; the children exited from a rear door since the front door was jammed against the side of the bridge.

I remember years ago Eric G. told me that he was afraid of bridges, that every time he drove across one, he all but prayed, even though he wasn't a particularly religious person. "I hate them!" he said. I can remember being mildly amused: how could this big truck driver be afraid of bridges!?!

Today, as I was driving to work, I had to cross over and under several bridges on Route 3 East. Most of them are concrete bridges, built sometime in the late 40s and 50s. One of them, the Berry Creek Bridge, in the Meadowlands, is a big structure. That one makes me nervous; you can't see anything above or below you, or immediately over the sides...

I hope for the best in Minneapolis.

[Note: As of today, 5 are confirmed dead, not 9. That's 5 too many.]

Boy, do I have my neighbors fooled! S seems to think I'm talented, in an artistic sort of way. She asked me to help her create some sort of scrappy centerpieces for A's bar mitzvah. Ultimately she decided to just fill a bunch of picture frames with photos of A and his brothers and cousins and friends. We spent an evening last week doing it and another evening last night. Had a great time. Thanks for including me, S!

Today is SL's wedding day. She and T are getting married tonight. If we weren't working so hard on the lake house, if DH was actually going to be home tonight, I would have happily RSVPd "yes" but as it is, I'm not going. We wish them well! They're both divorced, with 4 children between them, and today they join their families forever. According to S, T's ex-wife is very nice about the whole thing, praising SL to the boys, encouraging them to like SL and feel comfortable with her. That's a nice thing.

Today is also Tenant Appreciation Day at work. Free food, fortunetellers, stilt walkers, clowns, Mr. Softee. Yay! My next door cubicle mate ought to disappear around 11:30 and I'll be we don't see her until around 2/2:30. She'll be adding yet another caricature of herself to her office space. In fact, she has no room there now; I'll bet she takes down pix of her kids just to put up another of herself...

Speaking of her, I have a great story to tell about her someday when I have time - just remind me to relate the story about her and LL Cool J - they're best friends, after all...

I haven't been in school in 26 years. (Ouch!) The feeling of passing a test never goes away, though...

WE PASSED OUR ELECTRICAL INSPECTION!!!

Hip, hip, hooray! 3 cheers! Yay!

There wasn't really any reason why we wouldn't - DH did what he was supposed to do, the right way, with Best Man L the Electrician checking on his every move. I think DH was a bit nervous since Best Man L the Electrician commented that some of the work at KD's wasn't up to his standards, and DH and KD ran all those wires... I know Best Man L the Electrician is a very picky worker - after all, he is his reputation.

DH said the inspector wasn't there 5 minutes. He came in, climbed up the ladder, looked around, told DH he passed, and left. I suppose there were a few more comments made, but that was the one we were waiting for :)

The leftover TJIs were picked up yesterday; now we just have to wait to hear from 84 Lumber how much credit we're going to get for them. They're worth about $300+, but apparently, by the time the pick up charge ($80) and the restocking charge (30%) is deducted, we're looking at around $159 + tax, IF all three beams are considered to be in resaleable condition...

Here's our schedule for the next few weeks:

• Stairs will be delivered Monday or Tuesday of next week
• Hopefully A the Framer will be able to come by the end of next week to install them, repair the fireplace framing, and correct whatever else they did wrong or didn't do at all
• Monday, August 6 - Wednesday, August 8 - chimney restoration and extension
• Some other date in August - fireplace installation
• Week of August 13 (maybe) - siding goes up on the house (we chose ivy with white trim) - I'm having a crisis with the corbels for the door - another issue, perhaps, the framer might have to handle

At this point, the house might begin to look like a home from the outside, rather than a construction site...

I know I've promised photos, and they will come - next week, I promise. After I go to Wal-Mart and have them downloaded onto a CD.

We're being inspected today. By the electrical inspector. Wish us luck.

I have some more photos, but haven't had a chance to download them yet. Will update you all as soon as I can.

Met with L the Siding Guy (no relation to Larry the Cable Guy!) and have picked out the siding. Ivy with white trim. Was leaning toward linen trim, but all the doodads were not available in linen and our windows are white so...

When I have more time, I'll write more...

Happy B'day, Coby!

Happy Birthday, Maria!!! (She's the one in the middle!)

Today Maria turns 29. She still looks so young, and someday, I promise her, she'll be happy about that. Right now? Not so much.

She's constantly asked how old she is, people assume she's very young so they don't give her the respect due a teacher who's been in the trenches for five years...

Listen up, people! My daughter is 29. She's a GREAT teacher, with an instinctive knowledge of how to reach a problem child. Her test scores were the best in her grade last year, and she had a class full of really troubled kids. She's smart, good at what she does, and should be given the respect due a 5-year teacher. Her dream has always been to teach at-risk children, and that's what she's doing. She worked in Trenton for a year and is now working in Hoboken. She's in the school that's in the projects end of town. Her kids are tough, street kids whose first goal in life is not to get an education, but to stay alive past their teen years.

29 cheers for Maria!!! Love you!

Better late than never...

HARRY RULES!

LOVED the new book. Want more. Am doomed to no more new Harry. Ever. That sucks.
I am already waiting for the next 2 movies. I want them. And I want them NOW.

POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT - IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE LAST ONE AND DON'T WANT TO KNOW WHO SURVIVED, DON'T READ THIS PARAGRAPH: I did read a review of JK Rowling's interview with Meredith Viera - she was gonna kill off Arthur! Thank God she didn't!!! I was happy to see that Dudley turned out to be okay, as did Creatcher. Was devastated by the scene with Hedwig. And all the deaths. (I won't mention any names 'cause that would be wrong, just in case someone slips and reads this paragraph anyway...)

Happy Anniversary to us!
Happy Anniversary to us!
Happy Anniversary to u-us!
Happy Anniversary to us!

8 years.

And more than one person has commented recently that we're "just like newlyweds."

Awww.

I love you, DH. Always.

My scrapping pages...

Pepper died July 19/20, right around midnight-ish.

A black cat with a very distinct personality. Some might say she wasn't a very nice cat. But she was. She loved her family with all her tiny little heart. She was affectionate with them. They called her "Poopie." She would allow them to pet her, play with her, kiss her. She ate mini marshmallows.

She scratched my foot the one time I tried to feed her a snack, when the family was away and DH and I were taking care of her. She needed us for food, water and a clean litterbox, but she scratched my foot.

It took years, but eventually, after many, many Mondays spent around their kitchen table, Pepper would once in a while walk past my leg, rubbing against it, accidentally of course, although they all said she did it 'cause she liked me.

She became sick. Very sick. We don't know if it was a stroke or a brain tumor, but three weeks ago or so she fell. She started to walk funny, sort of loose-hipped, with a distinct lean to one side. She started to become paralyzed. Eventually she couldn't eat or drink herself; they fed her with a food syringe. They held her for hours and hours every day, never leaving her alone.

On July 16, Pepper let me pet her. I knew this wasn't a good sign. Her fur felt cool to the touch, cooler than I thought it should, although I didn't say anything. They assured me Pepper would let me pet her.

I wish she hadn't. I wish she was still here to avoid me and to scratch me. Both DH and I were devastated when Pepper's family called to tell us she was gone.

She will always be remembered.

Scrapbooking is such a big thing for me now. It's really the only part of my life where I feel creative. I never considered myself a creative person. I have no discernible artistic talent; in other words, I can't draw my way out of a paper bag! (One of my favorite phrases!)

My dad and my sister C are very artistic. Dad could draw, carve. C got a degree in fine arts from Mason Gross School of the Arts/Rutgers. Upon graduation she was invited to exhibit at a gallery, but couldn't - she became mom to my wonderful nephew J! I wish she'd take up art again so I could pick her brain on a regular basis about what I'm doing... Maybe we could "art" together...

Anyway, Mom, too, is artistic. She was a brilliant seamstress, making all our clothes when we were small. She also knits and crochets, did needlepoint when she could, and even made quilts for some spare money years ago.

Me? I'm challenged, to say the least. P? I'm not really sure. I don't think of my sister P as artistic, per se, at least not like C, but she's the first of the family to have brought color into her home by painting the walls in her home very different and strong colors (not varying shades of white, which I did for years). So that must be her artistic side coming out! She's also a crocheter - so I'll take back the comment about not being artistic - she is, too! (It's a hobby she took up in AZ, so she'll have to forgive me for forgetting about it - out of sight, out of mind!)

I guess I should admit that I can draw a mean digestive system, or heart, or lungs - got lots of A's in school for drawing in science class, but that was more copying than drawing...

I get a great deal of satisfaction in creating a scrapbook page that I like, that works, where the colors and the proportion appeal to my eye. I'll post a couple here that I'm particularly proud of but remember, before you look, beauty is in the eye of the beholder!

We have part of the house.
It's big.
Bigger than I expected.
Later on I'll post more pictures, showing it sheathed and roofed.
We have a house.
Oh.My.God.





The grand reveal will come soon!!!

P has a theory. Her theory is that there is one male brain, and all men share it. If you think about it, it only makes sense. It's so rare that men do things right, sensibly, with consideration and forethought. That absolutely HAS to happen "when they have the brain." We've discussed how they pass it along amongst themselves: perhaps in the bathroom, perhaps in the locker room, perhaps via osmosis (since sometimes you can literally see more than one man have possession one right after the other).

Well, yesterday, yesterday MY HUSBAND HAD THE BRAIN.

As you know, we're under construction at the lake house. One of the jobs we hired the framers to do was install the large sliding glass door onto the deck. [Lord knows I can't help DH with that, it's just too heavy.] Yesterday my DH asked the framers, who were installing all the windows on the new 2nd floor, how much it would cost to install the 6 on the first floor that he had planned to install, and remove and close up a 7th.

$400.

And DH had them do it.

WE HAVE WINDOWS. INSTALLED. ALL IN ONE DAY. WITHOUT DH KILLING HIMSELF DOING IT ALONE.
I'm so proud!!!

Now, if only I could talk him into keeping the brain for a while...

When it rains, it pours.

Literally.

I haven't seen it, but according to DH, the rain blew in the unprotected side of the addition and leaked through the floor into my kitchen, living room, and spare room. He emptied buckets and buckets and buckets of water, then finally had to leave so that he could get home in time to see HP5 with me. He's on the way up there to see the damage...

HP5 was awesome! I saw it at 10am yesterday with Eva, and again at 7:45pm with DH. As always, my only complaint is that at 2 hours/10 minutes, they could have added another hour or two to the movie and included some of the more visual scenes that I was looking forward to seeing on the big screen, instead of in my tiny head...

Pictures of the construction tomorrow...

Don't have time to post a lengthy construction update today, but here are the highlights:

• Friday, 07/06/07 - Construction begins. They removed our roof, built the platform to support the new 2nd floor, and began adding floor joists. At some point in the afternoon, I went into the house to go the bathroom. While I was in there, doing what I had to do, DH walked into the house and shouted, "Krys! What happened? Why didn't you call me?" I quickly exited the bathroom only to see my living room ceiling fan hanging by a wire in the middle of the room! We had just put the light fixture on it two days before. We're so lucky it didn't hit the floor! (The light fixture over the kitchen sink was also hanging by a wire.)
• Saturday, 07/07/07 - We spend the day doing odd jobs around the house. We went to see Live Free and Die Hard with Bruce Willis at night. When we walked into the house, I walked right into the bedroom, with DH behind me. All of a sudden, he shouted, "Krys! What happened here?" [Are you sensing a pattern here?] I turn around and the ceiling in our spare room had fallen. We spend another hour taking pictures of the damage, questioning why it had happened, why the supports weren't sistered/strapped, practicing what DH would say to the framers on Monday.
• Sunday, 07/08/07 - I go to my cousin's for his daughter's 8th grade graduation party. I take pictures of his shed to show DH, predicting he'll comment that the addition to the house is beautiful. And I also predict he'll flip when I tell him, "That's the shed." I showed him the pix - his response was exactly as I predicted.
• Monday, 07/09/07 - The framers come early in the morning and DH confronts them about the ceiling. The reason it's not strapped there is because that's where the stairs are going and when they cut out the space for the stairs, those beams will be connected to something. We go out for literally an hour and ten minutes, to order the fireplace, and when we return, WE HAVE EXTERIOR WALLS! By the time they leave, we have all the interior walls framed out, with just some windows and the hearth to go, and a roof all framed out as well.
• Tuesday, 07/10/07 - My best friend Chris' birthday - Happy Birthday, Chris! - I haven't seen it yet, and won't 'til the end of the week, but we apparently have our decorative peaks all framed out, the roof line on the first floor framed out, and windows delivered. If they have time, they'll begin installing windows.

The roof will go on the end of this week, hopefully. We wait now for the stair guy to measure, the roof to go on, the rest of the windows to go in, the stairs to be ready and installed, and the plumbing and electric to be done. Then we side the house.

Pix to come soon...