Day 5

Today was a big day....it was the first demo day! There is an addition on the back of the house that was really really really poorly built. The roof has a visible sag and the floors show water damage. It is a complete mess and huge eyesore. One of the most exciting projects to me is that we are going to take off that addition and build back the same roof line but this time without walls. We are making it a huge outdoor covered patio! I know we will be living out there during the summer and I am excited to see it come together. One of the big questions has been if there is any part of the current structure that we could salvage. It would save a little bit of money if we could just repair the current roof and tear out the existing walls and floor. Ben wanted to rip out the ceiling inside to see if he could get a better idea of where the big problems are. So tonight he got to use his crowbar and hammer and start ripping the ceiling out. I took a little bit of video tonight when Ben was taking out another section. If you listen closely you can hear me say "that stinks!" The insulation inside has apparently been wet at some point and smells so bad! 

Another big thing happened tonight...Ben got to mow the yard for the first time! We are supposed to get a ton of rain this weekend and Ben wanted to mow tonight before the grass got too long. The only problem was that we didn't have a mower. Thankfully my cousin Markey and her husband live just a few houses down and didn't mind at all if we borrowed their mower. 

Earlier in the day, Ben met with the air conditioning guy. We knew when we bought the house that the unit was not working at all. We had originally budgeted a lot of money to replace the entire system but found out that the current system is under warranty! What a blessing! We will have to pay for the labor to fix the unit, but the parts are covered. Ben explained to me what was wrong and I swear it was like he was talking in Spanish :) All I know is that is is broken and they will get us up and running for far less than it would have cost had we had to buy a new unit! The house is so musty inside that I will be glad just to get some air circulating.

Day 3

Tonight was pretty uneventful. Ben worked some more in the shed to the side of the house trying to figure out where the pipes in the wall were leaking. As you can see by the pictures, one pipe was pretty easy to identify the source of the leak :)

Mom and I went by the house for a bit tonight to see Ben and just walk around. When we were there, Markey stopped by to visit. She had been in the house before but not since we officially bought it. Larry and Jeannie also came by right as Markey was leaving. It is fun to show the house to family, even though it is a mess!

Day 1

Today we closed on our dream home. Our dream home that needs a new roof, new kitchen, new bathrooms, new paint, new flooring, new appliances and new landscaping. The list could go on and on... But it sits on a beautiful piece of property and we are beside ourselves with joy.

Just the other morning, I drove past the house and caught the morning sun hitting the back yard. It took my breath away. For a moment I forgot all about the rotting roof  and lead based paint :)

I hope to use this blog to document our journey. A journey of taking a very old home that needs a lot of work, and transforming it into a beautiful home to live and love in.

Day 1- The closing was this morning at 9:30 and after weeks of planning, we had the legal go ahead to start work. Ben met some of the tree crew at the house today to go over the plans for tree and landscaping removal. The home has incredible trees, but some are overgrown, some are dead and some are causing problems with the house.  That is the first project to tackle. Ben is getting final quotes this week and they will start tearing things out soon.

We worked at the house some tonight (well, at least Ben worked. I just kept him company for the most part :) ). Ben was able to clean out the shed to the side of the house. He also discovered that the shed has some busted pipes in the wall that need to be fixed. I am sure that is the first of many unexpected projects/expenses that we will come across. We worked together to replace the light fixture above the garage with a security light with a sensor.

I am going to attempt to take pictures and update every few days about our progress. I know I will look back and be so thankful I took the time to document this little adventure we are on.