Set Backs... Literally!

Well, we turned in all the required documents to the city- what a relief! Then we find out the setbacks on the property are at 20 feet, not 15 feet like we had been informed. Great. So back to the architect- back to step one. Back to the lot surveyer. Back to some re-bidding on the deck... BUT we were able to move the house a bit, crop the deck and now we're back on track again. (not for free, but not as bad as it could have been!)

We are almost ready to apply to the bank for our Construction Loan! Woohoo! We are submitting samples of our finishes, so the appraisial hopefully is higher. Here are some pics of our finishes, but they don't do them justice.

Bathroom finishes- big tile is floor, medium is shower/bath walls, small is accent- there will be two vertical stripes of the small glass tiles by the bath- floor to ceiling.

Wood floor throughout, carpet in dining and bedrooms, wood cabinets, tile backsplash and textured laminent countertop with bullnose edge.

...tick tock...tick tock...tick tock... = waiting on the city and the bank! Then we DIG.

Here's to you ney-sayers!

Here's to all my IKEA haters or neysayers out there...

Here's our cabinets- Adel Medium Brown

We did it! We bought the entire kitchen and utility room from IKEA. And we're proud of it too. Ranked above Kraftmaid and many of the custom cabinet makers. They have amazing features and are more sturdy than every cabinet we've looked at and have sweet metal drawers.



We got a screaming deal, had a scary as heck drive to Utah, and now we're ready to go. And the plus side? Say we get sick of them in 2 years, all we have to do is buy new doors! And one more thing to prove IKEA is good- we got all whirlpool appliances and they are sweet... can't wait to see them go in!

*oh, one little detail, we have about two weeks worth of assembly to do... oh well! :o)

Easter Cake Pops

Okay, so it's not about the house, but I for SURE don't want to forget how cute these desserts I made were! I saw them on a website and couldn't choose what design to make, so I had to make all of them. They are cake on a stick, dipped in chocolate & decorated.

Hope you enjoy the pics like I enjoyed making them... ha ha, not! They took FOREVER to make and were so yummy to eat, they were gone in a flash = best kind of dessert I guess.

Pink and White Bunnies, Carrot Cake Carrots, Cute Little Chicks, & Decorated Eggs

All together there was about 26 of them, plus a practice round. Only two casualties (death by falling into chocolate- not a bad way to go...)

Whew! Whirlwind time!

Well it seemed like we were always looking at products, but not knowing what to pick and man did we spend A LOT of time doing that! But we just this week met with two companies who I would recommend to anyone and they saved us so much time, hassell and I wish we would have just done them first!


At Probuild we picked out windows, doors, trusses, lumber, decking, closets, stair railings, trim, interior doors, siding, exterior features, door hardware, and more!

At Images Flooring we picked out carpet, wood floors, tile, countertops, fireplace, backsplashes and more!

They both have our bids right now getting ready, so we'll see what those come in at at then finalize things. We're getting there!

NEXT- foundation quotes, HVAC and plumbing quotes and picking lighting fixtures.

Moving Along!

No pictures, but so much is happening!

-architect finished and stamped sets of blue prints
-structural engineer signed off and stamped her sets of blue prints
-getting ready to submit to City of Westminster as soon as HVAC is bid out
-starting bidding process soon (like this or next week!)
-starting final construction loan application from bank this week

A lot has happened, we have a lot to do:

-buy cabinets and pick them up
-get HVAC bids
-get thermo-loss calculations done
-find window company
-get bids on foundation, lumber, plumbing, roof

There's so much more, but that's this week's list.

By the way- we've paid many more bills these last two weeks!

architect (remaining due?) $$$
structural engineer $$$
soil sample $$