The End is Near!

No, I am not pretending to be Harold Camping with another failed Doomsday Prophecy.  I am talking about the near completion of the renovations at Chamberlain.  


With the exterior curb appeal finished and the near completion of the kitchen renovation, I can begin to breathe a sigh of relief.  This has certainly been much more of an undertaking that I imagined.  My biggest takeaway from this project is that I cannot do it all.  If I try, it will not get done on time, I would never see my wife and I would have to resign from my job.  I had to pick and choose my battles with the overhaul and left a lot of the heavy lifting to the professionals.  I met some really good sub-contractors and some not so good.  However, I learned a lot and I realized I couldn't have done all this without the help of my wife.  Thank you Amanda!


Here are some of the latest photos from my work.

Bright red front door, newly painted trim and fresh mulch.

If you ever wondered what 10 cubic yards of mulch looked like.  Thanks to Steve Brown for the landscaping help.  I bought it from Birch Tree Bark & Stone.  Decent prices and they have coupons.  Plus the salesman wore a MSU hat!

Countertops, appliances and cabinets installed.  All I need is the backsplash.
Previously the refrigerator was on this side next to the range and there was no microwave.

New home for the refrigerator, now across from the range.

New solid surface countertops.  The sink is seamless and was integrated into the countertop when it was manufactured.  Next step is to install the faucet and backsplash.

North view of the kitchen.  Floor trim installation is also on the to-do list.

South view.

Stairs going into the basement.  I updated them with vinyl tiles and added new nose-trimmings.
It looks much more modern than the 1970's linoleum pattern that was there previously.

Big project that went very smoothly with the help of Ron Slocum.
We replaced one of the main water valves.  Make sure you have the right tools for the job!

No turning back at this point.

New valve prior tightening.  I think we even impressed ourselves with how nice it looked and turned out.  Thanks Ron!