Almost Done?

My original plan for this blog was to write a post about each project I did on the house, as I did the work. That, along with our planned move-in deadline of 1/1/2013, turned out to be unrealistic. I started off with an idea of what I needed to accomplish before we moved in and as I started the work, I found more and more things that needed to be done, to the point that there is no room in the house that isn't having major changes.

I started off doing all the work myself, while working two jobs. The result was that when I did have time, I was too tired to do any hard work, which explains why everything took so long. A while ago, I came to the somewhat obvious realization that if I was going to continue doing all the work myself and blogging about it, I wouldn't be moving in for a long long time. So, I came to the conclusion (read: my wife and parents forced me) that I needed to hire some help and focus more of my time on the house, which I did.

Even though I'm not doing everything on my own anymore, I'm still  spending as much time as I can helping on everything that's being done, so I can learn from all of it. When it's all done, I will be writing posts about individual projects, but not until after we move in. People have been asking me to post updates, so I'm posting some pictures below, along with a list of the remaining projects.

1. Install tile floor and wall, install bathtub (requires new electrical wiring), walls, lights, ceiling, vanity and toilet, in master bathroom. (5-10 days?)
2. Drywall downstairs bathroom, install lights, vanity and toilet. (1-day)
3. Drywall guest bedroom. (1-day)
4. Install recessed lighting in dining/living room. (few hours)
5. Finish wood floors throughout house. (2-3 days)
6. Carpet the family room.(few hours)
7. Paint throughout house.(2-4 days)
8. Install molding throughout house. (1 day)
9. Install kitchen counter tops, backsplash and appliances. (1-day)
10. Install tile floor in foyer (1-2 days)

Not all of these need to be done before we move in and several projects can be worked on at once.  My goal is to move in within two weeks and it's possible, as long as everything goes according to plan (doesn't it always?).

Guest BR1 (walls are back up and ready to be painted)

Family room (now ready to be painted)

Kitchen drywalling

Guest BR2 (need to replace all walls and ceiling)

Kitchen with cabinets installed!