Our house....: These sheetrock guys ROCK!

I wasn't kidding, they are fast. The drywall is done and there are some dudes in the basement putting up the corner bead (or whatever it is called). There are some roofers out there extending the dormers (yay), and a metal roofing guy is there to start getting ready for the metal roof. I was able to give him a gentle reminder that I want the cupola to "swoop," not just be a flat triangle. He said, "Don't worry, I'll make it swoop for you" --- phew.

While Lloyd is off snowboarding --- see what I mean about the awesome builder lifestyle --- lots going on here. The stone guys are there, as always. Robert, the main stone guy gave me some advice about "aging" my beams --- hot nails. Hmmm. Sounds interesting. My neighbors here are ready to call the POA on me --- I'm out there for hours each day with my concoctions and sanders and hammers and chains and stains and all the tools of days gone by. Not so much...but I'm trying.

We had a successful trip over the weekend to buy an old beam from a tobacco warehouse up in Winston-Salem --- it is 11+' long. It is a bit on the rustic side, but I think it might be very cool... see the notching from where it was a post and beam structure? You should have seen the kids ducking in the car because it was over their heads, all the way to the dashboard and the notch fit perfectly over the seat to hold it in place!

This is a time I wish Dad were around --- he would have loved the treasure hunt / search to find some neat old beams.

Here is the kitchen / keeping room fireplace --- not totally mortared yet, but it looks cool!

Here is Jeremy, the stone guy who is at the house EVERY day working on the family room --- this is where that mantel will probably end up, and there will be built-in cabinets flanking the fireplace

This is Alex's little laundry drop --- just a connector into the laundry room from his closet because it is right there, but walking around is pretty indirect. Of course this is no big deal, but when Ryan took Meghan out to the house over the weekend, this was the "really special thing" he wanted to show her.

Hallway on the 1st floor...

Bonus room upstairs --- see all of these door alignments --- I love that.

Bedroom for Nicholas -- his behavior right this second is so bad that I'm again considering the lock on the outside of the door. When we moved into this house the kids room had this "mistake" ---- we quickly realized the brilliance of this plan.
The upper loft / dormer above the front bedrooms is gone... how sad, but it is time to move on.