Moved In! (Part Two)

Here's another view of the little guy, along with all of MY robots that are waiting to go on a shelving unit. I can't understand why people think I like robots so much... I just don't get it...
Here's the music room in the daytime... with a little less art on the floors thanks to Terry & Pat.
I'm dorking out about my refrigerator... it's just so cool. And... it now looks like someone lives here! E's fridge = greek yogurt, fruit & kambucha. ;)
More proof that I actually live here. This kitchen is so functional and well designed. I love it!
Lastly, my guest bedroom all made up. I can't wait for my folks to visit already. :)
So... I believe my house = a home as of this weekend. There's still work to do... but it really is ready and done. I just love it and I couldn't be happier.

Moved In!

Over the weekend, I completed my move from my old house to new house... everything is in and nearly everything in unpacked!

Jane B. gave me one of my first housewarming gifts before I even moved in, and I finally got to put him up. LOVE IT! Think you can tell that E lives here?
My office is *nearly* put together too!

Hall bath is still in progress, but my part of the move in is done. It just awaits a light fixture, mirror, countertop, sink, and cabinet. Okay, I guess that's a lot. The best part about this room is the solar tube - there's no need to turn on any lights during the day. I'm so glad I put this in.
My bathroom is coming along. Still needs the extension arm for my shower, and some shelves for my niches, but I already took my first shower!
Here's my bedroom. It's sooooo big & bright & open. I'm going to need some blinds (it's bright at night.)

Making a House a Home

Yesterday I moved my art collection into my new house. My absolutely lovely and wonderful friends Terry & Pat offered to come visit and help me hang some of it... and I didn't waste one second saying "YES PLEASE!" Terry is one of my favorite artists of all time, and Pat is equally skilled and smart and has a great eye.
They got to work right away, and found the perfect spot for a print triptych Barbara Franklet gave me a few years ago. It matches the greens & blues of my kitchen/living/dining room perfectly!
Here is Terry nailing the first hanger in the wall! I wouldn't have picked anyone else to hang up my art!
This piece has always lived over my piano, so I was glad Terry & Pat agreed.
Two of my favorite pieces went up in the bedroom and match perfectly. That room is like a mini museum for me! :)
Here's Pat arranging a bunch of my smaller pieces. I didn't hang them, but have her design ready for when I do. She is so cute!
I still have a lot of stuff to hang... and with an art festival this weekend, I think I should probably wait before I keep going... but we did get 9 pieces hung which is pretty good. And they are coming back soon to fix the wiring on some other pieces and figure out the rest.

Gosh, they rock. :)

And... my house is so much more of a home now. Art does that. :)

Some Before & Afters...

Thought I'd put together a little before & after photo montage... granted the "after" isn't quite ready, but you get the point.

Here's the front/side view:
Here's the front living room. (The front door is on the far right.)

Here's the front bedroom that sat off the living room (above.)
The ever so lovely bathroom. Seriously... ew.
The kitchen! Which turned into my deck... which is quite an improvement, no? :)

Moving + Unpacking

Pretty productive weekend. I think my parents are the only ones who actually care about my "move-in/unpack" progress pictures, but since they are largely responsible for this house, I shall post away! Enjoy Mom & Dad!

Here's the master bedroom ready to be unpacked once my bedroom furniture arrives.
My closet.... is huge... and it has awesome shoe racks. ;)
Office is coming together! Yes, I have a pink chair that goes with my wall. Is this actually surprising?

Blue is checking things out in the blue room! When my windows are open, I like to let him gaze out the window. It's hilarious. To me. :)

Here's the view standing from the kitchen... no couch yet, but it's coming soon! I love my dining table and chairs! They are PERFECT!
I unpacked everything in my kitchen!!!! It's so organized, with such nice stuff. Thanks to all of my dad's companies for such a great kitchen! :)
Again...I'm far better stocked than I deserve!

Here's the kitchen + dining room. I think I might have a thing for green & blue... just maybe...
And here is my favorite room so far... Carol's Room (or Blue's Room.) So beautiful!
I'm thrilled!!!

Housewarming Gift...

Joe has been working for quite some time on my housewarming gift. When he got the idea, his eyes lit up, but he wouldn't tell me what he was going to do. His words were "I'm 100% sure you don't have this, have never thought of it, but will absolutely love it." Well... he was right!

He had his brother, Bill, bring it over and then got it ready while I gave Bill the tour of the house. When we went back out to the deck... there was gift. A purple robot planter with purple flowers. Um, could it be any more perfect?!

And because Joe likes goofy pictures, here's another shot...
I love walking in the front door and seeing him through the window. Oh, his name is Bert. Bert & Blue.... my house 'bots!
It's beginning to feel like a house, now!! (I wonder what my neighbors think? They have no idea what's coming, do they? Crazy robot neighbor & her robot-supportive boyfriend are here!)

Saturday was move-in day! (Nobody bothered to tell the weather to stop raining, though... so I technically moved in lots of mud Saturday too. But I digress...)

So Saturday was move-in day! Luckily some guys from work helped me move all my furniture (including my beloved piano) and were done in under 3 hours... including a long break for rain.


As of Sunday night, all I have left in my old house is some random odds & ends and all the art. Not bad, huh?

Thanks to my work + Joe... I'm nearly done moving my stuff in! Wahoo!!! :) Now I need Texas Gas Service to turn my gas on... and then I can actually move in myself. Just days away now!

Let There Be Light!

2:32PM, I get a text from Kevin with a picture & a note that says "This man is hooking up your electricity. You have POWER!" (I'm totally digging Kevin's texts today!)

Luckily I'm working from home this afternoon, so I literally ran on over. Kevin wasn't surprised to see me at all. :)
Nothing like working with electricity when it's raining!
After Austin Energy left, Kevin ran out to reset the brakers...And then he let me do the honors...
And... POOF! There was light!
It was so cool to watch everything come to life. I was a bit nutty, but then again this makes it all the more real for me. Watching the little numbers blink on my appliances... look at how pretty the pendant lights are... playing with the dimmers... it's all real!

I just hope that I am as appreciative down the road as I am today. This is a good reminder.

The Long Awaited Certificate of Occupancy!

Text Message from Kevin...

Received at 8:47 am this morning:

"We passed final, you have a certificate of occupancy and can now legally move in. Congratulations!!! It's a good day!"

Packing... Kinda

Since I don't have much new to show from the new house, I thought I'd share what's been happening at the old house. It's a mess, basically, and I really haven't done much packing at all. Shocking, I know. :)

Here's what I have done:
1) Gone through my bedroom closets/dresser & purged as much as possible. Goodwill got quite a donation yesterday.
2) Gone through all my old files and added a bunch of stuff to the recycling bin & the shred bag. Everything is pretty much up to date, and what I don't need is in a storage box.
3) Gone through my loft & buffet downstairs to organize photos, crafts, bike stuff, etc.
4) Picked up 6 dining room chairs for the new house and planted them firmly in my kitchen.

Below is my progress. Lots of empty boxes that need to be filled soon. Apparently all of my stuff isn't just going to walk itself down the street after all. Damn reality check. :)




So, there is my current house, which still looks pretty much the same as always with the exception of having more stuff inside. I think my Plan of Action for the move is this:
1) Move the stuff from my kitchen over Thursday night, if I get the CO, and run it through the dishwasher before I unload it. (This is what happens when I am without a dishwasher for 2.5 years! I don't trust stuff!)
2) Put all my books into green HEB bags so I can move the bookshelves. Apparently I can't do it all in one piece! Darn.
3) Pack up whatever else I can in actual boxes so that when my moving friends come, it's ready to be loaded into the truck
4) Make a path for all of the large furniture (i.e piano, desk, bookshelves, dresser, bed, chairs) to be loaded into the truck. Then fill the truck with as much else as I can. Drive 7 houses down & unload!
5) Continue this pattern for as many days as it takes to get settled in.
6) Oh crap. I forgot about all my art. I'll have to figure that stuff out too.
7) One day, in the hopefully not so distant future, relax in my new house. :)

So, that might be TMI for this blog, but it helps me to think the process through. If I'm not packing, I'm at least thinking about it right? ;)

Down to the Details...

So it's down to the details now. Aaxis added toe-boards to all the baseboards to eliminate any spacing and other issues between the wall and the floors. I would never have noticed had I not seen the long sticks of wood out in the yard days earlier. It looks great.
All my interior doors are installed, including the closet doors shown here. There are even pulls on the door! I got to make a special trip to Lowe's to pick them out... fancy, huh? It's funny how many little details there are!
I now have a function laundry room, complete with a utility sink. Im pretty happy about that - it was my mom's idea and I'm glad I listened to her! I think it will be the perfect place to clean my robot paintbrushes. :)
Lastly, here is the fully functional kitchen, complete with a hard-working contractor. I told Kevin I'd bring him a chair, but he seemed happy with his make-shift bench. Currently he's dealing with a brand new ordinance from the city which is preventing me from getting my Certificate of Occupancy. Lovely stuff... however, I know he'll get it done ASAP!
So there's not too much else to show! All that's really missing from the inside is a replacement window, my master bathroom shower door, my hall bathroom vanity/sink/lights, some touchup paint, and all the rods to go in the closets. there might be some other stuff, but I can't think of it. There's still plenty to do outside but that's for after I get my C.O.