Reno Update

The kitchen floor is now tiled.

After years of horrible lino, cork tiles and concrete.

The professionals did a fabulous job of working around us and I was only without a kitchen for two days. 

The floor was very uneven and the professionals had to even everything out with the glue as they laid the tiles.

The professionals have finished in the kitchen/dining and 

Pete is going to do the painting.

And I have a shower!!

We decided on a shower bath setup. 

We don't have a lot of space in the bathroom.

We could of had a bigger bath but with 4 girls to go through teenage years

the water bill would be huge!

There are a few things still to do in the bathroom.

A shower screen needs to go in.

The electrics need to be fitted.

A little more grouting and sealing.

The partition between the vanity and bath needs to be ordered and installed.

The partition needs to be made to measure.

The partition is made with a privacy door.

It will be on feet and not the full height of the room, allowing light and air into the bath area.

Putting a partition in will separate the vanity and toilet from the bath.

Allowing someone to use the bath while another person uses the vanity or toilet.

The boys will no longer have to wait for Fern to get out the bathroom so they can brush their teeth in the morning.

 The laundry just needs painting.

I can't wait to get in here and sort it all out.

There is still a door that needs to be fitted between the dining and laundry.

The opening between the laundry and bathroom has no door.

Reno Update

 The tiling has started in the kitchen now.

The girls and I shifted furniture using skateboards.

The builders had to angle grind the floor down in sections.

You could write your name and draw pictures in the dust this created.

Putting tarps over stuff was pretty useless, I found the dust still got in,

I ended up washing everything anyway.

When they tile the left hand side, I'll be without a kitchen.

One day to lay the tiles, one to grout them and maybe one to put the kitchen back together.

Lots of BBQ chook and salad from the Foodland coming up I think.

 Yes, I'm still without a shower.

Once the old tiles came off a problem was found with water leaking.

That meant building up the wall to smooth it out and sealing the wall with some plastic that is painted on in two layers, each layer needed to dry. 

The old floor drain had also been leaking so had to be replaced.

Turns out all the mold issues I had in the old bathroom were not just my slack housekeeping skills.

We also ran out of the floor tiles, as I decided to tile up the steps with the floor tiles and  we no longer had enough. That means an extra couple of days. One for finishing the tiling and another for grouting.

We couldn't use the existing plumbing either as it was too old for the new fittings.

All new plumbing needed to go in.

It's been a long slow process.

Renovating old houses is,  due to everything not being stock standard and having to be cut to size.

Walls and floors aren't straight, nor square.
There is a lot of fiddling and maths to get everything to fit together.

I know many builders don't like to work this way, they like to knock it down and start again.

If we had gone that way it would of cost us more and we would of had to move out for 3 months.

Who would like to rent to a family with 7 kids?

Especially my mob who love drawing on walls and spilling food at every opportunity.

The builders are saying the end is near.

 I won't get my hopes up yet.

 I don't believe Pete until he has booked a ticket home.

"ll wait until the builders are packing up before I get too excited!

The new bathroom...

 Bath time is going to be an interesting experience for the next week!

Reno Update

 It's slow.

The professional is working on other jobs and fitting us in when he can.

We don't mind this as he is working around us as a family.

The photo above shows where the old bath was and the new opening into the new laundry.

 The new laundry is now tiled.

Although putting the window into the western wall makes this space hot in the afternoon it lets in a lot of needed light. I'll have to look at getting a blind for that window.

 The old toilet doorway is now sealed and the new doorway and door on.

 We now have ceilings in the dining area.

The next job will be to block up the old bathroom doorway.

Then it's time to get stuck into the bathroom.

After that the tiles go down in the dining and kitchen area.

We picked the tiles out last week and ordered them.

I had wanted to lino the floor but because we have three different slabs, the floor is very uneven and lino would wear.

Pa has left the building ..and it's still standing (just)

 

Pa and Peter excavating for the new pavers.

They used the Jack Hammer again. 

I may just miss the sound of the Jack Hammer at 8am (NOT)

 In goes the first of the pavers.

We were only going to pave a little out the back of the door.

Just enough to stop the mud getting walked in.

 But Pa decided I needed a path from my sewing shed to the house.

So I can walk in my bare feet.

All hands on deck!

The kids are planning on using it as a race way.

And Michael and Lilly have already tested it as a running track.

Pa and Aunty Joan are now on their way home to Victoria.

I hope they have a safe journey today as there are flood warning here in SA and in Victoria too.

Thanks Pa and Aunty Joan for coming to visit and working so hard.

A cowl, some digging and a little spinning

 The model is outshining my knitting!

 My Michael had a late nap yesterday. 

He woke up at 8pm and I finally dragged him to bed with me at 2am.

He still took awhile to settle, jumping between us on the bed.

I wish I had that kid's energy.

I used the time to knit up this simple cowl.

On 10mm needles I cast on 20sts and knitted until I ran out of my handspun yarn.

Then twisted the piece and sewed the ends together.

A very simple looped scarf.

 I woke at 8am to Pa and Pete using that Jack hammer again.

This time to dig up the dirt where the new pavers are going.

Michael is still asleep and it's almost 11am.

I don't won't to wake him too early in case he has another nap this afternoon and I end up having to stay up with him again.

Michael has never been a good sleeper.

Heather is a great sleeper and so were most of the others.

 I've been itching to spin.

So dragged the wheel out this morning to spin a little more of an English Leicester fleece I bought from Jane at Moseley Park.

I gave this fleece a gentle wash.

And it's spinning up with just a light comb with a dog comb to open the ends.

It's spinning very fine.

I'm putting in a little extra twist as I'm going to make socks from this yarn.

And still more banging

 The new door way has now been knocked out between the bathroom and new laundry.

 One more doorway to be knocked out from the toilet to the vanity.

Two doorways to be sealed up.

The boys have managed to save enough of the bricks from the old laundry wall to use in blocking up the old bathroom and toilet doors. 

A wall will be built in the bathroom to separate the Shower and bath area from the vanity area.

Having the vanity separate from the bath shower will allow someone to use the handbasin while another is in the shower.

 Looking from the kitchen into the dining area.

The wall of the laundry is now gone and the back wall.

The bathroom door is on the left and the doorway with the curtain is the new laundry.

The old bathroom and toilet doors will be sealed up.

New beams need to go up to support the roof and then new ceilings.

Michael was very busy helping to remove the rubble.

When all else fails, it's time for the Angle Grinder.

The day started with the destruction of the shower.

 The Professional arrived to give the boys a hand.

Things just weren't moving so a new strategy was needed.

If we can't knock it over we'll cut it down!

 And down comes the door frame and the lintel.

Still too heavy to carry out so a little more work with the Jack Hammer.

Happy 1st Birthday Miss Heather Louise

 Three generations celebrated and ate cake.

Pa and Great-Aunt Joan were with us for Heather's first birthday.

 Heather enjoyed her cake very much.

 It was difficult to make a cake when my kitchen was full of dust and rubble.

 The boys and Aunty Joan started on the second wall today.

 Have you seen a Great-Granny armed with a Jack hammer before?

Great Aunt Joan acted as trademan's assistant.

Look how solid those lintels are!

Solid concrete, demolishing them will be a job for the professional.

MORE ..banging

 Pa's on a roll!

He's tearing up the bathroom now.

We're going to reuse the bath. It's an old metal enamel one.

The new ones I've been seeing in the shops are plastic.

I wish I was as fit as Pa is and he's in his 70's.

 That wall has to go.

It can't go yet the boys need to sure up the roof first.

But while they are waiting they're taking out the windows.

Pa like to keep moving.

 They knew how to build way back when this part of the house was built.

There is concrete everywhere and those walls could of withstood anything.

Pa recons who ever built those walls had shares in the cement company.

Ok the window is gone..

"What's next? What's next?" chants Pa.

Pete's diverting Pa with a quick trip to Adelaide to pick up a JACK Hammer!

And the banging continues ...

 Pa started early this morning

There's work to be done.

 And before lunch we were minus one wall.

Out comes the last brick.

There's still another wall to go!

Bash, bash, bang, bang

 Tap tap, tap a little more.

They used pretty tough mortar back in the 1960s!

 It took a while but one brick out....

 Along came the professional..

Boys you start at the top and smash 'em!

And a few hours later we have half a wall!

A lot of dust and rubble.

The reno is in full swing. 

Pete's dad arrived to give us a push along.

The new laundry is partly tiled and the washing machine and dryer are moved in.

Now it's time to extend the dining area into the old laundry.