Completely Done. Finally!

This morning the contractors came out to finish the wood trim around our new front door. And that job being finished marks the end of our little home remodel project.

It has been a long time. If you consider that we started talking to contractors in October, and then started dealing with the financing end in November, we've been focused on this project for six months. I really can't complain that the contractors didn't complete things in a timely manner - there weren't too many delays that we can blame on them. But I am so glad it is finally finished.

Just to recap, finishing the basement is something we've wanted to do since we moved here almost 15 years ago. But at first we had water in the basement. And then Maria was born in 1999, and we decided a safer way to make our small house larger was to add a family room on the back, which we did in 2001. And we love that room and we love having the extra space, especially when our family further expanded with Sam's birth in 2002. As the kids got older, the basement became a "kids' space" where they could pretty much play whatever they wanted in the huge empty space. It became cluttered over the years with a play house, lots of old furniture, and lots and lots and lots of toys. We put the finishing project out of our minds for many years. As always, we got busy with life and just kind of forgot about it.

But as the kids get older, we wanted a space where they can hang out with their friends (our bedrooms are pretty small). We also thought it would be nice to add a half bath, allowing the space to be used as a spare bedroom when we have overnight guests. The unfinished space, while large, was still unfinished. It was cold in the winter months, had no individual outlets, and was fairly limited in the amount of technology - like TV and video games - that we could put down there. So we again started to think about finishing the space. And although we've only had water in the basement once since adding on the family room and re-grading the back yard, last spring we had new drainage tile installed in the back yard to take some pressure off of the sump pump. And we included a self-start generator with this project, so that if we are gone, and it rains like crazy, and the power goes out, the sump pump will still work.

In October we realized that if we were serious about doing this, it should be sooner rather than later, as Maria is approaching her tween years, for two main reasons. First, she will soon be at the age where she would benefit from having a place to hang out with her friends. And second, she is getting closer to college age and we need to arrange our finances in a way that allows us to pay for her education when that time comes. And of course, Sam is getting older too and will have these same needs a few years behind his sister. So we started looking at options, and talking to contractors, and had everything in place by mid-November, with a project start date right after the holidays.

That meant it was time to start to seriously get rid of all the crap we had down there. And there was more crap then I thought. I think I have made possibly a hundred or more trips up those stairs with stuff that had to be given away or thrown out (over 20 of those trips came from the large entertainment center that was in many, many pieces). And I think we will be careful about every single thing we take down there now - you know, in case we ever need it - because sooner or later it has to come back up to be thrown away.

The project did start the beginning of January, but we had a lot of snow in February. Record breaking amounts of snow. And the good news was that since we did all of the painting ourselves, we had a lot of snow days during which we got a lot of the painting done. But the snow did cause delays, when the workers just couldn't get here. Other delays were caused by miscommunication between the contractor and the gas company when it came time to hook up the propane generator. And the generator project was put off for weeks in the first place due to all of the snow in the yard, which had to melt before they could dig. Then we added on the front door project, so that took a couple of extra weeks as well.

But now, it is completely done. And I am so happy. It's so nice to know that if we do have to stay home on a work day, we won't have company in the form of a plumber, or electrician, or dry wall guy. And we were lucky - only once during the last three months did I have to stay home with a sick kid while the work was going on. Some day, I may quit finding dry wall dust on surfaces that I neglected to dust the first ten times. And we're hoping that after this week we may even have everything back in it's right place around here - Ben is working to get the storage room re-organized right now and we hope it completed by the end of spring break.

Sometimes I wonder if I had had a realistic understanding of the amount of work involved, if I would still have started this whole thing six months ago. But we really, really like the new space. And the kids love it too - even had friends stay over the other night and they all slept down there. So I probably would still have done it. But I am so relieved that it's finally 100% complete. And that there are no other projects in our foreseeable future here.

New Front Door

Our front door has been looking bad for a while now. Ben and his Dad scraped and re-painted it several years ago, but that fix only seemed to last a couple of years before it started to crack and peel again. I finally got Ben to agree that something needed to be done, and we were going to take care of it this summer. But since we have had contractors here doing the basement anyway, we just added on this job as well. We chose paint to match the shutters in the front, and the inside is a light beige to match whatever color the walls may be. And we are done with screen doors - the glass is what causes the paint to crack and peel with the direct sunlight right on the door for so many hours a day in the summer. So we picked a door with extra windows so that we could have lots of light even with it closed.

It was installed today - which was a happy surprise - and we are so pleased with how it looks. They have to come back with wood trim around the inside, and some touch up paint on the nail holes on the outside, but we still love it.

Conscientious Student

If you had asked me two years ago as we started to prepare for Sam to start kindergarten, I would have told you my biggest fear about Sam as a student would be his general indifference about his academic achievements. He was smart enough, just didn't really care to put forth any extra effort. If it came to him easy, fine, but if something required extra effort, he was not interested in the least. And this is opposite the attitude of his big sister, so I really didn't know how to handle it.

But let me tell you, that has changed. Possibly too much. Let me explain.

Sam's favorite subject at school is math. He excels at reading as well, but really likes to do math the most. And with his love of building, I tend to wonder if he'll turn to an engineering field as a career. But right now, it's first grade math I'm talking about. And the grading system is harsh for 7-year-olds. Five points a week go toward homework. Two points a week go toward classroom activities, like "math journals." And tests are worth 40 points, and there are usually 2 tests per nine weeks. What that boils down to this nine weeks is that test grades make up two thirds of their grade. And I think that's pretty extreme for first graders.

But regardless, that's how it's been the entire year. And Sam's first couple of tests were 38 points out of 40, which was very good but not worthy of an S+ at the end of the nine weeks - to get an S+ you have to have an A+ (98%). And he really wanted an S+. So his next couple of tests were 40/40. We made a huge deal out of these tests, but to be fair, we also complimented him on the first tests as well - a 38/40 is still a great score. But he was thrilled with his 100%s.

His most recent math test was this past Wednesday. We did his review sheet Tuesday night, and he knew the material pretty well. He even double checked a concept with me before school on Wednesday, without me even mentioning the up-coming test. He felt very confident. And I was thrilled he was thinking about the test before school in the morning. Wednesday afternoon he told me the test was easy and he knew everything on it.

Then last night, right before bed-time, I checked his backpack. This job is usually done right after school, but sometimes on Fridays we don't get to it early since we know there will be no homework. And his math test was in there. And it was a 35.2/40. Which is not a bad score - its an 88%. But it's not a 100%. And Sam was upset. Very upset. Big, heaving sobs upset. We looked over the test - the things he missed were careless mistakes - 2 of those points were lost for adding instead of subtracting. I told him how it was still a good score, we were very proud of him, how he still knew the material and learned a lot, how he'll know to check answers next time (I hope so!), how it was Friday night and he didn't have to go to school tomorrow, on and on and on. Nothing I said could stop the crying. And he was very tired, but he was also very upset about his math grade. Every time I told him it was still a decent grade, he mentioned it was the worst he's ever done (and he's right), so he is keeping track even though it may sometimes seem like he doesn't care. Finally, we just had to put him to bed still upset and whimpering, because I just could not get him to get over it.

But he's right - even though he had a 100% going into the test, he'll never be able to get his S+ by the end of the nine weeks (we only have this coming week left). I haven't told him that, but am afraid of the fit he'll have when he gets his report card. And as usual, this experience has caused me to reflect on anything I've ever said about his grades and wonder if there is something I could be doing differently so he is not too stressed about this. But I don't want to make him not care either. Ben thought that all in all, this was a good thing because now we know he really cares about how he does at school. I hope he's right.

Maria's EXPLORE test Results

Through her involvement with her school's Gifted and Talented program, Maria was given the opportunity to take the EXPLORE test as a fifth grader this past winter. This test is usually given in the fall to all 8th graders, and Maria had to go to a special testing site in Columbus to take part in this test. I warned her not to feel bad after the test if she felt like she did poorly, since she may not yet have learned a lot of the material on the test. But that day she said it really wasn't too difficult.

Today we got the results in the mail, and we are very pleased. Her highest score is the "Rhetorical" section of the English test, which assesses "understanding of the use of strategy, organization, and style in writing." She is an exceptional writer, so it doesn't surprise me that is her highest score. Her lowest was math (if you can call 83% low), and again, I'm not surprised because there were some pre-algebra type problems on the practice test that she has just not learned how to do yet. And the high science score made me feel pretty good as well - maybe all that time spent in a science classroom each morning is rubbing off on her!

We're not sure if these results will have any impact on her immediate future, but are hoping it may open some doors to some enrichment type activities, since the gifted and talented program at our school does not meet nearly often enough. No matter what, we're certainly proud of her!

(You can click on the image to make it larger.)

Pictures of Finished Basement!

These are pictures of the finished part only. The current game room is still a bit of a mess - many things we still need to get rid of, and many things that need to eventually go on the storage side of the basement are still in the game room. The storage side will still be under some construction as the circuit box for the propane generator need to be installed. After that, drywall dust must be cleaned out of there and the space re-organized. Then we can get the rest of the stuff out of the game room and where it belongs. I'm hoping only a couple more weeks, but haven't heard from the contractor for those specifics lately. We did get a ping-pong top for the old pool table, and the kids love playing that, so the room is usable. But it has stuff stored along every wall.

To try to have the pictures make more sense, imagine you go down the stairs and then turn right, and I'll try to take you clockwise through the finished space.

The old antique china cabinet is now a display case for finished Lego projects. We're still working on filling it. The desk will be used for all kinds of things, and give Ben a work space for summer drill writing.


The Lego storage drawers finally have a happy home. And all of those rips in the brand-new screen - that's the work of a lonely outside mouse who would like to visit - we actually watched him get briefly stuck between the screen and window. But he just made some new holes and got right out.

Our old dining room table and chairs will be great for board games and puzzles.

Here's the new half bath.
Speaking of games and puzzles, they're all stored on these new bookshelves along the back wall, along with video games, DVDs, and some books. Maria did most of this organizing, with some help from Sam and Mason.

The treadmill is in the back of the family-room section. That new TV on a stand is really cool.
The living area is down the steps and directly to the left. We have the Play Station 3 and Wii set up down there, and the cable TV, so there's plenty to do.

All Done

The basement is pretty much done. Passed inspection on Tuesday, and other than the propane generator and putting in a new bathroom fan (the other one didn't work well), it's all set. We got the go-ahead to start moving furniture in on Tuesday. But it's been a crazy week - on top of all the usual stuff, Ben had a concert last night and contest Friday night. Plus being the kids' taxi driver and still making time for our running, there's not much evening time to get things set up. We're using every spare minute, and making progress, but still have a long way to go. Ben is getting the IKEA stuff put together and furniture arranged in new part. I've been getting the bathroom ready to use and sorting through the chaos in the back room - everything back there is covered in dust despite the double plastic wall that was protecting it. So all the stuff has to be dusted, then moved, then vacuumed under, then moved again, etc. The kids helped move all the Legos to the basement and Maria spent a lot of time sorting them into the right containers. Tonight's big job was taking the treadmill apart, moving it downstairs, and then putting it back together.

So it's coming along, and we'll post pictures when we are closer to being finished, but we already love the space. The kids spend all of their free time down there and Sam is enjoying being re-united with the toys that were behind the plastic wall for two months.

We Have Carpet!

So the carpet went in today, which is supposed to be the last thing. Final inspection is tomorrow, which means we can't really move any furniture into the finished part until that happens. All was great until Sam wanted help getting his iPod speakers working down there (he went down as soon as the carpet guys left and has been down there ever since!) and we couldn't get them to work. After some investigation, we found that none of the wall outlets were working. The lights work, the outlet in the bathroom works, but that's it. I waited for Ben to get home, hoping it was a breaker situation that he could take care of, but that wasn't it. So we called the contractor, who was alarmed as well. He's sending the electrician out either tonight or first thing in the morning. But I really hope this doesn't delay the final inspection.

After that all that's left to finish is the propane self-start generator, which may be able to be done this week as well with all of the snow that is melting. I believe the indoor wiring will at least get done this week. It seems as if the contractor is as anxious as us to get this project finished as soon as possible.

Destination Imagination Competition

In October, Maria was one of three fifth grade students at her school asked to be part of their first ever Destination Imagination team. The team was made up of three fourth graders and three fifth graders. The goal of DI is complex (and I certainly don't understand it all), but basically the kids are supposed to design their own skit, including costumes and props, around a given goal. The emphasis is on creativity and teamwork. There are five possible "challenges" to choose from, and the Fairbanks term chose "You're Gonna Flip," a story about a change of heart of the main character. Everything, and I mean everything, must be researched, designed, and constructed by the students. Absolutely no interference from any adult is allowed, and they make the students sign a form before the competition stating that everything was student-driven. The competition consists of two parts - their prepared challenge and then an "instant" challenge, and was held at Delaware Hays High School all day yesterday.

The team has been meeting twice a week since Christmas for two hours after school, and once a week on November and December, but they were still doing a lot at the very last minute. There is a ton of requirements for their props, and their challenge included having to construct a puppet. Maria was in charge of this, and she made a very cute sock puppet that was then part of the skit (he was the "Conscience" who tried to guide the main character's behavior.) They also made a lot of their backgrounds out of painted cardboard boxes. Each team was kept to a strict budget of $125. But when we got there yesterday, we saw lots of very elaborate props constructed from wood, and some of the "puppets" were almost life-size. I was concerned we were way out of our league.

No one from our school has ever done this before, and you learn so much the first time you do something. Maria's group did a great performance, the only drawback being that it was very hard to hear most of the performers in the gym (which is why I'm not posting the video). It was clear that their group focused more on the script and the story, but apparently more points were awarded for their use of the props in the story, and as a result their raw score was only about 50% of the total points possible. The appraisers told them they did a good job "for your first year," so right away I knew we weren't going to score very well.

I really believe it was a great experience for the kids - the teamwork involved, the experience of performing and competing, and of course losing is a learning experience too, even though not so much fun to endure. But last night, all Maria cared about was that they had worked really hard, and have nothing (no medals) to show for it. I think as time goes on she'll appreciate the experience more, and the hurt of losing will subside at least somewhat.

The pictures show the group before they competed and at the end where the "appraisers" are talking with the team after the performance. Since I took the video, I don't have very many still shots.

Also worth noting, Mr. Lotycz, their principal, had a family wedding and was not going to be able to make the performance, and had even asked me to watch a copy of the video I was taking. But he got there just in time yesterday, causing him to be late to his niece's wedding, to show support for the six kids who had worked so hard. Impressive to me, especially since it wasn't an athletic event!

And if they had moved on to the state competition, Maria would have had a very difficult time juggling DI and musical practice (she's Chip in the H.S. production of Beauty and the Beast), which starts meeting five days a week. The only reason she did both was because we were pretty sure they wouldn't move onto state since they were so inexperienced at DI. So it's kind of a relief, schedule-wise, that this is over. But a nice 2nd place win would have been nice!

Missed Opportunity

I just had this conversation with Sam and wanted to post it before I forgot.

Sam: Will you be my granny someday?
Me: No, I will be your childrens' granny. When you grow up and get married and have children, I'll be their Grandma (I really don't like the word "granny").
Sam: Will I have to be pregnant?
Me: No, your wife will be pregnant.
Sam: Well, who's that going to be?

There was my chance. When he's 25 and brings home someone I don't really like, I will always wonder if I could have swayed his opinion when I had the chance. But instead,

Me: I don't think that's a decision we need to make quite yet.

Almost Done

We are finally in the home stretch! The electrician finished up today - the outlets are all in, and he straightened out the outlet situation in the two back rooms. The bathroom seems ready...but hasn't been inspected so we can't use it yet, although there is running water in both the sink and toilet. And the plumbing mess in the upstairs hall closet has finally been dry-walled, now that the plumbing is all in. And Ben finished all of the painting Sunday evening.

The carpet will be installed on Monday. We were hoping for this week, so we could start moving stuff in over the weekend, but we are going to have to wait a few more days. We'll be gone a lot of the weekend anyway - with Maria's DI competition all day Saturday and Sam's Scout day all day Sunday. But as soon as the carpet is in, we start moving furniture back - especially because the stack of IKEA boxes have to be moved out of the storage area so the electrician can install the propane generator, hopefully sometime next week too.

Tomorrow marks the end of the 8th week the entire project supposed to take 6-8 weeks. But with all of the snowstorms, I guess we can be happy it's not taking any longer.

We are just so happy it will be finished soon!