Disappearing Dog

Kaylee the dog pretty well blends into the landscape right now. One of her favourite things about this time of year is that she gets to eat fresh apples!

Fall Spectacular

Last fall, we went to Sault Ste Marie to ride the Agawa Canyon train and see the fall colours. They were lovely and the countryside is beautiful. This fall, I'm staying close to home. The dog and I had a wonderful walk today and enjoyed the beautiful colours of the Dundas Valley and the escarpment. No need to go to the Sault this year!

Dumpster gone - for now

All of the siding was sold for recycling. Unfortunately, there is a lot that just can't be recycled. A whole dumpster of stuff was hauled away yesterday.

Fireplace

The fireplace has been installed. The box has zero clearance but it is the pipe that is expensive. Started to frame in a mantle but that will come later. The drywallers will be here on Monday to start and most of the windows and doors are ready, too. The triangle windows for the upper part are taking longer. (Oct 16/08)

New front window

We had the old window taken out and this new box window put in. Again, as suspected, there was no insulation under the old bay window which explains why is was so cold in the winter. We are managing to take care of a lot of the old draft and cold problems.

Addition Progress

With the good weather, quick progress was made. The frame is up, the roof on and the old siding is coming off and the insulation going on. The electrician and plummer are to come next week. Unfortunately, with rain today things slowed down. But, we are very pleased with the work, the workers and the contractor.

Why not make a bigger house?

It may seem illogical to some, but we two retired folk have decided to add on to the house. It is a relatively small house with a very small living room. We love our backyard and like to look out and enjoy the view and the birds that visit our feeders and bath (I even have the bath heated in winter to keep them coming). So, we are putting on an addition so that we will have a nice place with fireplace, tv, reading nook, and lots of windows. It includes a mud room entrance and a new bathroom. We looked for a bungalow and couldn't find anything we liked. This way, if need be, living on the one floor is a possibility. The contractor we hired did a major reno across the street and they raved about this guy. So far, so good. He is very consciencious about budget, being on time and keeping us involved. We have already purchased the hardwood flooring, tile, toilet (!) and vanity/sink. Off to look for lighting soon. They tore off all the decks last Thurs and started the foundation on Monday. Glitch number one: found a septic tank. The contractor was able to find someone to come and pump it out immediately. Still on track time wise! The man who operated the machine to dig the hole was amazing. He could finese the thing to fractions of an inch in soil removal. Very impressive to watch. The bricklayers today were also great. Fast, efficient and constantly testing for levels. They started at 8 am and are still here at 6:30 pm. Almost done and will not leave until it is done. What an adventure!