Vacation interrupted

 Just the posts, not the real vacation...time to update you on the current state of affairs here at my house.

The contractor finished most of his work last week on Thursday. They were in a big rush at the end of the day and I wasn't entirely impressed with the final push. One of the items we'd talked about was creating a hatch in the bulkhead to allow access to the furnace. This required some drywall repair, but instead, the contractor used some pieces of wood to frame out the unrepaired drywall. Frankly it looked awful.

He also convinced me to replace the baseboards and casings, and in their haste to get it all completed they had damaged the drywall in the basement bathroom. That wouldn't have been a big deal, except I don't have any original paint remaining. (I do have a full and part can of the paint I used for the rest of house.) Hence this means the entire room needs to be repainted. Since I said I'd do the painting, that means more work for me.

I talked to his employee on Monday when he came by to check in on the stairs and informed him that I was having some buyer's remorse about the new baseboards and casings. When I said I would paint, I assumed that meant everything would be finished to the point where I could pick up a paintbrush. Instead I now have to caulk, sand, and paint these items as well. He suggested I could hire them to do the finish but I said no thanks - I've reached my limit for spending on this project. I laughed when he suggested I could finish everything in a couple of days. I reminded him I am retired and I don't work full days anymore. 

Jason called later and agreed to make the repair in the bathroom and to remove the frame so that the drywall could be repaired properly. I needed some items from Home Depot so picked up the hatch that afternoon. Another item was a caulking gun and the caulk to start the process to get the baseboards and casings ready to paint. 

So this week, I've spent a few hours each morning painting and caulking. It took four coats of paint to cover the repairs to the stairwell but I'm finally happy with the way it looks. I've peeled off the tape they used to keep the boards from slipping, and cleaned up the edges.  I expect his employee will be here next week to finish applying the silicone to seal the steps.

The drywaller finished sanding on the drywall repairs so I did the first coat of primer Friday morning. I'll get that portion of painting done this weekend so that the contractor can complete the final step next week. Then I can take as much time as I need to finish the rest of the caulking and painting.

I spend last Friday and Saturday at my daughter's, helping with Eli's "friends" birthday party.  The children had a blast, as did the parents.  I was the official photographer and managed to get some great photos of most of the kids. Unfortunately I didn't realize two more had shown up late and since they weren't wearing their costumes I didn't get a photo of one of them. (Eli is the one in the center of the children with his back to his mom.) She's explaining a game of freeze tag to them where the soft blocks were used to touch someone. It was hilarious watching these and the other children pictured running around in their capes and masks.

Here's the birthday boy himself, with his Spiderman mask and sans cape. Instead of birthday cake, D bought chocolate dip doughnuts (Eli's favorite). They were hit with the kids and the parents too. The doughnuts were made by the local bakery and were huge, D had over-estimated the number she needed so the remainder were dropped off at the hospital at the end of the afternoon. 

I drove back on Sunday morning, and after dropping my bag at the house I headed out to the garden centers. This is the latest that I can recall, that I've ever bought my plants. They needed a few days to harden off, so I did some yard clean up in the afternoons and planted all but the tomatoes and peppers on Thursday afternoon. We had a frost advisory that night, so I brought them into the sunroom for the night. 

Thursday morning, I took a break from the painting/caulking in the basement, and did some grocery shopping. I also booked an appointment for my second booster for Friday afternoon. As for the planting, I've got 15 containers of flowers this year, and 8 of vegetables including three with potatoes. This will be my first try with the spuds - if it works, it won't be much of a crop but I'm hopeful I'll have enough for a few meals. On the pretty side of things, I've gone with a yellow and white theme this year, sticking with tried and true plants - geraniums, impatience, million bells, marigolds, and petunias. I did buy a 6 pack of variegated coleus, that I hope I can overwinter. The two ivies I kept over winter were added to the deck containers. I'll try to keep these as well.

Today, I'm back in the basement for a few hours. I'll get a coat of paint on the bulkhead, as well as one of the walls, and if I'm ambitious I'll start priming the walls in the new room. (I should note, other than a slightly sore arm, I've had no reaction to the booster - I count myself fortunate!)

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!