Our Wheel Friendly Home

Well after many long days the exterior stone work is done. Yea ! According to Ann the stone work came out AWESOME, ( No I didn’t pay her for that comment ). Now its time to head inside . Sam has been busy installing switches/outlets and some of the lighting. Vinnie has completed the heating system and we now have heat and hot water. Just in time for all those brushes that will need to be cleaned. Jim has started preparing for the tile work that will be in the kitchen/sun-room etc. Carl Smith from Carl E. Smith Painting did a fantastic job spraying/ back rolling the ceiling and walls with primer and also applying the finish coat to the ceilings and closets. Ann, Gwen ( Ann’s sister ) Paul (my brother-in law) and I have started the painting. Doors, molding, base boards etc. are everywhere you look and need that all important coat of primer. All the colors have been picked out for all the rooms and the great-room and kitchen are done. Heading down the hall to the kid’s rooms next. The sun tube has been installed in the kid’s bathroom and is bringing a ton of natural sunlight in too brighten it up. They might need sunglasses when taking that whirlpool bath it’s so bright in there. The shutters and the exterior window trim are done now. ( Thanks Jim ) and the driveway is due to be paved by the end of next week. The oak stairs with the wrought iron railings are on order, as well as the rest of the lighting fixtures for the foyer, dinning room, etc. According to Tom the kitchen and bathroom cabinets are right on schedule and the cultured marble shower enclosures should be in by the end of the month. It seems like a lot of things are getting done but there is still a long list of things yet to do. We are hoping to be in by Thanksgiving if all goes well. Sorry there are not many pictures this time ( to much going on ) but I will try and shoot some this weekend. Enjoy !! PS: Special Thanks to Shelley from ANDERSON WINDOWS & DOORS for all your resent help.



Great-room looking into Kitchen/Sunroom

I’m Baaaaaaack !!!!

Sorry for the lack of updates, but there has been so much to get done that I’m never really sure what day it is. Ok where do I start. We pasted our rough electrical/plumbing inspections and the all important framing inspection. A special thanks to the hard work done by Sam Fillmore ( electrician) of FILLMORE ELECTRICAL and Mark Gillette ( plumber) of GEM MECHANICAL for an excellent job. Sam must have run at least 5 miles of wire and more outlet/switches that you can count. Mark has pipes everywhere and did a great job installing the kid’s special walk in tub by SAFETY TUBS. I am sure there is going to have to be a lottery of some kind to see who gets to use it first.

A special thanks to Tom Divenere ( GC ) from DIVENERE COMPANIES for assembling a great crew for the framing etc. Tom, Bob Martel-
MARTEL HOME IMPROVEMENT, Jeff Hahn-JRH FLOORING, Jim Sticca and yours truly made up the framing crew. Many nice comments have come from the crews of other houses that are being built on how nice a job was done on the framing and the complex roof etc. ( At a Boy’s to all !! ).

Jim Sticca (and son Tim) from JRS BUILDING & REMODELING are doing an incredible job on the siding. Thanks guys !!!

Vinny Smedick from SMEDICK HEATING & AC has done an awesome job installing the high tech boiler/hydro air system in the basement of our new home. The system looks like something that belongs on the space shuttle. “Kudos” to COLLINS & COMPANY for their insulation and garage door jobs. And a very special THANK YOU to Butch, Wayne and the guys from BOUCHARD & SON DRYWALL for the amazing sheet rocking job. ( Butch and Wayne are still taping), but their crew did an excellent job on the sheet rock, which included 4 cathedral ceilings. So as you see a lot of things are happening as we try and finish the new home so we can be in before Thanksgiving. ( hint hint TOM )

Hopefully I can finish the stone work and then the rear deck and railings before the end of the month. Then I am on to painting and floors. Next week the side walks are being poured and the driveway prepped and hopefully we will see some top soil brought in so we can plant some grass.

Ann has been very busy finishing the details on the kitchen layout and working with the lighting and interior designers to pick wall/ceiling colors, lights, tile / wood floors, stairs and wrought iron railings and the ever important placement of the grab bars in the kid’s and other bathrooms etc. Just when we think we can take a breath we are busy deciding on many more things. Ann and I where told ( thanks Sarah & Joey ) when we started this house that its one of the most time consuming, mind stressing, sleep depriving, marriage testing projects that one can do in their life time. THEY WERE RIGHT, BUT, It’s also been interesting, amazing, enjoyable and FUN. I’d do it again but I can’t speak for Ann.

Well enough for the chat. Please enjoy the new pictures and please feel free to leave us any comments that you have. So for now it’s back to work cause the clock is ticking and day light is getting shorter and I am sure old man winter is just waiting to test our new home. ( Pooh, this one for you !! )

Great Room Insulation/Sheetrock Garage



“SAFTEY TUB” Step in Bathtub/Whirlpool

Hydro-Air Heating System

Future Location Of Elevator

Finally the dust has settled at Ann’s mothers and we have Internet Access again. For all of you loyal OWFH.CF ( our wheel friendly home.com fans ) that know I am living with my mother-in-law, RELAX !! I am loving it, She is a great cook ( as is her daughter) and we have a different desert every night. All those pounds that I have lost during construction are going to come back if I’m not careful. The Kid’s are loving it too, but can’t wait for the new house to be done.We bring them up every few days to check things out. Well enough chating about home life.

The weather has been a bear lately. When it gets 90 PLUS it is very hard to frame/roof etc. After a few long and difficult weeks we have finished putting the plywood on the roof, installed most of the windows and I have begun the stone work on the front of the house. The wild and crazy roofers have done their thing and the roof looks super.(We have had a few big rain storms and NO LEAKS !! ) So enjoy the following pictures and I’ll try and update weekly if I can.

Sorry for the delay in the updates, but Bill and Ann are homeless - at least to some degree. They sold their previous home and are now crashing with Ann’s mom. (Bless her heart.) Bill got Internet access at Mrs. Y’s but he’s having issues trying to update.

There has been some great progress with the house and pictures will soon follow. Tornados threatened the state last week but Billy, the crew and the house escaped, unscathed.

More details are coming. Stay tuned!

Keep your tails curled!
Your roving reporter,
Murphy the Pug

The house has a 10/12 pitch and some of the rafter boards are close to 30 feet long. Lifting them into place takes time and muscle and some really tall ladders. The roof line is taking shape more and more with each passing day. With so many different roof heights, gables, hips and valleys its hard to see how all this will come together. Stay tuned, for the end of roof construction is in sight. Then onto shingles, widows etc. Two other homes have just begun construction on our street so it is a very busy place to be, with lots of other things going on each and every day.

The Rafters Begin To Rise

With each day the crew builds more and more. The roof gables, inside framing of cathedral ceilings and arch ways. Tom ( the GC) Ann and I meet everyday and make little decisions that make this special house come alive. The framing crew, Tom, Bob, Jeffery, Jim and myself are constantly up and down the many ladders adding more rafters, collar ties, plywood , joist hangers etc. as the complex roof line begins to take shape. Special thanks to Bob, Jeffery and Jim as they get the tough task of being at the top of the roof which is over 20ft high. The days are long and the weather has been pretty good but we have had a few nasty thunder storms and high winds which make for more excitement. Well enough chat, Please check out the latest pictures and please feel free to leave comments. Just click on comments and scroll down to the bottom of the page and give us your thoughts etc.

Lauren checks out Her Room with Cousin Samantha

Erin checks out the view from Her room !!

The TEAM has a quick meeting !!!

Looking into the Great Room from the foyer.

This is Our View from the Master Bedroom. We have a small pond with a walking path going around it.

Some of Our Neighbor’s !!

Time is going by fast and the crew has been working almost everyday. A little rain here and there and a couple of 90 degree days, but we are making progress. This group of pictures should bring us up to date as of 6/9/07. While the crew works hard many friends & Wives have stopped by to see the progress. Thank You Charolette, Ann and Maureen for the treats etc. Hope everyone enjoys watching this project come to life. I welcome any comments you may have. I will try and update at least once a week. Enjoy !!

Prepping the Basement Floor.

The Steel Arrives and Is Installed.

The Floor Is Poured.

The First Load Of Lumber Is Delivered

The Framing Of The Lower Walls Begins.

The Main Floor Is Started.

Outer Walls Are Starting to Rise.

The Inside Walls Begin.

The Foundation Walls Are Setup !!

The Walls Are Poured !!

The Walls are Stripped and Footing Drains Installed!!

There Are More To Come ... Go Back To Each Entry And See Whats New !!

Well its Monday morning and the sun is trying to come out, but it is still cool and a little windy. The crew from WES-MAR was on the site by 7:00 am and the wall panels where beginning to take shape. Due to the many directions changes and the special pocket in the foundation it is going to take almost 3 days to set up the panels. Panels in excess of 100lbs and 10 feet high where placed on the footings and bolted together. Just when I thought it was almost done another truck with panels and re-bar arrived and the walls got higher. I have a better appreciation for the concrete crew as this is very hard work and they put in long days in not the nicest weather.

The “pour” as they say, is set up for Thursday morning. It is going to take over 100 Yds of concrete ( 10 plus trucks ) to fill the walls to form the foundation. When I arrived at the site Thursday morning there where 4 trucks perched on the dirt mounds around the foundation. The concrete was flowing from all four and the crew was very busy making sure it made its way into the forms. By late afternoon the last truck emptied is load and the job was all but done. I was told by Herb the foreman that the crew would be back Friday morning to strip off the panels and waterproof the outside walls. After another inspection by the building inspector and a week for the concrete to begin to cure we could look forward to back filling the great hole with dirt. After that the piers in the basement will be poured and then we get ready for the steel beams to arrive etc.

And the rain began to fall. It started raining Sunday morning and continued to rain Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and showers on Thursday. Well we didn’t end up with a swimming pool but a few areas of the footing we under water. Thursday afternoon during the on again off again showers Tom and I began to pump out the water. Thanks to a great pump and the portable generator the job was done in under 4 hours. Wet and dirty we where both glad it was done and we knew it could have been a lot worse. They say the sun will come out tomorrow !! I’ll believe it when I see it.

Yeah !! The footings are poured. After a very long and difficult day, the building inspector approved the footing forms and gave the OK to pour concrete. With in 30 minutes of our call to the concrete company the trucks began to arrive. Five trucks, approx. 45 yards of concrete was needed and just before dark the job was completed.

Friday the 13th, proved to be a good day after all, but a large rain storm is headed our way. They are predicting as much as 4 to 8 inches of rain. We are keeping our fingers crossed that all goes well and we don’t end up with a 3000 square foot swimming pool.