Guided Tour: The Downstairs

Well... its been a long time. We did close on time. Lots of stories to go with the house and moving in. We were actually so busy living out all these stories that I didn't have any time to write about them on the blog. Yeah... that's the ticket.

Anyway, some of my loyal readers (actually, I think its my ONLY readers) demanded that I update to blog with photos of the home, as it is today.

So here you go...



This is the view as you walk into the house through the front door. You can see the blinds (which, out of context I don't think this sentence makes any sense).



Here's the TV room, just on the other side of the half wall from the first photo. These couches are the ones we blogged about earlier. VERY nice!




This is our breakfast nook area. As you can see, it is still being used to hold some of our housewarming gifts.



This is another view of the Breakfast Nook area, taken from the TV room.

Everything seems to be going well with the house. We wake up early, and head out to work as the sun is coming up. We work all day, and by the time we get home, the sun is on its way down, if it hasn't set already. I'm really curious what my lawn looks like. Couldn't tell you.

Very tired now. Going to sleep.

More photos coming soon... stay tuned for a sneak peek at the next post... the Upstairs!

Spend A Lot, Save a Little

Not many changes to the house in the last week. Not much to show you anyway.

But here's how the house looked as we pulled up to it this afternoon:

With not too much to share about the house, instead we'll tell you about our new appliances! Sound thrilling? Well its not. But at least its a story to share.

Going back to Labor Day Weekend, Noel and I were celebrating our first anniversary by searching out the best deal on appliances for the new home. The kitchen is almost complete, just needs a fridge/freezer. We also wanted to purchase new washer and dryer, as our current ones are nothing special and 5 years old.

Noel found that Best Buy was running a sale on LG appliances, offering 10% off the sale price. So we rush out there to take advantage of the deal, after figuring out which items we wanted online. Turns out the price online is not the same as the price in store on some items (a fridge for example). We got them to match their own online price (saving us about $500) on the one item! We also pick up the washer and dryer we wanted, at the price we expected.

The next morning, Noel insists on checking out the Sunday paper to see what new deals are available. Well I'm glad she did. She found that Home Depot had a better deal on the washer. It also said that they would price match anyone else AND give an add'l 10% off the price match.

We leave first thing that morning to go straight back to Best Buy to return the appliances we purchased just the night before. This is, by the way, a brand new Best Buy store, and apparently they're trying hard to get some business as they refused to let us return the items, instead insisting that they not only match the deal we could have received at Home Depot, but give us an ADDITIONAL 10% off their reduction on the price match. Saving us an additional $400!!! Woo hoo!!

So that's how we did really well on our appliance shopping! Here's a bit about the items we purchased:

These are (obviously) not to scale.

But the washer and dryer are both large capacity! We're excited about all of the appliances as each is Energy Star certified, which means they are energy efficient. The washer uses much less water than a top loader. We're also excited as the washer has a 'Steam' cycle which is a quick 15 minutes to quick clean and wrinkle remover! Should be good for the work clothes, and a nice alternative to dry cleaning EVERYthing.

The fridge is a 'french door' style... or as they say in Paris: 'a door' style. There's a water/ice dispenser in the door, too. The black is to match all of the appliances that come with the house.

Coming up next:

Monday, September 17th: Pre-Carpet Inspection

Thursday, September 20th: Noel and Jeremy depart on 3-day cruise on the Disney Wonder

Friday, September 21st: Noel celebrates her b'day. I won't tell you which one, but its the last one that starts with a '2'

Friday, September 28th: Final Walk-thru of house

Friday, October 5th: Expected closing date

Saturday, October 6th: Everything arrives at house; and all hell breaks loose

The Halibut Is Good Enough for Jehovah!

This post is more about the stone work on the house. But if you don't understand the title of this entry, its time to re-rent this film.

Last weekend we updated the blog from our Saturday visit to the house. The builders had just started the exterior stone veneer on the house. Noel and I made our 1st anniversary (celebrated on Monday, Sept. 3rd) special with a visit to our new home, where we hope to celebrate many future anniversaries together. Here's a photo from that trip (just 2 days after the previous post):

Here's what it looks like this evening:

And a close-up on the stone work:

And while we're talking about stone work. The builders finished up the master bathroom shower and tub tile. OK... its ceramic, not stone... but I wanted to share the photos anyway:

And, for your enjoyment, and those of you who still won't rent the movie, here's the scene to which I am referring...

In the Immortal Words of Bob Dylan and God

As Bob Dylan once sang, "Everybody Must Get Stoned!"

They've begun adding the stone feature to the front of our house! Here's the image from yesterday morning!

Here's a closeup of how the stones look. Its pretty neat, actually. The stones are poured and shaped concrete which have been painted. They use mortar to place right on top of the stucco'd exterior. The central 2-story facing of the house will be covered with this stone work.

In addition to the exterior stone work, the builders have also managed to complete the fancy tile work in the Master Bathroom shower and tub. Here's a good look at that (if you click on the image, you should be able to view a full size image, and zoom in on the nice accent feature):

And in the immortal words of God, after having spent a very busy 2nd day on the job creating light, "And it was good!"

Here's the lighting features which have been installed into our home. We love these lights! They are ver nice looking!

Here's the pendant lights which hang over the breakfast bar. You also get a good view of our kitchen cabinets which were installed just a week earlier.

(And a closeup...)

Here's the bathroom light fixtures:

This is the light suspended over the Breakfast Nook table:

And finally, the chandelier which will be over the formal Dining Room table:

While we were in th house, the A/C company was working on installing the air conditioner unit. Hopefully the next time we visit the house, that will be working well and it will be much more tolerable to walk around the house.

You Put Your Pot In There...

This post is a week later. Mom and Dad were with us when we took these photos, but they do not appear in any of the photos. Sorry.

Here's the regularly scheduled exterior shot...


That looks much the same as previous weeks. But the interior is really starting to look nice! They installed our kitchen cabinets! With so much storage, we'll finally have a place for every kitchen appliance, pot, pan, plate, bowl, etc. Yeah!


The tile work in the master bathroom was started too. I really like the color! Finally, we'll have a place where I can shower.



Here's a closeup of the color of the tiles that will appear in the Kitchen, B'fast Nook, entranceway, Laundry Room and downstairs bathroom.


We're off to see the house again this morning. It'll probably take me a week to get those photos online. But keep your fingers crossed I get them posted sooner!

Now In Color!

The new home is now in color! Noel and I stopped by for our weekly visit, hoping that at least the stucco was completed on the exterior. We were very surprised to see that not only was the stucco complete, but they had also painted the exterior!




And the interior was painted too!





We're very excited about the colors, too. They, coincidentally, happen to be the same colors on the house on lot 94 (the one we originally purchased). So that worked out really well!

Our next trip to the house, mom and dad Myerson will be with us! Stay tuned for those images, too!

One Ringy-Dingy... Two Ringy-Dingy... NO RINGY DINGY!

PLEASE HELP!

Our home phone service, the Voice Over Internet Phone (VOIP) from Sunrocket.com, is no more. The Sunrocket company has gone out of business. Noel and I are pretty sure we want to still have a home phone, and still feel that VOIP is the most cost efficient way to do so.

But, once we move, there will be no cable modem in our home, as the city of St. Cloud is completely Wi-Fi enabled as a public service. We aren't sure if there is a way we can create a landline internet signal from a Wi-Fi network. I know most people look to take the wired internet and turn it into a wireless network... we're looking for the opposite.

If anyone has any ideas that could help us, please share them!!!!

Thanks!

Block Party? No, No, No... We Were Framed!

This is our (new) plot of land. I know what you are thinking... how could they possibly change in that gorgeous home for a piece of dirt. Easy! Less to clean! But then you have the whole, 'how do I know if dirt is clean cunundrum!' This is going to be a very gorgeous home, too... with much more to offer Noel and me, and all of our guests!



This photo was taken on July 7th, just 3 days after the previous photo. I've marked the spot where I was standing when I took this photo. The plan is to continue to take photos from this same exact spot. I hope that someone much more talented than I can help me organize those photos into an online slideshow to illustrate a 'time-elapsed' type construction show.



This photo, too, was taken from the same spot. This was taken today, July 15th. It doesn't take long to get to framing, huh? The house has some really awesome features that you can already start to see. The front door area has a nice porch (where the ladders are stacked just to the left of the door). It has a side entry garage, entering on the right side of the front door, as you face it.



This, too, was taken today. This is the back of the home. There's a 10x10 covered patio. We plan on building the typical Florida screen room off the back of the house. But that's much later...



Standing in the front door, you can see the half wall. On this side of the half wall will be the formal Dining room and Living room. On the other side is the Family room. That's where we'll put the nice Lazy Boy sofas and the big screen TV!



Standing in the aforementioned Family Room, you can see back to the Nook and Kitchen. Nice big space. You can tell from the half hieght wall that the Kitchen counters will wrap all the way around. The Kitchen will be a gourmet kitchen, which I think just means it has different appliances.

I apologize for the delay in posting, but I think this whopper of a post makes up for it! And this is how it all is today!

Jeremy & the Lazynauts: Quest for the Beige-ish Fleece

We had a great weekend last weekend. Mom Myerson came to town to help us out in selecting some new furniture for our new home! We found some amazing furniture, too. Granted, we found even more crappy furniture... which makes it that much easier to find the good stuff!

Of all the furniture decisions made this past weekend, we only put money down on the sofa set for the family room. I don't think we were planning on spending this much money, but when you find an amazing quality product, you pay more.

Noel and I (and Mom) stopped into LazyBoy Furniture. The sign had my name on it. We walked through the whole showroom, and Noel found the perfect sofa set for our new home. Here are some images of the sofa and recliner we purchased!

The color shown is not the color we purchased. We purchased it in a beige-like color. The material is the softest fabric ever. It feels like a really plush fleece blanket!

This is the sofa. It can fit 3 people, although it is in two cushions. And, yes, each section reclines!


This is the matching chair. You can't tell from the photo, but the seat is oversized. Its either a small loveseat or a very large recliner. Mom called it a 'One and a half' chair. And, yes, this too reclines!

Fabric is so soft. So nice. I forsee many nights falling asleep on these!

Door to Door Solicitation

In an earlier post or two I've showed you this picture of our front door.

Noel and I like this door quite a bit. However, we noticed one big challenge with it... it's 8 feet tall, and there's no peep hole. I know that its easy enough to add in a peep hole to a door, though. But over dinner one night at her parents house, Noel's folks said, "Well at least you like your door, we don't care much for ours."

Noel and I, by the way, think that they're door is beautiful! It has a nice ornate oval glass pattern on it. I guess my in-laws prefer to have square or rectangular glass patterns. They were planning on buying a new door, to their liking, once they closed on the house.

My clever wife suggests, "Why don't we switch doors then? Ours has the fan pattern on top, but still plenty of room to add in square/rectangle glass patterns. And modifying the door would be less expensive than buying a new one."

And so it is. I called up Mike, the foreman, and asked him if he could switch the front doors. Not a problem... especially considering that there is only one lot between the two houses. Below is the picture of our new door (my in-laws old door).

Thanks Vito and Anna! We love it!

Let There Be Light!

I thought I'd take a moment to offer up some more photos of what we are expecting to be inside the house. The features on the inside of the house were all designed and selected by KB Homes, as this home was an inventory home. After having seen the options that were selected for our home, and the other options available, Noel and I were thrilled, because we LOVED most everything they selected!




This is the style of lamps we'll have in the house. The chandelier will match, the outdoor light, even the pendant lights in the kitchen. Very nice looking style!





These are (obviously) the faucets that are going in the house. The one on the left is the Kitchen sink. The one on the right is the bath tub faucet in the master bath. The rest of the faucets will match this style.

Tomorrow is our Frame Walk with Mike. I'm sure we'll have more to post then...

Worst Clown Name Ever: Stucco

This is what our house looks like (as of Sunday, June 10th).

As you can see, the stucco work on the exterior has been completed. The house is really starting to take shape nicely! The interior framework has been completed, and we even have a front door now:

The electric and plumbing lines have been placed through the framework and the drywall has been ordered. Our next step is our Frame Walk with the foreman. His name is Mike.

Noel and I have already noticed a few things different than what we were expecting. Mostly just outlets and TV jacks in the wrong spots. I called Mike earlier this week, and he said we can move all that around pretty easily. The Frame Walk will be this Friday.

The other exciting news is that we received a letter from KB HOMES telling us that our expected closing date is between August 9th and September 9th... almost a month earlier than we first expected!!! Might even be in time for Mom and Dad's visit in late August. Wouldn't that be nice?

Got a Case of the Shingles

Actually, we've got a couple of cases of shingles... and now they're all up on the roof. These shots were taken 2 weeks ago (sorry, a bit late posting... again). The color is called: Burnt Sienna.

Its What's Inside That Counts

By now you've seen the renderings of what our house will look like when completed. You've seen the floorplans (and if you haven't, there's a link on the sidebar to it). What you may not have seen are the upgraded features in the house.


Because this home was being built as an inventory home for KB, Noel and I did not have the option to choose any of the features. The house was designed by the KB Design Studio. Thankfully, they did a really nice job picking out options.




This picture shows you what the cabinets in the kitchen will look like. They are the upgraded 42" cabinets, with an extra bump over the Microwave and another additional cabinet above the fridge. The black piece leaning up against the cabinet panel is the granite pattern for the kitchen counters. The color name has quickly become a favorite for Noel and I: Verde Uba Tuba. Its just fun to say!

The carpet sample is what will run through most of the house. The tile in this image (above) will be in the Kitchen/Dining area as well is in the Foyer and in front of the fireplace.





This image shows the bathroom features. You can see the tiles that will be placed in both bathrooms. The cabinets are the same as the ones in the kitchen. The diamond pattern (I believe) will be a feature through the tub/shower in the 2nd bathroom. And the small rectangle is the marble for the master bath counters. The 2nd bathroom countertop is a Hi-Definition laminate (finally in 1080p)!

Once Noel and I get out to the Design Studio and take some more pictures of other features of the house, you'll get to see those here too!

Look ma! No hands!

Here's a fun anecdote... Last Wednesday Noel and I went to the KB Home office to sign the Sales Agreement. We were a bit confused going in to the meeting. We were handed an estimated 3,798,493 pages of legalese to read in two days. Now we were expected to sign it. I think we were both feeling a bit overwhelmed. So we brought along her parents.

The office wa a small niche carved out of what will soon be a garage for the model home. In this niche 5 of us sat: Sabrina (our friendly KB Home sales lady), Noel, me, my in-laws: Vito and Anna. Each one of us with a different agenda. Noel was a bit eager to just sign the paperwork, and ensure that the 'Den' is really a '4th bedroom'. I wanted to be sure I understood some of the legal clauses of the contract correctly. Sabrina was telling us about the HOA's and using language to make sure we stayed emotional and excited. Anna wanted to know a lot about the community ("What's the quality of water like?" and other questions that never occurred to us to ask). And then my father-in-law, Vito... his agenda.

Before I tell you, you should know a bit about him. If you've met him, you probably have already witnessed his immense talent for conversation. And if you've met him, you like him. Because there is no way that anyone has met him, and doesn't like him. He's a lot like my Pop-pop in that regard. Now Vito spent most of his professional career in sales. He was a chemist/sales rep for AGFA for 20+ years. Even though I've seen this happen many times now, I'm still not sure how he does it, but my father-in-law was able to work his magic on Sabrina.

The house came included with quite a few upgrades and additional features, but it did not come with an automatic garage door opener. As we're reviewing the upgrades page to the sales agreement, Vito leans over and says, "Where's the garage door opener?" With a pleasant smile, Sabrina lets him know that this isn't included. Vito responds. "What?! There's no wedding gift for them in there? Why don't you just write it in... 'garage door opener'?" Again, with a smile and a laugh, Sabrina declines. At this moment we receive a visit from a member of the HOA. Very nice gentleman named Paul. Paul is nice, but apparently has the reputation of being the enforcer of the CCR's. He's the guy riding around leaving notices in mailboxes for the lawn not being mowed. Noel and I start talking with Paul, and asking some questions. After about a 5 minute conversation, Paul takes his leave. We turn around and Sabrina and Vito are shaking hands, as she agreed to give us an automatic garage door opener.

I don't get it. I missed the whole thing... again. Now, she said she can't include it in the paperwork... but that it should be in the house when all is said and done.

I guess Noel and I won't have to get out of the car to open the door! And each time we pull into the driveway, as its raining, we'll thank my father-in-law for working that bit of magic!