Kitty getting settled

Buster Kitty has really had a shock. The larger house, and expansive views, scared him at first, but he is slowly getting acclimated. His favorite game is playing on the stairs. We have to make sure that he doesn't stay "a lump" in the bed all day, waking him up in the afternoon to assure he will sleep through the night. Otherwise, it is "meow, meow" all night. Overall, he seems to be very excited about his new surroundings. His favorite spot is laying by the fire at night.

We've moved in!

After a long wait, we moved in on November 15th in between rain showers. Over the next few days, we worked tirelessly to get the kitchen set up, our clothes in the closets, and the baths cleaned and set up as well. We are pleased to announce we can now cook, clean our clothes, bathe, and dress ourselves without stress! Next is getting the nice, decor touches in place. Stay tuned!

Raising the flag!

We had a little ceremony in honor of Papa yesterday. He was kind enough to give us the new flag pole and American flag, and since it was a day before his 98th birthday, we couldn't think of a better way to celebrate than to raise the flag for the first time.

On a cold and windy afternoon, we gathered on our new front lawn and sent it up the pole. We are hoping to move in this coming week. It's been a long process, but it seems like yesterday that we were breaking ground back in March. We will continue to make postings as our house takes shape over the weeks ahead. We hope you have enjoyed the ride with us!

Joli & David

The studio at night!

After the installation of all the lights in the studio, we decided to test them out after dark. The daylight fluorescents are great, and there will be many nights of painting ahead!

FINALLY, A KITCHEN

After waiting and waiting, we finally got our kitchen! The double ovens are all ready for Thanksgiving dinner, and we are pleased with the warm glow of the dining room lighting fixture. All we need now are the knobs?

bathrooms are complete!

We FINALLY got our bathrooms complete! Now we just need water turned on! (we are very tired of using the "green box" outside!

Stairs and a fireplace

Our woodworking guru, Chris, of Christopher Bower Woodworks, has once again outdone himself with a creative stairwell. We are thrilled with the mix of woods, the landing of curly, wormy maple, the treads of clear maple, offset by the dark trim and white ballusters.

The fireplace mantel is also now complete, thanks to the hand-crafting of our contractor, James. We were so excited that he chose to complete such a personal and focal part of our home himself. The mantel wood was treated with a wire brush to create the weathered look, and the same stain as on the trim work was used to darken it. Intermixed with the stonework are granite souveniers from a recent trip to Gloucester, Ma, picked up on an all-granite stone and pebble beach at Stage Fort Park in West Gloucester. We can't wait for our first fire in the wood-burning fireplace!