The Rebirth of the William Tripp House: It's getting complicated!

OK, things are getting complicated, not in a interpersonal kind of way but where to put the stuff! We have gone from a small house with a lot of stuff to wanting a larger house to accommodate said stuff. The problem is, which of course I did not anticipate never having done this before, is that the house gets smaller before it gets bigger! Naively I thought we would attack this one room at a time. No problem, as one is finished the next will start and we will shift things accordingly. What a stupid girl I am! Now, its coming from all angles! The sun room- gone. The stuff has gone into the dining room. The living room- shit, that is full of windows being painted. The breezeway where the duck has been hold up- evicted. Well, we could not find a place to put him so he's still there quarantined into a smaller spot. The first day we had him in a trash barrel. I thought we would get away with that until an e-mail came from Peter saying "Josh, in a garbage barrel- Really?" OK, maybe not the cleverest trick but what's a duck to do in a sticky situation?

Tight quarters for Josh- but better than the alternative!

The next to go was my office which will become the new staircase, landing and entrance into the new bedroom. What was a seemingly beautiful concept on paper that became a logistical nightmare. I had no idea where to put it all and was tardy with my "home work" so I had to quickly move things into boxes and shove them into a corner where the guys could eventually take them into the new addition once an opening was made. It's all sealed up now so I have no idea what has become of it all. My desk and computer went into the bedroom while the settee into the hallway with the closets. I won't see anything in those closets for quite some time!

Where-oh-where to put my books?

Maybe in your house it would be an easy feat to move a relatively small desk and love seat to another room. Not so in my house. While it was easy to get the things out of the room the little hallway narrows as you move towards the bedroom. Then there is no real door to easily pass through so the furniture has to tip end upon end and be fed in a torturous manner through 2 other doors while watching their legs and your own fingers. The things finally arrived at their destinations while Dave and I felt exhausted from the short trip. Our bedroom is looking more and more like my college dorm room every day. The desk is at the foot of the bed and I have taken to ironing on the blanket chest also at the foot of the bed that also doubles as my desk chair. Yesterday ironing was interesting with Dave's feet in my way and Pip's head hanging over the end of the bed. Cozy cozy quarters to say the least!

The day after the break through into my office was also an interesting morning. I went to take a shower and pulled on the knob. No water came out so I pulled a little harder until the knob came off in my hand. Oops, I thought that's odd.... I went to the sink and also go no water. I remembered there was water downstairs but why not upstairs? There was hot water but not cold. I asked Dave and he said that the pipe must have frozen. How could that happen? Well, what was once my office and inside with a heating supply was now technically devoid of heat and outside. Ahhh, so the pipe did freeze. I saw Steve out the window and told him about the problem. He said he would warm up the pipe and that should solve it. I had texted Peter and also relayed the goings on. He said that not to worry that John was on his way..... A little while later I heard water... not in my sink or faucet but coming through the floor and into the dining room. I heard people scurrying around behind the wall in my office. It was obvious that the pipe had burst and they were running to turn the water off. Never a dull moment!!!!

Dave's idea of good choices to catch the dripping water/

Last week the sun room was also rebuilt. No lack of controversy there. The design is to have the space open to what was the old dining room and to become the landing for the new staircase. To Peter it is an alcove but I think it's more of a nook. Dave on the other hand wanted a little room. He wanted to leave the wall that is in existence and the over sized door opening. It would be a cute little room but really a glorified closet that will have great light. Put some plants, a chair and a hutch in there and the little room is going to feel tiny! The nook idea would be mostly open to the new space. You will be able see into the new kitchen and the other new bank of windows as well as allowing great light into the old dining room area. I can picture myself in the nook reading my favorite magazines.