Coming down the home stretch

It is now 86 days since we moved out of our Chata Diviak and the first jack hammer started  whacking out the floor to make way for the new set of stairs.

That was April 7. Today we have new stairs.

They’re six weeks late but we have them. And they are like a fine piece of furniture, round-edged and finely polished birch.

The stairs came in a “3-D Puzz”-style set of pieces so it was mostly a matter of assembly.  Each piece of finished wood was numbered, at least each stair was. But it took two guys two-plus days to put it all together and boy it’s solid. What a difference from the rickety old sprial slats we’ve been living with for the past five years.

These new ones are guaranteed for the next five years; and they come with two drawers, one each in the bottom two steps.

The completion of the stairs and now the final grouting on the kitchen tile

has come quickly as have many of the final tasks: assembling the IKEA kitchen

and installation of the new bathroom doors is happening now. 

All that’s left is to 1) move the wood-burning stove upstairs and connect it to the new chimney (weighing in at 600 pounds makes this stove a bear to move);

. . .plumbing  the new toilets, sinks, shower taps, and very importantly: the new dishwasher; completion and installation of the custom copper tiles (three) by local artist Daniel Lichard; and one, final, essential task: cleaning up all the junk in and around the chata.

It’s just a mess, and JoEllen can hardly imagine the thought of the cleaning chore ahead of her. It’s a good thing we have our cleaning lady, Iveta. Scott will also be drafted in to share the load.

We’ve rented the flat in town for one more month in order to give us time to make the transition easier. 

One bit of transition is already complete: Sisi has gone up and down the stairs! That was a major reason we decided to replace the old stairs: so that Sisi could move up and down the entire chata without our having to take her outside or leave her down in the livingroom at bedtime.

Now, when we move home, she can remain the third person in bed.

We are hopeless and we know it.

And we love it.

 

 

Comments

[Angele Switzler]

Ha! I knew she would make the bed!

[Cousin Carol]

I CAN'T WAIT to see the completed remodel! Having been there "before", I most certainly will appreciate the "after"!!

[JoEllen Zumberge]

I keep dreaming about the finished product but can't quite get the reality of it during consciousness.