We've Been Framed!

 On Friday, 10/1 we drove by our house HOPING to find that the framework lumber for our house had been dropped... it had! We were so excited. I texted photos to our kids, posted photos on Instagram and we celebrated. 

We did not expect the framers to work on Saturday, so we decided we wouldn't come back out until Monday (when we were hoping to see the exterior frame up at least). Saturday morning while we were at the Mall with Sunny, Katie called and asked "which house is yours?" We told her and she said "it's been framed!" We finished up at the Mall and drove over to see for ourselves. Sure enough, the exterior frame was up and the framers were working on the interior. Oh my gosh! Six months and four days after signing our contract we had a frame! More texts to kids, more photos on Instagram.

We couldn't get out and walk on it since they were working so we drove back out yesterday evening to walk on it. Remember, we haven't been in a model nor seen our floor plan built. I was most eager to walk though and imagine the rooms.

This morning we returned with our floor plan, laser measure and tape measure to check things out. It's like a dream. We'll go back tomorrow to see if the interior framing is complete. Then we'll start hoping for the roof trusses to be dropped.

As I said the other day, the big hold ups right now are HVAC, Windows, Electric, and of course, Cabinets. Fingers crossed that those bottlenecks will ease in the weeks ahead.

In the meantime, we're thrilled to be framed.

Six Months and Counting...

 We signed the contract on our new home six months ago yesterday. Although I knew how long it was going to take to build the house, knowing and experiencing are two very different things! 

No photos in this post because there's nothing to show that I haven't already shared. There is a little good news... they are framing the houses on our street so we're hoping they'll get to ours soon. As we drive through the community twice a week it appears that the current holdups are electric, windows, stucco, and of course the ubiquitous cabinets. The cabinets are literally sitting on ships in California ports. So close, yet... Appliances are on back order too. Our builder is handling that by providing loaners just so people can move into their homes. 

A lender Dan does appraisals for is one of the preferred lenders for this builder. I've been able to accompany him on two appraisals there and I've enjoyed seeing what others are choosing for finishes in their homes. Of course it's not all fun and games when I accompany him. I have to work! My job is to take the required photos for the appraisal. Street view, Front of house, both front sides of house, garage, each room in the house, back of house, both back sides of house, and back view if there is one. Real tough job, right!?

Still Waiting...

 We're still waiting for our new home to be framed. We know this is going to be a looong drawn out process so we celebrate each and every little sign of progress. 

The latest signs of progress are that the ends of the post tension rods were trimmed on the foundation. After that the name of each room was written on the slab. Yay! Of course I took pictures. Haha.

We had a phone meeting with the hardscape landscape designer. He told us our house is scheduled for frame inspection on 12/29. I actually laughed. Then he said "of course, that could change". I didn't have the heart to say what I was thinking "yep, it could be moved back further".

We did talk to our sales associate a week ago and he said it's possible (fingers crossed) that our lumber could be dropped in the next week or two. We'll see.

In the meantime, Dan's received two appraisal orders for our community. It's exciting to see the progress on some of the other houses.

I keep busy decluttering our stuff. Packing what's not essential for life in this house. And dreaming about what our house may look like... Someday.

Never Forget

 

Ahh, September!

 

We Have a Foundation!

 Four months, three days after signing a contract to build a new home, we finally have a foundation! There is no point in getting in a rush over the house building process these days. The builder literally will not, and can not give us a timeline for our house.

In late March when we signed we were given a range of 8-10 months. Two weeks later it was revised to 12-14+ months. We were given the option of backing out at that point, but chose to hang in there. We're not in a hurry. 

The hold-ups in the construction industry are many, and they change week to week. Right now the major delays are in HVAC, windows, cabinets. And of course, workers. In Arizona the federal unemployment benefit expired in early July. The hope was that workers would start returning by 7/10. I don't know if they have or not, but I hope so. Of course, the shortages today are different from the shortages last March. Then they were having trouble getting paint, medicine cabinets, and insulation.

The up-side to the length of the building process is that each day that goes by our current home rises in value. So does our new home. See, there really is a bright side to everything!

I read a devotional a few weeks ago that encouraged praying for what we desire. Even though God already knows our heart's desires (as well as our needs, our hurts, our joys, everything about us), the devotional said we should share them with Him in prayer. This is not something I'm in the habit of doing. I'm good at praying for others, but rarely pray for myself. So, I decided to take that to heart and start praying specifically about the house. 

The best, best case scenario would be to move in November/December. My hope is to move in by the end of January. The reality is it will probably be in April/May. I'm preparing myself for June. 

But for today, I'm so excited to have a foundation.

August!

 

Yes, it's August, but in my mind it might as well be September or October. All of my grandkids return to school this week. Two of them start back tomorrow, the other three on Wednesday. Once kids go to school my thoughts turn to Fall! I have Fall Fever so bad and it's not helped by the fact that home decor stores, grocery stores and Sam's Club/Costco have Fall merchandise on the floor. 

To be fair, August is a month that we kind of want to rush through in Arizona. It's usually HOT and humid. At least humid to us. This year though, it's warm (under 110 degrees) and humid. Very humid. We've actually been getting some rain this year which is awesome! 

I've been anticipating August and am so glad it's here! Starting Wednesday, I will not have any children doing school at my house for the first time since 3/13/20. I told Dan the first two weeks I plan to watch all of the Hallmark Christmas movies I taped last Christmas and cross stitch. I will do a little housework, but it will definitely be limited. 

So officially it's the last month of Summer, enjoy!