Repaying the (sleep) deficit

The kids have been on a sleep deficit since we left for New York a few days ago. They both have a little touch of a cold and have been cranky and unwilling to settle down for the night much less a nap. Today the exhaustion finally caught up with them and I had four hours of uninterrupted worktime. I didn't let the lack of floor tiles stop my progress in the bathroom. I got more backerboard up on the walls and started the wall tiles, leaving a small gap at the bottom for the floor tile to slide underneath for a clean edge without having to cut any tile.

This is the wall behind the toilet. Even if I don't get the entire bathroom done before my family comes, I want to at least be able to install the toilet, so that side of the room is top priority. Plus, since this is my first tiling attempt, this wall would be the least visible if I messed up. Tomorrow I'll get out that wet saw and start making some cuts!

Indecision 2012

Like every good Cannon girl, I change my mind. A lot. Indecision followed by second guessing  is a way of life. Instead of this tile:

Source

for the hall bath's floors, I decided to get this tile:

Source

I like the idea of the pinwheel tile, but on a floor I much prefer the hex. I had settled on the pinwheel tile originally because Tom liked it better. Then I realized that Tom doesn't notice anything decor-wise unless I point it out to him specifically. Unfortunately, the hex tile is special order. I put in the order yesterday and it should get here by May 21. The bathroom is starting to come together!

The vanity

You're going to think I'm crazy, but there's a plan. It'll all turn out alright in the end. This is the dresser I bought to turn into a vanity for the hall bathroom. Before:

And after (not really totally done, since I need to make the cutout for the sink and modify the drawers to accommodate the plumbing):

Tom said it "looks like an old lady color." Whatever, buddy. That must be the hippest old lady on the block. Finally, a Cannon girl that's not afraid of color! Even if it is an old lady color.

Quick fix

It's still got a ways to go, but this 15-minute fix-up is a vast improvement. Here's how the area by the front door looked before:

And here it is after:

I need to retrieve the desk drawers and find a picture for the gold frame, and the lamp is just for looks because there are no outlets there yet. It's not much but having something prettier than a blank wall and random garden supplies when I come down the stairs is a wonderful change.

Yeah, about that A#1 priority...

Remember when I said that getting the attic flooring done was A-#1 priority? It has barely been touched since I wrote that. I took a break from it for one day because my knees, ankles, and back were achy. Clara's hardly napped all week, so I've tried to occupy my time with smaller tasks that won't get me particularly dirty (so I don't have to change clothes and spend 20 minutes washing up so I can play with her). As a result, I managed to paint the bathroom and get the sconces installed.

 

Yes, I realize I'll need to remove the plastic on the shades. Protecting them until the bathroom is done!

It's hard to tell in the photo, but it's a pretty green-grey color called Prairie Sage. I found two matching gallons in the half-price mistints at Walmart and decided that was enough of a sign for me.

For somebody who's not overly fond of green, I sure am using a lot of green paint in our house. I wonder what the mistint gods have in mind for the vanity.

Loft flooring

I promised details about the current project, and even though it's still not done I'll share. Ages ago we pulled up a bunch of the original pine plank subfloor from the first floor. It's been so long I can't even remember why we ripped it out, but we saved it knowing we'd reuse it in the attic. Hauling the wood takes a long time, in part because the contractors decided that our relatively neat stack of flooring downstairs was the perfect place to throw dimensional lumber, unrolled batts of insulation, old shelving, and other miscellany that still had 3" nails hanging out of it. My neat stack turned into a jumbled tangled mess with no organization - they didn't even bother laying it all in the same direction. On the plus side, that big mess is slowly disappearing as I install the floors.

I'm only about a third of the way done, but I'm loving them so far! They'll never have that perfect glassy gym-floor shine, but I'd take these nail-pocked 100-year-old floors over that any day!

I have been using my 16-gauge finish nailer to nail them down, which means I have to follow up with a hammer and nailset to make sure the nails are countersunk. Yes, a flooring nailer would be faster, but I don't want to buy yet another expensive nailer. I'm keeping an eye out for one on Craigslist (since I don't think I'll want to install the floors downstairs this way). Renting such a small piece of equipment for a few days costs about the same as buying the darn thing to begin with. Finishing the floor installation is A-#1 priority for the week's to-do list.

Details to follow...

I didn't want to post until I had the project completed, but here's a sneak peak at what I've been up to for the past week or so:

You have no idea how happy this little bit of progress has made me. Seriously.