Between the boards

On the spur of the moment we decide to drive up to see how the house is progressing. A beautiful day, we pack a picnic and off we go. On the way we spot the dirigible that is flying out of Paine Field doing tours of the area. She is the largest airship in the world. (http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20100823/NEWS01/708249925/0/SPORTS#A.sky-high.ride.in.a.zeppelin)





 Up at Camano, the house looks much the same on the outside, but inside  things are happening.

 Over the past week, the plumbing, electrical, and in-floor heating has really been coming together.

Our friend Shelley advised us to take photos of these details for future reference. Great idea, but where do we begin?

Perhaps another day when I'm not so hungry!

But now it's salmon salad sandwich time!

No, I don't think that's the wiring picture we need.....

After lunch, we check in with our friends and take a few more pictures.

nor is this!

This one is pretty detailed, but where is it??

Giving up on our photo-journal mission, we take a couple fun shots!







Bye for now, Lemkin, Lemkin, and Lemkin

Decisions, decisions

This is the first week in a long time that we haven't been to the beach.

But we're not slacking!

Some interesting facts:

Our framing contractor has used 65,000 nails and is not quite done.

Apart from the design, there are approximately 91 things that Jeff and I have to decide upon; everything from the flooring, to finishes, to lighting fixtures! We are about a third of the way there.

Next week we'll choose all the lights and the following week, the cabinets and interior doors and finishes.

My crab tally is 8 for the season.      :(        next year!

Building an energy-efficient home is much more affordable than it was even five years ago. I wish LED lights were ready for primetime. They are great!

We're hoping for a 4 or possibly 5 Star Built Green certification.

Despite some unforeseen glitches with the foundation, we're on schedule and (almost) on budget!

It's hard to imagine that the house will be done in five months!

Camano House from above

What began as a day of errands, cleaning, and cooking was delightfully interrupted by my brother Michael  calling with his arrival time. He was flying a small plane into Boeing Field from Eugene for a brief visit with his son Jonathan. Somehow (?)  in our conversation I suggested we fly up to Camano  so they could see the house. 

And off we went!



Our captain



The trip was 20 minutes of amazement.

 Seeing downtown Seattle up close...

Seeing our old neighborhood, Magnolia,  and our current Broadview neighborhood, and the beautiful islands to the north.

We landed on a little airstrip a mile and a half from our new house.

Our dear friend Julie picked us up and ferried us to and from the airport. Thank you!

The house looks great; work is progressing. The roof is on; electrical and plumbing are being roughed in.

And we made our final decision on the exterior color of the house!

Future kitchen sink





Click on pic to see the house

Not quite the way Ichiro would stretch!

A little touch of Lemkin and Lemkin

Our architect and his team have done a super job designing this house and we appreciate their contributions each time we're here. (http://designsnw.com/)


But  it's also very rewarding (and fun) to add a few of our own personal touches to the house.

Last week Jeff suggested that we remove the walls of his little upstairs study to open it up to the rest of the upstairs and the view. It looks really great!

 

Another clever idea we had was the addition of a seat in the Master Bath shower. I'm going to really appreciate this.



Since the guest bathroom and the linen closet share a common wall, how about a pass-through cabinet for easy access to towels......

And a space between the studs in the pantry for the broom and dustpan, and, .........







Amy and Jazz Visit the New House

Hooray! Amy is finally getting to see the house!

Things were moving today in more ways than one. A crew of roofers were shingling the roof thirty feet overhead; Jake the plumber was helping me determine the best location for the hose bibs; Jim brought a list of things to be decided. With a stiff breeze blowing in through our railing-free wind-tunnel from the Sound, Amy was clearly uncomfortable upstairs; so we decided set up our picnic next door, out of harm's way.

 I completely understand how she felt!

After lunch, Amy enjoyed a long walk down the beach, rewarded by a treasure trove of "nuggets".

Meanwhile, with Jim's help, I chose fixtures for our exterior doors, determined the location for the dining area lights,  hashed over ideas for the fireplace mantle and a floor tile pattern, and promised to select the exterior color for the house ASAP!!

The framing is complete and the space has been cleared of tools, scaffolding, cords, etc. Now it's time to focus on the interior.

  (Not the least of which is how to light these vaulted ceilings!)

At the end of the day  Jim's wife, Kyra, stopped by with a lovely gift- eggs from their chickens!  Looking forward to a great breakfast. Thank you Kyra and Jim!

Bye for now,

Windows, Pipes and Wires

discussing the kitchen electrical, whew!

Unlike my last adventure, our trip to the house today was all business. We were meeting with the electricians and our contractor to determine the placement of outlets, lights and switches. Pretty detailed stuff.

wrapped and windowed

So much has happened since the last visit. Most of the windows are in; the plumbing is mostly roughed in; the exterior is wrapped; and there is tar paper on the roof.

entry hall lighting was a challenge

The interior has been cleared out and we're beginning to get a feel for the future space.









Meanwhile back in Seattle, we're working to keep up with the progress: choosing plumbing fixtures, exterior colors, interior surfaces, paying the bills  :)

Future shower bench

We added a few personal touches- built in medicine cabinets, glass shower wall, open study for Jeff, lower ceiling heights in the closet and guest bath,  and a seat in the master shower with "found" space from the adjacent bath.

Dave and Sebastian working on the rafters

I appreciate the crew that Jim has  hired to do this work. They are skilled, conscientious, and all-around good people. Dave even weeded the poor pitiful flower bed, so we could enjoy the roses!

And our new hollyhock!













Bye for now,

Lemkin and Lemkin

A Swim in the Bay

Yesterday , as were  scurrying around getting the right tools to remove the fish hooks from the little gull, (see post of August 6th) the boat was drifting down the beach  heading for Utsalady Point!  Carolyn noticed it and shouted for someone to get it. So I put down the camera and ran off down the beach. The current was now taking it away at a pretty good clip. I took a deep breath and waded  in after it. Wet to my waist, I was surprised to find the water temperature not-too-unbearable!   I grabbed the boat and swam it to shore.

Fortunately I had a change of clothes with me, and Julie had a towel.

All's well that ends well.

August 6, 2010

Today was a day that started out like Ravel's Bolero.

Slow and pondering...... leading up to a very dramatic finish!

The work continues on the house; it's looking wonderful. I showed our next-door neighbors, Greg and Gigi, around the inside and worked with Jim on the "details".

Decisions, decisions. Jim is so good to work with. If you're in the area, here's his site:  (http://www.jameshallandassociates.com//)

Meanwhile, Sebastian and Darian are working away.

 It was cool and overcast. I sat there deciding whether to row out to the crab pots or wait for Julie and Gregory to return from town. I sat, read my book, ate lunch; my fleece draped over my shoulders.

An aside: The book I'm reading for book club is good- 'Half Broke Horses' by Jeanette Walls.  

The sun was trying to come out; and I was trying to get closer to the crabs. It was then that I decided to put the Sea Nymph in the water. As I was rowing around I realized that I still had my cell in my pocket and took some pictures.

click any photo to enlarge

No sooner did I get back to the beach, than I saw Carolyn over at their house. The run to the market was done and Julie graciously ferried me out to the  pots.

I SCORED!  Got a bunch of big guys! (And it was delicious!)

MEANWHILE,

As I was preparing to leave with my spoils, Carolyn spotted a baby gull that was drowning. Determined to save the little gull, she jumped into Greg's boat and was able to pick up the bird and row it to shore.

The baby bird had gotten a couple  fish hooks impaled, one in its foot and one in its beak. The hooks were only a couple inches apart, so the poor thing was floating head underwater, periodically struggling to get a breath. 

Everyone pitched in to help that little gull.

Finally the hooks were removed and off it swam... slowly.

We all were delighted to see it swim away!





Utsalady Rescue Inc!

That's my story, and I'm sticking with it.