We're In!!!!!!!

I'm sitting now in the sunshine on our verandah and it is SO lovely! I just heard some kookaburras and there are quite a few other birds tweeting around (whats the one that echos your whistle?) I've just spent the morning cleaning up after moving in on Saturday, lots of sweeping, felting the chair legs, washing up, trying to make some sense of the boys mess of toys and doing washing! Sounds tedious but its just great!
Part of the reason I'm sitting on the verandah is because I can't get internet reception in the house (no thanks optus) but its nice out here! We had Thom & Chan for dinner on Saturday night and christened the oven with a roast and then sat on the couches with Ben Harper crooning in the background and enjoyed doing absolutely nothing (except flicking through the occasional Real Living Mag).
The fire went in on Saturday afternoon, not in exactly the place we had planned but it looks fine and its HOT! Once we get curtains we really are going to be walking round in t-shirts ("just like you're in a thermos" so eloquently quoted the fire guy...we believe he meant furnace)!
So I'd like to get some vegies planted somewhere at some stage today, make a shoe rack for the front door so we don't just have a pile to sift through every time we leave the house and better think about dinner at some point too.
Can't wait to show this place off to our friends and family! Come Visit!!
x Mel
ps. I'll post some photos when i find the box with the lead for the camera...

Eeek!

So we have POWER in the house, thanks waz! Also some smoke alarms, almost some heat light thingys in the bathrooms and almost lights. I'm meeting the guy from the council out there this morning, bit scary. He will tell me whether we're officially right to move in...fingers crossed! Our fire is confirmed to be going in afer lunch on Saturday!!! So we'll be warm at least and the "flamin plumber" should be finished today, though I would not be surprised if he wasn't....long, not very interesting story there.
I was going through all the photos we have of life so far at the farm and found the one below, what a grump :)

So close...

We actually moved furniture in this weekend!! So exciting! But as everyone keeps pointing out, everything looks so small, as you can see from the pic below. We still can't fully move in yet because we area still waiting on the plumber who I am expecting out there at 8.30am sharp tomorrow morning, we'll see. Waz has to finish off the power to the house this afternoon (did I mention he is an electrician) and then we will have power, but still no lights so I'll be pinching everyone's lamps until we get around to doing that. The wood fire is scheduled for Saturday coming, which is lucky cos it has just started to get FREEZING here in little Goulburn. But gosh yesterday it was so nice sitting on the couch IN THE HOUSE having a cuppa with Ames and Nathan, who bought bikkies yum!

Unpacking in the kitchen. And you can also see the splashback tiles that Glenn Swift Tiling did earlier this week...looks awesome!

My previously normal-size dining table looks completely ridiculous in such a large space! Bring on next March when we can build our new one! Everything really does look too small but we won't be splashing out to fill it because thats just silly when we have so many top-quality seconds shops in town and great garage sales every weekend!

So this week my jobs are
1. Follow up Plumber
2. Follow up glass guy for ensuite shower screen
3. Pay for wood fire
4. Borrow lamps
5. Buy groceries
6. Ty and relax a bit!!!

So not too much, I mean there are still windows to varnich, walls to paint, verandahs to sweep, tip runs to do...but moving in is a lot more exciting and a bit less work!

The boys room carpeted and almost set up...hoping to sell these bunks btw if anyone is interested!

The Floors!!

We finally have done the concrete floors!! They look awesome! Started on Friday with the stain which we applied with a lambswool applicator, I did the edges and waz applied it. Went back out on Saturday and it looked terrible! So I went into repair mode, got down on my hands an knees and with a mix of water and the leftover stain i went over the whole lot again with a sponge. It looked SO much better, a lot more consistent and not streaky or pooling anywhere. So we let that set overnight and then yesterday I did the sealer top coat times two! Big job, much easier to apply than the stain but it looks amazing. It needs to cure for 24 hours and then we're right to walk on it, move furniture in, SO EXCITED!

The Living Room

Waz doing the initial floor stain (which we re-did)

All finished, the kitchen, step faces look different because of light coming in through living room.

Our carpet is getting laid tomorrow by a guy Dad knows from the jail, Scott Pomerey so we'll be set for floors by Wednesday and I can start moving in. The hot water system should also be this week and Matt will finish off the plumbing fittings on the weekend.
Of course the only thing that won't be done when we move in will be the power and lights to the house...that's what I get for marrying an electrician! He has been very busy and productive though so no hard feelings waz lv you!

And a couple more photos...

A lovely sunny afternoon

Dad's landscaping up the side of the house

Pepper Dog

And we are up to...

Mopping! One thing I seriously loathe and thankfully cannot do at the moment, having performed some house related activity I've stuffed my back up (temporarily) and am banned from doing anything that will worsen it. We are almost ready to do the floors, just need the mop and final vacuum done and I can do the stain and seal. Our ensuite got fitted out by the plumber on the weekend, so we now have a vanity installed, a shower (with no screen) and a FLUSHING toilet! Very exciting. Tilers are due back tomorrow to finish all the skirting tiles and tidy it all up and then Matt can finish the plumbing install on the weekend. Hot water is also due early next week and our kitchen will be finished tomorrow!! It looks amazing, can't wait to fill it with our stuff (floors first, floors first). Carpet layer friend of Dad's coming out tomorrow to have a look at the carpet laying job we need done so hopefully that will be soon and we really will be living there SO soon!
I've attached a few more photos too....

The Laundry

The in-between photo of the boys bathroom vanity. I decided to get rid of the mahogany red and I'll stain it in Jarrah instead...my fingers are red raw by the way from sanding!

Wazzas steps he had to rebuild...now the correct height and a bit easier to walk up and down. They will be covered in carpet in case you were wondering why they're a bit shabby.

The tiling has begun!!

Another busy weekend, out there all day Saturday & Sunday. Waz has been working on the hall steps that needed re-building/concreting and the slab for our gas bottles next to the shed. I have been varnishing doors, again and also our bathroom vanities which are coming up beautifully, reminds me I need to ebay some new handles for them. Also 3/4 finished our bedroom wall painting, looks so different painted, or maybe just clean :) The tilers finally started on Friday, all the floor tiles are done and they are grouting today, its amazing the difference some flooring makes. They hope to be done by the weekend and Matty (the plumber) will be able to install toilets and taps and shower heads!

Ensuite

Laundry

Boys Bathroom

We had the timber milling guy out on Sunday with his fancey 'Lucas Mill' and he has slabbed a chunk of the Yellow Box Tree that we had to chop down. It is going to be BEAUTIFUL when we can actually use it (about 12-18 months) plans to make the dining table, some bench seats and a coffee table. Can't wait! His name is Jamie Cunningham and he did such a great job, if anyone has any trees lying around they want sliced up :)

It has been raining for the last few days on and off and it is just a bog out there now! We have balance beams to get from the shed to the house, the boys love it but I have to take about three changes of clothes for them!
So, hoping the foor stain comes today or tomorrow, its kind of the thing we need to do next so we can finish the kitchen and start to get the place liveable. Hot water would also be helpful but again we are waiting on the tradesman, and sorry to say they are not always on time or reliable grr.
The lady at the tile shop in town told me there is a couple out windellama way who are doing a muddy also, would be great to get in touch...another thing to add to my list of things to do :)
Signing off! Mel x
Oh and I'll add some pics as soon as my camera cooperates.

Today

SO excited! Finally tiling is starting on Thursday and Glenn tells me he is confident it will be finished by Tuesday because they will work over the weekend! Hoping my floor stain comes in the post by Friday and that will be my job on the weekend. Using another product from Grimes and Sons, water based stain that I apply with a lambswool applicator, kind of like mopping but a bit tidier and less splash. Also trying to get the four rooms painted that we are carpeting and the carpet can get laid next week or the one after as well. I think it should come together fairly quickly from here but won't hold my breath. I've also got too work on the bathroom vanities, light sand and varnish so they are ready to install when the bathrooms are ready for them...just reminds me I have to pick up taps today! Maurice was out there yesterday doing some finishing trim on the loungeroom sliders as well as fixing a door jamb that was terribly installed and finishing the trim on my kitchen and ensuite windows. Waz and his mate Thom were out there last night laying some levelling concrete in the edges of the lounge room, they were just a bit messy and gauged out for some reason. I'm sure the boys had fun driving the Dodge out there which is now registered and operational which is very exciting! I'll have to put a pic up ASAP. Also we have two more fence posts to put in and we'll be right to build the house yard fence...finally! And before I sign off, below is a pic of some produce we are already getting from the farm, some lovely potatoes, corn, beetroot and zuchini! YUM!

The vegies

The Kitchen - half done

Our Bedroom Doors DONE!