We PASSED inspections!!
Ok, so "WE" might be giving Matt and I a little too much credit...really "WE" had very little, if anything, to do with it. Regardless, those two stickers give us the green light to take some major steps forward in the home building process. If all goes according to plan, by the end of next week we'll have insulation in and drywall hung...then the FUN stuff starts!
While most of the work being done has been pretty boring (plumbing, electrical), there have been a few exciting things happening as well.
Our fireplace was installed just last week. Beautiful, right?
And the weather warmed up enough that they could start working on our stone.
There have also been some big changes taking place AROUND our house. I'll show you some before and afters of our outdoor transformation, but first I think you need a little bit of background.
About a year and a half ago Matt and I purchased a 3.2 acre lot in Gretna, NE. The lot had previously been developed, but the house that was originally there fell victim to a very unfortunate fire. The house was a total loss, and the owners decided to sell the lot. That being said, when we took possession of the land, it came equipped with a lot of "bonus features"...an existing well, septic system, buried propane tank, and a WHOLE LOT of landscaping.
When we purchased the lot in November 2011, Matt and I were still living in South Dakota and the lot became somewhat neglected. When we moved to Nebraska last June, life got extremely chaotic and the neglect continued. To say that things were out of control might be the understatement of the century. I'm pretty sure that we owe the whole neighborhood a few cold ones in return for them putting up with our eye sore of a yard.
Here's what our berms looked like last summer before Matt busted his butt cleaning them up. Those are weeds, people. Weeds.
After about 80 hours of weeding in 95+ degree temps (no exaggerating on either account), things were looking much better...but there was still a lot of work to go!
Last week Matt had a few days off and decided that it was time to tackle the berms once again. On Wednesday he rented a trencher and cleared out an edge around our behemoth berms.
The next day we had TWENTY yards of mulch dropped of in our front yard. Matt started working at around 8:30 that morning and was still there at 6 that night when Harrison and I stopped by before heading home. When it was all said and done, only one of the two berms was completed.
The before...or as Matt called it..."No Fun Land."
Good for catching trash, but not much else!
My mom even volunteered her services and helped cut back all of the old plants. The jury's still out as to whether or not they will come back after Weedfest 2012.
On Friday I got to join in the fun. While I was glad that I was finally able to help, I would have appreciated if Mother Nature could have gone a little easier on the wind. We were total dirt balls by the end of the afternoon (I'm still blowing mulch out my nose)...but we finished! Talk about a rewarding feeling!
Berm #1
Berm #2
I love this guy. He worked SO.FREAKIN'.HARD. to get these back in shape.
June is creeping closer and things are officially starting to feel a little more real. Soon we'll be able to unpack our boxes and surround ourselves with a much needed sense of familiarity. We've been living in a constant state of crazy for the past 2 years...and while I know that a new house isn't going to fix the broken pieces of our hearts, I do believe that it will provide some level of healing for our family. We so desperately need to feel settled again and to start establishing roots...to have a place we cab finally call home.
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