So bizarre. I mean really - surreal, even. Gingersnap has been a great pet. Loving, cuddly kitten. But, when we moved (maybe before?) he started peeing in inappropriate places. This was made worse when he developed diabetes. When we decided to have the basement done, we knew that his time with us was limited. No way can we afford to replace the carpet only to have it ruined again.
So, the basement reno started n April, but it wasn't until the carpet timeline became a reality that we made the appointment at the vet. This was really hard - how would the kids feel? how will the other cat adapt? is this the right decision - the cat is otherwise healthy ( to our untrained eyes anyway). But then every time there was a new load of laundry that reeked of pee, or I had to wipe up pee in the locker room, bathroom or my bedroom, or anytime I stepped on the warped flooring at the front door, I knew he needed to go. So the appointment was made. And today was the day.
Well, D & K and Ginger, who fought getting into the carrier, headed out at 4:45. D returns to tell me that the vet suggested having Ginger become a clinic cat. Pay a surrender fee for NOT putting him down. Would I have done this? iDunno. Was it the right decision? iDunno. I still feel as though he is my responsibility. The fact that he is living there, rather than here, makes me feel guilty. I am left wondering "will he have a good night? will he wake the folks up there at 4:30 as he did here?" Why was I unable to get him to stop peeing everywhere? How will Spot adjust?
Honestly, this was a really hard decision, and having it turn into a non decision, does not make it better. Not tonight anyway.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Basement Reno ticking down
Things are looking really good! The finishing has started - trim on doors, shelves built, and the tile is about a third done. I have a full gallery documenting the renovation, and will keep updating it as it progresses. It will be very nice to have the second TV back, for sure. Though some coping that is being done is watching movies on the laptops, on the front porch.
I have to stop myself from running out and buying new accessories, decorative items and bath supplies! I can't wait to get it all set up, that is for sure.
I have to stop myself from running out and buying new accessories, decorative items and bath supplies! I can't wait to get it all set up, that is for sure.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Time Flies
Wow! My head is spinning trying to keep up with the photo work I have done and need to deliver and the new jobs that I need to get done! Seems like I haven't stepped out of the office since the first of May!
The spring has been very dry, was fairly cold and my garden would have sucked anyway! There, that will be my excuse!
So no garden, probablty will plant some planters, but not much else. Hope to be able to hire a crew to at least clean up the yard, maybe start the backbone of the new landscaping.
The good news is that the basement is nearly done! I've been keeping track of it in a gallery here
I am really excited about the outcome. I suspect that the room that will make the most difference to the family is the bathroom. Daryl is most looking forward to the new office space, which he has firmly planted his stake into. For me, it is the laundry room! Hands down - laundry room.
I have ordered a 7 ft long counter top, standard 2 ft deep, mounted at 36 inches off the ground. Folding table. No longer will stacks of folded laundry stay on my dinner table. No longer will Colin need to get dressed in the dining room. No longer will there be stray socks all over the family room! Yep, for me, the laundry room reigns supreme.
The rest of the changes down there will be great - a nice open space, games table area, bar area, nice family seating area with the TV and fireplace as focal points, all very nice indeed.
Should be finished by the end of the month! Hopefully this will coincide with the end of the photo order backlog, and the start of summer yard work season!
:-)
The spring has been very dry, was fairly cold and my garden would have sucked anyway! There, that will be my excuse!
So no garden, probablty will plant some planters, but not much else. Hope to be able to hire a crew to at least clean up the yard, maybe start the backbone of the new landscaping.
The good news is that the basement is nearly done! I've been keeping track of it in a gallery here
I am really excited about the outcome. I suspect that the room that will make the most difference to the family is the bathroom. Daryl is most looking forward to the new office space, which he has firmly planted his stake into. For me, it is the laundry room! Hands down - laundry room.
I have ordered a 7 ft long counter top, standard 2 ft deep, mounted at 36 inches off the ground. Folding table. No longer will stacks of folded laundry stay on my dinner table. No longer will Colin need to get dressed in the dining room. No longer will there be stray socks all over the family room! Yep, for me, the laundry room reigns supreme.
The rest of the changes down there will be great - a nice open space, games table area, bar area, nice family seating area with the TV and fireplace as focal points, all very nice indeed.
Should be finished by the end of the month! Hopefully this will coincide with the end of the photo order backlog, and the start of summer yard work season!
:-)
Monday, April 6, 2009
Basement, thy time has come!
We have cleaned out the stack of unpacked boxes that have been there since we moved. We have cleaned out the storage room! Wow, it seems like a huge feat, and only took about 8 hours total! Many boxes of things to Goodwill, many others to trash. A few to keep! A few treasures were uncovered, like Katie's diary from 2000, and Colin's father's day poem from grade 3! And photos, snap shots from the early years. All safely tucked away into plastic totes to be retrieved 'in the future'!
With everything gone, we can now start to imagine how the new space will shape up, and even had a new, good idea! We are getting closer, closer every da-ay. I don't know who gets credit for that line, but thanks!
I took some before photos on Saturday - really amazing how you don't 'see' things when you look at them every day. The basement really is a disaster - holes in the ceiling, clutter everywhere, smelly cat smells. I've walked through the new plans with the kids, and they are all quite excited. I am sure we will have many conflabs when the time comes to choose the finishes. I have a plan tho - Colin gets first say on the bath and his room, Alex can be primary on the color and carpet for the common area, KT gets dibs on the upstairs bathroom and I get veto power on it all! Muwhahah!
This is gonna be great!
With everything gone, we can now start to imagine how the new space will shape up, and even had a new, good idea! We are getting closer, closer every da-ay. I don't know who gets credit for that line, but thanks!
I took some before photos on Saturday - really amazing how you don't 'see' things when you look at them every day. The basement really is a disaster - holes in the ceiling, clutter everywhere, smelly cat smells. I've walked through the new plans with the kids, and they are all quite excited. I am sure we will have many conflabs when the time comes to choose the finishes. I have a plan tho - Colin gets first say on the bath and his room, Alex can be primary on the color and carpet for the common area, KT gets dibs on the upstairs bathroom and I get veto power on it all! Muwhahah!
This is gonna be great!
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Progress without the evidence!
Okay, I FAILED at taking potos of the disaster that is my basement! But I have made some progress since I last wrote.
First, last Friday I climbed onto the roof (while D was still here) and shoveled snow all morning.
It was actually invigorating and fun, and turned out to be very necessary. I discovered that we had a very large ice dam in the west eave, under the spruce. D cam home and cleaned that out, and we have not had a problem with melt water in the hose or porch
r
On Monday, I emptied the boxes that have sat on the desk in the basement for however long. Many books into storage, many to go to charity. All in just a couple of hours. Thursday, D helped me by hauling boxes out of the storage room. We sorted through a couple of dozen boxes: stuff that we moved and did not unpack, stuff that has been taken out of the kids bedrooms, yada, yada. Ended up with some treasure:
My first teddy bear:
Alex's kindergarten scrap book, Katie's sixth grade writing, a full set of Portmeirion dinner ware (who knew that was sitting there all these years).
And we ended up with a van full of stuff to take to Goodwill.
Wednesday, ATCO arrived (unexpectedly, and with the house looking like a tornado hit) and they will be moving the meter this spring. Timing is good, I hope, and their work can mesh with the reno. However, outside they will need to dig up the front yard!
The renovator came by for some measurements Friday and so things are really progressing! A few more days of emptying and sorting, aggressively getting rid of 'stuff' and we should be ready to finally whip that basement into shape.
The next thing to get into shape will be me!
First, last Friday I climbed onto the roof (while D was still here) and shoveled snow all morning.
It was actually invigorating and fun, and turned out to be very necessary. I discovered that we had a very large ice dam in the west eave, under the spruce. D cam home and cleaned that out, and we have not had a problem with melt water in the hose or porch
r
On Monday, I emptied the boxes that have sat on the desk in the basement for however long. Many books into storage, many to go to charity. All in just a couple of hours. Thursday, D helped me by hauling boxes out of the storage room. We sorted through a couple of dozen boxes: stuff that we moved and did not unpack, stuff that has been taken out of the kids bedrooms, yada, yada. Ended up with some treasure:
My first teddy bear:
Alex's kindergarten scrap book, Katie's sixth grade writing, a full set of Portmeirion dinner ware (who knew that was sitting there all these years).
And we ended up with a van full of stuff to take to Goodwill.
Wednesday, ATCO arrived (unexpectedly, and with the house looking like a tornado hit) and they will be moving the meter this spring. Timing is good, I hope, and their work can mesh with the reno. However, outside they will need to dig up the front yard!
The renovator came by for some measurements Friday and so things are really progressing! A few more days of emptying and sorting, aggressively getting rid of 'stuff' and we should be ready to finally whip that basement into shape.
The next thing to get into shape will be me!
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Projects
So I have some pretty big projects underway, and I really need to focus my efforts better, so I am hoping that writing about them and keeping track of them in photos will keep me on track.
First is basement clean out and renovation.
A big part of cleaning out the basement will be figuring out where to put or what to do with our "stuff". A possible storage location would be the garage, but then that would need to be cleaned out first! :-)
Anyway, I shall take some "before" photos tomorrow, sometime between shoveling the roof and my shift. And I will take a progress photo once every two days, minimum!
Other projects include my two big photo shoots this spring, and getting fit.
First is basement clean out and renovation.
A big part of cleaning out the basement will be figuring out where to put or what to do with our "stuff". A possible storage location would be the garage, but then that would need to be cleaned out first! :-)
Anyway, I shall take some "before" photos tomorrow, sometime between shoveling the roof and my shift. And I will take a progress photo once every two days, minimum!
Other projects include my two big photo shoots this spring, and getting fit.
Friday, March 6, 2009
It's March!
Good grief, time really has been flying by. March 6, 2009. And it is -25C today! Bleck!
I've been working for SmugMug for a month now, and it is great! I am quite enjoying the job, settling in to a new schedule but still struggling with using my other time well.
I had intentions of walking with Kelso daily, but the truth is I am a fair weather pet owner, and the weather has just not been fair most of the month. We have gone out a couple of times, and that has been great.
I also intend to get the basement totally cleaned out and get rid of all that junk. The thing that will force me to do this is we finally have a renovator lined up. YAY! And we will be giving the basement a really good makeover, starting with moving the laundry into the back corner, building a bath between the laundry and Colin's room and then opening the whole remaining space into one large room. The little space on the back side of the fireplace will become a guest room. I am really looking forward to this; there is so much space down there but it is soo poorly organized. And right now, it is just full of junk! We are getting close to setting a schedule, so the junk must go.
I want to have that well under control so that I can start garden clean up as soon as the snow is gone. I will have a great garden this year, and I will get some serious landscaping done.
I also have not done very well at a PAD project. I figured that I would at least make some progress with that by using my iPhone and SmugShots! But, I just don't take a photo a day, and am not sure random snapshots are a great way to "push" my skills.
We are still waiting for resolution with our two insurance claims. Katie slid into a tree with her car, and it has been written off. That claim is mostly finalized, but her replacement car is not in her hands yet.
The repairs and replacement of all things broken or taken during the "party" has been finished, and now it is up to the insurance company to process that claim. It will end up being a $10K "sweet sixteen" :(
I've been working for SmugMug for a month now, and it is great! I am quite enjoying the job, settling in to a new schedule but still struggling with using my other time well.
I had intentions of walking with Kelso daily, but the truth is I am a fair weather pet owner, and the weather has just not been fair most of the month. We have gone out a couple of times, and that has been great.
I also intend to get the basement totally cleaned out and get rid of all that junk. The thing that will force me to do this is we finally have a renovator lined up. YAY! And we will be giving the basement a really good makeover, starting with moving the laundry into the back corner, building a bath between the laundry and Colin's room and then opening the whole remaining space into one large room. The little space on the back side of the fireplace will become a guest room. I am really looking forward to this; there is so much space down there but it is soo poorly organized. And right now, it is just full of junk! We are getting close to setting a schedule, so the junk must go.
I want to have that well under control so that I can start garden clean up as soon as the snow is gone. I will have a great garden this year, and I will get some serious landscaping done.
I also have not done very well at a PAD project. I figured that I would at least make some progress with that by using my iPhone and SmugShots! But, I just don't take a photo a day, and am not sure random snapshots are a great way to "push" my skills.
We are still waiting for resolution with our two insurance claims. Katie slid into a tree with her car, and it has been written off. That claim is mostly finalized, but her replacement car is not in her hands yet.
The repairs and replacement of all things broken or taken during the "party" has been finished, and now it is up to the insurance company to process that claim. It will end up being a $10K "sweet sixteen" :(
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)