Today was a big day on Center Avenue. The dumpster was filled for the sixth time and demolition is mostly complete. There are some silly storage platforms in the attic and a chimney that still need to come down, but other than that, we're entering the rebuilding stage. Next up: shore up the main floor by replacing footings and support columns in the basement. Nate has hired a house-moving-company to temporarily hold things up while our concrete contractor pours the new footings. Shortly after, drain tile will be laid around the perimeter of the basement and the foundation/basement walls will be smoothed and beautified.
The windows will be ordered by the end of the week and we also need to pick an insulation contractor. We still haven't made a decision on siding, but we're leaning towards major restoration of the current cedar siding. Whatever the siding material, we're thinking a grey exterior with white trim. Something like this photo from Apartment Therapy, but with a stained wood door instead of orange. Although I kind of like the thought of a fun front door - orange, yellow or green?
All sorts of great strides are happening around here! The highlights:
Demolition of the fixer-upper is nearly complete (another video tour coming soon)
Louisa learned to ride a bike (video below)
Peter has found a new vantage point from which to enjoy life (video below)
Cora's vocab is in full bloom (I'll work on a video for this one)
About a month ago, Cora was still lovingly referring to Peter as "Der," refusing to add the "Pea" to the front, likely because we laughed every time she refused. Now we miss that nickname for our sweet pea, and the Amos Lee song I picked to go with Peter's sitting up video offered a nice little way to remember it.
In Lou's biking video, she is practicing at her new school - Lowell Elementary, where she'll soon join her fellow Lowell Lizards entering grades 4K through 5th grade. She met her 4K teacher, Mrs. Douglas yesterday and is excited to start school on September 2. She'll go Tuesday through Friday, from 11:30-2:30. The timing isn't amazing for our napping schedule, but we've already met a classmate named CiCi who lives across the street that we hope to walk-pool/carpool with!
Another highlight of late is the first few weeks with Helen, our new nanny. She is wonderful! Louisa and Cora love her because she lets them do crafts every day, Peter loves her because she feeds him sweet potatoes and other mushed-up concoctions, and I love her because she does an amazing job entertaining the kids while keeping up with laundry and dishes. I always come home to a calm, clean house, which is awesome. On that note, my new job is going well. I'm glad to be back at UW Health and the new hospital/clinic I'm working at is beautiful, with tons of natural light!
That's all for now...Cora's waking and Peter seems to be ready for nap #3!
I think the best way to amaze with progress is to just stay quiet for a while!
Lots has happened in the past 3 weeks. On Saturday, August 1, we hosted our first demo day. It's incredible what you can accomplish with the help of friends and family. So far we've been blessed by 14 unique sets of hands in addition to our own. This absolutely includes the hands that have prepared food for the crew and watched Lou, Cora & Peter.
This past Saturday, I learned how to remove plaster and lath. Once I got over the fact that I was going to get super-dirty, it was actually really fun. But I will take credit for far less than 0.001% of the total work that's been done. Nate is incredibly dedicated to this project, and for that I'm grateful!
Our hope is to be done with demo by the end of August, which seems attainable. In the next two weeks or so we have lots of contractors coming to give us bids on tasks like masonry work in the basement, the pouring of a garage slab and driveway, and siding repair or replacement. We're eager to hear whether repairing and painting the existing wood siding is the feasible, because the cost of replacing it with a wood-like composite comes with a bit of sticker shock.
Here are some photos from the first day of plaster removal. It was a family affair with my brother-in-law, Dan and my hard-working dad! And finally, a video. When we go back and watch home videos of our kids, we only regret not taking more, so to avoid similar regret once the house is complete, I asked Nate to take a house-video-tour before he locked up last night. He even narrated it!
I've been trying to really reflect on the transition from two to three kids. After Peter was born, an old neighbor on Baldwin Street, who has two kids of her own, wrote this beautiful thought to me as a part of a congratulatory note that included a sweet invite to move back to Baldwin Street:
I like imagining that having three children is just deep immersion into chaos and the thickest kind of love. Enjoy all your moments.
I think I like it so much because it's not all lovely and sweet. The image it conjures in my mind is a bit messy, but also totally love filled. And perhaps even overwhelmed with love? As Peter approaches his 1/2 birthday - which is crazy, as baby birthdays always are - I feel like this statement perfectly describes life with three children.
I should say that right now, as I type, I'm feeling quite calm and sentimental because Louisa is at day camp, Cora is quietly lining clementines up on the kitchen counter, and Peter is sleeping. Of course life is not always so ordered and sweet, but for the most part, it's nearly impossible to imagine life before Peter. I do sometimes longingly watch mothers of one-child and feel a bit of nostalgia for that time in my life. Or even watch young, single friends make spontaneous, fun decisions, and sigh, wishing I could do that, too. But I love my children. You are all amazing in your own ways, and I wouldn't trade you for a million spontaneously fun outings. For these chaotic years, I'll just keep planning our outings ahead of time!
Here's a glimpse into some of our pre-planned outings. Clearly I need to take more photos of Peter. Sorry, Buster Brown, I'll work on that!
Belle's nail salon
Mask craft as a reading reward at the library
Rickshaw ride at the children's museum
Nate said I needed a selfie stick if I wanted to include all my kids
Each time I stop by the fixer upper, I feel a bit surprised that it doesn't look much different yet. It seems like we've done so much, but alas...we're actually just in the preparation stage. Nate has spent hours creating 2D and 3D models, carefully removing trim pieces from windows and doorways, walking through with energy/insulation experts, draining the radiators, mowing the jungle of a lawn and starting demolition in the basement.
While my tasks have been much less hands-on, I also feel like I've done enough work that things should look better. I've talked to energy experts, bankers (for our home equity line of credit), dumpster rental companies, and arborists. It's funny that one morning you can wake up and have no idea how much it costs to have a dumpster in your driveway for 30 days, let alone who offers the best deal in Madison, and by that afternoon, be placing an online order. Sometimes I've thought that the best (paying) job for me would be to be a personal assistant to a very busy person. I enjoy checklists and being organized. Nate is the very busy person and so far, I've enjoyed the tasks he (very politely) asks me to take care of each week.
A typical weekday around here looks like this: we all wake up between 7 and 8. Nate leaves for work at 7:30 and usually one or both girls are eating breakfast at our island (we're in the apartment downtown Madison for one more week). After breakfast, dress-up clothes are donned and legos are dumped. The apartment becomes a bit of a disaster area while I make calls, send emails and scan documents. Usually around 9:30 or 10, I get cabin fever and we rally to get things cleaned up before leaving for an outing.
The weather has been amazing, so we've had fun going to the zoo, beach, parks and the children's museum. On Friday morning, we went to Oma's house to make these tasty cookies for a party we had that night. On Thursday mornings, Louisa has dance class and tomorrow she starts a week-long theater camp. Peter is proving to be a very easy-going third child, napping when and where he can and smiling at anyone who will smile at him. Cora is mostly content to follow Louisa's instructions on who she's pretend-marrying that day or whether it's time for swim lessons or dance class (each activity takes place in a different room of our small apartment) and always happily goes down for a nap when we return home from our morning outing.
We don't actually have our permit for the renovation yet, but Nate is close to having everything ready. We hope to have it by early next week, because technically, a permit is required to have a dumpster in your driveway. The tree removal on the calendar below is crucial because the removal crew will likely need the driveway to get their equipment to the backyard. Here is the schedule for the next few days:
Thursday, July 30: the massive walnut tree will be removed to make room for the new garage
Friday, July 31: the 30 yard dumpster will be delivered & we move out of the apartment
Saturday, August 1: our first community demo day
Monday, August 3: I start work & we move into the rental house
Whew. Life is full, but good! I'm hoping that Peter starts to sleep through the night more frequently, because when our days are so packed, a good night's sleep is crucial. He had two nights this week where he slept straight from 10 pm until 5 am, which felt magical. Go, Peter, go! Sleep, Peter, sleep!
Here are some different new before-photos that Nate and Louisa took last week while I stayed at the apartment with Peter and Cora.
We own the house! Because the previous owner has a guardian, the sale of the house had to be approved by the court. We received news of the court approval on June 30 and closed the next day. My blood pressure must have been sky-high from the moment I heard the news, as I tried to calm a crabby two-year-old (who wanted to keep the plastic cell phone from the "busy box" at swimming lessons) while drying Louisa off and making phone calls to make sure we had our funds for closing in the right accounts. I don't even remember, but I bet Peter wanted to eat too. Now it's all a good memory - - we made it home for lunch and naps and then walked up to the capitol square to the bank to get a big 'ole cashier's check. Biggest purchase we'll ever make, I suspect!
A sweet friend, Betty, hung out with the girls and secured a spot on the capitol lawn for the concert on the square for later that night. My parents, aunt Judy and cousin Molly drove from Oconomowoc to enjoy the music, weather and food with us. What a way to celebrate!
Now the real work begins. Nate has been busy taking measurements and creating floor plans on Solid Works and we've started a Google Drive spreadsheet to keep track of our costs. Nate's attention to detail amazes me. He wants to mark spots on the floor plans for where our before and after photos are taken. I have to say, I love the idea but hadn't thought of being that precise!
Here are the existing floor plans:
And the proposed floor plans, still in the initial design phase, so likely to change again:
Thanks for your excitement and support as we embark on this project! We're happy to accept feedback, if you see things we haven't considered. Next step: prepare plans that will satisfy the city, so we can obtain our permits and start the demolition!
We got the house! It's not official until July 1, our expected closing date, but we're pumped. It seems like it might be a good idea to get some rest before the hard work begins, but there's no time for rest! We're jumping right back into "life on the isthmus." Our days are filled with swimming lessons, ultimate frisbee, paperwork (for leases, a closing, a mortgage, my new job, my dietitian certification, and 4-year-old kindergarten enrollment) and some fun outings!
Here is a link to some pictures of our fixer upper. Hopefully they stay posted for a bit despite our pending purchase. Before you take a peek, know that we are not going to live in it during the renovation! God provides: we just signed a lease for a 3 bedroom house 0.1 miles away from our new house. We can stay until May 31, 2016, although hope to be out by January.
Yesterday I facetime-d with Nate's sister, Anne, who is living through (and in) a renovation. I could feel the weight lifted from her shoulders when I told her that we are not planning to live in our new house while we remodel. Check out her blog post from yesterday for a beautiful video tour of their house in progress. You're amazing, Anne, and I can't wait to visit and drink a glass of wine together, regardless of the state of your home.
After checking out the rental house on Monday, we walked over to the new house and walked around the outside. The neighbors came out and were thrilled to hear that someone bought the house. I was excited to meet them - they seem so "Madison" - telling me that they only have one car (a Prius) and are lucky enough to bike to work, which for the woman happens to be Louisa's new school, Lowell Elementary.
All these bits of good news have been great distractors to the crazy hours when I'm home alone with the three kids. They are all so wonderful most of the time, unless Louisa and Cora are racing to close bedroom doors (so Ries doesn't stress-poop on the carpets), push elevator buttons, or demanding me! pink/purple/orange/green!!! as I'm taking cups/bowls/plates out for a meal or snack. Sigh. On the bright side, Cora and Peter are consistently napping at the same time most afternoons while Louisa has a quiet time (which is an actual nap 30% of the time) in her room. Naps, glorious naps!
If these kids drive me too too crazy, I remember some funny things Louisa says, like yesterday's quotes:
1) Mom, when Cora and I turn 16, we'll have to buy some bigger dress-ups that fit us!
2) I've never had a day like today. (What do you mean Lou?) Where we go to frisbee first and then eat dinner. Have you had a day like today, Mom? (Yes, Louisa, I think I ate dinner after frisbee games a couple of times) Oh, was it before I was born?
Before we moved to California and renamed our blog "Life in the Valley," it was called "Life on the Isthmus," which is actually fitting again while we're in corporate housing. We're living in a nice, 2-bedroom apartment in a new complex a couple blocks off State Street. For those of you who haven't been to Madison, State Street is long strip of restaurants and shops that connects the University campus to the capitol building. Despite having three kids and a dog on the fourth floor of a high-rise apartment complex, we kind of like it! The kids and I have already walked to the library, the park/beach, the children's museum and two different ice cream spots. Our single B.O.B. stroller is serving us well, with Peter in the infant carseat and Cora wedged onto the front triangle "seat."
The fantastic kid zone in the central library
Not sure if it's quite true, but I like the idea
The terrace, our first stop for Babcock ice cream
A view of the capitol and the isthmus, near where we were engaged in 2006
Silly sisters at the beach
We'll be in the apartment until we buy a house, a process that has been mostly enjoyable thus far. Nate and I agree on our preferred neighborhood, which is east of the capitol, called Atwood-Schenk. This neighborhood has an awesome community vibe to it and is walkable to restaurants, shops, parks and the lake. The only downside to the neighborhood is it's popularity. For-Sale signs are hard to come by and when you do find one, the houses are expensive or run down, or both. But we're trying to be patient because living there would be a great compromise between wanting to be in Madison while working in Waterloo (Nate). I have to clarify whose working where, because I just accepted a job today! I'll be at UW Health's new facility on the far east side, called The American Center. I'll work 3 days each week as an outpatient dietitian, starting August 3rd.
But back to the fun stuff: the house hunt! I'm reluctant to post these photos, because we'll find out tonight if it's still a possible purchase or not, but here is the house we want to buy. Our first offer was very low and as a result, rejected outright. We waited a few weeks and planned to wait longer, but heard that the seller received another offer last night. So we jumped in with a more competitive offer. This one has kept Nate up at night while he envisions gutting and rebuilding. We're pretty sure he (and some contractors) could make it an amazing house for us. Never fear, those of you who might wonder if we've considered what we'd be getting ourselves into. We've prayed and talked a TON about the immensity of the project, and we really want to take it on! But again, we'll soon see if it's in the cards or not, because they may reject us again or bring a counter offer that is higher than we're willing to pay.
I'll leave you with some photos of some apartment happenings. We're super proud of Cora for becoming a "big girl" (as we call being potty trained) during a huge transition time. As every mother knows, it's so awesome to cut your diaper (buying or washing) budget in half!
Yay Cora!
Peter manages to catch his naps anywhere he can
This looks staged, but Louisa could sing and dance with Peter all day
