Debbie and Joe's Travel Adventures

Today is the last day of our 6 week build.  We decided to work a half day today, so we can start our long trip back to Florida.   The house is almost done from a volunteer perspective.  They still need contractors for:  the electric and gas meters, kitchen countertop, appliances, all sinks and toilets.   Once the contractors finish their work, the local volunteers will jump back in to put the finishing touches on everything.

Joe decided to install one of the closet bi-fold doors.  The doors went right in first shot!

In between helping Joe, I had the job of doing a first pass cleanup of the showers which is not an easy task with all of the drywall dust, spackle and other ‘stuff’ that has been collecting on them since they were installed quite some time ago.  

Terry and Karen finished up the shelving in the closets, and then started installing bi-folds.

Marc installed the front and back door handle/lock hardware.

Richard finished installing the front shutters.

For lunch today, the team decided to go out to a local restaurant for our last lunch together for this year.  It’s always hard to say goodbye, but we hope to be back next year.   It’s been another rewarding experience working with amazing people.  We are very blessed to have this opportunity to give Sheila a “hand-up, not a hand-out”.  God is good.

Another beautiful weather day here in Sullivan, IL.  I’m sticking to my theory that mid-40’s here feels nothing like mid-40’s  in Florida ♥   

After another wonderful devotional and team prayer, everyone was back to work.  Joe and I were determined to get the handicap bathroom flooring done before our donut break, and have the baseboard molding completely done by the end of the day.  Mission accomplished!

While we were working on flooring, others were busy with other projects.  Nancy added a second coat of paint on the front and back doors.

Richard installed shutters.

Terry and Karen installed shelving in the closets.

Gene installed the handicap bathroom vanity.

Marc installed more floor molding where needed.

Gary started landscaping the yard.

Sometime early this morning, Beth stopped by with our donut treat … as she does every Thursday.  Since it’s our last week, she took lots of great pictures with this amazing team.

At the end of the day, Sheila (the future homeowner) stopped by with the bi-fold doors that she painted at her home.  It was great to spend some time with her and to feel her excitement about her new home.♥   We are truly honored and blessed to work with such amazing people.

God is good.

We’ve been treated to some great fall weather for our last week of the build.  It was another chilly start, but by mid-morning it was a beautiful sunny day in the mid-seventies.

Now that the tile contractor is done, Joe and I started flooring in the handicap bathroom with a couple of unknowns.  We didn’t know how the flooring would install over an area that had a slight slope into the shower, and we weren’t sure how to seal the last piece at the shower entrance.   But … we’re ‘experts’ now, so we started right in.  We were able to cut around the toilet opening and the wall with no problem.

Then came the tricky part.  We had to cut a one inch strip as the last piece before the shower, and install it with silicone underneath it to create a seal.  

Whew, it worked!  Tomorrow we only have a few pieces of flooring to install before the vanity gets installed and we finish the floor molding.

While we were busy in the bathroom, other team members were hard at work.  Terry and Karen installed bi-fold closet framing, molding around the front and back doors, and fixed the top strip of siding outside.

 

Nancy was finishing up the caulking and started work on painting the back door.

Gene was cutting a heater vent below the kitchen sink cabinet.

The electricians installed the remaining ceiling fans, the outside front light and the vanity lights in the bathrooms.

Overall, another productive day.  God is good.

 

 

 

 

It was a bit warmer this morning … in the low 40’s … but, still chilly.   We were blessed with another incredible sunrise this morning.  It’s one of our many gifts we receive by getting up early ;-).   Maybe we should try this when we get home … lol.

After another inspirational devotion, everyone continued their work from yesterday.  Joe and I finished up the closet, then completed the master bathroom.  They are small spaces, but many cuts and angles to figure out.

Richard and Marc were also making great progress on the floor molding.

Nancy was making all the slight imperfections and nail holes look seamless with lots of caulking.

Terry and Karen were working on installing the bi-fold door frames.  They needed a good amount of work to get them square, level and shimmed to the right door size.

Gene modified and installed all of the window sills which look great.

While our team made progress, contractors were also hard at work.  The electrician worked on installing more switches, outlets and fans.  The master bedroom looks complete ♥

The tile contractor applied black grout to the white tile.  Wow, it looks great with the black and white floor.

Outside, the Town of Sullivan installed the gas line. 

Another successful day.  Since it’s Taco Tuesday, the team will go to a local Mexican restaurant for dinner.  God is good.

 

 

 

Brrr … in the high 30’s this morning!!??  It was a brisk morning, but it turned out to be a gorgeous sunny afternoon with the high of 70.  After our morning devotional, we started on the door trim.  Since we haven’t done it for years, we got a few tips from the team and started with the trim in the closet.  Fit like a glove first shot!  The master bedroom has 3 doors in it, with trim on both sides.  That kept us busy until around lunch.

 

After finishing doors in the other bedrooms, Richard and Mark started the trim on the floors, and Terry started work on framing out the bi-fold door closets

Karen and Nancy had the super important job of caulking all the holes and seams on the doors.  After they are done, they really look finished.

 

Gene worked on customizing and installing the first window sill.

While we were all busy with our tasks, contractors were also there making progress.  The electrician was installing some fixtures, switches and outlets.

The tile contractor placed all the wall tile, and will hopefully grout and finish up tomorrow.

Since it was such a beautiful cool afternoon, Richard started a fire for our happy hour.  What a wonderful way to end a very productive day.

God is good.

 

 

 

Fall is definitely here …. brrrr,   Roadie was rockin’ last night with 20-30mph wind gusts which brought in the cool weather.  It was a bit chilly inside the house this morning, but with the doors and windows closed, it was OK to work with 2-3 jackets on.

After our devotional, Richard, Joe and Roger went to pick up the doors and trim at Sheila’s house.  She painted the trim and doors at her home which counts towards her 400 hours of ‘sweat equity’ requirement.  The house has six doors, and 2 barn doors and it seems like a million miles of trim.

After a quick review of how to install a door, everyone took a different room and started the installs.  We had some challenges with our door frame being warped, but we got it to work.

 

Mark and Nancy were pros, and got all three doors done in the master bedroom.

Terry and Karen tried a new bracket that attaches to the door frame and the door that eliminates the need for shims and makes it easy to adjust.  They installed their door in record time with these brackets.

By the end of the day, we had all 6 doors installed … now ready for molding and trim.

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The handicap shower tile installation continued today.  He made good progress, and we’re hoping he can finish up on Monday so we can get into that room to install the flooring.

The kitchen team finished up the kitchen and are ready to have the countertop company come on Tuesday for final measurements.  

At the end of the workday, Sheila and Sandy came by to deliver some light fixtures and fans.  It was great to see how excited Sheila is about her new home.  

It was another great day … which included getting a famous lemon merengue pie recipe from one of the hosts at Elim Springs Church.

God is good!

 

 

 

 

 

It was a cloudy and cool morning, with rain picking up as the day went along.  After our devotional, everyone helped to load Mark’s entire pickup with empty cardboard boxes from the flooring and cabinets for recycling.  Right after that, everyone picked up where they left off yesterday … but … of course, we had to stop at 10AM for Donut Day!!

Joe and I continued work on the master bedroom, closet and bathroom.  Some of the bathroom pieces were tricky.  We used Richard’s template to help cut out the toilet base … fit first shot!

We also had to fit a half inch wide piece along the edge … 

While we were working on the master bedroom, others finished up two other bedrooms and the hallway closet.  By the end of the day, all the flooring was done except for the handicap bath and bonus room.

While the flooring team was working hard, the cabinet team set all of the kitchen cabinets in place.

The contractors were also making progress.  The electrician was installing outlets and switches and the tile installer completed the handicap bath flooring. 

Overall, another productive day.  God is good!

 

We woke to some rain showers this morning … but WOW, what an amazing sunrise!

The rain was a bummer because we were hoping to pick up cabinets today.  But, the rain had cleared by 9AM so Richard and Gene headed out for pickup, hoping that the rain would hold off until they got back.   God is good – the cabinets arrived safe and dry :-).

Then, unloading time …

After a much needed break, most of the team went back to flooring.  The bedrooms take more time than the open living area because of the closets.  Joe and I worked on the master bedroom, which has both a walk in closet and a bathroom.  We got pretty good at measuring, cutting and installing.

The rest of the team were making good progress in both bedrooms, and finishing up the living area.

When Terry and Karen finished up flooring in the main living area, they worked with Gene to align and start installing the upper cabinets.  Gene’s ‘third hand stands’ worked great … they held the cabinets up while they were leveled and secured (vs. someone trying to hold the cabinets while others secure them).

While all that was going on, the tile contractor was hard at work on the handicap shower.  He added some material to make the enclosure water tight, so it looks like it’s ready for tile.

Overall, another busy and productive day.  God is good.

 

 

It was hotter here this afternoon than in Florida, with high of 91.  By Friday, the high will be 58, with a low of 35 …. brrr ….

By the time we arrived at the job site at around 7:50AM, the ‘early’ crew already had the paper flooring removed and the vacuuming in full swing.  The goal was to get the sub-floor cleaned and scraped in preparation for flooring.   Joe and I started on sweeping duty, which helped get the top layers off.  The whole house really needed a vacuum cleaning to get down to the bare floors.  Terry did a great job to start, and then Joe picked up the job. 

 

The goal is to lay the flooring throughout the entire house without any transitions between rooms.  In order for this to happen, a center line of flooring is installed across the entire house, and the the rest of the flooring is installed out from the center.  The main living/kitchen area is a wide open space, so when the first strip went down, it was smooth sailing.  They were able to get half of that big room done.  Now that the kitchen area is done, we can pickup the cabinets so that some people can work on cabinets while others work on the floors.

While they were working on the front room, Joe and finished vacuuming the back bedrooms, which took us most of the morning. 

By the time we had finished vacuuming, the center strip had made it’s way down to the bedroom area.  Once that was installed, we started installing flooring in one of the bedrooms.

While all that flooring work was underway, the contractor was there to begin tile installation for the handicap shower.  They worked on installing the drain and adding a level concrete base for the shower floor.  I’m guessing it will dry overnight, because they said they’d be back in the  morning.  I’ve been told that this contractor is donating everything, including labor and materials for the handicap shower – amazing! ♥

To celebrate Taco Tuesday, the team decided to head over to a local restaurant for dinner to have tacos … or, a Philly sandwich and potato skins ;-).    

Just another amazing, productive (and hot) day in Sullivan, IL. God is good.

 

We decided to go sightseeing this weekend.  We started off on Friday afternoon with some shopping in Decatur, IL and then an overnight stay at our favorite ‘campground’  … Cracker Barrel.  On Saturday, we continued our trip east to visit the Litchfield, IL Route 66 History Center.  In honor of Route 66’s 100th anniversary, some local towns along the route were having festivals, so Litchfield was our first stop.  It was very interesting to learn about the history of Route 66, and how it has evolved during our country’s  history.  In Illinois, there are three sets of alignments:  1926-1930 (during Prohibition), 1930-1940 (cars top speed of 60-80mph), 1940-1977 (strategic role in WWII war effort).

Each stop along the way were giving out Route 66 merchandise:  T-shirts, trading cards, pins, pens, and cookies.  It was a great way to spend a Saturday.

On Sunday, we decided to continue a little further west to visit the Saint Louis Basilica based on a recommendation from Richard.  It was amazingly beautiful with over 41.5 million mosaic tiles covering the entire ceiling of this huge church.  After noon mass, they had a 1.5 hour tour of the Basilica.  Our tour guide explained many of the symbols and how they fit into telling the stories of both the Old and New Testaments.  

 

Over the weekend, the drywall contractors were able to finish the painting of the ceiling and priming of the walls … which means … painting clothes today!  When we started the day, we had 6 people starting to paint.  By 9AM, we were very grateful to have six of the homeowner’s family/friends come by to help us paint … yeah!     With that many people, we were able to get a first coat of paint on all the walls well before lunch.   

Sometime in the morning, we got the flooring delivery  … so I bet you can guess what we’ll be doing tomorrow :-).

Another successful day!  God is good.