Weekends on the Cape

During the renovations, we have been spending the weekdays at the Reilly's in Norwell and the weekends on the Cape. Saturday evening we headed to Hyannisport for dinner and Hampton had a blast running around on the 18th and practice greens. He already enjoys knocking the golf ball around with his toy clubs. Nothing wrong with getting him started early!

Renovations: Week 2

No major set backs this week. The dumpster didn't show up on Tuesday as planned, but otherwise the guys made a lot of progress for a short week.

We had to hire a crane to move the vanity from the first floor to the second. The staircase has a turn at the top that makes it impossible to move any large furniture upstairs. This is the fourth time we have had a crane move a piece of furniture through a second story window. Of course, this was the only time that things did not go smoothly. They damaged the copper flashing and decorative molding above our entry way and caused some minor damage to the vanity, but apparently their insurance company is going to take care of us.

As for progress...

The house is wide open from front to back. Todd's guys are standing in the kitchen about to knock out and frame in where a window used to be. The first floor has a lot of framing left. Most of this week's progress was made in the Master Bath on the second floor.

They have installed the pocket door. We used an original french door that was in our basement as the pocket door. It will slide behind the shower wall that is framed out in this picture.

Here is the tub frame for the drop in Airbath. The framed out piece on the far left of the deck is actually the bench that will be in the shower. The shower and the bath deck will overlap with a close enclosure

Just another shot from the Master Bedroom into the Master Bath. They have framed out where the glass block window will go in the back. Being in the city, our neighbors are literally RIGHT behind our house, so we went with an obscured glass block window to maintain privacy and let the light in.

Renovations: Phase 2, Week 1

When Marin and I bought 5 Prescott almost 3 years ago, we knew it would be a big undertaking to make it our own. We had a LOT of ideas, some of which we have found out are far too outlandish (or expensive) to incorporate, but most of which are now within our grasp.

Phase 1 of the renovations included getting the third floor all set for the kid(s). It was important for us to have everything in place for HH's arrival. We figured the house would be done floor by floor - 3rd floor down to the basement - in 4 phases. However, because the Master Bath is located directly over the Kitchen, tackling the first and second floor at the same time for Phase 2 made more sense. This would leave only the basement to finish!

The first floor renovation will include: a complete remodel of the kitchen (removing chimney, bathroom and ceiling soffit/framing new roof line off back of house); significantly widening the openings between the front foyer and the family room, the family room to the dining room and the dining room to the kitchen; a fireplace in the family room using an existing chimney/fireplace that has been covered up over the year; a bar area in an existing built-in in the dining room; entire first floor wired for ceiling speakers and surround sound in the family room; new floors throughout the first floor and new trim and crown molding throughout the first floor. Then, paint and decorate.

The second floor renovation will include: a complete remodel of a full bathroom with custom glass shower enclosure, airbath and marble tile; closing the hallway entrance into the new bathroom and making it a closet for the master bedroom; opening a doorway from the master bedroom into the new master bathroom; refinishing original hardwood floors; surround sound wired in the play room and new trim and crown molding throughout the second floor.

Day 1 of renovations was on May 18. Todd and his team showed up ripped up both the bathroom and the kitchen. They found that the back wall of the kitchen was in very bad shape and ripped it down completely to rebuild.

The first week was pretty much all demo...still more demo to go as well.

More to come.....

A view from our Kitchen doorway looking back. They had to rebuild the entire back wall. You can see the toilet where the bathroom used to be...no more bathroom in the kitchen (which is suprisingly sad since we can't cook and shower at the same time!)

Todd and his crew made quick work of the back wall. Still some more demo to be done.

This is just one of the walls that they are knocking down on the first floor. This wall separates the family room and dining room. To the left, there was a closet that they destroyed which is where our small half bath will end up going.

This is the master bath "to-be". You can see where the entrance used to be on the left - which would go into the master bedroom. We're going to block the current entrance on the right, make that hallway a closet for the master bedroom and re-open the original doorway that you see on the left.

I love this picture because it highlight's the beautiful blue tub and toilet we had.

And MORE News!

Hello dear loved ones!

Oh my - it's been a lull in our blog world. Not because of a lack of adventures but moreso from a lack of spare time. So, I think I can highlight for you what we've been up to since our last posting....




1. Hampton announces he will be a big brother (sibling due in October) as Hampton and I ventured with the O'Connells to the Carribean! Sadly, Eric had to miss out a week-long excursion on a beautiful 120ft yacht (thanks again for inviting us, Kate and Ian!) because of work conflicts. Hampton and I had a ball - Hampton went on his first (of many that week) boat ride. And, finally HH got the hang of playing in the sand by the third day. It was an awesome break from reality. Impeccable beaches. Amazing weather. Great company.






2. Renovations, renovations, renovations! We have an official start date of May 15! We've spent most of the winter and into the spring planning...selecting appliances, cabinets, countertops, flooring....and now we finally are within grasp of having a gutted first and second floor. Can't wait for our updated rooms, especially the kitchen and master bath!

3. Reilly/Knight ski trip! Following Hampton and I's trip to St. Thomas and surrounding islands, Eric scooped Hampton and I up from the airport and we went straight to Vermont for a weekend of skiing with the Reillys. Okay, the "heat wave" and downpouring rain made less than desirable ski conditions, but we did manage to put Hampton on skiis and a sled! I still think Deacon liked the snow more than Hampton. I guarantee you that will change next year!

4. Easter Weekend! We spent Saturday in Charlestown and Sunday on the Cape to celebrate Easter. Hampton didn't necessarily get the hang of the "hunting" aspect for Easter Eggs but he sure loved the Easter Bunny's basket - who can beat a book of Lightening McQueen and a play Airplane!

5. Ask Hampton whether he wants a little brother or sister? His response, "Pizza!" Brotherly love already.

6. Mother-daughter weekend in Florida! Fortunately, I was able to tack on a weekend stay in Florida following our firm's annual Risk, Compliance and IT Conference. The best part of weekend, sharing Eric and I's news that we are expecting another grandchild for my mom over dinner (yes, in person!). We had an amazing dinner at Victoria and Alberts (Disney property). The only thing missing was a bottle glass of champagne to celebrate! We made up for it in fine food and wonderful laughs.

7. Project Management 101. If anyone needs tips with how to renovate your home on a budget, contact Eric. He has done an impeccable job searching for all the right stuff (fixtures, appliances, tiles, etc) and managing our contractor. So, it goes without saying, Eric has been round-the-clock managing, monitoring and mitigating all the work that goes into this effort....and demo hasn't started yet!

8. For the love of the BIKE! Now that we've had a post-cabin-fever outlet (e.g., the local parks), Hampton has discovered his love for his bike. We love it too. And, Hampton has also discovered his love for trains, busses, helicopters, cars and back-hoes. We walk to / from Day Care every day and usually we're guaranteed to see a few of the above. And, Hampton is so tickled if he sees a construction vehicle (especially the back-hoe) that he merely POPS with joy. A true boy.

9. Gymnastics! Hampton took gymnastics classes at Flips and Giggles this past winter too. Watch out for his somersaults! He LOVES to do those. And, JUMP! Me too...althought, I can't imagine ever doing gymnastics again..my inflexibility and lack of strength are a killer in the gym!

10. Talk, talk, talk....probably the most noticable event for us is Hampton's ever growing vocabulary! If you ask him what he sang at school, he responds with "Lots of them". If he hears a toilet flush, he says who's on the potty. He'll inform his classmates that "mommy has baby in belly". And, he'll discuss the weather too. He still loves to sing and play his guitars...including "Life is a Highway" (Yes, from the movie, Cars). Moral of the past few months - watch what you say because he's certain to repeat it!

Hope everyone is healthy and happy! We'll keep you posted on Baby 2 and Renovations!