Full disclosure: it took me half a day to take these pictures so I could move all the junk out of the way in each room. So no...our house does not look like this all the time. Or ever. :)
Please pardon the photobombing pets.
Sunday, July 13, 2014
Welcome
Well...this post has been a year in the making. Literally, we've been in our beautiful home for just over a year now. I had promised I would update with new things annnnd that just didn't happen. But now that it's been over a year, I feel like I should invite you into our home. We live here now...and it's wonderful.
Full disclosure: it took me half a day to take these pictures so I could move all the junk out of the way in each room. So no...our house does not look like this all the time. Or ever. :)
Please pardon the photobombing pets.
Full disclosure: it took me half a day to take these pictures so I could move all the junk out of the way in each room. So no...our house does not look like this all the time. Or ever. :)
Please pardon the photobombing pets.
Sunday, July 7, 2013
A Ficken Home Tour
A few Houzz/Pinterest worthy photos of our very own. Still can't believe we built this beautiful home!
All photos courtesy of the amazing Tom Charles. :)
And the final timelapse video of the entire house being built! From groundbreaking to all finished in 2 minutes.
All photos courtesy of the amazing Tom Charles. :)
And the final timelapse video of the entire house being built! From groundbreaking to all finished in 2 minutes.
DONE.
Well, I think the title of the post says it all. You might have thought to yourself, "hmm I wonder if they moved in and can't update the blog because they are so busy living it up in their new house!" Soo, not quite...here's how it all went down.
The week after the last post, we finally were able to get a hole cut in the last tile for the shower, grouted the backsplashes and got our mirrors installed. The plumber came back that Friday and finished installing the master tub drain/fixtures and the shower fixtures. After he finished the tub, we spent the weekend putting the tile up around it. We had already done the top, so we just had to finish around the sides. After that, we got the house all cleaned up and ready for our final inspection.
Monday the 24th, we had our final inspection and failed...with a list of things to fix. We worked all week to get them done, first thing on the list was MOW, amongst other things like caulking and sealing areas, cleaning the garage, getting rid of the dumpster, adding self closing hinges to the garage entry door, remove the extra brick/stone, point the flood lights down, etc.
Most of that was pretty easy to fix, but unfortunately the dumpster was too heavy for our guy to move it. It was so full of the brick/dirt mix from the final grading that it was probably close to triple the weight we were allowed. We have some awesome neighbors out here by the way...one of which owns a bobcat and came down, opened the dumpster up, and started scooping out stuff for us to get the weight down Thursday night. He even moved our extra bricks and stone back behind some trees at the back of the property. We called another dumpster company to come take away the excess dirt the next morning, and had the inspector come out that day to check everything.
I was there cleaning and had the privilege of meeting Mr. Inspector. He seemed like a nice guy, even with all the trouble he gave us along the way. :) Anyway, we got our FINAL GREEN TAG on Friday June 28th, which happens to be exactly one year from the day we closed on the lot. Wow...1 year later, done.
I think we both just stood there that Friday afternoon going...uhh what next? Up until this point there was always a list of "this must be done" and after that glorious green tag it was just...done. A strange, but wonderful feeling. And it didn't last long, we knew we needed to pack up and get moved so that we could sell our old house while the market is so good. So back home we went to pack up and try to find some movers for Sunday. Saturday, one of the moving companies we contacted called and said, "Well I don't know about tomorrow, but how about today? We can be there in 3 hours." Umm we only had half the house packed at this point but we said fine, packed like crazy, they showed up at 4:45 and it took them FOUR hours to move our things. 24 hours after final inspection and we were packed and moving. Wow. Oh, and the refrigerator didn't quite fit because of the thickness of the tile, good thing we had the tools moved. First night in the house and already cutting things up!
This past week has been a combination of finishing cleaning out the old house, unpacking the new house, and even a little lake time on the 4th. The house is slowly starting to come together, but is still a huge mess.
The next post is reserved for the gorgeous pre move-in photos that my stepdad took the Saturday before we moved in while it was all still clean and the final timelapse video of everything from beginning to end. I think they deserve their own post. Get ready to be amazed at these pics. I'm still amazed when I look at them!
I am planning on updating the blog after we sell the other house and get the rest of our furniture in/everything unpacked, and as we finish some of the projects we have on the list like the sliding barn doors for the office, media room setup, and the shop build. I'm sure there will be more to come, but we hope you have enjoyed reading our house building journey! If you have any questions, we will be glad to answer them!
The week after the last post, we finally were able to get a hole cut in the last tile for the shower, grouted the backsplashes and got our mirrors installed. The plumber came back that Friday and finished installing the master tub drain/fixtures and the shower fixtures. After he finished the tub, we spent the weekend putting the tile up around it. We had already done the top, so we just had to finish around the sides. After that, we got the house all cleaned up and ready for our final inspection.
Monday the 24th, we had our final inspection and failed...with a list of things to fix. We worked all week to get them done, first thing on the list was MOW, amongst other things like caulking and sealing areas, cleaning the garage, getting rid of the dumpster, adding self closing hinges to the garage entry door, remove the extra brick/stone, point the flood lights down, etc.
Most of that was pretty easy to fix, but unfortunately the dumpster was too heavy for our guy to move it. It was so full of the brick/dirt mix from the final grading that it was probably close to triple the weight we were allowed. We have some awesome neighbors out here by the way...one of which owns a bobcat and came down, opened the dumpster up, and started scooping out stuff for us to get the weight down Thursday night. He even moved our extra bricks and stone back behind some trees at the back of the property. We called another dumpster company to come take away the excess dirt the next morning, and had the inspector come out that day to check everything.
 |
| (Yes, that giant boulder was inside the dumpster - no wonder it was so heavy!) |
I think we both just stood there that Friday afternoon going...uhh what next? Up until this point there was always a list of "this must be done" and after that glorious green tag it was just...done. A strange, but wonderful feeling. And it didn't last long, we knew we needed to pack up and get moved so that we could sell our old house while the market is so good. So back home we went to pack up and try to find some movers for Sunday. Saturday, one of the moving companies we contacted called and said, "Well I don't know about tomorrow, but how about today? We can be there in 3 hours." Umm we only had half the house packed at this point but we said fine, packed like crazy, they showed up at 4:45 and it took them FOUR hours to move our things. 24 hours after final inspection and we were packed and moving. Wow. Oh, and the refrigerator didn't quite fit because of the thickness of the tile, good thing we had the tools moved. First night in the house and already cutting things up!
The next post is reserved for the gorgeous pre move-in photos that my stepdad took the Saturday before we moved in while it was all still clean and the final timelapse video of everything from beginning to end. I think they deserve their own post. Get ready to be amazed at these pics. I'm still amazed when I look at them!
I am planning on updating the blog after we sell the other house and get the rest of our furniture in/everything unpacked, and as we finish some of the projects we have on the list like the sliding barn doors for the office, media room setup, and the shop build. I'm sure there will be more to come, but we hope you have enjoyed reading our house building journey! If you have any questions, we will be glad to answer them!
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