Home Improvements!

This week has been filled with last-minute preparations around the house, so I wanted to share some of the work we have been doing! But first...

I never gave an update after my post on the flooring that we were installing upstairs (http://fourtosixfamily.blogspot.com/2015/01/room-to-play.html). To be honest, it didn't turn out quite as nice as we were hoping. The Parr Lumber guys were right in that the pine was a bit too soft to use for indoor flooring, so each time a Lego is dropped we get a visible record of the event! :-) On top of that, the Rubio Monocoat didn't go on as evenly as we had hoped...so we have a good playroom floor that we are not worried about destroying and will certainly replace when it comes time to sell the house one day! Here it is:

If you look closely, you can scuff marks from our first day of use on the floor. It turned out not to be the best idea to let the kids drive their electric cars- gifts from Nana and Michael- on the newly finished flooring... c'est la vie! Also, for those who are waiting for Christian Warrior Wear shirts, we just got inventory in, as you can see in the corner. Most orders are shipping this week!

The latest project has been to get the beds put together. We still had William's crib from when he was a baby, so Emma and Rebecca will both have toddler-sized daybeds for a while (with Rebecca's having the safety barrier):

And Bill has been working non-stop sanding boards to make a bunkbed for William and Peter! The boards look AMAZING. He's using these plans: http://ana-white.com/2012/03/plans/side-street-bunk-beds.

(Can you see the detail?)

I leave for China early next week and will meet Rebecca on Thursday! A few days later, she and I will make the four-hour trip to meet Peter! I'M SOOO EXCITED!!!

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If you would like to help with travel expenses (which are high due it being tourist season in China), please give at: http://www.youcaring.com/adoption-fundraiser/help-us-adopt-a-teenage-boy-and-a-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/278760. Thank you for your support and prayers!!!

Room to play

As I mentioned before, we were blessed a few months ago to purchase a new home with some non-toxic upgrades. The builder for our neighborhood had the creative idea to build two-story homes with the downstairs finished and the second level unfinished (for the dreamer who wants to have a blank slate to do whatever he or she desires!). We really liked the concept, particularly because Bill was not feeling well when we moved in and we wanted all the bedrooms on the main floor.

Now that we are actually moved in (and since two more children will be here soon!), we realize that we need the space upstairs! So, we have started the process of finishing it ourselves and making a large playroom/homeschool area. This both saves money, and ensures that we use non-toxic products throughout!

We painted with Harmony Interior Acrylic Latex Paint (zero VOC formula) from Sherwin Williams. We used MB Global Quiet Walk as the underlayment and Kahrs Landobond Adhesive for gluing the wood pieces together (both non-toxic). 

We decided to go with Lumber Liquidators for the flooring and get unfinished wood for about $1.69 a square foot. The comments on this flooring said to get 50% extra because there were so many major knots and dings, so we ordered the extra. We are so glad that we did! As you can see in the below picture, Bill was able to make a temporary table for his saw out of the spare pieces!

We'll be finishing with Rubio Monocoat sealant (clear) once it is finished, since that is also non-toxic and will strengthen the wood.

It's been a big job, but overall should only be about $3,000 for the 900 sqft space. The lowest quote that we could get to have it professionally done with non-toxic flooring was $8,000, so we have saved a bundle doing it ourselves! I'll post pictures when it is completed!