Initial Trials and Tribulations

One of the difficult lessons of remodeling is that there is no foolproof way to get the job done on time the way you desire.  The "hidden bummer factor" is always present when you do the work yourself.  If you've done any remodeling or repairs you know you always run into glitches that end up requiring four or five trips to the hardware store.  If you work with friends you always end up subject to their schedule and hesitate to push them too hard because you don't want to hurt their feelings.  And contractors...  well you need to understand their language; a two-week job really means ten days of work scattered over several months.

August 2 - our 2nd day in our new home

October - the foundation is finally poured

Much of the junk we pulled out of the house
decorating the front yard

Our home did not have a garage but our general contractor assured us we could have one up and ready to use by the end of September, two months after we moved in and well before winter.  This was very important to us as our new home had no storage to speak of, most of our furniture was in a storage unit and the rest of our stuff was stored in the back yard under plastic sheeting.  Naturally this ended up one of the wettest falls on record and the delays lasted until December.  The tree guy actually showed up when he said he would and removed the tree that was located where our garage would be built.  However the neighbor that was supposed to remove the stump in trade for my old motorcycle wouldn't return my calls for weeks.  He did finally get the job done but then we couldn't get the cement contractor to pour the footings.  When we finally accomplished that the framers weren't ready and so it went.  So these are photos of those earliest days.

To be fair over the past 6 1/2 years we have had several contractors out of more than a dozen show up when they said they would and come everyday until the job was completed.  They include:
Steve Hanson of Steve's Trees
Aire Serv HVAC in Davis County
Lone Pine Cabinet in West Jordan
Legacy Granite in Centerville
Rodney Eggett, cement contractor