Outside is being worked on too!

This is Summer and Cory's front view.

Our front view, the rock has not been done below the bay windows.

This is the back and side view of our house.

The back court yard, and deck.

More House Pictures

This is one of the piles of sheet rock scrap that I got to load and haul to the dumps.. I was at the transfer station unloading Corey's big pick-up, just going to town chucking stuff out...I looked up and saw people looking at me..Was I revealing something that I wasn't aware of? Maybe a hole in my pants? Was my underware hanging out? WHAT? Then I finally realized that, ya, I have grey hair...Maybe they don't get many grey haired grandmas at the dump transfer station. I chuckle every time I think about it. My grandson, Chase, looked really hard at me the other day and said," Grandma, I think your about the only person I know that really LIKES to work. He's right about one thing. I do get great enjoyment in seeing a job get done and I'm just grateful that I have the health and vigor to do it! What a blessing that is to me in my life.

This is my sewing room, lot's of plugs for sewing machine, serger, ironrite and good stuff like that!

Jim's great handi-work all labeled and hooked up!

This is my entry way, front door, to the right is my sewing room, to the left is Jim's office. In the foreground is the kitchen. The wall for the raised bar is to the right.

This is the grandma room, or the kids play room. Lot's of good times will be had in this room!

This is some more of the junk I took to the dumps. Clean-up seems to be my job.

Another view of my sewing room.

Sheet rock workers are amazing!

These are the stairs to the little boy's bedrooms. I fell down them a few weeks ago and really hit my head hard, but was fine the next day. Only a couple of little bruises. I'm most careful now.

This is Summer and Corey's great room. 18 foot high ceilings. Fireplace with hole for T.V. over it. Their bedroom is to the right, and glass door goes to the porch on the side of the house.

We've been very, very, busy!!!

My Grand son Chase comes to help....mostly play, but isn't he cute? Just turned 13. such a teenager now!

This was taken before the stucco and rock was going on...We had a 1 inch insulation put on under the stucco to help with heating and air-conditioning cost.

I drag my poor sister over as often as she will come to inspect the progress. She is trying to keep Lincoln warm.

This is the inspector for the city of West Haven, He is a really nice guy and has been pretty cool, a little shy when it came to taking his picture though. Do you see what is by the side of Jim? It's the rough in for my vacumm cleaner that is in the wall! So exciting!

Every kid who comes, sooner or later ends up on the dirt pile! We love to send 'em home dirty when they come to Grandma's!

The last few weeks have been very productive... first of all we had our four way inspection done. That was a mile stone. There was a little punch list of stuff that didn't pass, but after a call to the plumber, framer and a little electrical it passed and before you knew it we were onto sheet rock. I was there when the rock was delivered, just in time to see the boom slam into on of the delivery guys knee. That was a big Ouch! It literally doubled him over in pain. I asked his buddy later if he was Okay and he said, Oh yeah! He'll be fine....Ya, I bet! Anyway that was Monday morning...the sheet rock crew came in that afternoon and by Thanksgiving night, evidently the crew didn't care much to stuff themselves till they were sick, they were done hanging it and went away for a long weekend. Back to work Monday morning and by tonight most of the tape and mud was done and it looks great! So glad we didn't have poor Corey doing it! For those of you who remember the last building project, or should we say nightmare, Corey did all the Sheetrock. Poor boy! It's a good thing we live and learn in life! I think the rock crew will be done by next Weds. and then we can go onto other good stuff.

That's the inside, the out side was being worked on as well. Stucco and rock are almost done. I think they will finish on Monday or Tues. and I will try to get some pictures. Corey has been working on the fascia...we had quite the crew over today to lend a helping hand. Corey's dad, his brother in-law Todd, James, Russell, Jadan, all helped put up the siding underneath the porches. That was a HUGE job! And then Uncle Scott and Jim tried to bring light to the the storage area underneath the porches at Summers house. Thanks to all of those who showed up to help...We really appreciated it! Today was a busy day!

As for me, I had fun today! I cleaned a little of the basement today, Swept up a little corner, and made a break room for the workers. It has a table, chairs, micro-wave, couch and a bunch of drink stuff. How great is that??? I also went shopping with my daughter-in-law and got Jim a Christmas present. "I'm not going to tell!" Let me tell you, if you really don't think this sounds so fun..It certainly was better than hauling sheet rock scraps to the dumps, which was what I have been doing for the two previous days. Did I tell you that my arms and shoulders really are sore today. Well, they are....Okay, I will quit whining now. I'm tired..going to bed now. Love ya. Deb

funny video

This is REALLY funny!

In Memory of My Mother

Myrtle Mary Dixon
There is a hole in our hearts today as we note the birthday of our beloved mother. We miss her and long for the day when we will be with her again. My siblings, there are eight of us, got together and went out to eat on Friday night. We talked of Mom and how she had filled the measure of her creation. What a lovely thought! We have so much to be grateful for and having a mother like her is at the top of my list. She always had a baby in her arms. This little one is Tanner. Our Daniels little boy. She loved those babies! And we love her!




Not So Much Progress......

So I had this dream the other night. I dreamed that it was really cold, (it is) and that we all bundled up and went over to the new house to work. When we got there all the scaffolding was gone! The stucco and rock guy had come with his crew in the middle of the night and taken it all away and left the state. To Mexico. We had no recourse and just lost all our money! I was soooo sad! But I got up, went to the house and sure enough all the scaffolding was still there. But no workers. They haven't been all week long. Corey called them and they said they would be here this week. I will sleep better when the stucco is done and the rock is on! Jim and Corey have been working on the electrical stuff all week. We had hoped for a four way inspection by this Monday, but I don't think that will happen. I spent the week baby-sitting , ordering garage doors, and buying doorknobs. I play such an important part in the process, don't I? At least I'm where it is warm. Turning the heat on at that place will be huge!

This picture is of "The Auntie's" Playing teenager at Universal Studios.. It was really fun! I'm so grateful for my sweet sisters. I've missed being by them for the last few years. It's nice to be home.

Here are a few pictures of Disneyland. Who had the most fun? I'm sure it was Grandma!

The house is almost ready for stucco and rock. They will start that this week if it isn't too cold!

I've repented..

Okay, I've been called to repentance... I know that I'm terrible at blogging. No excuses, just a slug , I guess. But my friends have reminded me of my obligation to get on with it so here goes.

Life has been very busy here. The house is moving right along. Jim and Corey are now doing the electrical. It is very cold so I feel really sorry for them that they spend the whole day in a really, really cold environment. Jim comes home and takes a long hot shower and says that it is the first time that he has been warm all day! Yesterday I got an island in my kitchen build, (or at least a wall for it) Jim put it in so he could make sure that it had power in it.

My new house had it's first visitor from Las Vegas! My friend Robin came up and spent a few hours with us! It was great to see her and catch up a little. You Las Vegas friends catch her and have her tell you about the house!

Jim and I took a week off and went to Disneyland with our son Russ and his cute little family. We had a great time and it was a much needed rest for Jim. We even got Mr. Grumpy to smile a few times! Because you know...Disneyland is the happiest place on earth! We also went to San Diego and saw some wonderful sights there. Sea World, Universal Studios, and the San Diego zoo. My three sisters came to San Diego and we met up with them and all had just a great time!

I came home on a Monday afternoon , did a couple of loads of laundry and then took off for St. George to visit my then newest grandchild. Our little Cadence was born while we were in Disneyland so I was just itching to get down there and see him. I came home Halloween morning so I could be up here for Halloween with the majority of the kids. Aliens, Links, Marshmallow men, dancers, Zelda, Why Man, Mini-Mouse and a princess were the little trick-or- treaters that we got to enjoy that night.

Today, we got the first pictures of our very newest grandchild! Our kids in Philidelphia got a five month old baby, Kaitlyn Anya, yesterday. They are still waiting for some final papers to be signed, but we are all hoping and praying for them that all will be done soon. They will be great parents! Ya think I could rangle a trip to Philly for this one? It kills me to think I will most likely have to wait until Christmas to see her. Retirement income and building a house pretty much stinks at times like this.

So I think I've pretty much updated you on what's going on in my life. I will try to be better at this blogging thing. We love you all.. Deb

Another week...More progress!

Another week and we have once again made great progress! The trusses were put on, roof has almost been sheeted, garage floors poured, porches finished being poured and today the porches are suppose to get their overhangs done. We had another construction worker get hurt. These guys that are the framers climb around in the trusses like they are monkeys! One of them had a nail gun hung over a truss and it dropped down on another guys head! He had 5 staples put in his forehead. We told him that he was just trying to get out of going on his deployment! He leaves for Irac with the Marines in October. Bless his heart...he was back on the job the next day and working as hard as ever! They say that trouble comes in threes, I hope that's wrong. We don't want any more blood at grandmas house!


Jim and I are doing well, Jim loves building houses. He should have been a contractor. Every day it is a struggle to get him to the computer to do a little work. He lives in the skid loader. Every time I go over there he's moving dirt or gravel around! Like a little boy with a new toy! I will have to get a picture of him in his new toy..


We are planning a trip to Disneyland in October with Rusty and Tiff and their children. I am really excited about that. You know it is the happiest place on earth!!!


Dan and April are having a new baby in October and I am going to St.George to help for a few days when that happens. And I am going to stay in San Diego when I'm in California with Russ and Tiff, and meet my sisters for a quick trip to take my sister Mary Kaye to Sea World and then go to Mexico for a drug run. (A few prescription drugs) so October will be a busy month. Here are a few pictures...Love ya Deb

The crane starts lifting trusses on Summer and Corey's House

Without the peak pieces of the trusses, our house looked like a Pizza Hut...I was worried for a bit.

They worked with the crane from 8:00A.M Until about 2:00 P.M. Long hard day for the framers.

It's amazing that someone didn't fall and break a neck!




This is the beginning of the "grandma room" a loft room for my babies!



This is just one of my most favorit pictures.
It just shows a little bit of the furry of activity
that is going on all around us!







Garage floor at Summer's got poured by Dennis and his crew.
His finger is moving and hurting..that's good!









The side of Summer's house with chimney.







Our house with sheeting on .







Our cute little Marine showing off the staples in his head.

Are we having fun yet?

My goal for today is to get something done! Any thing..just something! I feel like all I ever do is flit from one thing to the next. I really get derailed easily. Summer wants me to go get a pedicure with her, my sisters want me to go to a movie with them, Emmy needs some wheat ground, I've been helping Russ move yucky clay dirt out of his yard, Charity and Summer are practicing a violin and vocal duet for sacrament meeting, I would love to go hear that, Jim wants me to go and clean up the construction site and what I really need to do it wash and iron a few clothes, but that has been something on the back burner for two weeks now, so what's new? So what is a girl to do with so many choices?? She's sitting at the computer eating yogurt for lunch and blogging.
Our concrete dude had 5 1/2 hours of surgery to reattach his finger. He has been out at the house supervising his crew. Says that it's bothering him, which I think is a good sign! He has feeling in it if it hurts!
We had trusses delivered this week and the crane will come and put them up on Monday. The framers said it would take all day. I still pinch myself to see if it is really true and do I really have a house being built! Our goal is to get it dried in before winter hits. That means that roof, windows, doors, house wrap, stone, stucco and siding need to happen in the next few weeks. Oh and we don't have garage floors yet, that has to happen this next week or two as well. We should own a cement company for all the concrete that is going into this place!
Love ya all..Chow

Our First Construction Accident...

Tuesday morning Summer and I were over at the new house inspecting the progress when out of nowhere one of the concrete guys caught our eyes. He had his hand up to his chest and had it wrapped with a brown paper towel. Summer being the quick thinker that she is quipped, "So Dennis, was a trip to the emergency room included in the bid?" I of course, being a little more compassionate asked what happened, at which point he took the paper towel off for a second. That's all it took! We were on the way to the hospital. Dennis was as white as a sheet on the way up there and I kept saying.."I'm not going to loose you now am I?" I was VERY happy to get him to the emergency room! I went and told his wife at the school that she teaches at and then came home. Report as of last night was that he had gone into surgery at 6:30 A.M. yesterday morning to see if they could reattach the finger, his pinkie on the left hand, it is a wait and see thing now. He severed 6 ligaments, the nerve, and clipped the knuckle. How did it happen? He was cutting a piece of sheet metal stuff for the suspended slap front porch cap. His blade broke and it flew off and took his finger with it! He is in a fight with his wife because he thinks that he is going to pour cement this morning at our house. I hope she wins. He is suppose to have his hand over his head for 24 hours. Some of you might remember that Dennis is the guy that Isaac worked for when he got home from his mission. We feel terrible and certainly hope he recovers quickly.

Other news from the Ericksons... Jim officially retired. He is working part time as a private contractor. Most of his time is spent at the house. They made me a V.T. this last week, so I am going out to meet my new sisters today and Crystal is coming home on Saturday. We will be glad to have her home. Wish I had a home...anyway, she will be staying with Emmy as Blake leaves for his deployment to Baharang on the 23rd of Sept.

.This is the back court yard...

Front Porch ready to pour.

This is what Dennis was working on when he got hurt.

Summers House

This is the back of my house. Walk out basement.

This is the staircase to the upstairs boys bedrooms.

Pictures, pictures, pictures.....

Summer's Staircase to nowhere... My House.

The walls going up at Summer's house. Summer's house.
Floors for the Palmer's!