Since we had decided to paint the house instead of stain it, we had a lot of work ahead of us. Lots and lots of painting to be done. Let me just say that I thought the quote we got for painting the house was outrageous. However, after putting a coat of primer and then 2 coats of paint on this house….well, let me just say that painters don’t charge enough. Seriously, how do they make a living??? Painting takes forever!
Anyway, we decided to get started with priming the house on Saturday morning. We crossed our fingers and hoped and prayed we could get a coat of primer on the whole house by Monday. Ignorace is bliss people. And we are ignorant. We had NO idea how much work we had ahead of us!
The first problem we ran into was that Joe had been out there the day before and had ran the water lines from the well to the house and from the house to the septic.
Well, now, that ditch is a lovely little obstacle in our way.
Yep, the ditch went around 3 sides of the house. How fun!
And the ditches had water in them from the rain the day before. Yes, that means that it’s irresistible to little kids! I could practically hear the ditch calling to my kids to jump in there and play in the mud.
By the time the water lines had been inspected, Joe didn’t have time to cover them up. And then it had rained, so it was quite muddy and he couldn’t cover it up without making a sloppy mess. So, we had huge ditches around our house. Maylin called them “moats” to protect our castle. Camden didn’t care what you called them as long as he could jump on, around, or in the ditches, explore and get dirty. He’s such a boy! But he’s such a cute boy!!! Look at that face!!!
Camden was so excited to see the ditches. He thought Jim had made them just for him to play in.
Jim made this bridge over the ditch and Camden ran back and forth all morning. Eventually Maleah became the designated traffic controller because Camden was running back and forth and Maylin was riding her bike over the bridge. What??? Hey, Maylin is Jim’s daughter. Just saying….
Thankfully, Joe was able to come out after lunch and cover up the ditches. The kids were so disappointed they cried. I was relived that no one had gotten hurt yet! Finally, I could get back to painting.
We finally made some progress and managed to get half of the house primed.
We have a ghost house!
It looked rather horrible with the primer on it, but I kept telling myself that it would look lovely when the gray was painted over it. Just be patient, be patient….Sorry, I’m talking to myself there.
By Monday, we figured it would take us approximately… the rest of our lives to paint the entire house properly. Then, Jim’s parents called and offered to help us paint. What a blessing! They showed up Tuesday and we made steady progress every afternoon. The kids did their schoolwork each morning and then we headed out to paint for the afternoon before their play practices or church.
As you can see, the kids painted too. I bought about a dozen pumpkins of different sizes and every color paint you can imagine. Some days they painted and some days, they fussed. The choice was theirs really. I had to paint regardless.
Some days it was a paint your face kind of day.
Some days it was a “Let’s make a face” kind of day.
Some days it was a fashion show. Who am I kidding? Everyday is a fashion show for Maylin. That’s why she LOVES Halloween!
My superhero kids on Halloween! I feel much safer having them around. With 3 superheroes, I think I’m well protected.
Oh. M. Goodness- They are too cute!!
Ok, back to the house and the work we were doing.
Joe came back to finish the outside electrical stuff.
But the biggest improvement and surprise was that we finished nearly All of the painting.
Our house is finally gray! No more strips, no more ghost house. Nope, it’s gray forever!
The painting was almost done. The kids had spent a lot of that week playing in the sandbox for hours every afternoon. I love that they love playing in the sand.
We still have another coat of white to do on some of the trim work, but other than that, we are done with the exterior! Except for the gutters. I always forget the gutters. But after the gutters, the exterior is done. DONE!!!
I love our little house on the hill. It’s so cute and sweet. The sheetrock is supposed to be started and hopefully finished this week. And then we get to paint all over again, on the inside. YEAH!! Or not…No, definitely not yeah. I think I’ve already met my quota for painting this lifetime. Whew..
