Indian Summer Weekend (1 of 2)

The weather was very cooperative over the weekend as we inched ever closer to wrapping up the exterior elements of the mudroom and deck addition. 

On Saturday, Ryan closed in the old door and began shingling over the new elevation. I did a final patch-and-sand on the deck posts. We also found the perfect post caps - they are the right size and flat on the top (my stipulation), just right for setting a drink on.

You might notice we have not installed the railings and balusters that we mentioned earlier in the project. We’ve made a change to the plan after noticing how nice it is to hang your legs off the deck. Here’s Frank and Ryan demonstrating this a couple weeks back.

Additionally, since the deck is less than 30-inches off the ground, code does not require that we have railings. We have a new plan that we are very excited about, but you’re just going to have to wait and see what it is.

Our highlight of the afternoon was visiting Sarah and Chris’ new pad.  They are bringing in some hired muscle for necessary upgrades (smart kids), but are taking on much of the second and third floor themselves.  Great house.  Great ceiling height.  Great new neighbors.  (We’re just about as excited for us as we are for them!)  Here’s a shot I robbed from Sarah… almost made me nostalgic for our unfinished first floor.  Almost.

On Sunday, we put the ladder jack staging across the deck so that I could reach the gable’s trim for patching and sanding.  While I worked on that, Ryan finished one last post, attached the post caps and used up the rest of the shingles.  We’ll need to get one more bundle to finish up the remaining exterior walls.

With patching and sanding complete, we spent Sunday afternoon priming trim.  We used an oil-based primer on the posts to protect against water damage and latex on the rest.  Next week, we will put on the top coat and hope to finish up the majority of the remaining trim!  Should be looking pretty close to finished (on the outside) come November 1.

As for the lawn… we are watering, watching and waiting. 

Though we were told germination needs at least four good days, upon further research we’ve learned that depending on the season, it can take anywhere from seven to fourteen days.  I also just read that the salt marsh hay should be thick enough to keep in the moisture and protect against birds, but thin enough that sunlight gets through, so I might thin up our cover slightly. We are watering it with the sprinkler for at least a half-hour each day (except on days that it rains).  Any lawn experts out there?  Are we doing this right?