Bathroom Remodel

When we bought this house, it was in serious disrepair and neglect.  It had been vacant for two years and it looked like someone had been camping in the family room, with horrible stains on the carpet and the remains of barbecued meal utensils in the wood stove.  We immediately replaced the flooring and remodeled the kitchen.  When our bathroom started leaking, we remodeled that as well.  The guest/kids bathroom upstairs was ugly but functional.  A previous owner sent me some pictures of the house taken in 2008.  The bathroom looked cute back then.

When we moved in, the bathroom looked like this.  The narrow ledge running next to the tub was awkward, and the brown colored floor tiles were ugly.  The pretty blue counter top had been replaced with brown formica-ish stuff.

The tub/shower was gross.  I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned.  I think I used an entire bottle of bleach on the tile.  When the tub started leaking and dripping through the floor, we replaced the tub and shower.  But we left the rest for later.

For Christmas, my dad gave us a generous gift and we decided to use it to fix up the bathroom.  The bathroom sits at the top of the stairs, next to Kyle and Camille's rooms.  They don't live at home anymore but if they didn't have a room, I think they'd kill me.

We had everything removed, except the new tub/shower.

Instead of the long narrow strip next to the tub, we had a wider step made for easy access into the tub.  The tub isn't level with the floor but is raised up, to accommodate the plumbing, so we needed some sort of step so people can into the tub.

We had floor tile installed and a new vanity made by the artist who made our front pedestrian gate.  We hadn't planned on replacing the vanity but then I saw one that Tom had made for a local winery's tasting room and I had to have one.  Brett rolled his eyes and agreed.  We bought a sink that looks like a miner's gold pan since we live in the gold country (there are abandoned mines everywhere here). Brett made the window and door frames out of some reclaimed wood.

Now I just have to figure out what to do with the window covering.  I don't want to obscure the window because the view is really nice, overlooking the garden.  But, people will want privacy when they shower (and we don't want to scare the birds in the garden).  I have a dumb, sheer half-curtain there now.  I'm thinking maybe a sheer curtain, pulled to the side?  Thoughts from all you creative folks out there?

Homecoming

Coming home from our Alaska trip has been a mixed bag.

Our neighbors dropped us off at home Friday, close to midnight.  We stashed our bags inside the back door, hopped in the truck, and followed them up the dirt road.  Kersey spent the ten days we were gone at their house, with their house sitter and their two dogs.  When we walked into the house, she burst out of her crate and slid to a stop in front of Brett; tail thumping the floor as she tried to roll on his feet and lick his arm and talk -- all at the same time.  She came to me next, rolling onto her back for a belly rub and squirming with joy.

As we pulled back in the front gate, Pistol nickered a welcome.  Jackson stood at the pasture fence, closest to the front gate, and watched us pull in.

Saturday morning we were up early to feed.  The animals didn't care that we had gotten in late; they expected breakfast on time.  Chris, who takes care of the horses, donkeys and goats, while we are gone, had the place in tip-top shape.  It was like we had never left; the barn was swept, the pastures cleaned and everybody looking well fed. Chris, I know, wishes we would just spread our horses' manure like other folk, but my garden loves the composted manure so we pick it up everyday and put it in the compost bins.  And we REALLY appreciate that she does the same while we are gone.

After chores, Brett decided to run down the road to our local market and pick up some milk and mushrooms.  I had completely emptied the fridge before we left and he was craving his favorite breakfast -- scrambled eggs: made with lots of milk, butter and mushrooms.  (Brett makes the best scrambled eggs; the BEST).  I heard the mud room door close behind him, and then I heard profanity.  The car wouldn't start.  It's back in the shop.  He had the same problem right before we left and had the battery replaced.

Later, Brett noticed a puddle of water on the floor next to the breakfast table.  Neither of us had water with our breakfast.  The ceiling was damp.  Great.

Brett tore out the ceiling drywall, above the puddle, and felt around.  The wood and insulation above the ceiling felt dry.  He shook his head, put away his tools, took his tarp outside, and vacuumed the floor.

After evening chores, I came in the house to start dinner while Brett closed up the barn.  I immediately noticed a big wet spot on the kitchen tablecloth.  We had moved the kitchen table back to its usual spot, after he cleaned up.  I quickly grabbed a bowl and set it under the drip.  The drip was right underneath our bathroom -- the one we had remodeled a year ago to fix a different leak.

Brett started feeling crummy Saturday.  We were both kind of sneezy the last day of our trip but didn't think much about it since we both have seasonal allergies.  Today, Sunday, Brett is sick as a dog with a fever, chills and a bone rattling cough.  I don't have a fever but I'm operating at 20% of normal, with fatigue, a scratchy throat and a cough.

Despite feeling like crap, Brett pulled out all the insulation out of the ceiling hole and looked at the exposed pipes.  There is a definite leak in the pipe (old, not part of the remodel) going from our sink to the septic.

I know I've said it before but I swear we are going to totally rebuild this house before we are done.  Even so, I continue to as much in love with this little ranch as ever.  

Random Friday

1.  We have had a wonderful reprieve from the heat of summer this past week.  The weather started cooling off, a degree or two each day, last weekend.  We spent the whole week in the 80s with wonderful cool nights; no house fan, no ceiling fan, no air conditioner.  I pulled a blanket up from the foot of the bed, where it was neatly folded,  over the sheets at night.

2.  Pistol has been coughing for a few weeks, first intermittent and now increasing a bit.  A few days ago she started up with a runny nose -- not thick nasty snotty stuff, but enough that the dust has covered her nose with black mud.  It's not very attractive.  Brett moved her to the barn where she can rest and recover without infecting Lucy or Jackson (if it is viral).  Her appetite has not abated one bit.  This is Pistol, after all.  Our local vet quit practicing and became a full-time professor, his replacement works part-time and has no availability for two weeks.  Our favorite vet, an hour away, is on vacation in Canada but responded to my text (she's awesome).  Pistol doesn't have a temperature and the runny nose seems to be clearing up.  We will watch her and when the coughing stops, we will move her to the donkey pasture where there is less dust. She has allergies, so the dust may be a contributing factor.

3.  After we moved into the house three years ago, and remodeled the kitchen, water started dripping from the ceiling onto the kitchen counter.  The master bathroom was directly above and the shower was leaking -- and had no doubt been leaking for years.  We remodeled the bathroom, putting in a new shower and new plumbing.  We haven't had any more leaks, but the ceiling paint in the breakfast nook started to bubble.  The bubbles grew until they merged and became one big pocket, a few feet long.  The house has settled over the years and is not level.  Shocking, I know.  The bubbled paint area was the lowest spot of the ceiling, so we are quite certain that water made its way down the ceiling beam and came to rest, and rot, in that spot.  Brett peeled off the paint and discovered damp, rotted wood.  Oh, joy.  Another project.

4.  A few months ago, I went to the local plant sale hosted by our local master gardeners at the college arboretum.  I bought a number of vegetable starters, including two sweet peppers.  The first one was labeled "Sweet Pickles" and it produced its first pepper a few weeks ago; a small, red shriveled thing.  I picked it, sniffed it, and put it to my lips to try but stopped when I felt the burn of a hot pepper.  I'm pretty sure it is a "ghost" pepper -- incredibly hot and very popular at the moment.  ...I've been feeding them to the chickens who don't mind the heat at all.  I love jalapeño's in guacamole and salsa but a ghost pepper is a bit too warm for me.

See that little red pepper behind the yellow squash?

5.  The events in Dallas have left me feeling discouraged and depressed.  My heart aches for the families of the slain officers.  Being the wife of a peace officer means you carry a little knot of fear and worry every time your husband goes to work; this event represents your worst fears realized.  The officers were serving and protecting their community during a peaceful demonstration.  It is almost incomprehensible; and is incredibly sad.  We need to heal this country; we need to work together to raise the bar; to earn and preserve trust -- which flows both ways; not break it down.

Random Friday

1.  A mountain lion attacked a dog within a mile of our home.  It happened at 10am in the morning.  The dog survived, but the owner said that he has lost goats recently and he believes it was also to mountain lions (cougars).  We have a lot of wildlife around us and it is something I love about our mountain life but, I will admit, that I don't like going outside in the evening.  Both Brett and I have experienced the sensation of being watched, of the hair on the back of our necks prickling in alarm.  I don't mind being watched by a raccoon but a mountain lion... no thank-you.

2.  The never-ending house remodel continues.  Last year we replaced the shower and sink in the master bath because they were leaking through the floor and dripping onto the kitchen counter whenever one of us used the shower.  We were hoping to have more time before working on the second bathroom but we suspect that water was leaking through the ancient, brown, cracked grout in the bath/shower.  So, that bathroom got a new tub/shower.  I can't say I was sorry to see the blue tile and stained grout go.

Nobody wanted to deal with removing the old, heavy, steel bathtub so we are getting a new acrylic tub/shower -- built right over the top of the old one.  Who knew.  We are very happy with the result - a call out to my Canadian readers; the company we used is Canadian.

3.  Jackson has been enjoying the donkey pasture a bit too much.  For a week, he's been running around, bucking, and happily being...um... expressive.  I did have to have words with him one day when he let loose right next to me while I was mucking.  Tuffy had run up behind me and Jackson was demonstrating his dominance.  Fine, I said, just keep those flying feet away from my face.  Sheesh.  Wednesday he was sore on his feet.  Well, dude, your feet can't take that kind of abuse.  I know you're happy, but you need to tone it down a wee bit or you will be sore all summer.

4.  We had warm weather most of this week but it has cooled down this morning.  I needed a jacket while doing morning chores and a few rain drops hit my windshield as I wound my way to the highway.  They are talking about snow up over the Sierra passes and cool, damp weather for us.  The longer we can delay summer, the happier I am.

Random Friday

1.  I keep forgetting to post pictures of the bread and the rhubarb berry pie I made for Easter.  I was proud of both; they came out pretty and tasted good too.  We spent Easter with some friends and shared the cooking.  I brought lamb for the BBQ in addition to the pie and bread.  Our neighbor was a bit dubious about the pie since her only experience with rhubarb was as a child at her grandmothers house, a mushy compote foul tasting thing.  My pie changed her mind about rhubarb -- it must have been the Skoog Farm rhubarb.  Kyle came up from Berkeley so that was a really nice, unexpected, surprise.

2.  I pulled my sourdough starter out of the fridge and have been feeding it.  I'm going to make a couple loaves this weekend -- a nice rainy day activity.

3.  Last year, we replaced the shower and remodeled the master bathroom because the shower was leaking, and dripping from the downstairs ceiling onto the counter.  The other day, Brett noticed that the paint on the ceiling by our breakfast nook is bubbling -- and sure enough, it's right below the tub in the second upstairs bathroom.  So, we will need to replace that.  The tile is really old (and the grout is shot, ugly, kind of green even after multiple applications of bleach).  I won't be sad to see it go -- but this wasn't in the budget.  Sigh.  It's always something in an old house. By the time we finish, we will have replaced everything I'm sure.

Master Bath: Before and After

The shower glass and mirror have been installed.  Fini!  This remodel made a huge difference and our bathroom has gone from meh to wow.  I guess maybe the shower leak was a good thing after all.   Without the leak, it would have been years (if ever) before we did this remodel.

First, before and after shots of the entire bathroom.  We started with the toilet to the right, by the window, and the shower to the left.  We flipped their locations and doubled the size of the shower -- borrowing space from the reeeeeealy long vanity.  Now we have a larger shower and a smaller counter - but the bathroom feels like it doubled in size.

The shower went from minuscule to huge.

And we don't even miss the long vanity and counter space.  I love the wall size mirror, the trough sink, and the linen storage on the opposite side (where there had been another sink).

Fix One Thing...

...find ten more.  With an older house, that's how it feels.  Particularly with an older house with crummy construction.

When we were in escrow and the pre-purchase inspection was done, mold was discovered growing in the linen closet that sits on the other side of the wall from the master bath shower.  Plumbers ripped out the dry wall at the back of the linen closet and checked the pipes.  No leaks were found so we believed the leak to be ancient history.  The mold was treated/eliminated and the hole sealed up.

We moved in and all was well.  One night Brett was upstairs taking a shower while I made dinner.  Water began seeping, then plopping, and soon a rapid splat splat drip was coming out of the ceiling and landing on my counter.  I ran to the base of the stairs and shouted up to Brett.  He couldn't hear me, of course, but finished his shower and turned off the water.  The dripping immediately stopped.  For a week, it didn't happen again.  Then it began to be an intermittent problem and I kept a big metal mixing bowl sitting on a towel spread on my counter top.  Another plumber came out but he and Brett could not get the shower to leak.  They filled the pan with water.  Brett put on his swim suit and sloshed around.  Nothing.  So, we stopped using the shower and waited to gather enough money to replace the shower.  Thanks to a generous gift from my dad at Christmas, we are able to not only replace the shower but remodel the entire bathroom.

It isn't a large bathroom and while we didn't like the flooring or countertop much, it was bearable.

Brett couldn't turn bend over to wash his toes without hitting his head on the side of the shower, so we are expanding it from it's matchbox size to something more reasonable.

Today demolition began.  The bathroom looked like this when I got home tonight.

They were taking out the sink while Brett ate his breakfast.  He noticed a puddle of water on the floor next to the kitchen table.  They don't think that there was another leak there -- just a plugged up pipe that broke loose when they knocked it out.  They also noticed daylight in the hole they cut where the sink pipes go into the wall..  The siding is gaping, leaving a nice hole for water and critters.  Brett looked around outside and is convinced there are more holes.

They also found a 3x5 glamour shot of a blond woman, smiling coyly, in the wall.  Brett took the picture over to Marv's house and he identified her as one of the previous owners -- the one who built the barn.  He said she didn't look glamorous while she lived here -- she was running a horse breeding ranch.

And, they think they found the source of the shower leak.  It wasn't in the shower pan as suspected, nor was it in the drain pipe.  There was a crimp in the pipe waaaaay up at the top of the shower.  Water must have been seeping out there, running down the pipe onto the subfloor, and then spilling out into the kitchen.

So, once the bathroom is done, we can add siding to the list of things that need to be replaced.