The Unexpected

As with all projects, we expected a few setbacks. Never in our wildest dreams, could we have planned for what God had in store for our little town. On April 25, 2011, we turned in the final paperwork for our construction loan. The appraiser came to the land and approved the plans on April 26th. Then, on Wednesday, April 27, 2011 our lives were changed forever. Tornadoes marched through Alabama and the Southeast from the early morning hours until well into the night. Downtown Cullman and large portions of Cullman County were destroyed.
While we were spared any damage, many of our friends and family are still trying to put the pieces back together. Hundreds of volunteers came in from all over the country to help our community get back on its feet. Josh worked 16 hour days at the Co-Op trying to get sub-stations functioning and taking care of the linemen that had come in from all over to help with power restoration. Walker volunteered at church, cleaning up debris with other kids from the youth group. Sophie and Livi helped me make cakes and desserts to feed the volunteers who had so graciously come in to help.
Through this all, Josh and I debated whether or not we should continue with our plans to build. After seeking counsel from several people, we felt like building was still an option. So here we are, six weeks later, watching the foundation of our house be built.

From The Foundation

The Foundation

Click on this pic to see more pictures from the house!

Place your bids!

Yes, this post is a bit overdue. Yes, we are still going to build a house. Yes, it is a remarkably slow process. But...the ball is finally rolling. Today I finally got the pleasure of taking the survey to the lawyer's office so that the deed could be drawn up. (Dear Michael, please hurry!) We are also in the process of finding someone to come and performs "perc" test. Now there's a sweet job. You go out and dig two holes, comparable to the the size of a 5-gallon bucket, fill them with water and see if they drain. Then the lovely landowners, who can not build without your services, pay you $400! How do you get that gig?
The real news is that Josh survived his first experience with the bidding process! We needed a few trees cut down before the build starts and these are not the kind that can be taken out by the Carettiville crew. So we got out the phone book, rolled up our sleeves and Josh started calling people for estimates. That was last night. Today Josh met with two different guys and got estimates on the work that needed to be done. The first bid was $300 lower the second bid and way lower than we expected!
The bidding process scares me. It has been one of my major concerns about contracting the house ourselves. We do not like to hurt feelings and we hate telling people "no". Unless we want to pay out the nose, we have to be smart and tough, shop around for the best prices and check references. Yes, it is more time consuming. But in the end, it will be worth every penny we saved. Today, Josh saved us $300!

Call Your Dad

"Call your dad." A seemingly harmless suggestion listed in my copy of Real Simple under the title, "What to do if you Have 5 Minutes". Well, that harmless suggestion had me weeping in my bath water tonight. I'll admit, it's been building for a while (the emotion, not our house). It all started last week on the way home from church. Josh and I were discussing the house, I know, shocker! There are just all these trivial things that have to be done and he casually mentioned that those are the things his dad would have taken care of and known about. Up until that point I hadn't really given that a lot of thought.
Five emotional days later, I have given it plenty of thought. In fact, I have allowed it to consume me. What if our dads were still here? I wonder if our plans would change. Would we even be building right now? Would they get along? It's hard to imagine Richard not getting along with someone. But the big question is, would we listen to their advice?
Knowing what we know now, we would listen to anything they had to say, regarding any topic.
It's funny how when you're young, maybe even when you're not so young, you don't want to listen to your parents or grandparents. You're not interested in learning from mistakes made by others and most advice, if not all, is unwelcome. A roll of the eyes and shrugging shoulders are far more common than attentiveness and appreciation.
I would give anything to hear just a little advice from one of our father's again. I try to imagine what they would do or say. Would Dad be appalled if my landscaping wasn't up to par? Would Richard try to talk Josh out of putting in a pool? Yes and yes. I know those answers. Those are the easy ones. But it would be so nice to just pick up the phone and ask.


Josh and Richard reading their favorite book.


Dad and me in EPCOT.

Several weeks ago I came across a "C" at Hobby Lobby that was calling my name. I LOVE letters and words so much, but the hubs is not crazy about that design trend, so I try to limit my lettering. Regardless,I knew that this little letter must be showcased at Casa Caretti. After perusing the scrapbook section and making a pitstop at the ribbon, inspiration hit! This lovely little letter was going to have a home on the back door.

From new crafts

I decided to go with yellow and green. I wanted this to be bright and cheery, kind of a hint of what you will find through the rest of the house. I loved the front of the door hanger, but I wanted the back to make a statement, too. After all, that's the side we would be seeing as we walked out the door every day. This is what I came up with....

From new crafts

I love this verse from Proverbs and I felt like was the perfect scripture for us to read daily, as we head out to face the world.

From new crafts

Now we're rolling! Oh wait...never mind.

So the building process really is all about 2 steps forward and 1 step back. This past Saturday we began staking the house. Josh and I had it set in the perfect spot. Well, we thought it was the perfect spot. Thank goodness we have family and friends who are not afraid to share their knowledge with us newbies. Seriously, I am VERY grateful for the guidance and suggestions. I've said it before, I am all about learning from other peoples mistakes! So we figured out that we needed to sit the house further back and to the left. But of course, there were trees there. Which brings me to Sunday.
Uncle Joe had mentioned that a few trees and shrubs needed to be removed. So this is what happened Sunday afternoon. We don't do anything halfway in Carettiville!

From The Land

It was a lot of work, but it was also a ton of fun! There's nothing like some quality time spent with family pulling up trees.

From The Land

Josh did call me this afternoon to let me know that the survey was finished. Yay!!! Then he called back to tell me that we still needed the deed for the easement. I'm not sure what that means, other than more time.

A room with a view

In yet another attempt to keep my mind busy, I have started thinking about front doors. I think that a front door says so much about a home and I want ours to feel open and inviting. I know there are other things I should be focused on at the moment, but honestly none of them are more enjoyable than looking at pictures of beautiful houses.
Josh and I have differing opinions on several style issues. I like light, bright and airy. He enjoys darker colors and low lighting. In an effort to compromise, since this is our "Forever House", I want as many windows as possible accompanied by darker finishes on the walls and floors. I think that's reasonable.
We are surrounded by beautiful land and lots of family here at Carettiville. I want a view from every room!
So, I found the perfect front doors for the house. They will let in plenty of light, but still have a touch of craftsman styling to them. I had to assure Josh that the wreaths were not part of the plan. These particular doors are double insulated so they are also practical!

Land ho!

I promised pics of of our land by the end of the week and I delivered! The girls and I went out this morning and took a few shots for the "before" file. This will be our view from the front porch. Click on the picture to see more photos.

The Land