So… what on that big list for the over-sized weekend did we get done?

Our long weekend started on Thursday with the first half of installing the new sliding glass door.  It took two long days of fitting a door that magically grew over night to be larger than the old opening in pretty much every possible way.  The first step of course was removing the old door... which ended up considerably more difficult than I had hoped since the door was more original to the house than the siding, and the siding had to be cut back to even get started on removing the door frame.

  

  

Once the old door and frame was gone, it was quickly obvious that the depth of the door was going to be an issue that we could not ignore, so after removing the old door we had to start with cutting the drywall and tile to adjust for the new depth.  Some removal of shims and tightening the frame-out board was also needed for the sides.  Plastic sheeting helped keep the majority of the drywall and sawdust out, though hubby and I both ended up completely covered several times over.

  

  

By nightfall we thought that the opening was close, if not perfect, and should only need adjustment at the top... if that.  But yea.... no.  Things don't work that way no matter how many times you measure it if the door grows another 3/4 inch over-night somehow.  So the Friday morning and most of the day was a continuation of cutting and carrying and a little cursing.

  

But it is in there now.  Yea!!!

Friday evening, we went to dinner to celebrate hubby getting hired on directly to the company he has been working for instead of being contracted to them.  Wooooot!!!  Happy Day!

Saturday back to work and hubby and I spent all day (with a short break at the worst of the burning sunshine) dangling over the roof edge and bruising our ribs in the process of scraping and sanding the roof eaves on the front side of the house.  About 140sf of it.  Isn't that what we got the ladder for you ask?  Yes... and no.  We got the ladder so that we could use it when we needed it, but hubby and I both agreed that bruised ribs were do-able, but climbing 20ft of ladder over 200 times just wasn't.

 

We scraped down with putty knives and a hammer claw to bare wood and the belt sander worked wonders for the majority of it, but it just couldn't reach the very bottom edge... so I invented something new.  "Sander on a Stick".  Yes!  And then the heat made me silly and I pitched the idea in the form of a full length infomercial to hubby.  "Yes!  That's right... how often have you been dangling off a roof and wished you could sand just a little further away?  Now you can!  With... Sander on a Stick!  Only four easy payments of $19.95 and this amazing device can be yours!........"

 

Yea, you laugh... but it worked.

Sunday was more sanding and scraping and then a break after spraying it down with the hose before painting.  We finished the first coat right as the sun fully set and darkness pushed in.  So Monday morning the second coat of paint went on and it looks pretty good... though there are still a few spots that could use a little more sanding and a third coat... next... year.

 

Then, Monday evening, the hard work began... because none of the rest of that could be considered hard, right?

 

A great mixing tool and a medium grade 1/2 inch hammer drill from Harbor Freight made the task of mixing the concrete about 50 times easier.  The big trouble was that we had made the final decisions about the task and how to accomplish what we wanted in the best compromise between style and ease, too long ago and the details were a little fuzzy.  While I had the general idea in my head of what we were doing, once we started things didn't seem to be working like they should and instead of stopping to think it all through (not something easy to do with concrete starting to set), we jumped to a semi-spur-of-the-moment change of plans.  Of course, in the process making everything about 50 times harder than it should have been.  Moral of the story... always re-visit your set plans fully and in detail before you start to put permanent fixtures on your lawn.