Porch

It still needs a roof and some railings (and a few other things) in order to be "finished," but the new brick porch is officially built and looking good! Most importantly, it's functional. I'm so happy that we won't have to lug our baby and all her gear through the yard, around the house and in the back door this winter. And if the driveway project gets done in time (there's a chance) we might even be able to bring her home from the hospital through the front door like a first class citizen!

Poor baby has no idea what she's in for... although she might have an inkling, because every time S puts his head up to my stomach she kicks him in the face. ☺

The top surface is concrete with exposed aggregate (a.k.a. pea stone embedded in the concrete). It's a bit dirty here but looks really nice overall. The other option would have been just plain concrete, which didn't seem to fit with the grand scheme.

The porch is not exactly what I had planned, but I'm happy to report that I like it a lot anyway. I really love when that happens, because things generally do not work out as I plan!

In further curb appeal news, S spent some time trimming out the front door since these photos were taken, and it's looking great. More on that later.

And in kitchen news, we passed our electrical inspection this week! (A happy surprise -- there were soooo many wires and circuits that we were certain something would be flagged!) S and his dad are finishing up the plumbing for the kitchen and laundry rooms, which will have to go through inspection in the next few days as well. The concrete man came last night to consult on the final kitchen floor pour, and we are on track to have our kitchen floor poured and finished by next Saturday. Then we start closing in walls, painting and hauling in appliances!

You didn't know we were capable of making such real progress, did you?