I plan to download some pictures this afternoon.  Much is happening.  Marco the tile contractor has been consistent in his work.  He comes everyday to work on the tile in our bathrooms.  He took a picture of them with his phone to show his wife and she was thrilled with the work he had done.  I think that he has turned our bathrooms into a sort of work of art for him.  He asked me yesterday if it was ok for him to take some days off this week so he could take his family to Dallas this Spring Break.  I, of course, told him that he could.  I told him that we would take our kids somewhere every Spring Break when they were growing up.
The trim contractor arrived to unload all the lumber he would be using for the trim.  Janice and I had set aside yesterday to remove all the floor protective covering that we had put in so the trim could be installed.  We were surprised to see three people come in and remove all the floor covering.  Janice and I are just sweeping and vacuuming the window areas.
This morning I let the dog out to do his business.  I heard, as I often do this time of year, a flock of Geese making their way north.  I usually see them flying south for winter and back up north in the spring.  I heard them but couldn't see the flock.  When I finally spotted them I noticed that it was only about fifteen Geese.  I kept hearing many more to my right and saw that a very large flock was circling in the air.  The large flock waited for the fifteen Geese to catch up to them and then formed a "V" and continued their trek north.  I am constantly amazed by the things I see and hear out here.

The painters finished the exterior yesterday.  We couldn't believe how many guys ended up working on the house on Sunday.  When I saw all the cars, vans, and trucks I knew they wanted to knock it out that day, and they did.  Settled up with the paint contractor yesterday evening after Janice and I did our inspection. 
Now it's time for the trim and installation of all the interior doors.  When the paint contractor comes out again after the trim and doors are in to give me a bid for the inside I am prepared for the high bid.  The bid will be for him to stain and varnish all the trim and doors and then paint the ceiling and walls.  The interior will be three colors, four if you count the trim.  All the paint bids I get will be high.  However, having all the inside painted and stained will be fantastic.  Janice and I have toyed with the idea of doing all the painting ourselves to save money.  Memories of the slab staining, squeegeeing, and sealing to save money come to mind.  I think it would be faster and better for our health if we hire a paint contractor, especially since we want so much to get into the Ranch House.

The Front Elevation.

The windows at the Formal Dining room.

 

In back looking at the windows in the Master Bedroom.

We walked over to see what the guys had done today.  They finished priming the ceiling of the porch.  We went to Bathroom 2 to see how the tiling was going.
The Master Bath has the lining in along with the concrete mud sloping towards the drain.  It should look really nice when it's finished.

The tile we selected for both shower areas.
We tried to make them look "Ranch House".

 

Janice selected the trim piece, soap dish, and tray.  I think they look great.

They've been spraying primer on the ceiling of the porch (it's bare bead board).  Soon they'll paint it sky blue.  I can't wait to see it.  The sky blue ceiling on the porch is an old traditional color.  It's supposed to keep Yellow Jackets, Mud Daubers, and other wasps from building their nests.  I don't think it will work but I like that it's traditional.
The framing contractor called and is preparing a few more samples of the trim around the windows.  He'll drop by or call me when he's done. 
The framing contractor also arrived this morning about the same time the painters got here to construct the frame around the pull-down stairs to the attic.  I think he also spoke to the painters about nails that hadn't been driven in all the way and a piece of the ceiling bead board that needed a couple of screws or nails. 
The tile contractor arrived about 15 minutes after the others to continue work in the showers.  Janice and I will go see how far everyone has gotten when the painters leave.

Spraying primer on the ceiling of the porch.




This is what I want it to look like.  This is at Paul Hancock's ranch
at the Provident City hotel's second floor (Google Provident City,
it's one heck of a story).  I was able to look around the two days
we were there celebrating Jonathan's bachelor party (Paul is Jonathan's best man). 
Man, what a time we had, Skeet shooting, metal detecting for old coins,
exploring the hotel, and Crown Royal at night by the fire pit.  The food was
fantastic and I discovered, thanks to Paul's father, pickled garlic.
I liked them so much that Janice and I, when we went to Laredo, stopped
at Buckeys in New Braunfels on the way back to buy a couple of jars full.

We finally have some contractors doing work!  The painters are here caulking and the tile contractor is working on the showers. 

The painters and tile contractor.

The trim example the contractor made for us to look at.
It's made of Red Cedar.  We liked the trim but are going to
use stained No. 1 pine so it will match the doors.  In this case
he will use a board between the windows to avoid a sliver
of sheetrock between the trim.

The person that was supposed to do the interior trim came by this morning with an example of what the trim around the interior windows would look like.  He did one in Red Cedar.  It looked really nice but I think we may use another material.  However, he did say that the cedar eventually turns a brown color (what we want) and, if left untreated, will turn into a dull silver like a cedar fence.  All the interior doors will be a golden wood color, stained.  We want the trim to be like that.
I received a call from the painting contractor this morning.  He called to tell me that he would be here at 8:30 Monday morning to begin caulking the exterior.  We'll give him the colors that we want and he can begin after he gets the paint.  I think I want Glidden paint.  It came out recommended by Consumer Reports for interior paints so I imagine exterior paints will be rated high as well.  It seems that all the painting contractors want us to use Sherwin Williams.  Consumer Reports had them way down on the list for interior satin and eggshell paints with Glidden up on the top with others (the others were very expensive).
We went ahead and took the Home Depot bid for the Kitchen cabinets and counter top.  Their bid was in line with the other two bids that we got.  The only thing we didn't go with was their installation.  We'll get bids on that.  It almost seemed that Home Depot kept coming up with discounts and special deals when they saw that we were getting bids from other cabinet contractors.
We upgraded the kitchen cabinets to all wood construction.  We've used the brand before and were quite satisfied (dove tailed drawers, no particle board).  The kitchen has to be exactly like Janice wants it.  I think it's going to come out great.

EVERYBODY SHOWED UP TODAY.  As we get closer to finishing the house the tighter it gets to have all these contractors bid and get to work.  This morning we had the tile contractor come in to bid on the tiling for both baths.  At the same time a painting contractor came in to bid on painting the outside of the ranch house only (he wants the trim in first and then he'll bid on the inside).  Abel, the insulation contractor (also tape, float, and texture contractor) came by to see if we would want to go with some guys that build custom cabinets for kitchens and baths.  He also came by to pick up the second half of his insulation check. 
In about an hour we'll drive to Hutto to Home Depot and talk to them about the kitchen cabinets that they gave us a bid on.  They sent a guy to measure and now have a more accurate amount. 
So, what's left:

• Kitchen cabinets, sink, dishwasher, range, range hood and microwave combination, and refrigerator
• Master bath tiling, installing shower fittings, toilet, cabinets and counter top w/sinks 
• Bath 2 tiling, installing shower and tub fittings, toilet, cabinets and counter top w/sink
• Finish electrical and install light fixtures and ceiling fans
• Painting the structure inside and out
• Trim (stained) around windows, doors, and baseboard
• Janice and I have to pull up the protective paper we covered the floor with, clean the floor, do a light sanding with a buffer and then add two or three coats of sealant
• Finish installing HVAC
• Pour concrete slab under carport
• Finish stairs from carport to porch
• Connect the sewer, water, and gas lines
• Run electrical line to shed

I know there will be something else that pops- up but I'll just have to wait for it to come and then I'll deal with it.  Meanwhile Janice and I want out of our Bunkhouse/RV home and into the much more spacious Ranch House.  I've been sleeping in the RV so long I'm starting to walk around like Boris Karloff in the movie The Mummy.  I wake up stiff and aching every morning.
I will never be a General Contractor again!!