I tell you it wasn't me- I was FRAMED!

That's right loyal and faithful followers-we have been FRAMED!

Our neighbour said that the framers were there until around 7pm last night!

It looks good- two doorways are in the wrong spots, but the boys are going to fix them (they didn't have the final set of plans rolling eyes!)

It does look like the builder is going to set a cracking pace now that we actually have the slab down!

Above: The front of the house, looking towards the Main Bedroom

Above: The rear of the house from the Northern corner of the backyard

Slab anyone? How about getting framed?

Yesterday (44 days since site scrape) we finally had slab pour! This was not without it's frustrations, as on Tuesday when I arrived at the block and found no action the builder told me it was because the concretors couldn't get a concrete pump! Yet right next door-at that very moment, a concrete pump was being used to pour their slab (only 10 days after site scrape!). Now, call me crazy, but surely the pump could have been booked to use as soon as that job was finished-considering that our block is 15km out of town? Especially on a glorious sunny day?

Obviously too logical! However, our slab was poured and it didn't start raining until 4 or 5 hrs later....

I was surprised this morning when I got out there to find our frames being delivered! The builder had told me that they were made and as soon as he could get the slab on the ground things would get moving....so as soon as the slab is cured off we go!

Waffling on...

Today sees trucks and tradies every where in our street! The concretors are busy boxing out in preparation for a slab pour (which will probably be Monday so that they can have the site down the road ready as well...) and I was there when the waffle pods arrived today!

We can't get the sheds up intil the slab is down because the backyard access is blocked from the set out & string lines etc still required until the slab is down.....

Slowly, ever slowly...

Over the past few days we have had the concretors lay and compact the gravel for the slab-so fingers crossed that we can get a pour this week! Our builder has said that the frames are all made and ready to go as soon as the slab is ready..

Above: Nicely spread and compacted gravel-looking from the back of the house.

The hard thing whilst all this was going on was that our neighbours who are building with another company had quite a bit of action on Friday- in fact, on one day, they had site scrape done, pre slab plimbing completed, meter box installed and their gravel done for slab! So what took 30 days for us took 1 for them!

Above: Standing near where the garage will be looking towards the North.

Today I took our birdbath out and placed it in the front garden bed amongst the roses. It was a gift a few years back from my husband's grandmother, who is in hospital after a heart attack at the age of 92....

Above: The birdbath

Above- The sandpit put in for our grandsons Behind it are two Acacia Mini Cogs and one of the 5 Pyrus "Chanticleer"

What build?

Hi, long time no post.....mainly because there hasn't been a lot to post about-actually scratch that. There has been no posting because ther has been NOTHING to post about! That's right, it has now been 4 weeks since site scrape and we still don't have a slab.....

I've been finding it tough today to be in a positive mood-it has rained all day (only the second time since June 16th I might add...) so there was no hope that the concretor would be setting up the slab form work. If there is no action tomorrow I will call the builder and see what is planned...

As usual, when all else fails I have the garden-so here are some shots of what I've done in the past two days....

Above: A vegie bed which has been planted out with broccoli and cauliflower

Above: one of the 30 bare rooted strawberry plants

Above:One of the 4 dwarf lavender planted in the circular bed around the quince tree

Above: Perennial basil plant

Above: The sandpit for the grandsons will go at the end of this garden bed-you can see the 2 acacia Mini Cog plants put in today-they will grow to give a 1m high "touchy-feely" wall to the sandpit and on the right you can see that the edging is curving around into another circular lawn area-this is where the trampoline will go. Both areas are in clear view of the kitchen and my computer nook will be....

Plumb happy....

It is a beautifully sunny day...and our plumbers have been busy! After all my efforts draining the trenches via bucket yesterday, this morning they used the backhoe to finish off! They could have decided to do that yesterday and saved my back & shoulders....

Above: Our ensuite pipes

I was busy in the garden, assembling a raised garden bed for one of the strawberry beds-we will have 3 1.2 x 1.2m raised beds solely for the strawberries. A different variety will go in each one.

Above: One of the raised strawberry beds

I also dug out another vegie bed and put mulch under the quince tree-as well as planting 4 small "Snow in Summer" groundcovers in the round bed...

Above: The round bed with the quince tree and 4 small "Snow in Summer"groundcovers in amongst the pea straw mulch.

IN the trenches....

When I arrived at the block yesterday I was pleased to see a plumber on site.....until he informed me that there was still too much water in the trenches to lay the pipes!

So while he mosied on up to the other house being built by our builder (the one which held us up initially for over a month so that all the permits could be submitted at the same time as ours...and then for another 2 months due to the septic saga...), I spent 2 hrs bucketing water out of the trenches-over 300litres of water! No more excuses boys-lay those pipes!

I found it quite interesting that when Iasked why they weren't out there 10 days ago (as we were told they should be), he answered that he'd only been told by his office that morning about the job....and that his boss had been on holiday for 2 weeks! Methinks that the boss forgot to let the boys know about the job before heading off on holiday!

Anyway, the upshot is that the boys finished the other house's preslab plumbing yesterday and are doing ours today-finally!