Thursday, December 9, 2010

Electricity and a Sprained Ankle!

We got an early start last Saturday to meet the guys we hired to help install the utility pole. The pole had already been delivered and everything was ready to go. It was our turn to go pick up milk, eggs, cheese, meat, etc. from the farm for our church's co-op, so since we had a very busy day, I volunteered to drive out there. It is always a pleasant visit at the farm: a sweet Menonnite family with 10 (or is it 12?) children, most of whom are already grown and moved out of the house, but those who are still at home are always so helpful. One of the daughters is very good at organizing the milk into coolers, making everything fit. This time we went home with a cooler on loan, since we had about 20 gallons of milk, 10 dozen eggs, and other meat, cheese, and dairy products. That was one full van!

Upon returning, I learned that our hired help did not show, would not return calls, and had disappeared with our copper piping from our metal pile. We had discussed him taking metal, but the WHOLE thing, not just the copper. The copper is, of course, most valuable, and the main reason why someone would even come to pick up the load. Later on in the week they came back for the rest of the metal, but still never called to talk about not showing. So disappointing! Fortunately, a good friend, who is an electrician, spent the WHOLE day out there, working out of the kindness of his heart, helping Jeremy hook everything up, rent an auger, hoisting that 16 foot pole (along with our neighbor) into the hole, and working through all the kinks with us. We finally got it all done. We just needed to get have the electric company come out and hook it up, and they did on Monday.

The plan on Monday was to come out and see how everything was working. The children and I prepared a nice meal ahead of time (just in case there was a problem, we didn't want to depend on the stove working!), and brought it out there to meet Jeremy. When we arrived we saw lights in the house - a good sign! Then we could hear the heater going! We had nice hot water - stinky and black at first, but eventually usable. It feels more like home now....well, all except for the nasty particle board subfloors with no flooring! And the rooms that still need painting....oh, and the gutted bathroom...but you get the picture. We're getting there.

Wednesday our front door arrived at our current house (for our mobile home, that's just how the delivery worked). You see, up until this point, we had a busted door that didn't close right, and that had to be WIRED shut! Yes, you read that right. The door didn't actually LOCK, we just had a piece of wire wrapped around it to keep the thing from flying open. And our light switches required the use of a screwdriver to operate, so the mobile home dealer delivered new switches, too. Jeremy came home early and helped strap the door onto the top of the van, and we took dinner out there once again.

The little ones were fussy and kept stepping on and/or losing small but vital pieces to the door, so I decided, after dinner dishes were washed, to take Seth to Wal-Mart (not too many choices out there) to get a few things we needed, and put Faith to bed in the playpen in the trailer. While we were gone, Jeremy fell from the latter and sprained his ankle. He was in a lot of pain this morning, so we took him to Care Now to verify that it was, indeed, NOT broken, but just a bad sprain. So, no work for us this weekend! We will take a much needed break. But our new utilities mean that we can stay for the weekend whenever we want now. We are going to try to finish the boys' room and put the carpet squares down so that we can bring an inflatable mattress and "camp out" in there. Much better than the dirty particle board. You just can't clean that stuff!

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Home in Place, Septic & Water Hooked up

Today was a very productive day out in Terrell! We woke up at 6 AM (EARLY for Jeremy!), loaded everyone in the car, and headed out. In the chill of the morning, Jeremy began digging up the water pipes that used to run to the old house, to see how much work needed to be done to make them trailer-ready. We were trying to get some things accomplished while waiting for the mobile home guys to move our mobile home to its permanent spot.

While he continued digging, a truck with a couple guys pulled up, and lots of talking was taking place. Baby girl and I were waiting in the warm car, since there wasn't much for us to do anyway. The guys got out of the truck and started helping Jeremy dig, so I just assumed they were some of the guys helping with the mobile home. Jeremy came to the car to ask me to get something out of the trailer for him, and he explained who these fellows were. One of the guys lives down the street, and they just happened to be driving by and saw Jeremy working and asked if he needed help. They work on mobile homes for a living, so we agreed to hire them (for not much money really) to help us find out what was going on with the old water pipes and also to hook up the septic pipes once the mobile home was in place. You see, Jeremy can do all these things, but with these guys helping, we knew for sure it would get done today.

Next to arrive was the mobile home dealer who was ready to move our mobile home. And he was definitely ready! It went very fast! Our sweet neighbors have a garage converted into an apartment (bedroom/bath) with a separate entrance, and they offered to let us come and go to the apartment as we needed for the day. So, by the time I got the baby's playpen set up next door and had her down for her nap, the truck was hooked up, and the home was in motion! I wasn't sure if I wanted to watch or if I didn't....but my curiosity won over my nervousness. I was amazed! They calculated their plan and got it all done in one move. I figured with all the obstacles we had, that they'd have to back it out, pull it forward and reposition several times, but it only took once and it was perfect! I can't even park my minivan on the first try sometimes! I did get a little nervous a few times as the back wheels on the truck spun, and they appeared to be stuck, but they knew what to do. No mishaps; it is now in place! We ate lunch while the guys leveled and transferred it to the cinder blocks and removed the axles. Not long after returning, Seth, Faith and I went next door to take a nap, and when I woke from our nap, the water and septic had already been hooked up! We discovered a slight leak, and some faucets that are broken, and some really dirty, smelly water (perhaps that had been sitting in the long-unused water heater?), but overall, we are SO thankful to have flushing toilets and at least SOME faucets that work! And with the home in place, there's no more bouncing floors and swaying with the wind, and we can hang pictures and move some things in. It feels more like home, and we are so excited!

We are paying those same guys to install our utility pole. Can you believe the electric company doesn't install the poles, even if you pay them? Again, Jeremy could do it, but by the time he rents an auger, etc., we are coming out cheap by paying someone. This will hopefully be done this week or the next.

There is still so much to be done, but we made big progress today. The most crucial things are getting accomplished. I have a feeling it will go fast after this point.