Baymule
Herd Master
The house is coming along. But as we all know, barn renovations are so much more impressive!! 
Ridgetop - our place and how we muddle along
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Ridgetop
Herd Master
Is it large enough for bath sheets which are larger than standard bath towels? That would be ideal for our bathrooms since all the towels are similar in color and match both bathrooms. The bathroom cabinets are about 21-24" deep and 18"-24" wide. No medicine cabinets. Cabinets are so deep that I need to install rollout shelves to get to whatever is stored in the back of the cabinets.
It has been COLD! 17 degrees yesterday and today. Expected to warm up to 36 tomorrow. It is warming up to 60 next week. That is when I will have to spray paint the metal shelf.
Yesterday I finally finished painting our bathroom and doing the touchups. DS1 installed the new toilet which was a big job taking several hours. We discovered that the floor tiles are not level. DS1 had to shim the toilet. Today I finished cleaning the bathroom, removing the paper off the floor, etc. I am hanging the towel rods, TP holder, etc. back up - (keeping them, they are heavy duty and good quality). Put the light fixture glass shades back then hung pictures. I still have to spray paint a metal shelf before it can go up but have to wait because it is too cold this week. 17 degrees! I want to finish the bathrooms. Yes, bathrooms plural! DS1 said he forgot to tell me that when he replaced the light fixture there was a large area I had to paint where the previous fixture was larger than the current fixture base. Now more taping and painting before I can be finished. 
Just when yoi think it is safe to go back in the water . . . . Which reminds me that I found a lot of grout missing in out shower. I grouted it all last night but have to wait till tomorrow to use the shower. Next year we will have to tear out that shower tile and redo that shower. Got to save up the money. This year is all about the barn, well, generator, tractor, and livestock. DH took the gseneck trailer to the shop since two different shops could not fid out wher the short in the lights was. Local guys found it and repaired it. A wire behind a metal plate had worn through and when the trailer moved it would get against the aluminum side wall and the lights would short out. Then it would move away from the plate and the lights would come on again. LOL
DS1 and I went out and got the new 30" wide white medicine cabinet out of the barn to install in our bathroom.
Oh no! A rat had gotten inside the box and in the year since we stored it in the barn had chewed one side of it off. No chance of repair. It goes on the burn pile. EEEK! The rat was still inside the box! Called Ozel but she did not see it in time and it escaped. Anyway, we got out the other medicine cabinet. Only 24" wide and a light tan wood color but intact. I will have to paint it white. Brought it inside the house. I have 2 identical ones like this but the other one is still in California. I'll bring it back for the other bathroom in June. I'll have to paint that one white too. Pictures of the bathrooms eventually.Tomorrow we have nail appointments. Then I will work on my business taxes.
I have to bring everything up to date on my farm records. Lots of sorting, inputting records, etc. (At least I will not be climbing on and off the ladder, or having to lay on the floor to paint baseboards, or having to break 2" of ice out of the water troughs. LOL)
Baymule
Herd Master
Not 17 here, but low 20’s to 20 degrees. I’m tired of it. I make 6-8 trips carrying 2 buckets of water 3/4 full, of hot water to the sheep. Bust ice during the day, carry more water in the evening. Last night was only 32, high today of 48. No more freezing temperatures!
Go away February!
Go away February!
Mini Horses
Herd Master
I'm with you -- hate cold anyway, snow makes a mess...totally ready to have it gone!! My heated tubs have been so much help with toting. I'll have a big electric bill but, feeling it's worth it. I only plug in at night and they're thermo controlled. 
Busy, busy!
I'm pretty sure the towel holders come in different sizes. I have oversized bath towels (not sheets) and fold them a little wider before rolling each one and placing in the holder. One of my family pulled out the bottom mounting screws while yanking out a towel, so I need to find toggles to replace the mounting anchors I originally used (ack, guys!!). You might consider that, too.
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- #4,566
Ridgetop
Herd Master
Temps are coming up - 34 today, no ice. I put up the towel bars in our bathroom today. Then I mounted the Dustbuster over the washer. I had an extra 110 outlet since the dryer is on 220. Did several loads of laundry. Made a pork loin roast last night. LOTS of meat left over so I will have to make gravy and slice the roast up for dinners. I think we can get 3 meals out of the leftover roast.
Still have to get up on the ladder and touch up the main bathroom wall around the light fixture. DS1 has to replace the bathroom faucet in our bathroom. The new twels are hanging inboth bathrooms and look great. Divided up the older pale turquoise towels between both bathrooms along with the bathmats and rugs. Looks great. Pix later.
Temps are supposed to warm up from now through the next week. We plan to pull everything out of the tool shed and clean it out thoroughly. Then we will mount the oak cabinets I brought from CA and put a lot of the stuff back in them. Maybe buy another set of the heavy duty 24" deep metal shelves to put up in the shed for the bins, tools, etc. Or maybe get some of the garage cabinets from Lowes. I lik need better e cabinets with doors to keep stuff clean. The bins with locking tops are fine but get dust and rat poop on top so when you lift them down - YUCK!
Anyway, we need to sort through the tool shed and organize everything so we can find our tools and hardware when needed. We also need to buy a new tablesaw to work on the kitchen. DS1 found a Kobalt that looks very good, comes with a table that folds for transport, and is more powerful than the deWalt or Bosch. It is also considerably cheaper and is on sale until April. We have accumulated Lowes points which would drop the price another $50. The points are only good through March so would have to buy sooner than April but we will need it by then. I would like to start on the kitchen island in March or April. I need more kitchen storage.
DS1 Had an idea about what to do for a new refrigerator space. He said that instead of tearing abart the old fridge space which is a couple inches tooshort and narrow for a standard modern fridge, he suggested removing the end cabinets in the kitchen (where the peninsula is that we are removing anyway) and cutting out 36" of upper and lower cabinets. Put the fridge in there and cut down the upper cabinets to fit above it. Then convert the old fridge space to a large pantry. Where have I seen that before? Oh yeah! on some of my renovation drawings for this kitchen. LOL Great minds think alike. Plenty of time for that in the future.
Still have to get up on the ladder and touch up the main bathroom wall around the light fixture. DS1 has to replace the bathroom faucet in our bathroom. The new twels are hanging inboth bathrooms and look great. Divided up the older pale turquoise towels between both bathrooms along with the bathmats and rugs. Looks great. Pix later.
Temps are supposed to warm up from now through the next week. We plan to pull everything out of the tool shed and clean it out thoroughly. Then we will mount the oak cabinets I brought from CA and put a lot of the stuff back in them. Maybe buy another set of the heavy duty 24" deep metal shelves to put up in the shed for the bins, tools, etc. Or maybe get some of the garage cabinets from Lowes. I lik need better e cabinets with doors to keep stuff clean. The bins with locking tops are fine but get dust and rat poop on top so when you lift them down - YUCK!
Anyway, we need to sort through the tool shed and organize everything so we can find our tools and hardware when needed. We also need to buy a new tablesaw to work on the kitchen. DS1 found a Kobalt that looks very good, comes with a table that folds for transport, and is more powerful than the deWalt or Bosch. It is also considerably cheaper and is on sale until April. We have accumulated Lowes points which would drop the price another $50. The points are only good through March so would have to buy sooner than April but we will need it by then. I would like to start on the kitchen island in March or April. I need more kitchen storage.DS1 Had an idea about what to do for a new refrigerator space. He said that instead of tearing abart the old fridge space which is a couple inches tooshort and narrow for a standard modern fridge, he suggested removing the end cabinets in the kitchen (where the peninsula is that we are removing anyway) and cutting out 36" of upper and lower cabinets. Put the fridge in there and cut down the upper cabinets to fit above it. Then convert the old fridge space to a large pantry. Where have I seen that before? Oh yeah! on some of my renovation drawings for this kitchen. LOL Great minds think alike. Plenty of time for that in the future.
Mike CHS
Herd Master
I don't like the cold any more than anyone else but I like it that we have it and it kills back the parasites.
Baymule
Herd Master
I’m glad the cold seems to be gone until next fall/winter.
You are getting the house in order, it will take time. Lambing is over, now on to sorting out who to keep and who to sell. So convenient to have Emory auction not far away. Work to do in the barn too. Tackle the outside stuff first, it will soon be so hot that the fires of he// will start looking enticing. Inside the barn will be cooler, the shade a welcome relief.
You are getting the house in order, it will take time. Lambing is over, now on to sorting out who to keep and who to sell. So convenient to have Emory auction not far away. Work to do in the barn too. Tackle the outside stuff first, it will soon be so hot that the fires of he// will start looking enticing. Inside the barn will be cooler, the shade a welcome relief.
- Thread starter
- #4,569
Ridgetop
Herd Master
DS1 already stating to talk about sorting the flock. Mainly so we can assign the different lambs to their mamas. Bad Hazine! Only about 10 ewes our of 30 so not that bad. Ihav some of the tag numbers but needboth th flock numbers and scrapie numbrs. Next sortingin several weeks will sort out the ones to go to the first auction (Muslem holiday), then the ones for the second auction a couple weeks later (Easter). Then keep all the ewes and yearlings to be bred on grain for several weeks to flush them. Another sorting to divide flock - half to go to Junior for registered lambs, the other half to go to Rommel for black head marked lambs for the auction.
Meanwhile, the well drill rig is arriving tomorrow.
I don't know whether I am more excited about a new well with good water or the pump shed and moving the Christmas decorations out of the front hallway where they have lived for almost a year.
The bathrooms are finished.
Here are the promised pictures. First remember this?
This was the main bathrom. Simply enormous at 9'x12', I considered dividing it into a guest bath and master bath and moving our room to the back of the house. Too much expense and family would have to cross living room to use the front bath. Not functional. After stripping wallpaper and painting out navy blue paint this is the bathroom. Primer, paint, faucet, handles, and light fixture were inexpensive updates. Tiling the tub was the big cost.
Tub had formica only half way up wall since it was built in 70's when there would be a separate shower stall. Adding the tile backsplash and new pumbing for shower was not cheap but was worth it in terms of usability and resale. By keeping the beige tub (xlt condition) and choosing tile to complement it we saved at least $1000.
Next up the "master" bathroom. Not a true master, but I have an idea for future redo that would make it one without too much expense. Red, olive green, and tan wallpaper with light poop green paint. At one time probably very stylish since I can remember when those colors were very in vogue. (Like the burgundy paint on the cabinets and pink wallpaper that were underneath.)
At any rate the change is dynamic and very inexpensive since the new light fixture, faucet, handles, 2 new bath sheets, and toilet came to about $350 and the paint was left over from the other bathroom. I did splurge on a faux flower arrangement that took my fancy at Costco which upped the price about $20. LOL The new throne is in the secnd picture. Fancy 2 button flush and one piece construction which I have come to like due to ease of cleaning.
This is a smaller bathroom with a large stall shower across from the counter. That tile is a very dark teal and beige with beige trim. It also has some leaks and will eventually be redone in the same tile as the other bathroom. That will lighten the room up a lot too. One thing nice about this house is that the bathroom and shower was already outfitted with grab bars since Mr. MacDonald had lost a foot and lower leg in WWII. Very handy for our knees. 
Next up will be the tool shed emptying, cleaning, putting up the cabinets, and running the electric lights and plugs. It is slated for next week when it is supposed to warm up to the high 60's and possible hit 70 degrees. And no rain. Once the electric is in, we can work at night which will be helpful in putting everything back. At themoment althrough it is cluttered and crowded the boxes are all identified as to contents which will make it easy to put stuff away correctly. We brought 2 6'x6' industrical shelf units with us from CA, a 5'x5'x18" cabinet, some wall cabinets, and 2 old Craftsman tool cabinets (the good original Craftsman - I gave them to DH for Christmas when first married). We also have several large empty poly tool boxes we used when on job sites to hold tools so we can utiize them for some of the power tools.
On a happy note - the African violet given to me by a friend - has not died yet. In fact it is in a second stage of bloom! I have been using bottled purified water to water it. It sits on the kitchen widowsill so I don't forget about it. I am amazed. Not amazed enough to buy another one yet though.
Meanwhile, the well drill rig is arriving tomorrow.
I don't know whether I am more excited about a new well with good water or the pump shed and moving the Christmas decorations out of the front hallway where they have lived for almost a year.The bathrooms are finished.
Here are the promised pictures. First remember this? This was the main bathrom. Simply enormous at 9'x12', I considered dividing it into a guest bath and master bath and moving our room to the back of the house. Too much expense and family would have to cross living room to use the front bath. Not functional. After stripping wallpaper and painting out navy blue paint this is the bathroom. Primer, paint, faucet, handles, and light fixture were inexpensive updates. Tiling the tub was the big cost. Tub had formica only half way up wall since it was built in 70's when there would be a separate shower stall. Adding the tile backsplash and new pumbing for shower was not cheap but was worth it in terms of usability and resale. By keeping the beige tub (xlt condition) and choosing tile to complement it we saved at least $1000.Next up the "master" bathroom. Not a true master, but I have an idea for future redo that would make it one without too much expense. Red, olive green, and tan wallpaper with light poop green paint. At one time probably very stylish since I can remember when those colors were very in vogue. (Like the burgundy paint on the cabinets and pink wallpaper that were underneath.)
At any rate the change is dynamic and very inexpensive since the new light fixture, faucet, handles, 2 new bath sheets, and toilet came to about $350 and the paint was left over from the other bathroom. I did splurge on a faux flower arrangement that took my fancy at Costco which upped the price about $20. LOL The new throne is in the secnd picture. Fancy 2 button flush and one piece construction which I have come to like due to ease of cleaning. This is a smaller bathroom with a large stall shower across from the counter. That tile is a very dark teal and beige with beige trim. It also has some leaks and will eventually be redone in the same tile as the other bathroom. That will lighten the room up a lot too. One thing nice about this house is that the bathroom and shower was already outfitted with grab bars since Mr. MacDonald had lost a foot and lower leg in WWII. Very handy for our knees. Next up will be the tool shed emptying, cleaning, putting up the cabinets, and running the electric lights and plugs. It is slated for next week when it is supposed to warm up to the high 60's and possible hit 70 degrees. And no rain. Once the electric is in, we can work at night which will be helpful in putting everything back. At themoment althrough it is cluttered and crowded the boxes are all identified as to contents which will make it easy to put stuff away correctly. We brought 2 6'x6' industrical shelf units with us from CA, a 5'x5'x18" cabinet, some wall cabinets, and 2 old Craftsman tool cabinets (the good original Craftsman - I gave them to DH for Christmas when first married). We also have several large empty poly tool boxes we used when on job sites to hold tools so we can utiize them for some of the power tools.
On a happy note - the African violet given to me by a friend - has not died yet. In fact it is in a second stage of bloom! I have been using bottled purified water to water it. It sits on the kitchen widowsill so I don't forget about it. I am amazed. Not amazed enough to buy another one yet though.
- Thread starter
- #4,570
Ridgetop
Herd Master
More good news, DH told me that the trailer guy said our 24' Keiffer aluminum gooseneck trailer is worth about $17,000. We bought it thinking we would trailer the sheep and horses out ourselves, then didn't. At that value we won't lose on it if we sell in spite of the repair work we have done on it. Won't sell it but nice to know that our heirs can cash it out along with all our other sheep equipment. In fact, with so many people going into goats, this property will hold its value with the sheep/goat fencing and other improvements we have made. Got to think of the long term when you become Prime. 
Working on my taxes. Sorting receipts, entering everything into my farm book records, etc. and separating off stuff.
Got to go back and forth from computer to written records and receipts. DH says I should use some sort of Quickbooks computer record but that is too much trouble for me to remember to input everything into Quicken. Particularly since I have a hard time with that program. I am great on Word, but Quicken is difficult for me. I have trouble with the cells. Pencil and eraser in a profit and loss notebook seem to work better for me.
Got to stop putting it off and go do it!
Working on my taxes. Sorting receipts, entering everything into my farm book records, etc. and separating off stuff.
Got to go back and forth from computer to written records and receipts. DH says I should use some sort of Quickbooks computer record but that is too much trouble for me to remember to input everything into Quicken. Particularly since I have a hard time with that program. I am great on Word, but Quicken is difficult for me. I have trouble with the cells. Pencil and eraser in a profit and loss notebook seem to work better for me. Got to stop putting it off and go do it!
