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Sorry I haven’t had a chance to write all week it’s been a busy week at work. I’ll have more for everybody tomorrow as we ramp up to the final build day of the playhouse. Till then.

Well today was 50 degrees here in Eastern NC, so we got some progress made on the playhouse. I didn’t like the way the roof trusses were sitting so we took all of them down and restarted from scratch. We got the roof system rebuilt and 100% more stable and 90% of the plywood covering on the roof. Next came the 2 gable ends which took up an entire sheet of plywood each.

So as of today we have 2 sides completed and 90% of the roof. Next weekend weather permitting will be finishing up the walls and roof tar paper and shingle as well as windows and doors.

Here’s to hoping we have a good weather weekend, or if we don’t let it be snow and not rain.

Well it’s another gray misty cold weekend here in Eastern NC, that plus i just don’t feel good today so we’ll pick up on the playhouse next weekend. So for this weekend we are gonna stay inside keep dry and warm and watch the NHL All Star game and skills competition from Atlanta on TV. Tim we’ll see if you can actually score tickets and get me some pictures from the game…

Well after a nice long weekend of building with boys it’s back to work today we will finish the playhouse next weekend so check back next weekend for more playhouse fun. We also found out that my sister and her family will be coming to visit at the end of the month. “Yeah!!!” We can’t wait to see and visit with you all.

Well today was a little warmer then yesterday and at least there was no breeze to chill the air. This is what we had when we started this morning.

After leveling out the floor we started to frame up walls using 2×3’s for nailers and 2×2’s for studs. By lunch time we had 3 walls framed and the little helpers had arrived from indoors fresh from watching their favorite builders Kevin O’Conner and crew from This Old House. Here’s a picture of our morning’s worth of work.

After lunch when the helpers all got cold and retreated back inside for an afternoon Huricanes game with mom. We finished the front door and went to Lowe’s for roof truss materials. So after 2 days we have 4 walls a doorway and a roof skeleton. Here’s what it looks like after 2 full days of work.

So next weeknd barring adverse weather we will put the roof panels on, tar paper and shingle it, cut the windows out and install them, hang the door and install the ramp.

The last edition of the playhouse post’s will include a materials list and tools used in the construction of this project as well as some detail pictures of how it all went together…

It’ s bitterly cold here with a wind chill in the high 20’s and we had to abandon the use of all scrap wood.  There was just no way to complete the playhouse without having to go and get lumber. My dad took us to Lowe’s and we got 2×3’s for wall headers and footers and 2×4’s for floor joists; as well as more press board for the walls and roof.

With the framing nailer he purchased last week we made quick work of the floor. earlier this after noon we leveled off a single brick layer of supports to go under the floor. So the floor joist sit on leveled and packed down brick pillars. Due to possible yard flooding we didn’t want to close in the entire underside.  I will post pictures tomorrow which should include framed walls that have been raised up. I don’t know if we will get to putting the plywood on the studs, but we should be able to get the entire structure framed during the day tomorrow. next weekend will be the roof and sides.

The good news is there will be no wind and it should be above 40 degree’s.

Well you can never count on the weather to cooperate here in Eastern NC. Today we woke up to rain which according to the weather forecasters will change over to snow. We are expecting about 1 - 4 inches of snow this afternoon. We don’t see snow often so it will be a welcome treat for the boys. I’ll post pictures of the snow if and when it gets here this afternoon.

Update: 10pm -No snow and it’ looks like we won’t be getting any more then flurries or a trace at the most… oh well we’ll get to work on the playhouse tomorrow instead.

The wife sent me a text message yesterday morning saying your not gonna believe what your boys have asked for this morning. They asked to watch this old house or “builders” if your Emmett. They chose to watch DIY network over Dora the Explorer and Go Diego Go all morning long.

The Apple doesn’t fall from the Tree in this DIY house…

Well this weekend we will be finishing the playhouse made from other peoples scrap wood. I got a hold of my dad, my mother in law and my neighbor, to see what scrap wood they were not going to reuse to build the boys a playhouse with.It’s amazing what people will donate, doors, tar paper, shingles, wood siding, and windows to name a few items. We all know someone or a group of someone’s that have scrap wood laying around there sheds well it can be recycled into something new if you think hard enough. Or if your just learning a new DIY skill it’s better to try it out on a piece of scrap the a piece of good (expensive) wood.

This weekend will be even more fun after seeing and getting to play with my finishing nailer that I got for christmas my dad went out and bought a framing nailer from cpobostitch.com and got a great deal on it. so needless to say there will be no hammer swinging for me for a long while.

Stay tuned for the weekend updates with lot’s of pictures of the project.

In case you haven’t been able to tell yet, I do not like plumbing. It’s one of my least favorite things to do. It seems though that with my size it should be something that I am good at. I can make myself very small when I need to.

Over the last 2 years I have tackled the under kitchen sink plumbing (my nemesis) several times. A year ago thanksgiving my main line gray water pipe decided to break at 5pm the night before thanksgiving. That resulted in replacing the entire 45 foot main line of lead and cast iron drain pipe with PVC after a very interesting thanksgiving.

Well a few weeks ago my best friend’s widow called me and said her cold water in the shower was leaking. A friend of mine and i went over and put a temporary patch on it until she could go out and get a new shower faucet. Thursday night she called me at 9:30pm and said Cameron (her son) had accidentally broken our patch and asked if i could come over and put it back together. When I got there i knew it would mean a replacement. With Lowe’s closed for the night I knew the chance of a repairs were even slimmer. There was no more patching it this time the threads had finally given way and a weekend afternoon of plumbing was going to be in my future.

Today my friend and I went to Lowe’s and found a Moen faucet on clearance and were able to get it all put in and back together in time for Cameron’s birthday party this afternoon. It only required 3 trips to Lowe’s for parts and tools from my house. The demolition of a closet wall was fun though and we did manage to get it all back back together so she can get all of her stuff back in there. Cam, Rhessa, and shell I hope the shower is good tonight, no more going to the neghbors.

Happy Birthday Cam!