Renovations Week Four

Last week was week four of our renovations and, honestly, there isn't much exciting to share. There were a few days of quiet due to extreme rain/lots of snow.

On Wednesday, they started work on the new floor. You can see the light green patch of grass in the bottom right of the picture which had been holding some supplies. It's fun to see the supplies getting used and the piles going down!

A few more dust doors were installed -- one at the top of the basement stairs and one at the door to the laundry room. This should help keep some of the construction mess contained.

The front basement window got some insulation added. You can still see through to the outside in a few places around the frame.

The beam (or a large piece of wood) got installed on the helical piles. And we got a ton of snow!

On Friday one of the workers shovelled the backyard clear. You can see a pile by the fence on the right. Also on Friday someone was here all day doing HVAC work. I think that's heating and cooling systems but I can't really tell what they did, although Dave confirmed it was very noisy.

There are two small holes drilled in the office floor. I think they're for plumbing as they're where the sink and the toilet will be in the powder room.

 

Learnings this week:

Not all work is super interesting to document. However, it is still very important (like heating and cooling work, for instance).

 

I was in the garage getting something and the workers were finishing up. I saw a microwave in the garage so asked what it was for. The workers explained that one guy liked a hot lunch. I laughed and absolutely invited them to use ours! I realize that these workers are employees and won't make themselves at home but I also want our house (their work space) to be welcoming! It's a funny line to walk and hopefully Dave and I are doing it well.

When I update next week, I will have more exciting photos to share because a lot has happened this week!!! Also, I meant to publish this post earlier this week but the week got away from me. Some weeks are like that...

Currently: December 2025

I'm a day late to the "Currently" link up with Jenn at My Joyful Life but I still wanted to join in on the fun. In twelve days I will be working the last day before the schools close for a two week Winter Break and I cannot wait!!! Until then, here's what's happening with us right now.

  [loving]

 This past Monday was the Winter Formal for Sam and Rachel's school. I was "loving" how excited Rachel was to attend her first high school dance and I was "loving" hearing each kid's stories after the dance about how much fun they had!

Since it was a "winter" formal, Rachel added her mittens as accessories for some of the photos! Hahaha!

 

Also, for some reason, Sam's Outdoor Ed class learned to knit so Sam had to hand in a knitting square for a project. I was "loving" seeing Sam sitting in his room, knitting. It just made me smile :)

[hoping]

So, if you're reading this on Thursday morning then I'm on a plane. My dad is heading into surgery for his hip replacement today and I'm flying out to be with him and my mom. I'm "hoping" his surgery goes really well and his recuperation is easy. And we're all thrilled that he got surgery so quickly this time around. (Last time he was waiting for over a year.) 

[doing]

 

I am "doing" everything I can to be festive in the midst of renovations. We're drinking cranberry tea, eating Applesauce Jumbles, watching Hallmark movies, and hanging ornaments on our outside tree...

... Rachel and I did a festive puzzle surrounded by empty boxes...

... and I'm using festive spatulas! I made a batch of Applesauce Jumbles as I wrote this post and I used the "Baking spirits bright" one! What I especially love about these is I can use them in January and February too :) 

[wearing]

 

I'm still wearing my holiday pajamas!

[seeing]

This week we are "seeing" the addition starting to be built on the back of our house. It's very exciting! We're also "seeing" a lot of snow. I feel bad every time I see a renovation update from our contractor and it says, "Shovelled snow out of the back yard." Even though it's not my fault, I know it's added extra work for them.

So that's what's up with us "currently." If you could say some prayers for a successful surgery for my dad today, and a quick recovery, I would really appreciate it.

What's Up Wednesday: November 2025

This is the month that our big renovation started! You can go here to read more specifics but I will be referencing it a lot in today's post as it's been a major part of our month.

Answering these questions monthly helps me reflect on the past month and I really appreciate having a record of what we've been up to. The questions come from Shay at Mix and Match Mama and Sheaffer at Sheaffer Told Me Too.

image from here

 

What we're eating this week... I made the first batch of Applesauce Jumbles last week as well as the first batch of Cranberry Tea. These are both recipes I got from fellow bloggers and they have become a huge part of our holiday season. You can find Holly's Applesauce Jumble recipe here and the Cranberry Tea recipe I got from Allena. In fact, I'm drinking a cup of cranberry tea as I get this post ready and I'll be baking another batch of Applesauce Jumbles tonight!

 

Also, in preparation for losing our kitchen in the next month, Dave and I went to Costco and looked at all the prepared foods they offer. I found some cheese, fruit, and nut snacks and asked Dave to buy some a few weeks ago. These have been a really good addition to my lunches lately and I know I will be eating a lot more of them in the next few months.

 

What I'm reminiscing about... From 1997 until 2002 I owned a house with ten other people. We were all post-university and wanted to try living intentionally. We bought a house together and decided to make it a five year project. People came and went but we were still friends after five years of living together. I somehow ended up with the bin of "house papers" and, with permission from the others, I've been going through them and recycling/shredding them. So I've been reminiscing about that time in my life.

 

These are pictures of pictures but they were taken the night we sold the house. With my share of the proceeds I took my dad on the Trans-Siberian Railway from Beijing to Moscow through Mongolia and then we went and visited the area in the Ukraine where his parents were born. (You can read more about that trip here if you're interested.)

 

What I'm loving... I'm loving that, in some ways, November has been slower than October and I've had time to read, get more sleep, and knock a few huge tasks off my "to do" list. Don't get me wrong -- November has also been full, but I appreciate having just a little more time these days. 

 

What we've been up to... We've been up to a lot!

I did another Blossoms 'N Brunch with friends.

 

 

We went to a town near us to check out their "Sparkles" event. We enjoyed fancy hot chocolate, some photo ops, and some sitting by the fire. We ate some really good pizza and made an evening out of it. Rachel commented that it was like a Hallmark movie "but with lineups"! She wasn't wrong :)

 

And renovations have started! The playroom has been taken off, the basement has been gutted, new windows have been put in, and framing has started. In preparation for all of this, we have continued to pack up, sort through things, and move a lot of stuff out of our house. We just have three more rooms to move out of (the kitchen, bathroom, and Rachel's room).

Here's me blogging in the office while laundry dries this past weekend.

What I'm dreading... While I'm excited about the renovations, I'm also dreading not having a kitchen and having to pack up Rachel's room. She'll be moving in with Dave and I so things are going to get... cozy! Hahaha!

What I'm working on... Sorting stuff. Getting rid of stuff. Packing stuff. Moving stuff. Repeat.

What I'm excited about... I get so excited to come home every day and see what progress has been made. It's fun to think that in a few short months our house will look so different!!!

What I'm watching/reading... I started watching Hallmark Christmas movies a few weekends ago. 

I haven't watched any of the new ones yet -- just some old favourites like The Santa Summit and Hannukah on the Rocks. Maybe this weekend I'll watch a new one! 

 

As for reading, I read a lot in November. I read One Good Thing by Georgia Hunter, Broken Country by Claire Leslie Hall, and My Friends by Fredrik Backman, among other things.

 

However, the most life changing book I read this month was How To Winter: harness your mindset to thrive on cold, dark, or difficult days by Kari Leibowitz. I want to buy this book, underline it, and re-read it every October as I prepare for winter -- my least favourite season. If you are not a winter person (like me), check out this book. I might actually be looking forward to this winter, after reading this book.

 

What I'm listening to... Construction noises. And, as I mentioned in Monday's post, the lot across the street is being worked on too (and not just 8-4:30 like our renos), so when I'm not hearing construction noises at home, I'm hearing banging across the street. It's a lot.

What I'm wearing... My family decided they're done with matching holiday pjs, so I decided to get a full on fun pair for myself! In the midst of renovation life, I needed something to bring me some holiday joy! 

I got them from Old Navy this past weekend and the pants are especially fun! They're striped with candy canes, trees, and gingerbread houses on them :)

 

What I'm doing this weekend... I think we're going to start packing up some more things in the kitchen and get more done in Rachel's room. Rachel has a bunch of Nutcracker rehearsals in preparation for her show in a few weeks (including a lot this weekend) so we're chipping away at her room as she has time. I'll probably watch some Hallmark movies. It might be one of our last slow weekends before the holidays hit so I'm going to enjoy it.

What I'm looking forward to next month... Seeing more changes happening with our reno! Finding moments of joy in the midst of upheaval at home. Celebrating the holidays with friends and family.

So that's what's up with us this Wednesday in November. I used to really dread November but now I've just enjoyed savouring its coziness and enforced slowness. How's your November been?

Renovations Week Three

These renovations have both been going faster, and slower, than I had anticipated. Here's what happened this past week.

Although I said in last week's post that framing was complete in the basement, I was wrong. I meant that they had framed along all the outside walls. This week, they built the wall for Sam's room.

And while this isn't our renovation, they are starting to build at the lot across the street where the fire happened two and a half years ago. This construction is involving a lot of trucks and noise and I have to keep telling our neighbours that it is not our reno causing all the chaos. It's been a little frustrating.

This is the space for the furnace room (which will be beside Sam's room) and his shower arrived! Now they just need to install it -- hahahaha!!!

Sam's window got installed! Yay!!!

And our contractor, after a quick discussion with Dave, suggested angling the furnace room wall, and moving Sam's door, to give him a little more space in his room. We liked these suggestions so some work had to be re-done.

 

We all spent some time downstairs, checking out the work one evening and helping Sam think about how to arrange his new space. That was really fun to dream about what it might look like when it's done!

We're getting rid of the window in the downstairs bathroom (which they spray painted black for some reason) and they had to dig up more of the floor to replace a bit more of the pipes. I *think* some plumbing and electrical in the basement is starting this week so that's exciting!

This is the new window in the basement, which had to be moved to the front.

And the window in the bathroom got framed over.

 

So this past week was about more framing and installing windows. This week, they're also going to start framing for the powder room on the main floor so we took more stuff to our storage unit and a few more things to our neighbours this weekend.

This is me moving our office organizer to our neighbours' house.

And this is our new "office space" in our living room corner. I *hope* I kept everything important!!!

And this is me enjoying blogging in the office while I still can! I am also losing my temporary drying laundry space so I'm not sure where that's going to happen these next few months -- maybe our bedroom?!?!

 

What we learned this week:

 

Spray paint really smells. A lot.

 

This reno has really forced us to go through things and get rid of/recycle/decide what's actually important to keep. It's been a good thing but I am looking forward to not having to organize so much -- eventually!

 

It's super handy to have a dumpster in our driveway to throw trash into! I might lobby to keep it once the reno's done!!! Hahaha!!! 

 

So that's where we're at. Like I said, I think next week's update might have a little more excitement in it because there's a rumour that some framing on the new addition might happen... And of course, I'm thrilled about my powder room!