Taking Stock

This is the longest stretch of time that we have actually stayed at Gladys, and Rick and I both were amazed when we figured out that the total time we have been "in residence" here in the past three years has been just shy of 12 months. What a change we have made in Gladys in that time span!  I always say, "All anything takes is time and money."  We have invested a considerable amount of money (for us, anyway) and an incredible amount of effort and time.

I started to make a list of what we have accomplished this past 6 1/2 months.  We have

1. Removed the falling-down, rotting north wooden fence.
2. Shopped for and purchased two new sofas for the living room.
3. Purchased the bedroom ceramic jars to help us keep clutter in control.
4. Purchased and installed sun-blocking shades for the front double doors.
5. Purchased and installed new 2" blinds for the Florida room, kitchen, guest room, and both bathrooms.
6. Cut down and removed stumps for dwarf schefflera and hibiscus bushes on the south side of the house.
7. Troubleshot and called in for repairs on the HVAC system. Replaced the thermostat. 
8. Purchased and hung new art for the living room. (Art Fairs are great in Florida!)
9. Removed and disposed of the old stone table and benches from the back patio.
10. Removed the patio and disposed of the old patio blocks. (Thanks for the help, Steve!)
11. Painted the interior of all four closets.
12. Redesigned and installed a new shelving system in guest room closet.
13. Redesigned and installed a new shelving system in the master bedroom closet.
14. Purchased, sanded, primed, and painted eleven interior doors. (This amounted to 44 coats of paint!)
15. Installed eleven new interior doors and added hardware.
16. Purchased, painted, and installed casing for the above-mentioned doors.
17. Purchased and assembled Ikea bed frame and two Hemnes nightstands for the guest room. Purchased two bedroom lamps.
18. Arranged for Oak and Camphor trees in back yard to be trimmed.
19. Purchased, assembled, and installed three upper laundry room cabinets and one sink base cabinet.
20. Purchased and installed system to hang bikes in garage.
21. Purchased and installed countertop for laundry room sink.
22. Purchased and assembled new white bedroom chair.  Re-covered the seat cushion.
23. Purchased and assembled small table for the Florida room.
24. Replaced wiring for the HVAC system that was branched into another wire.
25. Purchased living room rug.
26. Purchased, painted, and installed exterior shutters for the bedroom and kitchen windows.
27. Purchased and installed a Michael Healy house number plaque.
28. Removed and disposed of north wooden gate and remaining wooden fence.
29. Pressure washed paint from the entire house down to the bare stucco.
30. Patched cracks, sealed, and painted two finish coats on entire outside of house. (Whew!)
31. Scraped, sanded, washed, primed, and painted all soffits and fascia boards on house.
32. Purchased tree and metal sculpture for living room. (Love those art fairs!)
33. Removed loose plaster around garage window and resealed window.  Added casing to window to complete the sealing process.
34. Patched leak in garage wall.
35. Pressure washed mold and mildew from driveway and from back cement slab.
36. Removed outside conduit and dead electrical line.  Removed electrical outlet from Florida room and patched and painted wall.
37. Painted electrical mast to prevent rust on roof.
38. Caulked and painted HVAC wire covers.
39. Removed two rotting stumps from back yard.
40. Rerouted downspouts on north side of house into underground drainage systems.
41. Rerouted downspouts on south side of house into underground drainage systems.
42. Re-caulked bathtub in main bathroom.
43. Sealed grout on the front porch.

I cannot believe what we have accomplished in the last few months, and that all happened with me working at far less than 100% capacity.   Rick has done an incredible job this year, and a beautifully completed guest room, laundry room, and living room are the results.  Outside, Gladys is now sealed against the elements and sports a bright new coat of paint and new shutters.  

Gladys basks in the Florida sunshine for the summer.

We feel good about the condition in which we are leaving Gladys for the summer.  She is safe and secure.  We have a long ride ahead of us, but we are looking forward to some time off while we celebrate family graduations and birthdays as we allow our weary bodies to recover.