The bathroom saga - the next to last chapter

Ah, the next to last chapter...do you know what THAT means, loyal stalkers?  THAT means the bathroom is almost done...like so almost done that we're actually using it now.  Oh, HAPPY day!

When I last left you, we had finished sanding the drywall & were getting ready to paint.  I chose what I refer to as 'color #2' (the one on the top row that doesn't even look like it's a color to the left of the darker color).  I will tell you I am not happy with it - however the can of paint was $65 so I'm dealing w/ it & will either: 1) let it grow on me or 2) re-paint it when we've saved some money back from what all we've already spent in the stupid room.

I wanted color #3 (the one on the top row, right) but when I showed it to people they said, 'Oh, that's TOO dark'.  That's what I get for listening to other people...

A couple of weeks ago, B-rad put the vanity mirror & towel bars up for me so I could take a shower in the other bathroom & use the newly remodeled master bath to 'get ready'.  He had some help from Sonny.

(Notice the time on the clock on my night stand... I've told ya'll a THOUSAND times how I have to wait on B-rad to get done at the barn to do stuff for me.  I assure you-this is pm, NOT am...)

Sonny was all about checking out what was going on.

And just like that - the vanity was ready to be used.  Notice the not darkish light-ish, blue-ish, grey-ish, almost non-existant wall color?  (I am choosing to make the best of it & going w/ more dark accessories...black rugs, black towels, black, black, BLACK.)

I could bore you w/ all the details of how this light came to be, but I'll spare you... just know it was a major pain in the ass & I bought something else instead (even though I wanted THIS one in the beginning). When I regretted what I had changed my mind to, Lowe's didn't show ANY online at ANY store w/ in a 100 mile radius.

I decided to take my chances & go to the store & look to see if there was one on the shelf, JUST IN CASE... it must've been my lucky day because it was there on the shelf... & it was the ONLY one left.

About a week later, B-rad put up the shower glass.  (Again-look out the window-it's dark outside, people.) 

And my pretty, new vanity was covered in tools.

Our bed was also recruited for storage.  You can see one of the glass panels at the bottom of the pic laying against the bed.  B-rad carried every one of those bastards up into the house by HIMSELF.  (Everything was stored in the garage until it was ready to be used.)  These panels were freaking heavy-I don't know how he does that stuff!

The installation was really difficult (I thought.)  B-rad even had to read the directions... I don't know if I've EVER seen him read directions.  I sometimes suggest it & he says, 'HMPH I don't need directions!'

He had to install the metal bar thingies against the wall that the glass panels would slide into first, then he positioned the glass inside them.

I mean-look at that intensity...

Next the door was put on.  I LOVE the door because it slides back & forth & doesn't open out like normal doors.  This shower was ALL B-rad's idea so he has no one to blame but himself for the intense installation when he saw it at the store he said, 'THIS.  THIS is what I want.'.  He never has opinions on anything & didn't have any on the bathroom except this shower configuration & since I'm a giver I said, "Yes, lets do this shower!"

I did, however, veto him on the color of walls he wanted (it was like a brown & gold color & did NOT go w/ my our theme at all.  I said, "NU UH" & picked the one that look like marble.  (Come ON, people - if I let him have his way too much he will start to think it's an option all the time...)

After he got the doors up he had to put little seal thingies on all the edges of the glass.   I'm not crazy about the clear glass - I'm a bit shy & would of liked to have a bit of frosting on it but that wasn't an option.  

  SIGH.  

Why oh why did B-rad have to choose this as his only thing to have an opinion on?

I am standing in the shower giving the thumbs up because B-rad was all done!  Not only can you see right through the glass, you can also see a bit of your reflection when you're inside the shower.   (See my reflection in the glass close to the bottom of the picture? GEE isn't that great when you're showering?)

We bought a linen cabinet B-rad put together for me Sunday night when he got home.  It's black & ironically does not store our linens.  In it I have our extra soap, contact solutions, cotton balls, toilet paper, etc.

Since B-rad thought it was such a great idea for me to put our toothbrushes in the decorative glass beads in the other bathroom, I found these black, grey & clear stones & thought they match the vanity perfect.

The only thing left to do is a few decorations here & there & trimming the doors.  Planting season is upon us so trim will have to wait until I'm 90.  

And now--because I know ya'll love a good before & after as much as me....

Before:

AFTER! 

Before...

AFTER!

Before...

AFTER!

And since I figure you guys are wondering what it all cost (I would be) - I will tell you we have been saving &I've been waiting impatiently for years to get this done.  (We have wanted to remodel our bathroom since the day we moved in over 16 years ago.) Don't forget we took it all the way down to the framing & had to cut a hole in the floor to re-run a LOT of plumbing.  So we bought plumbing 'stuff', 2x6's, pocket doors, vanity, vanity top, toilet, drywall, drywall mud, paint, lighting, the shower, flooring, & lots of other 'items'.  The budget was $5000.00 & we did go over that - not counting all the new decoration 'stuff' we spent around $6000.00 on the remodel.   That does seem like a whole lot especially since B-rad & his dad were able to do the work themselves, but stuff is expensive ya'll!  We splurged on the fancier vanity & granite top (just those items {not including all the nonsense you need for them - silicone, side splash, faucet} totaled around $1200.00!). The other major expense was the shower walls, floor pan, door & return glass panel which cost a whopping $2300.00 {again - not including all the nonsense for it - silicone, shower faucet...). Over half our total expense were in those 2 features.  

But I must tell you - I don't care about how much it cost - I L-O-V-E MY NEW BATHROOM!  Like seriously-I just walk through it sometimes & look around at how pretty it is.  I owe it all to my hubby & his dad!  They both worked really, really REALLY hard to get it all done just the way I wanted.  I appreciate their hard work so much.  In all it took about 3 months to get it 'done enough' for me to quit bitching at B-rad about "don't forget you HAVE to have the bathroom done before you start planting!!!!?".

  After B-rad & our savings account recover from this remodel (& he gets the trim on the doors done...) next up on my list is the kitchen.  I don't think it will be TOO much trouble (but then again-what do I know?).  I want to get new cabinets & remove the section of counter & cabinets above it that separates the dining room & kitchen.  I also want to put an island in the kitchen.  (ALL of which were B-rad's ideas!)  Easy breezy, huh?  

However - I KNOW we can't go 3 months w/out a kitchen like we did this bathroom so really there's really only one option -  B-rad's gonna have to quit farming... 

Garth Brooks concert - Louisville

When Garth Brooks announced his one measly show in Louisville I was concerned about getting tickets... & I was irritated because he does 4 shows everywhere else-why not here?  (2 on Friday night & 2 on Saturday night.)  Shauna & I wanted to go again (you may recall we saw in him in Atlanta a year & a half ago. Refresh your memory here.) 

I had a really tough time getting tickets when they went on sale-I was on my computer & phone trying to get them to pull up for any show I could.  As the tickets went on sale he announced 3 more shows for Louisville - gee thanks for the heads up, Garth.

Shauna's dad & step-mom were going to go too but I could not get 4 tickets together so I did 2 & 2.  After 45 minutes we had 2 sets of 2 tickets...in the VERY back & top of the Yum Center for the 10:30pm Saturday show.  

I was NOT happy about that - who wants to sit ALL the way back there, plus the top of the Yum Center is very steep & we all know I'm a little sketchy on heights in my old(er) age...

A few days before the show, Shauna's dad & step-mom backed out.  She was able to sell their tickets & we had to come up w/ a plan for getting downtown & fighting all the people...you know how I am.

We eventually decided the plan was there would be no plan.  We were going to eat dinner in Indiana & then go downtown to survey parking, etc & check out parking near the 2nd Street bridge & maybe just walk over from there.  

Brian offered to take us & pick us up...even though it was going to be the middle of the night before we were done.  We jumped out of the car at 9:45pm while just sitting in traffic one block from the Yum Center.  We had big plans to drink a lot (since we had a DD) & we drank all the way over, we drank while we were waiting to get in & then we were gonna drink inside.  We're loud anyway, but we're even louder when we drink.  I reminded Brian that we were gonna be loud when he picked us up.  He responded with, 'Uhm-I can bring ear plugs...'

(Which he did have with him when he picked us up!)

THANK YOU again to Brian for being our chauffeur!

The Yum Center did a really good job of tweeting info about when the doors would open etc.  Even though the 2nd show should have started at 10:30 the doors weren't going to open until after then.  (Of course this happened to us in Atlanta too so we were old pros at what was going on.)

The sea of people was CRAZY.  We sat on the steps of the LG&E building across the street from Yum to drink & make fun of all the girls in their skimpy dresses because it was really cold.  We've wised up in our concert wear - comfort (& warmth in this situation) is key for us.

Little did we know that 2 hours from this picture we would be on the front row for the Garth Brooks show.  

YES WE DID.  

Hang on, I'll tell you ALLLLL about it...

We even came prepared with gloves.  It wasn't too bad at all.  I had a button up shirt on, a black shirt on top of that & a fleece lined vest.  Shauna wore a long sleeved top, a vest & a jacket.  We wanted to wear layers we could take off inside.  Shauna even had the good idea to bring a garbage bag so we could put our layers in them & sit on the floor.  A) they wouldn't get nasty on the floor & B) drunk people wouldn't spill their drinks on our clothes.

As we funneled our way in we stopped at the top of the stairs & looked back.  We could see people in every direction.

Then we saw these guys in the SAME shirt.  If they did it on purpose I hope they take that secret to their grave.  I'm not positive they were together, but it seemed they were.  I mean-if you're a guy & you see a total stranger wearing the exact shirt as you don't you try & get as far away as possible?  I mean-for girls it's cute & funny - for guys not so much...

Ok so here's the story:  We were in section 314 which is in the VERY back of Yum.  We were able to get tickets on row A so I didn't think that would be AS bad because we wouldn't have to climb up so many of those 'straight up' steps!  We were going to sit down, remove our layers & get more drinks.  (Being herded into a building for hours like cattle can really be a buzz kill.)

As we were standing chatting w/ the lady that seats you, a man leaned over & smashed Shauna's hand as she had it on the rail.  She looked at the guy & said, 'Hey man - are you ok?' because it was apparent he was SUPER drunk.  He said 'oh yea - I'm fine...'.  He started to walk down the steps towards our seats & he fell face first onto the steps - like he went down like a tree.  He was so drunk he didn't even try to break his fall.  Shauna is a nurse & she immediately leapt into action.  She threw her stuff down & ran down to render first aid.

First thing she yelled up to me, 'Jaime - give me your black shirt - he's bleeding everywhere!' & since I can't help in any other way - I do what she tells me!  I immediately threw off my purse & vest to remove my black shirt.  (Remember I had a button up top on under it.) When I went to lift it my other shirt lifted too - I turned to a lady standing near me & said, "Can you hold this shirt down so I can take my other shirt off?" & she just looked at me.  I said, "That man fell, he's bleeding & my friend is helping & she needs my shirt!  HOLD MY SHIRT DOWN!" & she did.  As I threw it down some other men standing there said, 'No-don't ruin her shirt - use this.' & threw down a bandana.

As I stood there {I mean-I have no medical training whatsoever so I just do what Shauna needs me to do like tossing her my shirt.  Yes, I've been w/ Shauna when things like this have happened before - she's the person who jumps in to help no matter what - it's who she is. Since I can't really add anything of value to the medical situation I stay out of the way, wait for her & do the things she needs...& hold her stuff!  :) I'm the support crew.}

The guy busted his nose & mouth open & knocked his teeth out.  I don't know how long it took but finally the paramedics took him out on a stretcher.  Shauna went out with them so I continued to stand & wait for her.  We couldn't even get down to our seats if we wanted to because there was blood all over the steps. 

This is how fast the next part happened:

I heard the 5 minute start warning announcement & I texted Brian so he would know we would be about 2 hours from that time.  It was 11:36.  Next thing I know Shauna is yelling for me & she has several people standing around her including the Yum center seat finder lady.  I thought they were going to take her out to get a statement or something about what happened, but when I got over there  there's a girl there w/ one of those concert badge thingies rambling about how they're taking us to the front row.  UHM - WHAT?  

And I was like, "Come on - no you're not!"

Yes they were.

(Shauna & I were totally in shock.  We were like looking at each other & kept asking them if they were serious!)

The Yum center lady (Dawn) had called down & told them Shauna needed to be upgraded for helping & since we were together I got to go too!   They told us Garth doesn't sell the first 4 rows of seats - he saves them for the night of to give to people who may deserve them or stand out to his spotters.

 I must say 'THANK YOU' to Shauna, again, for being selfless & being rewarded for her effort.  

And JUST like that we were being escorted to the FRONT FREAKING ROW by Garth's people & security.  We said 'OH MY GOD' about a million times & we got to our seats as he was coming out to sing.

Needless to say we never moved from our spot.  We didn't go pee, we didn't drink anymore (so Brian didn't really need those earplugs after all!) & we never sat down.  

(Turns out seeing an uber drunk guy smash his face, your friend have blood on her clothes & watching her take care of him IS the biggest buzz kill...)

The hardest part of my night was trying to get a selfie where you could see his head.  He was always too close.  (First world problems, I know!)

Ya'll we could feel the heat off the lights!

How often do you get THIS view of the crowd?  Most the time you're looking down on everyone else - not this time, people!

That's Shauna taking a photo of him.  

Singing & selfie'ing'.

Shauna had her hand on his boot.  

If I was able to get his head, he's blurry... curses...

I can't believe the energy level this guy has - he's no spring chicken, people & we had to take naps before we went to the show the night.  He did tease through the show about how he was worn out & old & this video shows a bit of him teasing that.

You also get to hear him say a dirty word at the end...

We have decided that we will probably never top this night.

But we vow to never stop trying...

We have come up w/ a new concert plan - I will push people down stairs & Shauna will take care of them...

Totally worth it.

The bathroom saga - drywall SUCKS

In case you have forgotten - we did not have our home 'built'...it is a modular & it came to us on semis in 2 pieces.  The put it on the foundation, attached the 2 halves & a few days later we moved in.  

Easy breezy for us.

We did not have to lay carpet, we did not have to paint, we did not have to drywall, (hell we didn't even have to hang blinds or curtains!) we just moved our furniture & stuff in, people.

So this bathroom remodel has been quite the learning experience for us both.  What I have learned is that I never ever want to drywall anything ever again.  

I'm sure B-rad will tell you he has learned that when I say, "Hey-can we do 'xyz'?" His answer should promptly be, 'We can - but we would have to drywall...'

Before it was time to sand the drywall, I put plastic on the floor (remember we had already put the floor down so B-rad's dad could help) & over the vanity to try & keep the dust at bay.  I also did a ghetto job of putting plastic up in the door ways...remember one goes into our bedroom & one into the laundry room...

There are 2 pieces of plastic here overlapping - I wanted an extra layer of protection into our bedroom.

Of course I wanted to be helpful (even though I know nothing about sanding drywall) so I was in the bathroom w/ B-rad when he did the sanding.  (Ok, I sanded a little...but he always went behind me & re-sanded what I did.)

I decided to go shoeless & sock-less for the process.  My feet can be washed - shoes not so much...

 One of the many problems w/ drywall dust is that it's seriously like the dustiest thing you've ever seen.  You barely touch the dried mud & the stuff goes EVERYWHERE.  Eventually it was under the tape & it came un-stuck & then we had PILES of dust on the floor.

 I felt a bit like Dexter when it all started...

(Do you guys know who Dexter is?  It's a tv show where a man kills people...he covers the 'place' he's going to kill them in plastic...)

 I knew I had to wear a mask while I was in the room (because of my allergic-ness to every living thing in the universe) but I also made B-rad wear a mask.  

I said, "Ok, Mac - SMILE!"

He said, 'REALLY?  Smile?  We're wearing MASKS.'

I said, "They can tell we're smiling w/ our EYES!"

I ask you - which one of us is smiling in this pic??

 We borrowed this dust machine thingie from Shauna.  It sucked the dust in while we were sanding & the hose attached was outside on the deck to take some of the dust out.

 I don't know how B-rad sanded w/ his contacts in - I wore my glasses.  Now-remember I didn't do much sanding - I was more of a 'stand around for moral support' kinda gal.

LOOK AT THIS DUST ON MY GLASSES.  Holy crap.

I also got some paint samples to try on the walls.  I picked all grey colors.  I want the bathroom grey &  our bedroom will be grey, but a darker shade.  

It's hard to tell here - but there are 4 colors of grey shades.

 I took my samples & painted them on different walls to see how they looked in different light.

 At first I wasn't going to use the 2 darker shades in the bathroom (they were to sample for the bedroom), but the lighter shades were SO light I decided to slap them up there too.

 I have picked a color...but I'm not gonna tell you what it is.
Again - if I gotta endure the drawn out process of this remodel, SO WILL YOU