The temporary "apartment" kitchen-

Sunday, March 2

The temporary kitchen is in place

Yes, there is a temporary kitchen. It will actually be the new butler's pantry once the entire renovation is complete.

Yes, there is a sink in the temporary kitchen. 

(thank goodness!)

In fact, the temporary kitchen is so cute and functional, it has been deemed:

The Apartment Kitchen

This kitchen is very functional, in fact, the dishwasher is closer to the sink than it ever has been before.  

It is a dream to work in except for the very cold draft 

and poor lighting, and cramped storage space……perhaps…..It is aptly named The Apartment Kitchen.

It also did not take long to make the kitchen feel like home as the refrigerator began to collect calendars, and sports and work schedules.

It's Time…..To Say Goodbye…to the OLD KITCHEN!

Saturday, March 1

Today is the day!  

We are beginning to say Goodbye 

to the old kitchen!

Sometimes it is hard to say goodbye….

Here it is…the old kitchen, complete with it's circa 1938 antique cabinets.  There was plenty of storage space...

The kitchen was accessible to the back stairway…
(note how little light came into the kitchen however)…






The refrigerator was tucked away…next to the dishwasher (which was across the room from the sink…)

We definitely made the best of the storage around the stove area.

And the "butler's pantry" or breakfast nook will be repurposed as well….

Of course the best part of the kitchen was the breakfast nook - the table and benches we put in when the boys were little.  What a great spot for a quick meal or a place for an after school snack.  Alex and Gordon agreed to have their picture taken there one…last…time….

And sometimes it is not hard to say goodbye at all…. 

Goodbye to the shelves over the stove...

Good bye to the table and benches….

The refrigerator has been moved to it's temporary home..

Halsey and Gordon preparing to put in the new permanent wall for the new staircase.

Here is an interesting view toward what used to be the side window.  The new kitchen space is still in the rough state beyond the window while we slowly dismantle and 
re-arrange the old kitchen.

Halsey and Alexander begin to build the new wall.  

The cabinets came down just after this picture was photographed.

Halsey was so thrilled with the progress he kept on tearing up the place!

And, don't forget, the downstairs bathroom, aka "Fenway" will be dismantled to make way for the new staircase as well.  Here are a few final pictures of an old space that was re-invented 8 years ago for little boys and their friends!

The bathroom was put in place in 2006, and the Red Sox have won two World Series since then!

Hmmmm, coincidence perhaps?  Or GOOD LUCK CHARM?

Yes, there is a summon from the boys to reincarnate Fenway for the future downstairs half bath.

We..shall…see...

In the meantime, enjoy a little operatic interlude that may just help describe the feelings of the residents of 2 Old Ayer Road upon the slow demolition of the circa 1938 kitchen…...

Adventures with National Grid!

Thursday, February 27

On this particular morning a there was a knock on the door from a man who claimed he was from National Grid and he was here to connect the gas line.

It was noted that we were in the middle of heating season, but he said, "This is what we do, we are not afraid of the frostline".  

He was not wearing any uniform, nor was he driving a truck with any markings…..

He said, "My truck is offline but there is a truck coming from Waltham and two backhoes arriving soon".

We kept chatting as details become more clear.

  

It was a cold morning to be standing outside

however, without a badge, truck or identification coming inside the house was not a welcome proposition.

Not to mention that it was difficult to believe that National Grid would dig through 2 feet of snow and frozen ground, but then the backhoes arrived...along with a police detail. 

Halsey was driving by on his way to a meeting with a client and was able to provide details.  Note the high snow pack….

 

Here is the view from the inside the house, looking out the front windows….one backhoe and a National Grid truck….

And here is the second backhoe with the police detail.

They proceeded to close down the top of the street and re-route traffic while they created this in the front yard:

The gas meter and gas line have been installed.

Yes, on February 27.

Basement stairs are in process….

Saturday, February 22

The work today was focused on the mudroom and recycling area.  Note the new shelf in next to the door to the mudroom.  This is where the recycling bins will be located.

Stepping inside the future mudroom, note the new stairs that are built up to the "landing" and what remains is to break through, and the floor was built up to be level with the existing basement floor of the house.

The entrance to the basement was also framed today to prepare for a door between the basement and the mudroom.

A mudroom appears….

Saturday, February 15

TJ was back on Saturday along with Angel and we had big plans for the mudroom area.
But first, the train table had to be dismantled.

Just a quick aside, this train table was created by Alex, Gordon and Will P 4 years ago in 2010 when Alex and Will were in 5th grade.  Once the idea was hatched they all went to work and they were together almost every day after school until it was completed.  
They did a brilliant job of laying track, painting roads and parking lines.  

The sad news is that in order to create the flow necessary for our new mudroom area the train table had to be dismantled.  It was a quick but nostalgic pack up of the trains, buildings and cars.

Once that was completed, demolition began on the wall that separated the basement from the garage. Here Alex, Gordon and Angel are taking down the mirrors that had been placed across the old door to the garage.

Below is TJ on the opposite side of that door:

 Below shows BEFORE the wall was demolished…

And AFTER …..lots of space!

 The above view and the following few pictures are taken from the same angle - looking from the basement toward the garage.

 Halsey began to frame the new wall between the garage and the mudroom.

 Alex finished the framing.

 Meanwhile, TJ and Gordon were upstairs on the second floor removing the studs from the old guest room to allow for a new wall arrangement.

The adventures continued in the basement when Halsey asked Angel to cut out part of the steel beam with a grinder to allow for a full sized door for the mudroom entry.

Here are the entangled wires mentioned in a previous post and the space where the stairs will be built.

At the end of this day, here is a great perspective with Julie's car pulled into the garage and the door to the new mudroom area is framed.

Basement demolition…second floor work...

Saturday, February 8

The messy work in the basement was much more fun in with a large group!

With thanks to Angel, Will P and TJ we were able to demolish the rock lathe ceiling in the old basement.  This will is the beginning of the formulation of the new mudroom in the basement.
The gray material is cellulose insulation that we had blown into the walls back in 2007. 
The demolition revealed all kinds of electrical wires both old and new that will have to be removed and re-wired. 

Also accomplished on the same day was the demolition of the plaster walls that separate the old guest room with the new upstairs space.  It really opened up the feeling of the future room.

Below:  Looking into the old guest room and beyond into the new upstairs space.

Where the radiator is currently located will be the future stairwell.

Above is a photo looking back at the demolished wall and the old guest room.

The view at the end of the day was spectacular.