Mother Nature and long lead times

We’ve been a little quiet lately, but don’t worry—we haven’t abandoned the flip. Mother Nature simply decided she was our new project manager.

The plan was to finish the exterior painting. Mother Nature’s plan was to make it rain when there was a 0% chance and stay perfectly dry when there was an 80% chance. At this point, we’re convinced she’s just refreshing the weather app for entertainment.

So back inside we went again, which turned out to be fine because there was still plenty to do before we could declare victory.

Like replacing every. single. baseboard. and. door. trim. Yes…the entire house. Thankfully, the right tools and a little help from a friend made the job go much faster. It’s amazing how a few finishing touches can make rooms go from “crime scene documentary” to “I’d actually sleep here.”

Then there’s the family room.

First up: the popcorn ceiling. After surviving the epic Battle of the Hallway Wall Texture (a cement-based substance that may have originally been designed to reinforce bunkers), popcorn ceilings suddenly seemed relatively tame. Mark declines to comment on his combat with wall texture until he’s completed more therapy sessions.

Next came priming for paint. The walls got primed. The ceiling got primed. Mark got primed. We’re pretty sure the dog would have been primed too if he’d been there. Stay tuned—the finished room is going to be a warm, inviting space with beautifully painted built-ins that will make you forget what it looked like before.

And now…the Bay Window.

Friends, Bay Window should be the title for an entire episode in a lesson-learned documentary.

Lesson #1: Bay windows have a long lead time.
Lesson #2: Bay windows cost approximately the same as a down payment on a new car.
Lesson #3: If your house has a bay window, replacing it with not a bay window involves rebuilding half the front of the house.

Kim has requested that all further discussion of the Bay Window occur only in the presence of a licensed therapist.

So… we wait. The bay window is officially the last major piece before our little flip is ready for the market.

Thanks for following along on our first adventure in house flipping. We’ve learned a ton, developed a healthy respect for trim carpenters, drywall mud, and weather forecasts. It’s been exhausting, frustrating, rewarding, and somehow still fun.

The best part? People have already stopped while driving by to ask about the house because they want to live in the neighborhood. We’re finally on the home stretch, and we can’t wait to show you the finished transformation. (You know, after that bay window goes in.)