TODAY IS THE DAY!!!

Today is the much anticipated day that Mike and I become home owners again. At 4:30 central time we will be closing on our new home. Though there is still a few touch ups that need to happen, the builder assures us they will be done today in time for closing. After many late nights this week and 5 days without a normal dinner due to running around, inspections, and lack of food, the BIG DAY is here!! I am sure that this weekend will be very busy with moving, so when we are settled and have Internet hook up again I will post pictures. Please keep us in you thoughts that things go smoothly. Thanks for every one's support and encouragement. Kates

Our New Home!!!

Here is what everyone has been asking for:
The Finished Product!!!

All it needs is carpet and appliances. 5 days until move in!!!

This is our new address, if you're ever in the neighborhood, give us a jingle!!

ONE MORE WEEK!!!!

So, it's one week and counting until the construction is complete and Mike and I can move into our fabulous new home. Things are really coming together and the finishing touches are being done this weekend. This last week will be really busy, but at the end Mike and I will be the proud owners of our custom home. Monday/Tuesday the carpet is going in, Thursday brings the delivery of my appliances, and Friday is the big closing. As Mike and I's dream becomes a reality I thought that I would share a few pictures of my favorite features with everyone. So here goes...

The fireplace has a GORGEOUS custom mantel that is more then even my OCD mind could imagine

The kitchen counter is textured to add drama and the window over the sink was the reason we choose this floor plan

This is our master bathroom that's color scheme was inspired by a piece of pottery I purchased at the Madison Art on the Square. I think that it turned out great!

Last but not least this is the most difficult to find oil rubbed bronze faucet and framed mirror...It only took 3 months to find these and more then 10 stores.

Well, since this week will be CRAZY busy and you've seen all the best parts of the "while under construction" house, I'll catch everyone up after the big move. Thanks for every one's ideas and thoughts, they were very helpful. Kate

TWO WEEKS TO GO!!!

Well, as many of you know, Mike and I have devoted the last 4 months of our lives to building a custom home in an upscale neighborhood here in Janesville. The word devoted is not an exaggeration, since we spent at least 3-4 hours a week and countless trips to Menard's and Home Depot (we should have just moved in) for what seems like FOREVER picking out every little detail that is in this house. Who knew that heating vents came in so many colors, grout color has about 30 options, and that trim should be custom stained to match your wood flooring. UGH!!! Despite all of the choices, stress, and time invested in this house Mike and I both think that it was totally worth it and are slightly nervous as to what we will do when it is all done. Taking a deep breath and settling in will be first on the list. So, now what you have all been waiting for, pictures of the house as it is constructed.

This is our lot before the digging began

Me at the construction site after the flooding from early June finally subsided

Mike and I went home for 4 days in July and came back to this from a hole in the ground

This is the outside of the house as of 9-13-08. Just 2 weeks before closing and moving in.

So, that's the outside and though it's hard to capture it in photos here are some of our favorite features from the inside. Our favorite part of the whole house is the warm cozy feeling that we get from the rich colors, and that's without any furniture!!


As you can see, I love the walk in shower in the Master Bath. I never have to stand up to shave me legs again. It's the small pleasures in life!!!

This is the tile in the foyer, it is 18x18, and adds a WOW factor when people enter the front door. The grout is not in, in this picture, but it is a rich Terra Cotta color. LOVE IT!!

The corner fireplace in the living room is one of Mike and I's favorite features, who am I kidding the whole house is our favorite. The stone is supposed to look like the side of a European castle, which reminds us of our time in England.

This is one of our favorite rooms in the house, even without the stainless steel appliances. Since this picture was taken wood floors, stained doors/trim, and rich textured counter tops have been installed.

As you can tell from the way that I have written this Blog, Mike and I LOVE our new house and can't wait to move in and make it even more of our own. The closing is set for 4:30 in Friday Sept. 26, then we can move in and enjoy all of the hard work that we have put in. We look forward to having lots of house guests, we have 2 spare rooms and a guest bath, so just call and make your reservation at La Casa de Stormes. We'll leave the light on!!

SUPER Busy Weekend

This past weekend was Super BUSY for Mike and I. Saturday we started out at the Babger football game up in Madison. It was a blast and made us remember our long ago days at GVSU. The crowd was crazy and the students drunk...those were fond memories. The Badgers won the game against Marshall (as in We Are Marshall). The final score was 51-14.


Mike and I in our Wisconsen RED

Following the fun and game, it was off to do errands for the house. That took the rest of that day and ALL of the next. This house really is going to be the death of me, or at least my one way ticket to the nut house. We were able to accomplish alot including ordering our new bedroom furniture, delivering all of the lights/closet organizers to the site, and packing. Overall it was a really good, though extremely busy weekend.

Labor Day Weekend

Mike and I were very excited for this Labor day weekend, because it meant 4 days off to do whatever we wanted. What we wanted to do ended up being projects for the house and posing as beach bums. Every morning we started out working on one thing that needed to be finished for the house. Saturday that meant measuring for appliances and starting to shop for them. Little did we know that this would actually take 2 days of shopping and A LOT of negotiation!! In the end we got a really good deal on all stainless steel appliances that would make Rachel Ray feel at home in our new kitchen. Saturday afternoon we headed up to Mad Town/Madison (for those not from WI) and tasted some tasty treats at Taste of Madison. Who knew that you could say taste so many time in one sentence!



Sunday after the finalization of the appliances, that required another trip to the construction site, we headed off to the beach. We had big plans of going to Big Foot beach on Lake Geneva, but got tired of being in the car and stopped in Williams Bay. To our surprise it was also on Lake Geneva, BONUS! Little did we know the cost to swim in the "prestigious" lake was $6.00 per person. Being the cheapskates that we are we refused to pay and camped out in our lawn chairs just outside the "beach area". When the lifeguard wasn't looking we swam into the "pay to swim" area and had ourselves a good ole time. Here are some pics from our beach day #1.




Me in my biker beads that I found on the side of the road

The restaurant with a GREAT name that we had dinner at.




As if the world isn't small enough already, the waiter that took this picture is a Lambda Chi Alpha Alumni from UW Whitewater. He kept calling Mike "bro" which was really funny.

Monday, the actual holiday, we set out early to pick out cabinet pulls for the house. This, of course, required YET another trip to the construction site to count the number of cabinets and drawers. If people took the time to count all the cupboards and drawers in their whole house they would be surprised haw many their are. Then it was off to Menard's, our home away from home, to buy 50 pulls. Man, was it hard to carry them all!!

With our daily mission accomplished, we headed off to the next beach bum location on our list. This was a small lake that I heard about from a friend that was about 30 miles away and supposed to be CHEAP. Lake Ripley was really nice, since it was smaller, there were not as many boats stirring it up and the water was cleaner. Also, the beach was larger and not as crowded. We spent about 3 hours soaking up the sun and swimming

Me taking a swim...How Refreshing!!

Mike being a Beach Bum


To continue with the traditions of the Labor Day Weekend, Mike and I left the beach in search of a restaurant with a cool name to have dinner and I drink. This took us to the nearby town of Cambridge and a little place called "The Sports Page". The food was great, drinks strong, and the decor WI sports EVERYTHING. What more could we ask for.

The Happy Couple after a Couple

Well, with one more day off to go, I'm sure that we can find plenty of house projects left to be done. With move in day just 3 weeks away, there are lots of loose ends to wrap up. Pictures of the house will be coming soon. Until then, LATER.