Back Deck...and more drywall

Our homeowner's insurance wanted steps on the front & back doors by the end of July. We completed the front steps earlier this summer, and last week we finally finished the steps to the back deck. It is a small deck (about 6'x8') but big enough that I can have a small table and a couple of chairs to sit and enjoy being outside while the munchkins are running around. In a few years, or 10, we will tear out this deck and put in the deck of our dreams. But in the interest of time and funds, Noah designed this deck and we are all excited to be using it. We still have a few topcaps to install, which would have happened yesterday if the Civic would have started to get us to the hardware store for more screws. Alas, it was towed into the shop this morning for repair. But that is a different story.



the back deck

We also worked on drywall before Mindy's Dad came for a visit in July. We tried to finish hanging the drywall in the master bedroom before their arrival, but we did not quite make it. Though we did hang a beauty of a piece of drywall 15' feet in the air with our 11' drywall lift...on stilts! In order to get the top sheet of drywall hung at the top of our vaulted ceiling, Noah built stilts for our lift. We only needed it for that one sheet of drywall, but it would have been near impossible without. Here are the photos!


building the lift stilts



the stilts for the lift


Noah getting on the ladder to install the drywall sheet

You will also notice firring strips installed on top of the blueboard to go under the drywall. Noah read about doing this in a book and thought it would be easier to install the drywall this way. We can use the screw-gun with the firring strips instead of the 3" screws we used in the other rooms to reach the roof beams. It was so much easier that we wished we had thought of doing this sooner...before we had drywalled the other bedrooms. Oh well. They are already done, so no use dwelling on it!