We moved upstairs last Friday! The carpets were installed the day before, and we've been doing the box and junk shuffle ever since. :-)

I just posted the photo albums for the last month of work to the Renovations .Mac photo-journal. Check them out, it's the final stretch!

By the time my Mom and Dad went on Vacation in mid-June, most of the hard stuff was already done. In fact, we could have moved in weeks ago but our carpet order was delayed so there was no big rush for at least a couple of weeks.

I didn't take pictures during that period. Once we had a definite date for our carpet installation, and Dad was back from vacation, we could resume the hard parts of installing appliances and doing electrical/lighting. After that it was a matter of waiting for carpets and movers to arrive.

We're so proud of what we accomplished, and so grateful to our families for all of their assistance. Obviously Dad did a massive amount of the work, and Cheryl did a ton as well. I did a lot too, but not as much as Dad or Cheryl, because of my work commitments.

We learned a lot about a lot of different things related to renovations, houses, and various trades. Like I said, I wouldn't mind doing demolition for a living, but construction, that's a whole different matter altogether. Construction is hard. I'm too clumsy for construction. :-)

We went over-budget, some things like drywall accidents were unavoidable, some things like underestimating the amount of paint needed were. We could have done things cheaper, kept the old fixtures, and so on, but when you're spending so much money, a little bit extra to make things like beautiful is worth it.

We're not 100% finished. We still have some electrical outlets and switches to replace, the baseboards need to be installed, and so does the railing.

Since the last photo-journal for day 43, Cheryl and I (mostly Cheryl, while I was working) painted most of the basement, and the carpet installers returned to install new carpet downstairs. We also need to finish painting the basement and do some repairs to walls, and install baseboards down there.

We're over the hump, to be sure, but there's still plenty to do. Not to mention unpacking, tidying, and personalizing our new living space upstairs! We need more art for the walls, that's for sure. :-)