The next step

Hello all my Tiny House Fans and Friends! I feel as if I've stepped off a cliff.  I put my big house on the market this week.  When the sign man came to put up the front yard advertising, I had to warn him that the neighbors might descend and run him out of town.  Luckily, my neighbors didn't quite go to such lengths.  If you would like to see my "big house" here is the link.

It is a beautiful house.  A big shout out to Craig at Tour Factory.  He did an amazing job as you will see when you click that link.  If you, or someone you know, would like to contact my realtor, her name is Lori Fleming, 801-940-9560.  Ok, enough of the advertising.

So, here's the story.  Yes, I know I was in process with Little Chicken, and I still have some things to finish on Ticklebelly Bungalow.  AND I have the strong feeling that there is someone who needs my big house.  It is not me (as my neighbor keeps insisting it IS me).  I had been in conversation with my niece about living here because she will be attending Weber State, which is about a mile away, in the fall.  I had also been feeling like that wasn't the right direction to go.  So I finally let my niece know that I would be selling, called Lori (my realtor) the same afternoon and AWAY WE GO!  

The Whirlwind:  Called Lori on Monday, rearranged the house on Tuesday morning (well, actually all day Tuesday), signed paperwork on Tuesday afternoon, photog came on Wednesday morning.  Why was that such a big deal, you ask?  It mostly had to do with the rearranging of the house.  You see, we were using the master bedroom as a TV/project/junk room, and I figured that maybe the master bedroom should actually look like a bedroom?  Also, even after 6 1/2 years I'm still working on cleaning out boxes of stuff that Mom had been hanging on to.  Here are some befores and afters of the master bedroom...

Before... (of course it didn't always look like this)

After...

So, taking almost everything out of my current bedroom, doing a major vacuum and clean in there, and then taking most of the stuff that you see in the before pic and either stashing it in the closet or moving it to the front bedroom was in mid-process when Lori (my realtor) came over with some paperwork.  I'm sure she was mortified to think that the photog was coming the next day and how was I going to get it looking decent again.  Frankly, I was thinking the same thing. :D I was actually surprised that I pulled it off.  Check out the photos in the tour, if you have any questions about that.  

Now I have a new project that has taken priority...cleaning out the closets so that when people come to view the house, an avalanche doesn't consume them when they want to take a peek at the closet space.  Little Chicken and Ticklebelly Bungalow will just have to wait their turns I suppose.  This also means I'm postponing my road trip for a little bit.  What this means for you, my Tiny House Friends is that you get to come along with me on my major downsizing journey.  As previously seen on many a reality TV show, this may or may not be a dramatic, gut-wrenching experience.  If it doesn't fit in Ticklebelly Bungalow, it finds a new home.  We shall see!  TO THE CLOSETS! (I may need a steady stream of hot chocolate to comfort me.)

Side walls almost there!

With everything cut out, I put on the first coat of paint.

All painted so the framing was next...more cutting... I glued the main pieces in place on both sides and then I was getting hot and tired, so I came in the house for a few hours. 

This side just needs one more piece.  And the other side needs 4 more small pieces and then I can start the insulation!  

Getting going on the insulation...

Both sides finished

The windows arrived also, so that is now on the list too.  Double WAHOOOO!!

My friend Cori stopped by tonight...thanks for the visit, Cori!  She helped me decide on a name for my little teardrop...drumroll please...I dub thee, "Little Chicken"!

Walls go up tomorrow!  Triple WAHOOOOO!

Here we go...again!

The trailer pulled like a champ.  Couldn't even tell there was anything behind the Jeep, except for the rattling fenders...those will definitely be getting a makeover.  Got the supplies I need to get started, and even backed into the driveway (that was easy), then came in the house to work for a few hours.  The sky was starting to cloud up a bit, but I didn't think much of it until the thunder and lightning began.  I had just started to unload the trailer and figured I'd better get a move on.  I got everything off the trailer and put in good spots for storing for a few days, got the tarps on and whooosh! Big, fat rain! My favorite!  I got everything covered just in time.

Starting with the foundation...

Covered the 3/4" plywood with a vapor barrier and then a layer of aluminum flashing to keep it dry and bugs etc out. Bolted it to the trailer in 5 places.

In order to save some time and headache I cut the port and starboard sides  at the same time.  I sandwiched the inside wall covering with the smartside I'm using for the outside and clamped it all together.  Only have to cut it once!

I checked and re-checked and re-checked because I was a little nervous about cutting it wrong and having to start over.  First cut!

And round out the back...

Round out the front

AND WE HAVE A DOOR!!

Big pieces with the doors out.  I'm putting a door on either side for airflow, as each door will have a window, and for easier access.  I got door handles that are keyed the same...nice.  

The windows that will go in the doors will be here on Friday.  Next steps are paint and lay out the framing.  WAAHOOOO!

Big project as previously mentioned...

In my last post I mentioned a new big project.  

Hint #1

Hint #2

Hint #3

Hint #4

Any guesses?

So here's the story, purchased the trailer rated at 1700lbs. It came in a box and required assembly (obviously).  I figured I'd put it together in two short days of work and be ready to get the rest of what I need to finish the project.  Set out all my parts, everything was there.  Realized that I would need some new sockets for the nuts and bolts as I didn't have sizes to fit.  Standing in front of the display at the hardware store I realized the sockets I needed didn't come in the sizes of wrenches I already had...decided to buy an adapter instead of a new handle.  Got home and realized that with the adapter  the socket was now too long for it to fit where I needed it to fit, so back to the store to buy a new wrench handle so it would fit.  Lost one day, because by the time that was all done it had started to rain...done for that day.  

Next day, put the frame together with a little finagling. Started to rain again so done for that day. 

Next day was reading the instructions which say to repack the bearings...never done that before so did a little research...I can do that.  Back to the store to buy some grease and de-greaser.  And I have discovered that I really like the smell of bearing grease, and don't even mind getting it all over my hands (see hint #1).  Hubs all back together and ready to put on the axles.  Put one side on...half-way there...put the other side....but no, the hub wouldn't go on.  Took the bearings out of the hub, bearings didn't fit on the axle.  Took the first side off and tried it on the second side...didn't fit.  Tried all the bearings...none fit.  Called the company...took the axle back to the store and exchanged it for a new one.  The store manager also tried the two bearings I took with me and he had never seen that before. The axle had obviously been tooled incorrectly.  Back home, but done for the day. 

Next day the new axle got put on, the hubs put back together and put on the axle.  Took the tires to the gas station to be filled to the proper pressure.  Put the tires on.  Borrowed a torque wrench from my neighbor...lug nuts properly torqued.  Wahooo!  Getting closer, but the trailer was upside down and 260 lbs...thought maybe I could turn it over, but no dice.  Had to do a little recruiting with these two lovelies.  Notice that their workout includes lifting very heavy stones at the lake, so they were perfect for the job of helping me!  The promise of breakfast at Chick-fil-a didn't hurt my case either.

So, got the trailer turned right side up, ate grilled nuggets for breakfast, spent some time with these nieces who helped me take the top of the Jeep and carry some other heavy stuff.  THANK YOU GIRLS!!

On with the project...almost finished! Last, but not least, we needed wiring for the lights.  Never done that before either, so read the instructions, watched a couple of youtube videos and away I went!  Lights all done and now for the test.  Dragged the trailer to the driveway close enough to the Jeep to plug in the lights.  Pulled out the lighting harness and yes, the connection plug was the wrong shape!  I  couldn't believe it!  I was SO close to being finished, how could this be?  What was I going to do?  Aha moment!  When I brought home the tiny house trailer (empty) I towed it with the Jeep.  They had to jerry-rig the lighting connection adding a connector that fit the Jeep, in addition to the one I currently use with the loaded trailer.  So, un-jerry-rigged that connector, did a little splicing and taping and voila! trailer lights with a connection that fit the Jeep!  Yay!  Now to check the lights.  Hazzard lights...nothing,  left blinker, nothing...WHAT!?  How could this be?  Re-checked the instructions, the connections...all looked good.  Tried again, right blinker...blinking on the left, left blinker...blinking on the right!  WHAT!? This is a color by number game and all my colors matched up!  I was so confused!  What now?  Decided to just switch the yellow and green connections and guess what!?  right blinker...blinking on the right, left blinker...blinking on the left.  Still confused but it was working, so I didn't ask any more questions.

With the trailer completed, I was ready for the next step...building materials...for what you ask?Aaaaaaaand it will be a teardrop trailer!  I picked up the roofing material Saturday, and will pick up the rest of the building materials Monday morning.  The vent and windows will be here this week.  Also, I've decided to keep the same color scheme as Ticklebelly Bungalow.  I can't wait to take a pic with the teardrop and the Bungalow together!  It will be SO cute! Here is the general shape it will be.

There you have it folks, the next big...or medium...or tiny project.  I'm hoping to get it finished fairly quickly, so I can go on my long-awaited road trip down the west coast of the US.  Stay tuned!

Another First

Thursday... Today I decided to take my to-do list seriously, start at the top, and make my way toward the bottom.  The thing that has been on my list since I got home from San Diego was to empty my toity into the larger compost pile.  As you can imagine, if you have never done this before like me, I was a little skeptical and just a bit fearful that my bucket would overwhelm me with putrid smells and plain grossness.  Not sure why I was so worried as the bucket was NOT creating any odors AT ALL in the house.  But I thought maybe that layer of sawdust on the top was somehow magically protecting my nose.  Steeling myself for the task, I took the toity bucket out of the cabinet and headed toward the big compost bucket.  Almost holding my breath I took the lid off the big bucket, grabbed the toity bucket by the handle and started dumping the contents.  To my surprise, the smell was no worse than the cleanest pit toilet (I've been in some that didn't smell much at all), and the expected grossness was non-existant.  The composting process was very much working, and frankly I felt like I was dumping a bucket of dirt into my big compost bucket.  So all that foreboding for nothing!  I sprayed out the bucket with the hose and then sprayed the bucket down with a vinegar/castille soap solution and let it sit for a bit and sprayed it out again.  Ready for another round!  

One lesson learned, the best way to finish something is to simply begin...oh wait...I've said that before!  So a different lesson learned...I used a stick from the yard to get the last bits out of the bucket this time.  Think I'll dedicate a rubber spatula, which I can store in the toity cabinet, for future use.  I'll probably use some rubber gloves too...just because.

Shoes...I'm not a collector of shoes, but I do have a few pairs of them.  Here's a fun way to make a little more floor space by getting the shoes off the floor.

Just a few cheap hooks from the dollar store.

Got a couple of other small things started, and another big project, but more on that later...