At last -- roof started today! Yeah!

Is that a fabulous site or what! Three guys working on my roof!!

By 9:15 the two guys who James enlisted to help him showed up and got up on the roof and started scraping off the old shingles. James got here about 10:30 or so. The weather stayed in the 40s and it was cloudy.

Unfortunately, there was some light rain, just some sprinkling, but the only harm that was done was it held them up from laying the shingles. They got the back of the house scraped off and the tar paper put on. He also redid my hot water heater vent that needed to be taller. I had been forewarned had had bought that assembly already. He said something about needing one more piece or maybe caulking -- hope that won't be a potential leak, but he seems to be on top of whatever is the problem. Since the roof was left with only the felt paper, he said he will come back out tomorrow, Sunday, and put the shingles on the back, then Monday they will do the front and do clean-up! Oh, how I hope so! I'm so ready to move on to the next project - which I suppose will the be patio cover and vinyl.

A guy who lives a few houses down started disassembing the deck that was left when the house next door was moved out. I walked over to visit a minute with him, and he told me they just gave it to him. I'm really happy for him because it's a really nice deck and has lots of expensive lumber in it. But taking it apart and moving it is going to be one big job!

There is a shed also that was left. We looked in it and it looks like a decent shed. It's almost on my property, or maybe partially. So, I need to ask about that. Maybe I can claim the spoils on that! I have two sheds, but if it's free! I'd probably have to get James to drag it forward just a bit to be completely on my property. That's something else I'll have to check on.

While they were doing the roof, I spent most of the day trying to come up with a design for my kitchen. I won't go into the details now, but I absolutely hate hate hate my kitchen, and besides that, the cabinets are particle board and beginning to need serious attention. So, with the blessing of my insurance money, I'm hoping I can save from some other areas to allow me to remodel my kitchen. I have some basic plans, but putting it on paper or tweaking it where the measuements will be right is giving me a hard time. On top of that, I have a hard time visualizing spacially, and so I really need some design help - but not for $50 an hour! Well, I'm only at the initial stages for this one; but it's a tiny step forward and beginning to seem like it could feasibly, eventually become a reality. Obviously all the outside work will take precidence.

Tomorrow is my precious little granddaughter's birthday! She'll be 10! When we were in Houston after Thanksgiving, we let her pick out her birthday presents; but it would be nice to be able to see her. She said she wanted to have a sleep-over with some of her friends in lieu of a typical party, so I do hope she'll have it! I know her daddy, and her mamma, too, will both do the best they can to make her day really special for her!

Edited at 11:30 to add: I can have the shed! I'll have to have to wait till some things are taken out of it, but it's mine!