Since our boxes arrived a week ago and filled up every room in the house, Alisha has been feverishly trying to make sense of the kitchen. While she has been bringing order to that part of the house, I've been bringing the master bedroom and bath into extreme disorder for a renovation.
We started the bedroom remodel by removing the wood paneling and drywall, which went as expected. However, when we reached the heavily-tiled bathroom we found out that they'd used 1.5" of concrete/mortar supported by metal mesh behind every single tile. In the non-tiled portions of the bathroom they used two layers of drywall to match the thickness. My dad attributed this to the original owner being a doctor/dentist, and he said that doctors will typically ask for industrial-level construction in their residences.
This resulted in an incredibly stubborn removal process. Using a combination of pry bars, a hammer, a sledgehammer, and vicious wrath we were able to get the bathroom down to bare studs. A final surprise was a lead shower pan, which we carefully removed. I had never seen real lead before. If it wasn't so poisonous, it would be neat to play with.
After we get our bedroom workable, we're hoping that we'll feel much more at home. Presently, it feels a little like camping since we're sleeping on the living room floor, washing our clothes at a neighbor's house, and living out of a suitcase. We are thankful to be able to cook with our own pans and sit on our own couch, which is a luxury we didn't appreciate before the move.
Our view of the wildlife
