Are we there yet?

It's been over two months since posting and that's because there's no time. What was I thinking when I decided to blog my way through the renovation?? Whole house re-models are completed in the time it has taken me to put finger to keyboard this time around. The good news is however that, unlike my blogging, the building is progressing well and things keep happening...

After the big beam, came some smaller beams, posts and more beams, each of which were celebrated with ever enthusiastic whoops of joy; not for the logistical hurdles that were overcome in their installation but for the beautiful big open space they have created.

And alongside the beams and posts that have opened the space up on the main floor and brought the summer light streaming in, we have made the first tentative steps towards putting our stamp on the house and making it our own. The first real step, though it now seems so small in hindsight, was the masonry openings for the new kitchen windows. We fought hard for these windows, including a trip to the Committee of Adjustments (the city planning body who hear applications for variances from the building code). Any renovating Toronto resident will tell you, the committee is like an afternoon spent at the Mad Hatter's tea party. Enough said. We did it and here we are - with two beautiful window openings.

After the masonry openings, came the walkout from the basement, the double height entrance and now the framing - this is the design that we've pored over on the drawings. The design that we discussed and debated with the architects for 14 months. We're finally making it happen!

Gone are the days of demolition and the wielding of sledge hammers, now its about careful measurements and precision, spirit levels and plumb lines. The underpinning, the footings, the concrete forms - its all done. Walls are going up, not being torn down. Its all about the building - our new home is starting to take shape.

We can now begin to see the new structure emerging into its surroundings. We're not there yet. There's a long way to go. It's like watching the odometer on a seemingly endless road trip. I've noticed that today is day 117 of our renovation journey. But whilst we've been scurrying around busily, trying to keep a handle on the rest of our lives (if only everything else stopped while renovations were in progress), things are happening and we are moving in leaps and bounds.

How I avoid obsessing about the weather

I have suddenly become obsessed with the weather. Will it rain today? What's the wind like? As a Brit, I've always had more than a passing interest in weather forecasts. The unpredictability of the island climates was an obsession for practical reasons - should I take an umbrella? should we have a wet weather plan to avoid our summer barbecue being a washout? etc etc. Living in Canada I now spend half the year watching the mercury drop below '0' and like a spectator at a game of limbo, wondering 'how low can you go?'.

But these days my obsession with precipitation and wind force is all to do with the fact that the back of our house has been removed and is open to the elements. There was a funny moment a few weeks back when I passed by the house one evening and noticed that the contractors had left a bathroom window open on the second floor. The next day I pointed it out and asked them to be careful and check all the windows before they left for the evening - they laughed, 'Katherine, we're taking the back of the house off next week, the window won't matter!'. And here we are, springtime in Toronto (yesterday, it was a balmy 20 degrees) and the house is exposed to whatever the next few weeks will bring....

Until the main beam is fitted and the framing done, the windows installed etc etc, I must not obsess, nor let my waking mind, at 3 am, imagine tarpaulin flapping in the wind... By way of distraction, I have begun the hunt for fittings. Beginning with the narrow door to the powder room (just 2'4"), the sink that will have to be built into a reveal between the studs (preferably no more than 10" x 14"), new fireplace surrounds and the statement lamp to hang in the double height entrance, there is work to be done to find the right pieces.

Living where we do, on the Parkdale/Roncesvalles border, we are only a hop, skip and a jump from some great antique dealers. Places that are real treasure troves to be trawled through on lazy weekends. Coffee cups in hand, we venture out to the showrooms and, with our house-to-be in mind, start eyeing up potential purchases.

This is fun! These places, Aladdin's caves of salvaged treasure, can be overwhelming unless one has a particular item in mind but it is an excellent distraction, whilst also getting the job done.