Signs of Solar

Some early signs of the solar systems, look closely at the roof, all those little things are brackets for mounting the solar panels!

Siding

Thought I would post a picture now that the siding is on, the siding comes yellow but we'll be painting it a pale green color.....

A lot of changes!

Wow!  I can't believe I haven't blogged on here in over 2 weeks.  So much is going on at the house right now, I'm not sure where to even begin!  We have a roof and shingles now, windows and doors are in.  The plumbing, electrical, structured wiring and HVAC and all doing their rough ins now.  They have also been finishing up the screened in porch and grill deck, although they ran out of the Azek tongue and groove flooring and have been waiting for more to arrive.  The siding is onsite and I would imagine they would be starting that soon as well.  Next Friday we start shopping for granite for the kitchen!  

Before we got shingles!

This is the style of door that will be throughout the house.

Door going out to screened porch.

 Shingles!!

HVAC unit for the second floor.

Master Tub has been installed!

We've picked out our faucets for the house - they are all Delta from the Leland series.  We will have stainless in the kitchen and Sara's bath and then Venetian bronze in the rest of the house.  The tall faucet is for the guest bath where we are hoping to have a vessel sink on the vanity.

 

They have also completed our cabinet design for the kitchen which I'm not sure the drawings I have will do it justice.  The cabinets will be painted except for the island which will be a dark espresso stain with some cool turned wood legs.  There will be some frosted glass in the top cabinets and the pantry which is in the corner will have frosted glass as well.  There will be enough seating on the island for at least 4.  

They have also got all the design for the rest of the cabinetry as well, but I don't want to bore you with every drawing!  

That's about all for now - we are working on deciding paint colors, vanity for the guest bath and vessel sink, ceiling fans, etc.  We will also be working with the lighting person once the electrician finishes up.  Hope you all have a great weekend!!

Seeing Stars

Just a few examples of the great building products and green features Chad's putting into the house:

Roof Roof!

We have a Roof!

Roof!

Starting to see some Roof, looks like a good spot for some solar panels!

Our Visit to Ray Family Farms

We had a great day today!  We went to visit Ray Family Farms located in Louisburg, North Carolina.  As we've mentioned in previous posts, our builder, Chad Ray, also owns and operates his family farm.  They raise chickens, pigs and cows and also have horses as well as growing produce.  We had been meaning to go out and visit the farm ever since we met Chad and he told us about it.  As you know, we are very much interested in sustainable farming practices that refrain from using hormones, chemicals, and are environmentally responsible.

Today presented a great opportunity to visit the farm.  We had an appointment to meet Ms. Betty, Chad's mother, out at one of their parade homes to discuss the decking materials and she insisted we come by her home afterwards for lunch and then stop by the farm for a visit.  Ms. Betty fixed us a wonderful lunch of chicken salad sandwiches, chicken noodle soup and strawberry shortcake for dessert!  It was fabulous and we appreciate her hospitality!  After lunch it was off to the farm.

One of the first things you notice when you get out of your car is wonderfully colorful chickens roaming freely around the property.  They get fresh eggs daily from their chickens and Chad mentioned this morning, they had over 100 eggs!

Next we got to see all the pigs.  Chad raises a heritage breed of pig that was at one time near extinction.  They are also pasture raised and seemed very happy rolling around in the mud and sleeping in the shade while we were there today.

The first Friday of every month, the farm receives a shipment of 1 day old baby chicks.  We just happened to visit a day after this months shipment.  We got to see the baby chicks and hold them.  I actually held a baby chick for the first time today and so did Sara!  These chickens are the meat producers for the farm and they are raised for a total of 12 weeks before they are processed.  A typical commercially produced chicken you would buy in the grocery store are only raised for 39 days!  

We had a great time at Ray Family Farms today!  We want to thank Chad, Jodi and Ms. Betty for their hospitality.  You are all wonderfully generous and thoughtful people and we couldn't be happier or more thankful that you all came into our lives.  We are truly blessed to know you!