A disclaimer: Spouseman & I are NOT doing this renovation ourselves. This amazing work is being done by a wide array of highly-trained & fully licensed, bonded & insured professionals. We recommend every one of the companies involved so far, especially the Plan-Design-Build firm who's wrangling them all for this project. (Our home improvement skills begin with knowing where shut-offs & breakers are, kludging repairs via Duck tape, screws, & mending plates,  rough carpentry, and so on--with an occasional foray into "unplug it & plug it in again, flip the switches, check the connections, change the batteries.")First, the main hall, what you see when you come down the stairs. (Click on any pic in each collection to biggify them as a slideshow)

Midway through the estimated project schedule, we're only 2 fixes & 2 installations away from having all major goals achieved.Our main concern was getting the generational hodgepodge of electrical, plumbing, & HVAC systems modernized, redesigned efficiently & brought up to code. Only 1 minor electrical project & HVAC zone damping left. We also wanted a half-bath down there, a (more) level floor, and modern windows that would open. Leveling starts next week!Then it's all, "prime, trim, paint, install new fixtures, & make with the pretty."... A'course, this means I have to go shopping for a new washing machine & dryer soon. And maybe a new dishwasher. All were near the end/past of their typical operating life when we moved in, and we'd already budgeted their replacement.Ugh. Am NOT looking forward to that.I confess I am excited about the new laundry room. It'll have a light switch, its own window, and all the mod cons. These are the things that make daily life easier, and those make writing easier. So many little big things.For those wondering, my revisions & drafting progress slowed to glacial speeds last week. Wall installation was MUCH more distracting than demolition & roughing-in work. It was curiosity -- I hadn't ever seen plastering done. (Yes, I could go work elsewhere, but I LOVE seeing the progress. Hence the distraction.)But. ANYway. I did get other things done, and this week should be much better. I have a second alpha reader waiting for Sharp Edge scenes now, & new readers always give my momentum a big push.Until later!