Part II - Within

72 degrees - beautiful day with dry weather and puffy clouds.  No mosquitoes around these parts today.

I'm back.  It has been well over a year and much has gone on here at the Pointed Playhouse (and in our lives) to include a burglary, national healthcare, Gustavo was killed (ref. Breaking Bad) and the playhouse won a This Old House award for 2012 best yard remodel (and best outbuilding).  

This Old House article: http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/photos/0,,20598285_21164961,00.html

Embarrassing video: http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/video/0,,20597364,00.html

As I sit hear drinking my beer after 8 PM I'm wondering why I'm writing again in this blog.  I was hoping to write a nicely worded ending for my two daughters to let them hear my thoughts on why I built the playhouse for them and possibly some other life lessons.  I never got around to that or maybe I really don't know what to say or feel that the playhouse was such a large project that I could not simply end with a few words in a blog.  I'll never know.

What I do know is that I got tired of looking at the exposed framing on the inside and both my daughter said that they would like to use the playhouse if I only got rid of the spiders.  Truth be told, they never really got to enjoy the playhouse because we are too busy and it is simply not finished.

About a week ago I installed central heating and air conditioning (window unit installed centrally in a wall) to give us more time in the year to enjoy the space.

The heat / air conditioning unit sits under the roof.

The face of the unit as it sits just upstairs and able to cover both rooms.

I also added a sub-panel and many switches and outlets several months ago.

I then insulated the downstairs but still have the upstairs to do later this weekend.

Rolls waiting upstairs.

Great invention - the staple hammer.  Used on the roof and now inside.

Tucking the wires between the layers of insulation.

Cutting the insulation at 93 inches for each bay.

Using a 2x4 as a strait edge.  I then use a utility knife to cut the paper and glass fiber.

One wall started, many more to go.

I then decided to try to install the drywall on the ceiling and then walls in the downstairs room.  It was too difficult for me to do this by myself so I enlisted the help of Elizabeth.

Even though this is only 1/2 inch drywall it was very heavy.  Notice the wires that I have for the pot lights?

Second sheet installed.  not sure what the nailing schedule is here in Virginia.

Can't wait to tape and mud.

I then hung the sheets on the walls, which was very heavy but I was able to handle it on my own this time.  It helps to start screws in the sheet and then mark all of the switch and outlet boxes on the floor.  I measured up to the box and wrote the height on the floor so that I know where to start routing around the box.

First sheet on the wall going up.

It feels like a smaller space.

Wrote 20 on the floor to note the height of the center of the box.

The box with power and cable TV up in the corner.

Routing around the box.

And this is what the downstairs looks like after two days of work.

And I almost forgot to mention that Home Depot was very easy to work with again.  They pulled all of my material and delivered it to the house.

I'm not going to let them drive up on my grass this time.

Lots to do - insulation, drywall, mud, tape, window trim, baseboards, crown molding and flooring.

I guess that's it for now.  I have a total of four days to work on the project and I'm half way through and I don't feel like I need to take an Ibuprofen at this time, but that might be the Sam Adams Latitude 48 IPA talking.

More later this weekend, I'm sure.