Thorburn Family

Our blog suffered a near-fatal blow since Facebook entered our lives!  A quick update:  Schooling has “officially” ended for the year and summer is gloriously underway!  Lydia is working part-time for Mount Ascutney Hospital and some for Rich on job-sites, while also getting in her next math course with a TPS teacher in the next three months.   She also looks forward to a three week stint at Camp Good News in their teen service training program.   She’s also–hold onto your airbag–driving..!   Jubilee is helping an expectant (with twins) mom of 3, soon to be 5 children a couple mornings a week.   Valerie is doing some schooling with Benjamin for us, a little every day.   She is also a huge help with Reeve, our 11 week old foster baby.   Jesse is doing a teensy bit of math every day to stay sharp :), and helping to split & stack the approximately 15 cords of wood we need for the winter.   Benjamin is riding his two-wheeler in front of our house and figuring out which boot goes on which foot :).  

The summer is already packed full of projects and company!  The first project completed was the upstairs bathroom.  We had to gut it to the studs, take out a window, put in ceiling, walls, floor.. and you can see the rest below.  Next stop.. the pantry and then the kitchen.  

Over the week of Thanksgiving, we refinished our downstairs floors: dining room, living room, school/sun room, and Rich’s office.  They turned out quite well for being such old maple and I hope that comes through in the picture.   We are definitely enjoying them; they feel so much cleaner.  Now, on to more trim work and other stuff!

Our School Room, After:

Our Living Room, Before:

Introducing our “chairs of abundant feasting & rejoicing!!”  

I bought 12 chairs from SclaFani’s yesterday…. and as soon as I walked in, I knew three things:

1.  They go with ZERO in our home, so we’ll just have to re-do the house (you think I’m joking, don’t you).

2.  They would have to be considered my birthday and Christmas present for at least one year, if I was going to obtain them.  You all know how these things work in families….. :^)..and

3. Onlookers will either love ‘em, or hate ‘em.

Thankfully, the kids and Rich love them and agree they are our “feasting chairs!” The chair backs are REALLY tall… Ben was taking a nap and I was impatient, or I would have put him next to one to show the scale.  They are seriously tall-backed chairs.  I don’t yet know if I will paint the wood part, or leave it, or refinish it.   Or, if I will keep the leather part which is fastened w/those ancient, massive, pounded metal things that I suppose were considered tacks back in the day… or replace that with some funky upholstering.   

Meanwhile, I must make a table covering that hides that fact that our dining table (which can extend to 16 feet so we cannot replace it) is more of a country or Early American style.    The chairs have now become our standard; everything else must adjust!!!! We are having our maple floors downstairs refinished within the next two weeks, which means we have to clear out half our house, including tons of huge pieces of furniture.   What’s 12 more massive chairs to find places for?  Meanwhile, I am off to JoAnn Fabrics for curtain material, taking advantage of 60% off!   Adjustment commenced!  

Yes, orange grout.  This your first preview of the new basement room which we have affectionately named THE SHRINK.   The SHRINK used to be a dirt-floor-no-ceiling-unfortunate-excuse for a room (otherwise known as a root cellar).   Rich has been working at it on and off since early summer.  He dug down the floor a foot, creating nice mounds of dirt which lived on our lawn for months, for little boys to enjoy :).   He poured cement to make a floor, sealed & painted ancient stone & brick walls (which I wanted to keep for “character”). He built a ceiling and installed recessed lighting along with some other electrical features.  He painted doors orange and put in replacement windows and trim.   He installed ceramic tile and blessed me with orange grout.  Now Rich is working on some more wood trim and then it will be done.   When THE SHRINK is done, which literally may be next week or next year, we’ll post before and after pictures.   Till then, I leave you with orange grout, in the coolest room in Claremont (by the coolest guy).  :^)