Progress - no more carpet!

So this weekend we made some good progress! Friday I went over in the late afternoon to get some work done before our double date with Renee and Tyler. I was also going to be showing our half to a family very interested in renting. In my online ad I said it wouldn't be available to view until later this week (when the former owner moves out of the rental half).. they said they were very anxious and loved it from the pictures and asked if there was any way they could see it before then. I told them they could come look around our side for a sense of the layout and at least see the yard. They loved it and asked: "when are you accepting applications?". We have a lot of people scheduled to come by later this week or this weekend, so it's great we'll have a lot of options for potential renters. I actually got an email from a young guy who is playing for the Akron Aero's this season - he and two teammates need a place to rent just for the season. It wouldn't be ideal because 1) they would leave after September and 2) 3 young guys may not be ideal renters. If it was one.. maybe.. but 3 bachelors? You never know. Although it would be kind of fun to have some Aero's next door and as I asked RJ: "but what if they're really cute!?".. He didn't agree.

Anyway - back to the progress! On Friday I forgot my paint clothes.. so had to make do with some pants RJ had left laying around.

Surprisingly comfortable.. I may have to borrow his jeans more often!

Earlier in the week I had to do some spackling in my office - the previous owner had a wallpaper border up and when they took it down it left some damage to the wall. We were very thankful we weren't the ones who had to take down the border!

So I got started sanding down the spackle.. but without protective eye-wear and a mask I didn't last very long.

Friday wasn't very productive because we took a break for a double date and I had to be up very early the next day for a conference. 

Saturday morning my dad met RJ over at the duplex to help rip out all of the carpet. I wish I could have been there to get some pictures of this! Dad also made lunch and let us borrow a utility broom and dustpan to sweep up the staples and nails - he is awesome!!

This is what the floors look like without all that orange carpet:

Downstairs, living room/dining room area:

Upstairs, in the bedroom:

My office:

RJ's office:

They are really in pretty good shape except for in RJ's office. What's really strange is that there isn't hardwood in the hallway upstairs.. just in the bedrooms.

On Sunday RJ worked on getting the tack-board (I think that's what he called it anyway..) up from the floors. See his shnazzy new tool belt and knee pads?

And I swept up all the nails, stales and debris - it took forever! 

I also borrowed some goggles and a make-shift mask so I could work on sanding down the spackle.

Earlier on Sunday I ran into my friend Joyce at the gym. We worked in the same office for a few years and she was always trapping feral cats and getting them fixed - which is a great thing to do - there are so many of them out there. I told her about the cat colony living outside our duplex and she said we could borrow her traps. Later that afternoon I went to her house to pick them up and learn how to use them.

There are 9 (maybe 10 now.. I think we spotted a new one yesterday) cats who hang out around the duplex and wander the neighborhood. Leah (the former owner) has been feeding them so they are always hanging around looking for more food. Needless to say this is not OK. It would be one thing if there were 1 or 2 and they were friendly.. but they are feral. She thinks two of them are pregnant which is really not OK! We are going to trap them and drop them off at a shelter to be fixed and hopefully adopted. There is one friendly one I have named Tabitha - Leah told me that she had her fixed so I convinced RJ she should get to stay. We'll let her hang out for a few weeks and maybe try to find her another home. 

We both have things going on tonight but tomorrow we are meeting right after work to get more work done. I packed a suitcase full of food, some dishes and some silverware so we can start having dinner over there a few nights a week.

More updates soon!