Windows to the World

There are not too many things more exciting (to home renovation junkies, anyway) than the installation of brand new, energy efficient windows.  With the addition of the windows, the framed structure of Glenlochan has been transformed into a much closer approximation of a home... which makes us think that the house might actually be completed some day!  It was a fairly efficient installation process, but the transformation was pretty remarkable.

First, the window openings were cut out. 

Then, Rob installed all of the flashing in preparation for the window installation on three sides of the house (the fourth will soon be sporting a new addition).

Then the actual installation of the windows began - this is the front of the home:

 

Note the "prairie" grill pattern on the upper side windows.

 



This is a shot of the side of the home with the windows installed - the three windows in a row are "awning" windows for the downstairs master, allowing a bed to be placed on that wall beneath the windows.  The other small downstairs window is in the study and it was specially sized so that the stained glass window found in the home (more on that restoration coming soon) can be placed in that window closer to completion date.

And, here's a view looking out of the newly installed windows:

And, finally, a few shots of the front of the home with most of the windows installed.  We now have light coming in and views out of three sides of Glenlochan - we love it!

Re-Build of the Front Porch Roof and Other Items

The front porch is taking shape and soon will be worthy of the courthouse steps.  It's really interesting how much street appeal a front porch roofline adds to a home.  (And, it helps that some of the window openings have been cut out - it makes it look more like a home again.)  Here's the process of the porch roof rebuild in pictures:

In addition to the front porch re-build, work on the new roof and dormers is also now complete on the original structure.  Here's a few shots of the roofing work and the full finished project:

And, finally, Rob was able to finish his work re-pointing the second chimney - they look terrific.

All About Courthouse Steps

The term, "courthouse steps" has more applications than you might think, but each application shares common design elements.  First of all, it can be a quilt pattern:

 

 

This was nice to know since my sister owns a quilt shop in Ohio, The Quilt Foundry .  If you are a quilter, you'll want to check it out.  Secondly, courthouse steps can be just that...the steps to a courthouse:

 

 

And finally, courthouse steps are a masonry design for steps.  Here you can see the design on the US Supreme Court....

 

 

And the NY Supreme Court:

 



 

And, finally, courthouse steps are a design option for porch steps on residential homes.  Like the quilt pattern and many actual courthouse steps, from top to bottom, each step is larger than the last on all three sides.  And, as you might have already guessed, we chose the courthouse step option for the front porch at Glenlochan.  Take a look at the latest addition to the front view of the home:

 

Certainly not as grand as the Supreme Court, but we think it will look pretty nice once the porch roof and columns have been rebuilt.  And, you can bet that I'll be paying extra attention to the steps on every courthouse I see. 

Break for...the 2012 Urbanna Oyster Festival!

The town of Urbanna shuts down each year during the annual Urbanna Oyster Festival.  During Oyster Festival, the quaint streets of Urbanna are transformed into an amazing celebration of the bi-valve mollusc known as the oyster.   From street vendors, to fun food, oysters prepared every way imaginable, educational displays to a dizzying array of special events, music, and parades, the Oyster Festival is not to be missed (it was, in fact, recently mentioned as far away as the Philadelphia Inquirer as a fun road trip).  The festival runs all day Friday and Saturday.  The Oyster Queen and Little Miss Spat are selected on Friday - here were the 2012 finalists:

Live music is available on multiple stages throughout the town:

And many of the streets are shut down to traffic to allow for exploring the vendors and food:

Since my father is a long time Kiwanian in Ohio, I took special note of the Kiwanis Oyster booth:

The capstone event Friday night is the Fireman's Parade - which begins after dark and features almost 50 firetrucks of varying sizes, volume levels, shapes, era, and jurisdiction (firetrucks from as far away as Virginia Beach were in the parade).  They all compete for sound - the sirons wailing in tandem is a cacaphony to behold.  Seasoned veterans to the Fireman's Parade bring earplugs.  Since we were newbies, this is how we watched the parade:

 

 

Our favorite event by far was Saturday's Oyster Shucking Contest.  There were heats for the amateurs:

And then the men's professional contest (Jermaine at far right was the champion):

And the women's finals - sisters, Clementine and Deborah (middle and right) are world renowned oyster shuckers.  Deborah won the women's professional round this year:

And then the two professional champions face off.

Deborah Pratt took the title this year and she rode in style at the Oyster Festival Parade later that day:

 

 

The shucked raw oysters are passed around among the spectators - here Rob is about to enjoy an oyster shucked by Jermaine in the competition:

 



Although I took a pass on eating oysters - raw, roasted, grilled, fried, Rockefellered, or otherwise - I was able to find my favorite festival food and enjoyed it thoroughly...deep fried pickles:

 

 

Although the weekend was unseasonably cold and windy, we enjoyed every minute of the 2012 Urbanna Oyster Festival.  Here's a few more shots of the parade...and now, break time is over and it's back to work on the project.