Pre-Construction & Footers!

Once I got over the lack of communication regarding groundbreaking, I was excited to check out our enormous hole!  The size was overwhelming, but we learned they dig an extra three feet on every side so there is room for the workers to put the foundation forms into place.  Here it is:



View from the back of our lot



Standing in the garage



On Monday evening we met with our SR, PM and assistant PM for our pre-construction meeting.  Our PM has been doing his job for 12 years which eases some of the anxiety I have in general about the process.  He was thorough and welcomed questions and concerns.  We reviewed our options, upgrades and color selections and discussed the locations of cable/phone, security and electrical options (ceiling fan rough-in and outlet locations).  We discussed our timeline and how we would communicate throughout the process.  Our lumber is scheduled to arrive on March 7th and our pre-drywall is tentatively scheduled for March 14th.  The home should be complete during the week of Memorial Day and closing will be June 1st.  PM plans to update us weekly or bi-weekly depending on what is happening at the house.  He welcomed us to visit daily, which we plan to do.  Lastly, we walked the around our giant hole and talked about draining, swales and grading.  When we left I was a big ball of nervous excitement!


The next day, Tuesday, we saw this:


They are pouring our footers!

And on Wednesday we admired this:

There was no action on lot 403 today.  We assume they'll allow the footers to cure for a few days before they place the forms for the foundation.  So hard to believe there will be a house here in a matter of weeks!


P.S.  We just passed the 100 day mark on our countdown!  98 more to go!


Oh No They Didn't!!

My husband and I carpool to and from work.  Twice a week Three times a week we drive past our future neighborhood to see the progress.  Yesterday, we were totally shocked to see that our lot had been staked out!!  We were totally pumped!  We were in our dress clothes, and it was very muddy, so we didn't get any great shots, but here she is!  We assumed it was only a matter of time until we heard from our SR about our pre-construction meeting.



Not the greatest pictures, but you get the idea.


We assumed correctly!  I received an email this afternoon from our SR asking if we could sign an addendum (attached to the email) and drop it off at the sales office within the next few days.  My reply, "Of course, not a problem, we'll stop by after work tomorrow."  He also gave us the option of three different days next week to have our pre-construction meeting!!  We scheduled the meeting for Monday!  Yay!  We'll be breaking ground in no time!

Well, I am glad we chose Monday because my husband took the addendum over this afternoon so we wouldn't have to worry about it tomorrow.  He had a brief exchange with the SR in the the office and then swung past our lot.  This is what he saw:



That is a bulldozer digging a hole on our lot!


He took a few pics on his cell phone and immediately text them to me.  My first thought, "What in the H.E.DoubleHockeySticks is happening!!!!!" "Nooooooooo!"  Now, don't get me wrong, the fact that there is a huge hole on our lot is very exciting.  However, I am pretty irritated that no one bothered to inform us that today was THE Day.  Especially since the SR and I exchanged several emails this afternoon and he had the opportunity to mention it to my husband when he delivered the paperwork.  I can only assume the SR did not know.  What about the pre-construction meeting?  Or at least a "Hey, we're breaking ground tomorrow in case you want to swing by"??  Hopefully, I will find out tomorrow where the communication broke down.  And I sure hope that from this point forward the communication improves dramtically.  It can't get any worse. That's for sure!



The hole is on the other side of the dirt and debris.



Hopefully, I'll have some better pics once I am prepared with my real camera and the sun is shining.
Now that I've shared my disappointment with those who understand it best, I'm off to wind down with a glass of wine and "get over it." 

Selections Recap

We expect to have our pre-construction meeting within the next few weeks and break ground shortly thereafter.  Our paperwork states June 1st for closing, so I'll use that date for the countdown, unless we hear otherwise.  Since we've had a long wait (we signed in September), so I thought it would be nice to review our selections/upgrades.  Changes/updates since signing are noted below in red.


Floorplan:  Oakmont 
http://www.ryanhomes.com/find-your-home/our-communities/pennsylvania/ohio-township/cobblestone/oakmont

Exterior

Elevation E

Brick Front

Partial Porch



Elevation E w/ Brick Front & Partial Porch (not our color selections)



Garage

Floor Drain

2 GFI outlets

Basement

Egress Window (req'd by code)

2 Foundation Windows

3 Piece Plumbing Rough-In

Humidifier

1 GFI outlet

Main Level

Morning Room

Gourmet Island

Wyoming Cherry Spice Cabinets

Laminate Countertop - Butterum Granite

Brushed Nickel Hardware

Recessed Lighting in Kitchen

1 Additional Recessed Light above Gourmet Island

Icemaker RI  (Included in base price)

Gas Range Hook-up

4 Foot Extension to Family Room

Side Fireplace (Slate) with 2 recessed lights

Window in Family Room (rear)

1 110v Outlet in Family Room

Laundry Tub

Study

Interior Cased Openings

Crown Moulding & Chair Rail

Vinyl Flooring (Foyer, Powder Room, Kitchen, Morning Room, Laundry) - Initiator 66178

Carpet (Family Room) - Rockport with 6# pad upgrade

Carpet (Dining Room, Study) - White Fox with standard pad

Pine Banisters - Chestnut Stain



Carpet, Vinyl, Cabinet, and Countertop Samples



Upper Level

Closed Foyer

Luxury Owners Suite

Ceramic Tile Upgrade – Owners Bath - Brixton Bone w/listello

Andover Maple Spice Cabinets – Owners & Secondary Bath

Wyoming Cherry Spice Cabinets - Owners & Secondary Bath

Brushed nickel hardware (bathroom cabinets)

Double Bowl Sink in Secondary Bath

Vinyl (Secondary Bath) - Initiator 66180

Carpet (Zone 2) - White Fox with standard pad

Electrical

Dedicated Circuit (for basement level refrigerator/freezer)

6 Ceiling Fan Rough-Ins (4 bedrooms, family room, morning room)

Floodlights (rear of home)

Guardian

3 Additional Cable/Internet Connections (for bedrooms)

Base Home Security Package

1 Additional Window Contact

1 Additional Keypad

Exterior Color Selections

Brick - Biscay

Siding - Stone Mountain Clay

Shutters - Black Watch Green

Door - Fine Wine



Biscay Brick (Our shutters and door will be deeper shades of green and red.)



The next item on my to-do list is to make a list of some things I want to clarify/address at our pre-construction meeting.  Hopefully, I will be updating you with that list and a start date soon!