The Newest Grandson!

This is Samuel Jeffrey Vial. First born of Mike and Christine Vial and the latest grandson of Grandpa Vial. He (Grandpa Vial that is) rarely leaves his driveway, much less Grants Pass. But yesterday he called late in the afternoon, and said they were coming today to see Sam, commonly known as Moose in the family. So this morning, he and Leslie got up, drove up, and we spent about 6 hours together! They then got back in the car and were back to Grants Pass! But we did get a few good pictures. This really is a cute kid!

He rather likes his Grandpa. It was clear that he was excited to get to know him.



He seems to be a thoughtful young man. Not long after this however he did let out a pretty big yelp. Takes after his father in more than one way.

Rainbow Update

We are getting close on the outside. Some wrought iron, a few pavers and we are in business. A lot more to do on the inside however. Granite, floors, interior doors etc. Maybe Christmas!


Paula is a bit pensive as she looks out over the front yard. It is hard to believe we are really doing this.



One of the three types of heat, the woodstove is in and working. Vermont Casting soapstone, it is really a beautiful and functional addition to the home.


Grandpa Vial came to visit, primarily to see Moose (brother Mike's new son) and we got a chance to show he and Leslie the house.


Some great memories are already being made.

Ode to Craigslist

So last week, Paula and I spent about 4 hours and a lot of shoe leather (or rubber as the case may be) haunting the local furniture stores. looking for a table for the new house. Some of you may remember that we found a 14 foot long piece of reclaimed bowling alley, solid maple, that we wanted to build a base under and use for the dining table in the Rainbow house. After we got the cabinets in however, 14 feet was 3 or 4 feet too long. we thought about cutting the table down, but then decided that we would save it for another use, like a conference table or a dining table in another bigger house? We just couldn't bring ourselves to cut it shorter!

Anyway, we just couldn't find anything we liked, so on Friday evening it was back to craigslist! After looking at about 40 tables on the Portland site, I ran across one just a few miles from home that looked interesting. This morning Paula, Nate and I went to take a look. It was in a huge home in the Ladd Hill/Parrett Mountain area which really looked like it had been neglected. We weren't even sure it was occupied when we drove up. Turned out to be a home which had been built for and occupied by the author Jean Auel (Clan of the Cave Bears) and her husband. About 13000 square feet, now occupied by a young couple and two children. It appeared they were losing it and selling off the furniture.



The table was clearly built for the house. If you notice the row of marble down the center of the table (cool idea to avoid having to use hot pads huh!) it matches the marble over the fireplace just to the right of Nathan in the picture. The marble is standard 12 inch square pieces which can be replaced. We are planning to match our countertops if possible.


The table is beautiful. The 10 chairs are very high quality. I am pretty sure that the table is high quality cherry veneer over something very hard! The base is extremely well built and detaches from the top. We measured twice, and are confident it will be a perfect fit at Rainbow.


Another interesting story! Whether it be doors, tables, cars etc., where can you get the item and the story better than craigslist. And to top it off, instead of paying upwards of $10k or so for a high end dining set we made this new acquisition for $850. Both buyer and seller were happy, we have the table of a famous author, and the spirit of our new home is growing by the day! How fun is that! Go here to read about Jean Auel.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_M._Auel

Peace Out!

Progressing

What the heck? Yes indeedee, we have ourselves a manhole in the backyard. What is it for you ask, well read on.......and yes that is Paula inside!



The love nest for Gma and Gpa is actually a playhouse for 20 plus grandchildren! And every modern grandchild needs a manhole to play in.....in the sandbox! Good thing we had about 7000 landscape workers around to get the thing in the sandbox!
And then when we actually got to the sandbox, there was this little problem that the thing weighed maybe a couple of tons, and the sandbox had its timber frame lip.


But it was ultimately carefully placed and we have one very happy grandma! Admittedly, I can already hear the sounds of the kids playing there, and it sounds great!
The wrought iron installer showed up in a Mercedes Unimog! Which was good because the only way into the front yard was through the ditch! If you look close you can see the beer keg gas tank!
Definitely getting excited about how it will look. This is Paula with our friend/artist/lighting consultant Don beginning to visualize the glow!


Next time this picture comes up we should see the cobblestone circular drive, the plants, the fountain........

Progress on the house is both maddening and exhilarating. We are really excited about how this is coming together, and it really fits the dream we had. We haven't had one disagreement about how to do things, and we really are having fun.

Rainbow Update

Things are really moving along on the Rainbow house. We are pretty excited about the way the back yard and the river approach are coming out. During the winter the water will for sure cover these steps, so it will be interesting to see what we have come next spring.
Jenna has decided that we could use even more rocks, but I really like the way she has a fire pit surrounded out on the crest of the hill next to the river. When the shrubs are in it will soften this up significantly.

The cabinets look great. Click on the photo to see the hardware that Paula picked out. It looks great. We will have 3cm granite on the coutertops and island. To the left of the island will be the dining table which is a 14 foot length of reclaimed bowling alley!
The fireplace is actually for a wood stove. We have ordered a soapstone Vermont Castings wood stove. To the left of where the stove will sit is a wood box which will be on a electric motor from the basement.

At the last minute, I decided that another retro door was in order, so we replaced the master bedroom door. I am hoping that the "employees only" will be a signal to the grandkids to stay clear!

This is an expensive project, but Paula and I are having a blast doing it. We are now hoping to be in by Thanksgiving, and looking forward to having a lot of family home at that time!

Storm Before the Calm

How do you build a house, commute coast to coast by plane and by car, and do the birth of a grandbaby? Family of course! Having Vial Pham acting as general contractor has been the best decision we ever made. Besides it's actually fun to be working with the kids.
A virtual army of guys showed up this morning for example and began cleaning the bank down to the river. The view of the river is a big part of this house and this will be a beautiful feature.
Chuong is really happy working on the house, and we are equally happy to know his attention will be enjoyed for years.
I don't think Paula really feels this way. Hoa seems to recognize that. He too is having fun with this project.
Everything seems to be happening at once. Apparently the cabinets will be done in the next few days.

I am sure the county will be glad to get the parking lot back for Eagle's Nest Park.

Home at Last!

After 8 days Paula and I finally arrived home about 7 pm on Saturday evening. What a trip. We stopped at courthouses in Mass, NH, Vermont, New York, Penn, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, Montana, Washington and Oregon. Nearly 150 courthouses, from beautiful domed buildings from the 1800 to gleaming glass and steel structures with frankly much more functionality than charm.



Along the way we visited Paula's mother and daughter Alicia in Utah, and my brother Jeff and his family in Montana. Even got to watch his boy's Phil, Jake and Clark play football!


A fun trip in a fun car for a fun reason. Because I forgot to take the bill of sale with me, we came all the way without any documents for the car. I did have proof of insurance but it expired before we left. We were stopped a couple of times, but no problem when I explained! Made me proud of our system, and anxious to get back into the courtroom.


Most of all I am finding it more and more that spending time with Paula is better than spending time with anyone else. I have great friends and have been lucky to travel and experience a great deal, but frankly, without Paula, nothing is really complete. I can't wait for more adventures together.