Our house alarm woke me from my afternoon nap this afternoon (it's a glamorous life being barefoot and pregnant, let me tell you). Several loud beeps told me that the power was out and I was instantly aware of the lack of A/C in the house. I first blamed the guys working on the siding for tripping the breaker yet again but as my neighbors poured out of their houses and started yelling up and down the street -- as is their custom during power outages --- I knew this was an Entergy problem. Fortunately the siding dudes were able to switch gears and start working on the roof so all was not lost.

Our status as of today is that we are waiting for a plumbing inspection to close in the walls. The contractor told me it would be done by Thursday of last week and the plumber told me it would be last Friday. "I know you are excited to have this finished but not nearly as excited as I am," he added. I'm not sure what that meant since it has been clear from the beginning that this job has never been a priority for him as he shows up late in the day, works for an hour or two and leaves. He's seriously lucky that I haven't started throwing things at his head whenever he seeks me out to complain.

Beyond the plumber, I'm a little disappointed with the fact that there is about 550 square feet of addition that does not require plumber and can therefore be insulated and sheet rocked, right? I knew the contractor was whacked when he told me that it would only be three weeks from last Monday but he seemed so sure of it! I'm just hoping that we finish by the original estimate which is the first week of October. I don't know how long it takes for carpeting to arrive but I'm glad that I've already bought and paid for my tiles as they took over a week due to a custom order.

The end is near, however, I can feel it. I get all of my home renovation information from watching flipping shows on television and on those programs it takes about two minutes to sheet rock and paint an entire house so that can't be too many days in real time! We're close enough to the end that I am taking a hard look at the budget to make sure that I'll have enough for the final payment and a new shower curtain -- and maybe some blinds as well.