Phase one begins...

The last week of April, Jimi drove from 100-degree weather in Florida straight into a Nebraska snowstorm. I'm sure he was wondering what he'd gotten himself into. The idea was to avoid the extreme cold and the extreme heat. I, however, was enjoying perfect weather in Texas. By the time I flew to Nebraska the weather was quite nice and then again in mid-May Mother Nature gifted us with lots of rain and forty degree weather. I had already packed away all my winter clothes including winter coats and for about a week, I was miserable and wondering what I'd gotten myself into. 

Jimi’s been here about a month. He's been working on converting the classrooms into a reasonable and comfortable living space, which we’ll occupy for the next three summers. He’s making good progress.

We’ve been watching for used items and also sales on new items for purchase. Along with things given to us, we’ve made out well. Although it's not easy being frugal, we managed to find a nice stove, over the counter microwave and dishwasher for $275. Jimi found a comfy chair at the second-hand store for $25. My father gave us the refrigerator from his basement and my sister gave me a glider rocker. Along with the TV we previously purchased and my Grandmother's table we had in storage and a couple of old bookshelves found in the church, our kitchen, dining room, and living room is complete. It’s a little crowded, but cozy and functional.

This corner of the room is our living room with two chairs and a TV. We don't have cable, but we do have a media box and internet going straight to the TV for Youtube and other services that offer entertainment. The only downside is there isn't room for entertaining guests. However, we have to remember it's only temporary.

This was my grandmother's table and the chairs were in the basement of the church.

There's a bookshelf next to the refridgerator which acts as a pantry and another along the wall in front of the stove which hold our dishes, etc. (Neither are shown in the picture).

The dishwasher is installed in the room that houses the furnace and water heater. The water heater wasn’t functioning properly, so Jimi ordered parts to fix it; however, it’s still wasn't cooperating as it should. He thinks he may have figured out that some internal wiring was hooked up incorrectly, therefore, he's still working on it and testing it before we fork out the bucks to buy a new one.

Jimi will build some storage cabinets, etc. in here down the road. But for now, this works well.

What used to be the ladies bathroom now has a working shower in it along with a utility size sink. For now, we’ll use it primarily for our kitchen sink, but when we move to the sanctuary Jimi will keep it for his garage sink.

Jimi will build a table top between the wall and the sink. The shower is located on the other side of the sink.

Everything that involved plumbing was done the way it is using existing plumbing. It may seem a bit wacky, but saved alot of time, money and hassle.

What used to be the men’s bathroom is now just ‘the bathroom’. We didn't make any changes to it, so I didn't take a picture.

He’s removed the wall between the first and second rooms making himself a large workspace. And this is where the garage door will be installed too.

We have a bedroom with a brand new mattress. We haven’t used one of these in years. We didn’t purchase a box spring or frame because he’s going to custom build one for us that will fit the décor in the permanent bedroom. My parents gave us a rack to hang clothes on and a chest of drawers for Jimi. Therefore our bedroom is complete for now.

Other than the workshop/garage space, I have the biggest room in the place. It serves the purpose of at least four rooms. First is my office space with my work desk, printer, and other essential supplies. Then we have a spare twin bed set up for the occasional overnight guest. The bed came with the purchase of the church and we figure we may as well utilize it. Then I have my craft room with a sewing table (purchased for $8 at the second hand store) and a sewing machine given to me by my sister, my easel and all my paints (oil, acrylic and watercolor), my Cricut, Slice, Big Kick and all the little tidbits to go with them. I'm in a crafter's heaven! And finally, I've set up a TV with my Wii, PS2 and PacMan consol. I know they are a bit dated, They've been in storage and I'm perfectly happy with what I've got.

My desk - this is where you will find me Monday thru Friday, 8am to 4:30pm. 

Spare bed. The metal frame is an old hospital bed. You can see that the mattress is much shorter than the bed frame. My father plugged it in, but nothing worked.

All the furniture that makes up my craft room was left in the building when we bought it. 

I'm happy with it.

Just yesterday Jimi build a wall and installed a door along the long hallway to separate the workspace/garage are from the living space. The will help to keep the sawdust, etc. down, noise reduction and privacy. It may seem a little odd at first, but I like it there.

Before

After

In Jimi’s spare time he’s removed the neon green carpet from the sanctuary, disassembled the pews, stacking and storing them in the basement and collected at least 32 gallons of bat guano from the rafters above the sanctuary; it's great fertilizer. There’s no shortage of work to be done. At times it can be overwhelming deciding what to work on first. Not to worry though – Jimi has a handle on priority.

Under this rubber matting is beautiful wood floors screaming for attention.

The sanctuary without the pews.

We met our first grandchild and as I would expect any grandparent to say, “she’s the cutest thing ever!”. She rarely cries; however, she does pucker her lips, as if she’s going to cry and then gives us a great big smile. We call her our little faker.

The movies are on! One of our favorite things about the area is the movie theater in Oxford. On Monday nights we can go see a movie for $2 person. Last night we saw 'The Zookeeper's Wife'. We splurged on our snacks though at $4.50. The price included a medium popcorn with butter ($2), a small popcorn without butter ($1), a large water (50 cents) and M&Ms ($1). 

  

My father has graciously loaned me his car, so I have transportation when I need it. I’ve been able to visit family, attend church or go to the store while Jimi is focused on his projects.

I believe our living space is done. Jimi can now begin the next phase on his summer list. He needs to replace the roof of the church side, glaze the windows and install the garage door.

This year is all about preparing our space. Actual renovations on the church itself will begin next summer.