We need more help. But we've begun to realize we may not find contracted help very easily - demand is high and they're all booked months out. I guess it's part of the aftermath of the pandemic.

Because of the show we're on a pretty tight timeline, tighter than we would have been otherwise. Our original goal was to be done by the end of the year, but its starting to look like that will be difficult to keep. My brother Gabe agreed to work for us when he could spare the time. He has a good deal of experience, considering he built his house with his own two hands. Jonny and I laugh that the only person in the world who can work on Dad's level is Gabe. He works hard, and he works fast, and he can figure anything out. My brother Amos is a civil engineer, and also agreed to help a couple days a week after he gets off of work . God bless him! We're getting help wherever we can. Dad continues to put in way more time and labor than he planned to. I'm SO grateful, but I really hope his load will lighten soon. This is turning out to be the Rieber family flip house. But that's kind of how we do, we all jump in to help each other whenever it’s needed. I love that about my family.

We continued to repair foundation and floor issues, and we also decided to forget trying to keep any of the original drywall in tact. So now we’re just gutting the whole place. While the guys worked on the floor issue, I continued to demo walls, and clean up the job site a lot, which is fine since its something I can do without any instruction. I've been doing a lot of sweeping, if I wasn't a pro with a broom already, I am now. We hope to start electric and plumbing before too long. Thankfully we do have people lined up to help with that.

I bought some flooring from an online auction for $0.85/sq ft and mom and I drove to Cincinnati to pick it up. That will save us $2K at least on our flooring budget. It barely fit in Jonny's old F150 pickup truck, and I'm really relieved that old truck got us home despite the heavy load, it was questionable there for a minute..

Jonny and I went out of town for our 15th anniversary, and when we got home I was sick...with covid. He caught it too. So that is now throwing a wrench in my work plans for the next couple of weeks. Another setback.

A PAUSE FOR GRATITUDE

What would I do without my family? After growing up the oldest of 6 kids, home schooled, and a preacher's kid, I used to think all I wanted when I was grown was to get out and see the world, live somewhere I could be independent, and have my own identity apart from family. Guess that's why I moved 16 hrs away for most of my college years. Now, as 37 yr old mom of 3, living close to family is at the top of my list. I know not everyone has what I have, I wish they could. We're in no way perfect. But for me, my family is the glue. They keep me grounded to what is most important in life. They are the ones who are the first to give generously of their time or resources to help when it's needed. We all show up for each other - for all the birthdays, the ball games, the holiday gatherings...and in my current situation...for the massive flip house renovation.