YellowSocks
Well-known member
- Joined
- May 22, 2008
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- 2,179
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- 13
I'm back from the dead (sort of!).
Tuesday (a week ago already?) we had a ribbon cutting with the mayor and chamber of commerce... small affair, over quickly, but still a thing that took food prep. Then a week of not-quite-frantically trying to get the house ready for touring. My contractor worked until 6 p.m. Saturday night. When he left, there was drywall dust everywhere, and canvas covering the furniture in one of the new rooms, while the other had the beds disassembled in a heap. Earlier in the week I realized I wouldn't have time to paint the old trim. He didn't connect the sinks, although he did set them in place, and he did have the toilets installed. Most of the new trim is installed, although two doors still need to be hung.
So, starting around 9 we cleaned out the two rooms and upstairs hall, hung blinds and curtains, put spreads on the beds (but no sheets), put the bath hardware in the bathrooms (still in boxes), put various decor on the desks and sinks and made it look generally wonderful. My wondeful sister took the ds4x2 for seven hours on Saturday (we spent the day cleaning up our quarters in the basement... it was so worth it to include them on the tour!!! I finally have a liveable living room, office, bathroom, and laundry room!), and when she dropped off the kids she practically groaned when she saw the condition of the upstairs.
Well, we went to sleep by 3, and when she offered to take the kids the next morning and bring them back at 1 for the party dh said, "That's a no brainer!" (She brought them back in cute new clothes, bathed, with gel in their hair!) By 1 p.m. the food was laid out, the house actually clean, the new rooms presentable, the downstairs viewable... and of course, our room is completely trashed (where else do you stick furniture and a TV that aren't staying in the new rooms when it's 2 in the morning?) with construction detritus, extra linens, my ladder, and on and on; but the rest of the house is great!
We had 40-50 people, including visitors from both the seminary and the university. A lot of friends who said they'd come didn't, and quite a few people came because they saw it in the paper. The three women who grew up in the house (it was in their family for 55 years) all came and were amazed at our having moved this 450 pound tub from the second floor to the basement. We had tons of food left over, and the ds4x2 were thrilled by having all the helium balloons they wanted. My sister, who wasn't sure about the new wallpaper in the one room (which I did one night after the kids went to bed...) loved it once the whole room came together with spread and curtain.
The open house ran from 1-4. At 4:12 I was sitting and talking to a relative of dh's who had driven at least an hour with their spouse, and brought another couple with them. Turns out the other couple is interested in starting a B&B in Lorain, Ohio. I could have talked for hours, but then our pastor arrived for a business/house blessing. They left, and one kid was conked out (didn't wake up until 8 the next morning) but we went to all the main rooms and our family room and had a scripture reading and prayer, complete with candles. It was super cool. We told him he'd already blessed us by sending us two reservations. He assured us that whenever someone comes to visit the church they'd be staying here. We gave him some cards, but he said all he needed was my phone number (which, as a member, has been on his rolodex for years).
Even though we've been a business at least a year and a half, and had one room open almost a year (July), and the last two rooms aren't quite ready, somehow all of these activities combined (including the new sign and business cards) have really given us a sense of being truly open. As we were prepping the food dh said it felt like we were getting married, with a cake and those pastel mints. Actually, we noted, it was nicer than when we got married, when all we had were the cake and mints. This reception included those plus veggies and crackers and dip, plus nuts, fancy mints, and gummy bears! (And balloons instead of flowers.)
Today my sister was uncharacteristicly maudlin and told me how proud she was that we had started a real business, and that she thought our B&B was just so cool. (She's not a big fan of ruffly, doily-laden B&B's, I think.)
It has certainly been an encouraging week, despite construction setbacks. And although June is not all that booked, July is looming as our busiest month ever, with full house days, week long stays, back-to-back check out/in (rare for us so far), so we'll get a taste of being really busy!
Thanks again to all the people here (and those still at About) for all the encouragement, advice, and lesson in the past two years. I know that everything went so much more smoothly because of your help. THANKS!!
=) Kk.
Tuesday (a week ago already?) we had a ribbon cutting with the mayor and chamber of commerce... small affair, over quickly, but still a thing that took food prep. Then a week of not-quite-frantically trying to get the house ready for touring. My contractor worked until 6 p.m. Saturday night. When he left, there was drywall dust everywhere, and canvas covering the furniture in one of the new rooms, while the other had the beds disassembled in a heap. Earlier in the week I realized I wouldn't have time to paint the old trim. He didn't connect the sinks, although he did set them in place, and he did have the toilets installed. Most of the new trim is installed, although two doors still need to be hung.
So, starting around 9 we cleaned out the two rooms and upstairs hall, hung blinds and curtains, put spreads on the beds (but no sheets), put the bath hardware in the bathrooms (still in boxes), put various decor on the desks and sinks and made it look generally wonderful. My wondeful sister took the ds4x2 for seven hours on Saturday (we spent the day cleaning up our quarters in the basement... it was so worth it to include them on the tour!!! I finally have a liveable living room, office, bathroom, and laundry room!), and when she dropped off the kids she practically groaned when she saw the condition of the upstairs.
Well, we went to sleep by 3, and when she offered to take the kids the next morning and bring them back at 1 for the party dh said, "That's a no brainer!" (She brought them back in cute new clothes, bathed, with gel in their hair!) By 1 p.m. the food was laid out, the house actually clean, the new rooms presentable, the downstairs viewable... and of course, our room is completely trashed (where else do you stick furniture and a TV that aren't staying in the new rooms when it's 2 in the morning?) with construction detritus, extra linens, my ladder, and on and on; but the rest of the house is great!
We had 40-50 people, including visitors from both the seminary and the university. A lot of friends who said they'd come didn't, and quite a few people came because they saw it in the paper. The three women who grew up in the house (it was in their family for 55 years) all came and were amazed at our having moved this 450 pound tub from the second floor to the basement. We had tons of food left over, and the ds4x2 were thrilled by having all the helium balloons they wanted. My sister, who wasn't sure about the new wallpaper in the one room (which I did one night after the kids went to bed...) loved it once the whole room came together with spread and curtain.
The open house ran from 1-4. At 4:12 I was sitting and talking to a relative of dh's who had driven at least an hour with their spouse, and brought another couple with them. Turns out the other couple is interested in starting a B&B in Lorain, Ohio. I could have talked for hours, but then our pastor arrived for a business/house blessing. They left, and one kid was conked out (didn't wake up until 8 the next morning) but we went to all the main rooms and our family room and had a scripture reading and prayer, complete with candles. It was super cool. We told him he'd already blessed us by sending us two reservations. He assured us that whenever someone comes to visit the church they'd be staying here. We gave him some cards, but he said all he needed was my phone number (which, as a member, has been on his rolodex for years).
Even though we've been a business at least a year and a half, and had one room open almost a year (July), and the last two rooms aren't quite ready, somehow all of these activities combined (including the new sign and business cards) have really given us a sense of being truly open. As we were prepping the food dh said it felt like we were getting married, with a cake and those pastel mints. Actually, we noted, it was nicer than when we got married, when all we had were the cake and mints. This reception included those plus veggies and crackers and dip, plus nuts, fancy mints, and gummy bears! (And balloons instead of flowers.)
Today my sister was uncharacteristicly maudlin and told me how proud she was that we had started a real business, and that she thought our B&B was just so cool. (She's not a big fan of ruffly, doily-laden B&B's, I think.)
It has certainly been an encouraging week, despite construction setbacks. And although June is not all that booked, July is looming as our busiest month ever, with full house days, week long stays, back-to-back check out/in (rare for us so far), so we'll get a taste of being really busy!
Thanks again to all the people here (and those still at About) for all the encouragement, advice, and lesson in the past two years. I know that everything went so much more smoothly because of your help. THANKS!!
=) Kk.