Jiggety jig. We left the Airbnb yesterday morning and then I went back and loaded up all of our stuff and brought it home too. And then I went back again two hours later and loaded up the stuff I forgot (kid table and chair). And even after all that I think we forgot JR’s Nutkin toy. I haven’t found it in anything I’ve unpacked but the host didn’t find it when they were there yesterday after we checked out. Fugitive squirrel.
The house looks good. I say good. It looks fine. It looks more like how it looked when first moved in. All of the old minor complaints still apply. Recessed ceiling light fixtures that aren’t seated properly, that kind of thing. Time will tell how weather-proof all this work is but presumably it will last a little while.
The construction crew cleaned up as much as you’d expect. There was no large debris but there was a fine white dusting of drywall and texture on most of the flat surfaces. I spent a few hours yesterday, after we got back and during the kiddo’s nap, cleaning and mopping. Then I had to put all of the furniture and rugs and toys and such back where they go. It’s nice to have the place clean though. It’s hard to get to a lot of nooks and crannies these days because of all of the toys and baby fences and the arrangement of furniture. I removed one entire dogs worth of fur drifts and dust and such.
I’m not quite done. The kitchen bookshelf has to go back to its home. Some art has to be hung back up, including a few pieces where the original hanger spots are now gone. Also one roller shade and two curtain rod brackets need to be reinstalled. All that said, it’s nice to be done. I hope to have the new-AC project (which I haven’t gotten into here yet) done today finally. Also, the final plumbing inspection for the generator is today, at which point that thing can be used, though it still needs its run-in.
The wife is at the doctor this morning and her semester starts today also so I’m on duty with the kiddo. I’m going to try to work and parent at the same time today. Tomorrow and Wednesday also. And then Thursday Grandma is back to help again. We’d hoped to have started daycare this week but then we had this Omicron surge and that put that plan to rest.
The 7-day average of new cases in Travis county was 3400 on Friday. The high water marks in the previous winter surge and the Delta surge were 622 and 526 respectively. The 7-day average for the entire country was 718,000. The test positivity percent for Travis was 30% and the national rate was 29% so all that means is that there isn’t enough testing and that’s due in part to there just not being enough tests. Also a lot of vaccinated people are asymptomatic carriers.
Just dropping that in for posterity so when I find this post again, years later, I’ll remember. We’re not out of the woods yet, pandemic or house repairs, but a lot of the big things that came up in 2021 are resolving and it’s good to be able to set them aside and focus on the new baby situation. There’s plenty to do for that and we have seven weeks left as of today.