Looking good . . .

Yea Yea Yea! The floors are sanded and the the sealer has been applied. They look great. See for yourself:

This is the before and after view from the kitchen into the dining room.

Unfortunately, we have some stains from the previous owner's dog. If you know anything about urine stains and wood floors, then you already know that they are impossible to get out. I actually thought that they would be able to get some of it out, but the day that Chris came, he told me that they wouldn't be able to get any of it out. He said that they usually patch that type of damage. I wish I had known because I would have patched it. Now it will be there until the next owners :-( See what you think:

On the left is the stain before sanding, and on the right is after sanding. In some ways, it sticks out more. I guess that's what area rugs are for.

So, now we are trying to figure out logistics for tomorrow, Monday - Thursday when we basically have to clear out of our house in order for them to finish the floors. It looks like Russell will go to my sister Lauren's house (thanks Lauren!), Tess and Gwen will go to Dawna's house (thanks Dawna!), and Chuck and I will sleep at Derek's house (thanks Derek!). Hey, maybe I'll even get to use the hot tub - I've never been in it.

Due to the condition of the floors, we did not do any painting or staining. I decided to work on other items on my punch list - like recovering my dining room chairs. I was hoping to get to some refinishing work that I need to do, but I wasn't very efficient with my time. We went to a great cook out at the neighbors on Saturday, then followed up with George's birthday dinner and a walk around the Lowell Folk Fest. Saturday night was beautiful - finally a real summer night in the 80s. I hope it's not our last one.

I am looking forward to getting through this week and on to the next week. I don't expect that Dave will fit in any work next week, but I'm hoping that the following Monday will bring Dave and the plumber back for all the work that is left to be done. I know that my refrigerator is being delivered that day, so I intend to plug that baby in and get her going. Having the refrigerator and water on the same floor - and the grill steps away - will improve life significantly.

Ok, not sure how much I'll get to post next week. I won't be home much if at all, but if I have any great news, I'll try to jump on at work.

Here are some additional photos of the floors before and after (to date):