Projects between the raindrops...

Even though it rained a lot today, DH was able to get a lot done around the house.

The pool pump has worked wonderfully to remove the 2-3 feet of water from the pool cover and even ran all night without being plugged in. I didn't realize that the pump would continue to siphon off the water even after I pulled the plug. That was actually an ideal way for it to work however, as we didn't have to worry about whether the pump remained under the water. We were a bit worried that the pump would break if the water level dropped below the pump, so I went out every hour or two to make sure the pump was still submerged. With the pump unplugged though, if the water level went below the pump it wouldn't matter. The poor little tadpoles, however, were not so thrilled about the water being pumped out of the pool cover. Sorry little guys... :-( While I drove up to Slippery Rock University to pick up DS today, DH worked today on installing the outdoor shower by the pool. This is what it will look like when it is installed - it is a stainless steel thermostatic shower panel from Wind Bay...
This is the 8 gallon hot water tank that he mounted inside the garage to connect to the shower...
Here he is soldering the connectors onto the pipes where the shower will go. He loved the hammer drill that he bought (refurbished/reconditioned - are they the same thing?). It went through the brick like a knife through butter!
Underneath the shower, he plans to put a drip pan intended for a washing machine, covered with these snapping deck tiles. They will completely cover the top of the drip pan and allow the water to drip between the tiles into the drip pan which will be connected to the drainage system. He will put a wooden moulding of some kind around the edges to conceal the sides of the drip pan. The sample the company sent has 4 slats per tile, but we ordered ones with 6 slats. They are also available with 8 slats or diagonal slats. The slats are made of "pre-treated, expertly kiln-dried, extremely durable hardwood. Mold, mildew, fungi, termites, rot and decay resistant."
Here is what the back of the tiles look like - the "plastic feet elevate for drying airflow." The tiles just snap together. We ordered tiles made from eucalyptus for our outdoor shower. Stay tuned for photos of the finished shower...
Here are some more shots of some of the plants that we put out in front of the house...just don't ask me what they are. I saved the tags off them, so I might be able to figure it out, but certainly couldn't tell you off the top of my head (although I do know that the one on the back left is a rhododendron).
I believe the tall tree is a Japanese red maple and there are some butterfly bushes in front of it...
The 5 plants to the far right are dianthus. They were all marked alike on the tags, but 4 turned out to have red flowers and 1 has pink flowers. They are still very pretty, and luckily, the pink one ended up in the middle.
Our builder has started work on the punchlist for the house. It doesn't seem possible that we've been in the house almost a year (it will be a year at the end of July). Yesterday, today, and next Tuesday the drywall guy was/will be here to fix the places in the walls and ceilings that have settled or have nail pops. He is also fixing the area in the kitchen ceiling where we had the leak from the second floor furnace...
He informed me that he hates our stairs. He just knew that the way the stairs were open up to the top floor that the house would settle all around the stairs. There was a lot of repair work for him to do around the stairs... The other place he had a lot to do was in the great room. Some of the seams in the walls are very obvious, especially when the lights behind the valance shine up or down the wall and illuminate all the little imperfections. He suggested we just leave the lights off. :-D
It's pouring rain out now, with lots of thunder and lightening. I hope it stops before the plant sale that I was planning to go to in the morning...