The Wall...

When David and I looked at this house almost 4 years ago, we loved the house but we both agreed that "the wall" would have to go.

We were under the impression that "the wall" was a baring wall. We weren't sure how much it would cost to remove it along with the other projects removing it would create.

While we were in Arizona this last time we went to my parents house and they were in the middle of remodeling their whole kitchen. Something about seeing their kitchen all torn apart got me all excited to rip "the wall" down!

When we got home we realized that "the wall" was not baring. And I decided that I was fine with having plywood flooring were "the wall" was.

So we found someone to do the job and began ripping it down to lower our expense. We started in the family room and discovered that the other side was all plywood.

What?

Why was it like that?

At this point in time I was beyond stressed!

It turns out it's a sheer wall!

A sheer wall?

What's a sheer wall?

A sheer wall supports the house from lateral movement. In earthquakes and high winds a sheer wall keeps your walls from caving in. Important? Yes, I guess! But necessary? I guess not! After consulting with everyone we highly trust, we decided that our house would be okay with out it. So "the wall" demolition continued!

We had an evening of immense fun taking down "the wall".

Everything got extremely dusty.

Talan put on his hard had for safety.

Never mind the naked baby, when your in the middle of a project and your kid takes his clothes off... off they stay!

The kids all took turns pounding away.

Even our neighbor Max joined in the fun!

Surprisingly enough, Talan is pretty darn strong.

He can really whack a wall!

It was a lot of hard work but we were making great progress and I could tell it was going to be well worth it!

Oh doesn't it look so good?

It was so exiting to see "the wall" down!

Scott Burns worked quick and in no time he was finished.

Doesn't it look good!

Our plan is to apply rock to the sheet-rocked arch. I think it will look even better then. I can hardly wait for the finished product. It's like seeing your vision come to life! It's amazing how much nicer it is to have "the wall" gone. It's so open, spacious, and BIG!

I absolutely love it!