I haven’t posted in tooo long but wanted to update with our newest Prater Project at 14 Vermillion Circle in Chico CA!  Its not our typical style of home but there was great potential so we bought this home to fix up and either sell or rent last Sept.  The only thing I didn’t document was that we’ve already had the landscaping redone, Chris built a 137′ long fence across the back and lots of painting. 
Check out this, great open floor plan, the beginnings of several great ideas and its up to us to figure out how to finish them all! 
I’ll post more often and keep you up to date on progress but its the best idea for this Webb Built tired old floor plan I’ve seen, wish I would’ve thought of it!

Chris and I ran up to Almanor Monday evening, via Feather River Canyon since Hwy 32 is closed for 10 days, to take up scaffolding for the ceiling work to  begin and look what I got to see!  Cabinets are beautiful, thanks OakRidge Cabinets from Chico!! Knotty Alder is the wood with a clear finish.  Counter top fabricator is heading up this weekend to template them for our countertops to be installed within a few weeks! 
Chris and Dennis, master carpenter, decided to case out all the windows in this cool molding that looks like cut logs so I included a picture of the dining room windows too. 

 Wow, now all we need is ELECTRICITY, NO THANKS for PGE for their time table of SLOOOOW!!!  Our application was turned in OCT 2010@)!)!!!
Anyway, I won’t be up there for a few weeks, but the old cabin is being moved around the middle of Oct and the new cabin should be done by then- WOHOO! 
Last Sunday we spent the afternoon getting all the light fixtures, AWESOME is all I can say, a barn/cabin/modern look is going to be GREAT! 
More pics to follow after the ceiling is done, because then its time to stain again, our stain didn’t cover completely and the ceiling is going up NAKED, oh well.  Painting party at the end of the month for all those wanting cabin time credit )

Chris went up yesterday to meet the inspector for the insulation, its approved now and oversee any other “issues”. 
Well after a slight mix up on the paint color the cabin is now the Forest Service model of perfection!  And a dbl coat of paint, even if the 1st layer is torquoise green makes Daddy happy!  Big changes are under foot on the interior as well, sheetrock started today!! The insulation was approved yesterday so they were going to start hanging it today, should be done by tomorrow, then taping and texture!! Then paint the interior- calling all weekend painters??!!

Chris and company finished up the outside, ready for Baird Roofing to get the roof sheeted and dark green metal roof installed!  Crabtree Painting is ready to get it painted Forest Service brown, so soon we’ll have a complete picture of the Prater/Bryant cabin- NOW FOR A NAME!!!?? Chris is voting for FUNKY CHALET??  I tried to come up with a combination of our name- CheckyMiane cabin?? It is within view of Almanor lake, so family and friends help us out!
I’m going up tomorrow with Chris, meeting with the electrician and probably in charge of some of the lot clean up.  I haven’t been up there since the 5th of July, so I’m excited to finally have a few days to go check it out and be of help jobsite.  NOT that we haven’t been helping here, last week Diane and I finalized cabinets, countertops, appliances, bought a great table at “NU2U” here in Chico, a great resale store on Mangrove Ave.  We’ve also narrowed down a great floor covering choice- MANNINGTON SOLID VINYL that you’ll swear is wood, easy is care for, looks like a cabin and cab withstand the cold of winter!  Thanks Craig from Wood Bros for this great suggestion for us. 
I’ll get some interior shots for progress in a few days . . .

Wow- it’s really coming together on the outside!  The guys worked all week to get both the front and back “Gables” siding with the batting, it was over 30′ tall at the peaks and they had to keep moving the 3 levels of scaffolding back and forth.  Chris almost had a mutiny on his hands, but Phil and Dennis hung in there and got the job beautifully done, THANKS! 
Chris came home with jeans hanging off and covered in caulking, his new job, each seam of the siding has to be caulked with FIREPROOF caulking.  I don’t want to seem unappreciative but the requirements for building in the mountains seems alittle over the top.  This week Chris, Cody and Dennis ( if Cody isn’t to tired from bartending at PLUMAS PINES Sun-Tues nights) will finish siding, caulking, framing the stairwell and dropped kitchen ceiling.  Electrician and plumber will be in this week, and the rest of the interior will start coming together so the sheetrock can start by the end of the month! YEAH! Its a beacon on the lake so shiny, tall and new so stop by anytime to say hello. 
Back in Chico, I’m ( with partner Diane)  getting the fun stuff together, with cabinets, appliances, plumbing fixtures, flooring and counter tops and door choices! I did also find a really cute carved bear here in town for the deck, I’ll take a picture of it for all this week   Until then, back to work  selling Chico homes, have a great week!

Hello All- I didn’t get the camera to give you visual updates so waited until Chris came home this weekend for an update on the ALMANOR cabin progress.  Wish I could come up with different words for progress, amazing, etc but I can’t so I’ll just let you know that from foundation on this is what 22 days of solid work gets you!  New this week are windows and siding.  To let you know some of the intimate details of this cabin- we have HURRICANE hold downs on the roof trusses- at $11 each-, we have over 80 earthquake hold downs on the “top plate” or highest horizontal boards which are also over 10 each, and the “ladder framing” took 2 days to notch each board twice  and put in place over the stairwell, besides climbing byPHIL  up and down the ladder and scaffolding for EACH BOARD!
 Check out the new siding which goes to the top of the “GABLE” roof line at 32 FEET above the ground level!! Chris, Cody, MASTER CARPENTERS Dennis and Phil are kicking butt!!
I did throw in a few Bryant/Prater photos of 4th of July CAMP CLAMPETT, it was a sight with trucks, cars and trailers and tents in the house! BUT we did have festive decorations, even though we figured out no view from our deck for the fireworks over Lake Almanor- darn it, its to the lake next year!

HAMMER SOUND
Wow- another week of incredible progress- So proud of Chris, Cody and company for stairs, loft floor, trusses up and more!! Check out these new pics, I didn’t make it up this week so I’m suprised like everyone on the progress.  Chris was lamenting that the “hats” didn’t get up, which are the tops of the trusses ( to big/wide to ship in one piece) but then as he started telling me everything else they got done I was IMPRESSED!!

They had the excellent addition of “Phil” from Red Bluff, another contractor who is helping out for a few weeks.  Phil built the staircase, looks awesome, the rest of them blocked, shocked, whatever else needed to be done to the walls.  They sheared almost the whole house and got the front wall up which was a BIG, heavy challenge ( check out all the headers and huge picture windows).  Next the shear will be finished, windows cut in and the DECK will be ready by the 4th of July- they promised!!
Check out the last picture of the view from the loft and through the front windows.  We added some neat features like wrapping the front posts with timber so they’ll look like big timber posts out front and I got a really cool sink for the hall bath that Kyle can wheel right up to and it looks pretty great too, no gas station sinks here
As always there’s alittle good gossip as well, lumber jacks showed up and then there was some sort of “discrepancy” on marked trees so forest service police were called in and as Chris tells it a 3 day “Confab” to figure out which trees can go and which trees can’t.  Espionage will be  next and they’ll fell the trees over 4th of July when everyone is at their cabins to watch probably?? Its a mystery at Almanor, which by the way is the name of our little community.  Oh and a reunion of baseball players with Danny Wilson, Chris’s old teammate only 3 doors down, calls were even made to Gary Nolan!!  
We’ll all be there starting 7/1 so stop by- look for the trailers and the top new cabin and stop by for a celebration G&T!

Whooooohoo what a big step- literally! Hammers and boom trucks were flying, as the walls were stood and the roof trusses went into place at the Prater cabin at Almanor, CA!! We officially have walls and a loft, ceiling heights, rooms sizes are done, closets tweeked and it’s starting to look tall!! I know that was a run on sentence, but the excitment is building, along with the progress and bills. 
This morning the truck showed up with the roof trusses and a new worker on site- PHIL!! He’s helped us in the past, knows what he is doing to help Dennis Richardson,  master carpenter, and between them all look at the progress!
Our 2nd “Owner’s Meeting” was held tonight with progress report from Chris, along with injury list ( lots of duct tape for fingers smash outs, cuts and bruises) and more decisions made for ceilings, doors, etc.  You forget how many decisions there are in building and how many choices to spend more money on!!
We WILL HAVE deck for 4th of July, so anyone around, come join in for the best seat (off Lake Almanor) and we’ll be ringing in this nations great birthday!  The new mayor of Almanor is usually around, so drop in to say hello to Chris if you’re in the area or heading to Plumas Pines for a snack and/or drink! That really is the best seat at Almanor. 
Cody Prater is now a bartender 2-3 nights a week at Plumas Pines, so you can belly up and try and stump his drink knowledge! See you in Almanor soon.

BIG Progress on the cabin, Cody, Chris and Dennis are kickin butt on the framing.  The floor is now done, the joists are ready to be put up for the deck and look we almost have water!  Steve’s Wells was here yesterday and today and got the well done, 65 feet deep and great clear, cold water.  The picture of the soil/rock is the story board of our well, I’m pointing to the perfect depth.  Walls start on Tues, wohoo!
We went to dinner last night at Plumas Pines, as always a great meal on the deck overlooking Lake Almanor and then walked home- livin!!
We tried fishing this morning, cold and the fish weren’t biting what we had but it was my maiden voyage on the new patio boat.  Fun and great nap taking boat . 
Can’t wait to have the 4th there and have you all up!!

Memorial Day 2011- Almost all the clan met and checked out our “foundation” of the cabin and many good times to come!  The concrete trucks pulled up Friday and dumped and pumped 31 yards of concrete into 30 pier holes in the middle, the perimeter of the cabin and deck.  Although at this stage ( we assured the Bryants it is an optical allusion) it looks really small it will be a 1400 sq ft cabin with loft and 3 bed/2bths. 
Our troop included Mike and Diane Bryant, Colin, Gina and newly 1 yr old Aubrey, Gina’s mom Linda who we’re trying to convince buying the cabin next door which is FOR SALE, and Chris, Cody and I!  Chris and Cody will start framing the floor with master carpenter Dennis and hopefully the floor and deck will be done by 4th of July!
The lake looked windy and cold, but there were several boats out and Chris talked to a guide who told him they caught 17 trout yesterday! We took the patio boat up and parked at the old cabin, so cocktail cruises and fishing will probably begin next week. 
Stop by if you’re in the Prattville hood, I’m going to start on the flags showing if we’re “in the house”!!!