Demo Derby at noTTafarm Attracts a Crowd!

Did you hear it?  The cacophony of hammers and crowbars was music to our ears at noTTafarm this past Saturday!  While our plumber, Cody, worked in the basement to (finally!) hook up our "city" water, a cheerful crew of family and friends worked diligently above.  We cleared out lath and plaster, ceramic tile, wallpaper . . . you name it!  Out the door it went by the bucketful, straight to the dumpster.

 Here's our buddy, Amy B.  She and her husband Monte spent most of the day with us!  One of the first tasks we tackled was tearing out the ceramic tile in the 1972 entryway. 

Chelsie is just like her grampa...has to wear her cowboy boots every day!  She enjoyed using Monte's "BFH" to smash that tile.

Gary and Mary Lange visited noTTafarm for the first time!  Gary is a mechanical designer and is counseling us on the possibilities of a geothermal system.  Scott and Monte listen to Gary's suggestions. . .

Halfway done with the entryway hall and we had to stop for lunch.  We girls did a pretty good job...then when we weren't looking, Monte came in and finished the rest in about 5 minutes. (What a show-off!)

Here's Amy in the stairwell of the 1920 house.  The previous day, Scott's mom Marita tore the plaster off the wall at right (yes, all by herself!)  Amy stepped in on Saturday and tore off the lath.  She then removed the plaster from the "head bonker" above.

Amy and I hurried to Monte's side when he made a shocking discovery...

...knob and tube wiring!  (Which wasn't a surprise to find, given the age of the house).

The Brummets moved from one project to the next without fussing!  Here they work together to demolish the powder room.  They took out the tile (both wall and floor), the vanity, and the toilet.

My brother Tim and nephew Clark spent the day with us, too!  After demolishing all of the walls in the 2nd floor bathroom, Tim took the molding off all the walls downstairs.

Scott's dad Carl spent most of Friday at noTTafarm but was happy to pitch in on Saturday, too.  He is our number one go-to guy for nail removal!  (A thankless job, for sure.)

Scott tried to keep the dust at a minimum (a never-ending struggle).

Amy and Monte at the end of the day - dusty but in great spirits.

We saved all sorts of bits-and-pieces and put them on the mantle:  wallpaper scaps, old tile and carpet, etc.

My niece Chelsie did such a great job!  She was happy to jump in to any assignment plus agreed to share "her" Special K bars with the rest of the crew!

Clark did a super duper job of helping, too!  If you need any plaster demolished, give him a call.

Chelsie taught Clark her tried-and-true wallpaper removal method:  spray with lots of water and then scrape.  I'm glad these cousins had time to bond while working!

Scott and I are both so thankful for everybody's hard work!  For each of them to sacrifice an entire Saturday to help us is truly incredible!