We pulled up the downstairs carpet the day we moved in, over a year ago. Since then, we haven’t dared go barefoot for fear of stumbling upon one of the carpet staples or tacks that were scattered across the hardwoods like little landmines.

But now, finally, we’re free to let our feet breath! I spent Saturday on my hands and knees with a pair of pliers, a hammer, and a cat’s paw pulling up every single staple I could find in the 4 rooms downstairs that used to have carpeting. And in case you’re wondering, the cat’s paw proved to be by far the best tool for the job.

While I was busy doing that, Teague was hanging out in the basement getting prepped for more jacking. Deciding that the walls could use a little more stability before we shift more weight onto them, he mixed up some mortar and started parging the walls. Here he is working on the very worst wall, which is right near the staircase:

One of the reasons we’re jacking is to straighten out our sloping floors. Another is that a few of our posts look like this:

We’re slowly doing away with these lovelies, replacing them with new posts and footings.

I know, you’re soooo totally jealous of our wild weekend.