The granite has landed.

The granite is finally installed both the main house and casita.  The granite installation paves the way for backsplash and plumber fixtures installations.  Yes, we are getting close to the end and the beginning.  The end of construction, the beginning of living in a home about which we have conceptually dreamed all our lives together.  Still, much has to happen before we get to the end (in addition to backsplash and plumbing fixtures): mirrors, paint (both touch-up and repaint of the casita), air-conditioning needs to be installed, flatwork areas are still too wet for asphalt or concrete (I hope a couple of more sunny days takes care of that), and landscaping.

We did have a SNAFU (Situation Normal: All Fouled Up) this weekend.  We discovered the countertop in the wine grotto had not been accounted in neither the cabinets order nor the granite order.  That will get resolved today (I hope).  I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to take painstaking time to reconcile the selection sheets and the drawings -- make notes everywhere and initial, and make them initial the same.  We have run into more than one issue where the ball was dropped in communications between the selection and sign-off stages.  Even issues brought up during sign-off, because they were not properly documented (and it has been a year since that event), resulted in us negotiating our position.  Sometimes we won, other times we lost, and sometimes we broke even.  Lesson learned.

Here are pictures from the landing of the granite:

This is a "French Fireback" installed above the range and stove.

This photo is in the casita, bringing together the colors of the floor, trim,
cabinets, and granite.  A different granite is used in the main house.

The kitchen sink of the casita wrapped in plastic for protection.

The vanity sinks await the drilling of holes for the plumbing fixtures.

This is Pam's area in the MBR suite, with vanity and make-up table areas.

This is one of the guest bathrooms.  The guest bathrooms have the lighter
cabinets.  The light countertops are Marlana, an engineered marble product.

The kitchen sink area of the main house with its granite, and waiting on a
dishwasher (all appliances arrive this week!).  The window is nice for
observing both the flora and fauna of our property while washing dishes.

Pam's office, immediately off the kitchen, has the same granite as does the
kitchen areas.  Another good opportunity to see the blends of color.

The kitchen island looks a bit larger in this photo, taken minutes before
three panels of granite were laid upon it.

The granite team works to level the three pieces of granite by judiciously
adding shims in just the right places.  It is not as easy as it sounds.  One
also gets a better sense of scale concerning the island's size.

Some kitchens have an island, our kitchen has a continent.  Plenty of work
space and plenty of social space.  Barstools fit nicely under the 18 inches
of front overhang.  Good for eating, good for buffets, good for keeping the
chef company while he/she/both work.

The kitchen continent in context of the kitchen as a whole, sweeping from the pantry on the left through to the
breakfast nook at the right.