4:38 Am
4:38 am is a time that should be banished from the world.
In fact, 3:56 am should also be banished from the world.
Remember that bathroom reno that has taken over our lives? Well, it’s also now compromising my sleep.
You see, Mr. MPB happened to stumble upon professional tilers (is that a word?) who had one day available to tile our entire bathroom for an amazing price. The catch, the day is tomorrow. And so we had less then one day to basically finish all the behind the scenes stuff in the bathroom.
And so, the two of us, we literally stayed up doing paint touch-ups and waterproofing the bathroom until 3:56 am. Clean up took us until after 4:00 am. And the last time I looked at the clock before finally falling asleep was 4:38 am.
These are times on the clock that I have no reason to see – I don’t have a kid to be awake with in the middle of the night, I am no longer in university partying all night, and I am not about to catch a flight to a warm destination. So, as I said, 3:56 am and 4:38 am should be banished from the world. Or at least banished from my world.
Thankfully I work from home so I was able to sleep in a little bit. But, I have a deadline. In fact, I have two deadlines tomorrow that cannot be missed. So, I pulled my sorry butt from bed at 8:30am and I am now sitting here at my desk with giant bags under my eyes, wishing I drank coffee.
After spending nearly an entire night bending over, kneeling down, climbing a ladder, applying unmodified thin-set mortar and the Schluter waterproofing system to most of a bathroom, my entire body hurts. Parts of my body I never knew could hurt, are aching right now. Thanks to the mortar, which sucked all the possible moisture out of my hands, even the skin on my hands hurt from being so dry. In fact they also seem to have Permian white spots on them too.
But, I have to admit, at about 1:30 am, when Mr. MPB suggested cancelling the tile contractors, I gave him the look. We have disagreed for months over the tiling of this bathroom – he thought we could do a good enough job, I didn’t trust us to do it well enough as we aren’t experienced tilers and so I wanted a professional finish. And so my look simply said, over my dead body are we going to miss having a professional finish this bathroom. Get to work!!
And so we worked. And we worked hard. And we also worked surprisingly really well together while stuck in a 40 square foot room for hours. We didn’t argue. We found things we were each good at and split tasks accordingly. We seemed to hit a groove and just worked.
But, I have to say, if I never have to waterproof a bathroom again, my life will be complete. This has been forever scratched off my list of possible future career paths.
And once the tiles are in, all that is left is relatively easy:
- Counter top purchase and install;
- Toilet install;
- Fixture install (i.e. faucets, towel racks);
- Light bulb purchase and install (thanks to that photo, I just noticed one light bulb is dead);
- Shower glass door purchase and install (which probably wont happen for a few months as they surprisingly expensive).
And so today, I am thankful the end of the bathroom reno is in sight. And, as I struggle to keep my eyes open, I am also thankful it’s almost the weekend!
If you like this post, please feel free to share and please click the follow button on the side or return to myperfectbreakdown.com to follow my journey.
My Perfect Breakdown 
I think it’s so amazing you two are doing most of the work yourselves! I can’t wait to see the finished product 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
After getting quotes from a multiple contractors, we decided we didn’t have much choice but to do it ourselves. We figure we will save about 50% of the contractors costs by not paying for labor. That said, I am so thrilled we found someone to do the tiling for us! With just having a few of the tiles in right now, I’m confident it’s going to look amazing! In fact, it’s going to be the nicest room in our entire house. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
OMG you’re amazing. I wouldn’t have had the strength to pull an all-nighter to work on the bathroom, that’s for sure. I bet you can’t WAIT to get that bathroom finished and be able to enjoy it & sleep again!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Motivation came directly from the desire to have our bathroom and master bedroom back! It’s been a few weeks in the horrible guest room bed, and over a year since the shower has been used. It’s time to get it done. 🙂
And yes, I am soooo excited to see the finished room. I’m already convinced it is going to be the nicest room in our house.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Woot woot, love that light at the end of a tunnel!! Great job working as a team👏👏👏
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, the end is in sight, thankfully!! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Well done – seriously. That is a level of commitment to home reno I could NEVER show. I hate it with a passion (after spending several months with the husband doing ours). I hope the finished tiling looks beautiful and you get a very well earned rest tonight!!!!
LikeLike
Is it commitment when it is based solely out of the desperate desire to get back into my master bedroom?? It’s been months for us too. I miss my bed. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was up at 4:38 am too! Solidarity, sister!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, but you were up for a good reason!! 🙂
I hope you find sleep again soon. 🙂
LikeLike
I was also up! Great job though. Renos are tough. I’m exceptionally impressed you didn’t fight. Can’t wait to see the finished job
LikeLike
Yes, but you probably had a good reason to be up! Of course, I think Wyatt is a good reason. 🙂
I too am excited to see the finished job!! I’ll be sure to share photos.
LikeLike
You & me both. She’s worth every minute, but it’s so hard. I’m like the walking dead.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ya, I don’t function well without sleep. That’s the one part of motherhood that I’m dreading. You make it look easy though. 🙂
LikeLike
I am so sorry for the lack of sleep however I am extremely impressed you guys are doing this! Here’s to hoping you get a nap today!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you my friend! I am so excited to finally have our bathroom done, and to be able to sleep in my own bed again. Who knew a bathroom reno would take over our entire bedroom too. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Woah that’s commitment! I hope the tiler does an amazing job so you can look at it forever and feel grateful you put the hard yards in.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Commitment or desperation? First look at the tiles going in, they look amazing!!! 🙂
LikeLike
That is BRUTAL! But you are right, the end is in sight, and it’s going to feel so good once it’s done. Good luck on your deadline today!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am so excited for when its done! 🙂
LikeLike
I’ve been wondering how your all-nighter was going! At least the hard part is done, right? I can’t wait to see how the tiling looks!! Send me a pic after they’re done!! Hopefully that all goes smoothly for you. You’re in the home stretch…hang in there!! (ps~ are you just going to hang up a shower curtain or something until you get the glass door?)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, I am beyond thankful the hardest part is done! As for waiting to install the glass door, we will probably hang up a shower curtain until then because I absolutely am going to have to use that shower once it’s ready!! ☺
LikeLiked by 1 person
I give you major props! I would have been so cranky and exhausted that D would have totally sent me to bed. Can’t wait to see the final product.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Where are you located? We used Kijiji for a lot of our bathroom pieces, just keep checking back or set up an alert system. We have even looked at new, and then searched and gotten Kijiji deals for less than half, in box still etc. Good luck! And sleep well tonight!
LikeLike
That is a lot of work and it is most definitely hard work. We remodeled our house when we first bought it pre-Bumbi. I could never do that work now. I guess once is enough for me too. Totally awesome that you two worked so well together. That is truly special!
LikeLiked by 1 person