Whoa, more tiling and trying a hand at a mud subfloor

Well, grouted up the wall, finished the floor (played with the angled set), grouted up the floor and built the trim out (to be installed). I should have the finish plumbing to do next week sometime. It's been tough going in that little hole in the ground.

The tile is just amazing. Julie picked out the colors and design and everyone who walks in there comments on how fun it is. We've both done the work on it, so it will be a real pleasure to enjoy when it's done. I know it sounds funny, but I cannot wait till I take a shower in there!

So, here I am finishing the "mud" floor for the outer fireplace hearth. You may remember that it was collapsed when we moved in and we've gradually demo'd it, laid a new foundation, and built up to the floor level with concrete blocks. Now, the mud subfloor is an old-fashioned tile technique that I've been wanting to try. It's how the craft used to create the surface on which you place the tile. Excellent for areas where the under-lying floor is not level since you can form the mud any way you want. It's a lot like playing with sand castle sand. Little portland cement, little water, and lots of sand. It wasn't a huge space, but between mixing the dry ingredients and then mixing it wet, carrying it all into the house, laying it all out, packing it down and screeing it level, it was quite the job. Loved it. We'll use Ryan's idea to lay a few pieces of slate down as the tile.

Lastly, check out this tomato plant... it's about 5 foot in diameter, 3 feet high and producing enough fruit to have us canning for weeks! The best part: we didn't plant it. Don't know what kind it is, or how it got there. Probably some genetically modified franken-mato plant. Can't wait to salsafy it.