Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

One thing I have learned throughout my life is sometimes speaking your mind only gets a piece of somebody elses mind and not the good piece.

An incident happened recently bringing to light how valuable this old trick really is. I may not be good in the new tricks, but I think I have mastered a few of the old tricks.

I really do not know when this incident started, but somewhere along the line I said something resembling a guttural uh huh, and forgot about it. What you say in these odd moments may determine your quality of life for many years to come. This points out the difference between husbands and wives.

About a month ago, the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage got it into her mind to remodel the kitchen. During this time, I did a pretty good job of staying out of her way. When the rare opportunity came soliciting my personal advice on a matter associated with this remodeling project, I quickly and enthusiastically supported her decisions.

Following the kitchen remodeling my wife proceeded to remodel her bathroom. At this point I should have had some suspicions, but I didnt. As a husband, I am not equipped with a suspicion detector. Experience should have taught me that if one project is done successfully it only inspires another project.

When a wife gets it in her mind to remodel part of the house that thought gets stuck and there is no stopping her. After each remodeling project is completed, my wife always asks my opinion of the job she has just done.

I have learned that if I do not want to do the job myself, I enthusiastically praise the job my wife has done. Any critique that leads toward the negative has a reciprocal effect.

Then I come home from the office one day. Not that it is unusual for me to come home, but this time when I came home, I was greeted at the door by my wife, with a smile that indicated to me that either something was wrong or I was in trouble.

I have something I want to show you, she giggled as she took my arm and led me back through the hallway. Ive been working on this all day and Im anxious to show you what I did.

She then proceeded to escort me to one of the most sacred areas of our blessed domicile. My bathroom. Nothing is more personal and sacred as a mans bathroom.

Just as she was about to open the door a horrendous thought exploded in my cranium. She has remodeled my bathroom. This comes as close to crossing the line as anything done inside the house. A sense of panic paraded around my heart.

Opening the door, she said those words that will frighten any man in his right mind. What do you think of your new bathroom?

I can either express whats on my mind, or, live happily ever after. I just cant do both.

A verse from the Bible brought a sense of comfort to my heart. A man shall eat good by the fruit of his mouth: but the soul of the transgressors shall eat violence (Proverbs 13: 2).

Im on a fruit diet.

Dr. James L. Snyder is pastor of the Family of God Fellowship, 1471 Pine Road, Ocala, FL 34472. He lives with his wife in Silver Springs Shores. Call him at 352-687-4240 or e-mail jamessnyder2@att.net. The church web site is http://www.whatafellowship.com.

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The high cost Of speaking your mind - Greensburg Daily News

More people want open concept in their homes, so maybe it's time to ditch the dining room.

MINNETONKA, Minn. Whats standing between you and your dream kitchen? Often, its a wall a relic from the days when a separate dining room was a must-have in every home.

Today, formal meals have gone the way of the rotary phone in most households, and a room just for dining seems like a waste of precious space.

The formal dining room was popular for a while, said Cassie Frick, an Edina Realty agent. But most of her clients view them as so last-century. Everybody wants the open concept. The vast majority dont want a formal dining room anymore.

Frick included. She and her husband recently remodeled their 1970s home in Minnetonka, extending the kitchen by eliminating an adjacent dining room.

For us, with two kids, a formal dining room does not make sense, she said. It was a big room but we never went there, and it was totally cut off.

More than one-third of kitchen renovation projects now involve increasing the rooms size, according to the 2017 Houzz Kitchen Trends Study. Open floor plans continue to rise, with 51 percent of new kitchens more open to other rooms of the house than they were before the remodeling.

Half the kitchens we do, we end up taking out a wall or partial wall, said Craig Weber, architect and owner of Bridgewater Construction. It makes for a much more dramatic kitchen. Most people entertain in the kitchen whether they want to or not.

Often the unwanted wall is load-bearing, so its important to consult with a professional, noted Max Windmiller, an architectural designer with Windmiller Design Studio. He advised Frick during her project and also brought in a structural engineer.

She knew what she wanted, but she wanted to make sure it would be possible, said Windmiller. You have to figure out how to transfer that load. Its a structural challenge.

Ramblers from the 1950s and 60s are good candidates for wall removal, said Weber. The floor plans are pretty flexible.

Wall removal can be more complicated in a split-level or older two-story home, but just about anything is possible. Weve taken walls out of [homes from] pretty much any era, Weber said.

The results are worth it, said Steve Ribnick, who recently hired Weber to remodel his familys 1978 two-story in Bloomington.

Ribnick and his wife considered a cosmetic face-lift for their kitchen, but ultimately chose to remove the wall between the living room and family room to create an open floor plan with a casual dining area. Their formal dining room is now a music room/playroom.

Best decision we made, Ribnick said of losing the wall. We use all of our house now.

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Lose a wall, gain a dream kitchen - GoErie.com

This is a Grandview Sunroom four season sunroom. Have this room added to your home with a heating/cooling system and you will be able to enjoys the outdoors year round.

Modern Farmhouse - Home Decor and Design - Susquehanna Style

4 Season Sunrooms Cost | Four Seasons Sunroom (13)

ideas for sunroom additions | This Piedmont Triad sunroom provides year-round beauty and comfort.

This layout is very much like the vision I have in my head for our backyard if we ever get around to fixing up the sunroom.

This is how I want the addition to be! Left will be extended last bedroom with closet(cough cough) straight out overlooking dining room and kitchen gets flipped around and to the right a great big living room, with lots of windows and French doors, to the covered patio

sun rooms | Peak Builders, Inc. - Additions & Sunrooms

Sunroom Addition (Shed Roof) Plans

Sunroom Addition Design Ideas, Pictures, Remodel, and Decor - page 5

Hagen Glass can keep the sun shining in all year round with our custom sunroom designs. http://www.hagenfirst.com/residential/sunrooms

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17 best ideas about Sunroom Addition on Pinterest | Home ...

By Mark J. Donovan

Glass Sunroom addition and solariums also provide an excellent return on investment. Todays prospective homebuyers look for homes that are bright and cheery, and have that outdoors feeling without the side effects of insects and extreme temperatures.

When planning a glass sunroom addition or solarium make sure you carefully consider the location and position of it. In many cases people prefer to add a sunroom addition or solarium off of a kitchen or family room area for maximum utilization.

In many cases, homeowners actually use sunroom additions or solariums as their kitchen dining area, family room, and home gym space.

Ideally a sunroom addition should be facing a south / southwest exposure to maximize sunlight exposure in the afternoon and evenings, particularly if it is to be located off of a family room. If your sunroom addition is to be located off of your kitchen then you may want to have it facing south / southeast to take advantage of the morning light.

Sunroom Addition Construction

When building a sunroom addition or solarium it is important that its design blend well into the existing home. The addition should meld into the existing homes structure as if it was designed and built during the homes original construction. You may want to enlist the services of a home addition architect to help with this process.

Besides the use of glass doors and windows, as well as skylights, sunroom additions and solariums frequently include ceramic tile floors to help absorb the suns rays.

The roof pitch and its position towards the suns track are also important considerations. For example, if you live in a northern climate the roof pitch needs to be steep enough so that snow can quickly melt off of it. Likewise, there is no point of having a sunroom addition or solarium if the roof surface is facing the north.

Once you have a set of sunroom addition plans, you can then begin the process of finding a contractor to build it. Selecting a qualified and professional sunroom addition contractor can be challenging. It is important to find the right one for your sunroom addition project to ensure that it is built correctly and to your budget and timeline.

One great way to locate a qualified sunroom addition contractor is to use a national home building contractor referral company. They have pre-screened and qualified home addition contractors all around the country and maintain their names and contact information in a database.

In addition, their services are free to the homeowner. The homeowner simply fills out a free online form for their specific home addition requirements and they will forward the information on to 3 or 4 sunroom addition contractors in your area. The contractors will then contact you to set up a time to meet with you and review your sunroom addition or solarium plans.

Obtaining Solarium or Sunroom Addition Contractor Price Quotes

When obtaining sunroom addition price quotes from contractors it is important to make sure that they provide you with a complete sunroom addition cost breakdown list of every phase of the project. The more detail in the sunroom addition cost breakdown list, or bid sheet, the more likely of an accurate sunroom addition cost proposal.

When interviewing potential sunroom addition contractors make sure you check their references. Usually a good litmus test for evaluating a home building contractor is to see how long the reference list is.

The longer this list is, the higher the likelihood that he has a solid reputation. A long reference list also helps to get a feel for how long the contractor has been in business and his level of pride in his work. Regardless of the length of the reference list, it is still important to contact at least 3 or 4 of the references.

Contact a couple of more recent projects completed by the contractor and a couple 2-5 years out in the past. This way you can see how he has been trending with his work, as well as to see how his work holds the test of time.

Finally, it is also important to note that glass sunroom addition construction costs are typically higher than building a new home. The reason for this is that a room addition requires additional effort to tie it into the home. In addition, a new home construction project offers economies of scale. With a sunroom addition, you may be adding only a few hundred square feet of area, whereas with a new home construction project you may be building 2,000 to 4,000 square feet of living area. In addition, windows are expensive and will represent a significant cost in the construction of your sunroom addition.

A glass sunroom addition or solarium is a great addition to any home and is well worth the investment. Just make sure you plan accordingly before breaking ground. By doing so you will increase your chances of a successful sunroom addition. Good luck with your sunroom addition project!

For more help on building a sunroom addition, see HomeAdditionPlus.coms Home Addition Bid Sheets. OurHome Addition Bid Sheets provide you with the knowledge and information on how to plan a home building project, and what to look for when hiring contractors. They also include detailed cost breakdown tables and spreadsheets for estimating your own new home construction building costs.

Fill out our 3-5 minute quick and easy form, and receive a free price quote on a house addition from one of our prescreened and licensed home addition contractors. This process is free and there is no obligation to continue once you receive your home addition price estimate.

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Sunroom Additions | Solariums - Home Addition Planning

By Pam George, contributing writer Published 1:21 p.m. ET April 14, 2017 | Updated 1:22 p.m. ET April 14, 2017

An exemplarily contemporary(Photo: Victoria Dickinson & Associates, Patterson-Schwartz Real Estate)

It was love at first sight. As soon as the current owners saw the wooded 5-acre lot on Twaddell Mill Road, just off Route 52 in Centreville, they had to have it. Initially, they planned to take their time before building. But they were so enchanted that the custom contemporary took shape nearly right away. Their labor of love is a remarkable 5,000-square-foot that offers stunning views of protected land in every direction.

An exemplarily contemporary(Photo: Victoria Dickinson & Associates, Patterson-Schwartz Real Estate)

Nestled in a valley, this impressive residence has the open, innovative floor plan that has long characterized a contemporary. Its only recently that architects have borrowed this element for Colonial designs.

The foyer includes a floating staircase that gives guests a full view of the living room beyond. Because the living room has a bank of picture windows and a vaulted ceiling, you can also glimpse the stunning scenery outdoors. This room also boasts a floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace that soars to the apex. The beamed ceiling and wood-trimmed balcony above lend a chic, rustic element that suits the landscape.

Both the entrance hall and the living room flow into the dining room, which seamlessly adjoins the sunroom and renovated kitchen for a continuous light-filled space. Owners cleverly put a formal two-door closet with shelves in the dining room for serving dishes, good china and other items needed for entertaining.

Storage is also a hallmark of the updated kitchen, which has granite countertops, a five-burner cooktop and wraparound counters that provide double duty. For instance, one holds a wet bar with sink and icemaker, which is accessible from the family room. This warm space, which has sliders to the wraparound deck, features the second stone fireplace.

The kitchen adjoins a laundry room that is so large it can easily hold a home office in addition to a built-in desk in the kitchen. Because the laundry room has a door to the two-car garage, it can serve as a mudroom.

An exemplarily contemporary(Photo: Victoria Dickinson & Associates, Patterson-Schwartz Real Estate)

All these features are impressive, but it is the step-down sunroom addition that will give most visitors pause. This welcoming space is easily visible from the kitchen, thanks to a breakfast bar (which has shelves on the sunroom side) and the open dining room.

The sunroom holds a spacious seating area and a dining area, both of which have stellar views two ponds stocked with trout, bass and koi and the private slope of protected land.

In another nod toward the future, this contemporary has a first-floor owners suite with a dressing area complete with his-and-her closets and a makeup table a sleeping area and an en suite bathroom with a soaking tub, linen closet and shower. It even has its own balcony.

Upstairs, there are three secondary bedrooms with a full hall bathroom and access to two attics for a generous amount of storage space.

The finished area of the lower level has a fireplace, space for billiards and additional space for a playroom or recreation room. Theres even a full-size stove, sink and fridge. Double doors in the unfinished section open wide, so a canoe, an inflatable dingy or a riding mower can come through. This section also has a workroom, which is perfect for woodworking, gardening or another hobby.

An exemplarily contemporary(Photo: Victoria Dickinson & Associates, Patterson-Schwartz Real Estate)

The covered lower deck on this level will entice visitors to pull up an Adirondack chair for a meditative moment. The well-landscaped beds, glistening ponds and gently swaying trees are instantly calming. Stress will melt off your shoulders.

To be sure, the phrase idyllic retreat will come to mind when you tour this home. But keep in mind that it is five minutes from the heart of Centreville. Greenville and Chadds Ford are a quick drive from home.

Located in one of Delawares most desirable zip codes, this property is a rare find for the nature-lover who prizes convenience and the modern lifestyle.

An exemplarily contemporary(Photo: Victoria Dickinson & Associates, Patterson-Schwartz Real Estate)

The Home

LOCATION: 66 Twaddell Mill Road, Centreville STYLE: Contemporary, 4 BR, 2.2b; car garage PRICE: $1,185,000 SCHOOL DISTRICT: Red Clay Consolidated NEARBY SHOPPING LOCATIONS: Centreville, Greenville, Chadds Ford, Route 202 DIRECTIONS: Kennett Pike (Route 52) to Twaddell Mill Road.

For more information, call Victoria Dickinson at (302) 463-4720, Victoria Dickinson & Associates, Patterson-Schwartz Real Estate. Or, visit dickinsonassociates.com.

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Centreville Home space & style in tranquil setting - The News Journal

The Love Shack, a sister restaurant to Black Sheep, will be a Polynesian-themed bar and restaurant. It's due to open in late May at 106 W. Seeboth St.(Photo: The Love Shack)

The Polynesian bar and restaurant planned for Walker's Point will have a menu designed by sister restaurant Black Sheep's chef and serve rum flights at the mezzanine Rhum Bar, the owners say.

Michael Sorge and Wesley Shaver, who own Black Sheep wine bar and restaurant in Walker's Point, released details Monday about the Love Shack, 106 W. Seeboth St. That's in the Point on the River building, in space previously occupied by Wine Maniacs on the River. Sorge and Shaver's partner in the project is Gary LaCourt, CEO of jewelry company Forever Companies.

The Journal Sentinel first reported the plans last week.

Shaver, the managing partner, said in the written statement that the setting'sviews of the water were well-suited to the Polynesian theme. The building is at the confluence of the Milwaukee and Menomonee rivers.

The restaurant will serve dishes by chef Adam Pawlak such asbraised pork in a steamed bun; seared scallop and crisped Spam with mango and radish salad; vegetable and tuna poke bowls; and melon salad with roasted red pepper andcitrus vinaigrette. Prices for the plates are expected to be $15 or less, Shaver said.

Drinks will be rum-based and made with fresh fruit juices, and the upstairs Rhum Bar will stock rare rums.

The Love Shack will have a second-floor deck off the Rhum Bar in addition to patio seating off the first floor. The patio will have lounge furniturein additions to tables, and will have fire tables and palm trees.

Itwill be open daily; the opening is expected in late May. Find the Love Shack online on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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Details on food, drink at new Polynesian spot the Love Shack - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (blog)

Last week, Ship of Heroes was brought to KickStarter and closed all in the space of a few days. Though that may be the case for now, the team has taken the lessons learned to heart to form a solid plan for the future. Check out our exclusive interview to see where Ship of Heroes is headed next.

MMORPG: Why cancel the Ship of Heroes Kickstarter?

A: There are a well-established set of criteria for successful MMORPG Kickstarters. For example, if a new MMORPG has enthusiastic supporters, it will draw about $100 per donor, compared to $35-50 for videogames in general. SoH was drawing about $115 for several days and ended at $108, showing that we have solid enthusiasm for the game. But Kickstarters in this genre also need to achieve about 25% of the goal in the first three days to succeed. We achieved about a third of that amount, which reinforced the messages we received from possible donors, who were hearing about the game for the first time during the Kickstarter, and weren't ready to back it yet. Pulling the program was simply smart, decisive business sense. Were building a game, and after three days we knew that we needed to go down another route.

MMORPG: What have you learned from your Kickstarter?

A: First, we've learned is that there is a very enthusiastic crowd of SoH supporters out there willing to support funding of the games development. Second, there's a much larger group of possible supporters who had not heard of Ship of Heroes before the Kickstarter. They need time to learn and become excited about the game. Third, we've learned that we should make a more focused game and launch sooner. Before the Kickstarter we were considering building a larger game before launch, taking more time and money to polish and expand. That decision is made for us now. In a way, its quite helpful; our percent complete just went up.

MMORPG: What is the path forward for Ship of Heroes now?

A: The Kickstarter allowed us to understand what our community wants, with more clarity. They want to be certain that we actually have a game that they will be able to play. Some are ready to fund us now, and more will be ready as the game advances. Given the high level of support weve received from our community since we canceled the Kickstarter, well develop a smaller game at the beginning and then expand it using subscription revenues to become the game we originally planned. This allows our supporters to experience the game during development, and to have more input into the direction that we take. The biggest change we are making is to limit the environments we will develop before launch. We have an incredible setting, Apotheosis City, right now. Were going to improve it and use it for the launch. Weve also decided to limit to 20 levels of character advancement initially. Of course, this could change if we decide to go back to crowdfunding in the future.

MMORPG: Do you think Ship of Heroes will have another crowdfunding event?

A: Its quite possible, but not for a while. Theres a trade-off in indie game development. A small team can promote their game continuously and let building it take second place, or the reverse. We put game development first; coding, story, and art implementation are the top priorities of the team. But we also know that we have to continue to reveal a steady stream of real, integrated advancements to our supporters, not just a stream of words punctuated with a few pieces of concept art. Our fans want much, much more than that.

MMORPG: What will supporters of Ship of Heroes see next?

A: Were going to be showing some very significant additions between now and the end of 2017. First up will be a look at the Sci-fi interiors of Apotheosis City, something we have not shown before in any setting. Its a major change for us to show interior scenes because of the additional art assets, lighting techniques, story elements, etc. In addition, the areas that well be showing will be used for our first instanced missions. Instanced missions are incredibly important to our community, because many have had bad experiences with MMOs that over-emphasize street-sweeping, which can lead to waiting for enemies to respawn after someone else kills them. Were eliminating that problem right at the outset. Well also be expanding our list of factions and showing more details about them, and well be showing off a lot more details about the powersets and powers that can be used to customize your characters. Were still on track to take some friends of the game through escorted Alpha testing at the end of 2017.

MMORPG: Do you think there's a stigma attached to the game now, with the failed Kickstarter? How do you combat that public perception?

A: No there is no stigma. In fact theres a bit of the reverse. Our community has rallied around us, viewers per day on YouTube actually increased after we canceled, we have more subscribers to our newsletter than ever, and the number of people asking us to set up donations on our website is quite large. Since we showed a very advanced state of pre-Kickstarter game development, and a setting that allows new content and new experiences for our players, our community has actually been extremely supportive. We also get a lot of kudos for canceling quickly and moving forward with a good Plan B. Our forums are full of ideas for pushing Ship of Heroes to a launch. No superhero KS has succeeded in several years, and it has even been difficult for non-superhero MMORPGs. These days people understand that there is almost no connection between succeeding on Kickstarter and actually building a game. As long as we keep producing and showing real progress in development we think public support will continue to grow.

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Ship of Heroes - Lessons Learned Lead to a Plan for the Future - MMORPG.com

Longtime and long-suffering Boston Breakers fans will know this story: the one about the No. 1 draft pick and the season that wasnt. The struggle, and the trade, and the what could have been.

If you know the story to which Im referring, congratulations youre probably old and reading this in between fits of all-caps tweeting at the Tumblring teens about how back in your day the only way to watch a professional womens soccer game was via days-later grainy YouTube clips shot from space on the used camcorder your grandparents gifted your parents with the express purpose of recording your sisters dance recitals in the 1980s.

If you have no idea what Im talking about, first, please stop trying to teach me Snapchat. Second, lets take a walk down memory lane and make a pit stop in a place called Cautionary Tale. It is 2009, the first year of Womens Professional Soccer. The Boston Breakers, with the first pick in the first-ever WPS draft, select a promising young striker out of USC.

With an Olympics already under her belt, Amy Rodriguez was well on her way to becoming a fixture on the USWNT by the time the Breakers picked her up for the inaugural WPS season. Rodriguez was supposed to be the next big thing or one of the big things in this brand new league; one of the next generation of the U.S.s seemingly endless supply of star strikers. Rodriguez was fast, could get into good positions, and had a nose for goal.

Once she pulled on that Breakers blue though, all that promise disappeared, washed out to sea on the wave thats adorned the Bostons crest for so many years. Whatever success A-Rod was having on the international level never quite translated to the week-in-week-out grind of the professional game, and by the end of her rookie season, Rodriguezs contributions included a just a single goal and a lot of frustration.

By the following season, A-Rod had been traded to Philadelphia, where she quickly became an essential part of an Independence team that made it all the way to the WPS championship game.

Now, eight years and one league later, the Breakers are again the owners of the No. 1 draft pick, though this time it came from last years last place finish, Bostons second time at the bottom of the table in as many seasons. With that top pick at the 2017 college draft, Boston again went for a promising young talent with some time with the USWNT under her belt. On a January day in Los Angeles, Rose Lavelle became a Boston Breaker.

In the context of Rodriguez like if youre reading this while still in Cautionary Tale circa 2009 Boston picking up Lavelle is a terrifying prospect. Its almost enough to make you wish someone else got her. Also, if you are still in 2009, dont get attached to WPS; it gets super sad toward the end.

While Bostons track record with the top pick and just in general may not be that great, its also maybe not quite fair to compare Lavelle to what happened to A-Rod nearly a decade ago. Though the two share the distinction of going first and getting a boost from the USWNT hype train, thats about where the similarities end.

The most obvious difference is that were in a whole other league now, and one that despite the fact we just found out, a whole two days before the start of the season, where and how to watch the games doesnt feel like its flying quite as much by the seat of its pants.

Were in year five, smashing through the previously impenetrable three-year barrier that felled the previous two leagues. The relative infrastructure, history, and stability that the NWSL brings as compared to WPS, especially when Rodriguez was a rookie, means that at the very least, there are four other people who once stood where Lavelle is now, and based on where at least three of them are now, things will probably turn out OK.

Perhaps the tale we should be looking at for comparisons sake isnt A-Rods at all. Perhaps we should instead head west, to Chicago in 2015. The Red Stars, for all their struggles in the WPS era and in the early days of NWSL, made the playoffs for the first time in 2015, and they did it largely on the strength of a team devoid of the kind of names youd think theyd need to get there.

Unlike some of the leagues other teams, Chicagos never been particularly flashy. The Red Stars have made few trades over the years, and beyond retirements, no ones really fled. In 2015, with many of the NWSLs top players revolving in and out of the picture due to the World Cup, the Red Stars quietly became one of the leagues best teams, and they did it largely on the strength of a handful of rookies and players whod come up in Chicago.

Sure, sometimes they had Julie Johnston and Christen Press, but mostly it was players like Danielle Colaprico, Arin Gilliland, Sofia Huerta and Vanessa DiBernardo who saw the Red Stars through.

Boston, without many big names to lose (Lavelle is the Breakers only USWNT allocation), has a chance to start to duplicate what the Red Stars have done. In addition to Lavelle, Boston picked up Morgan Andrews, Ifeoma Onumonu, Midge Purce and goalkeeper Sammy Jo Prudhomme in the 2017 draft. Its a rookie class that could bring some success to Boston, and more importantly, one the Breakers could start to build off of.

Speaking of building, Boston has started to establish its own solid core of players returning year after year. Julie King has been a Breaker since the inaugural NWSL season, and Libby Stout, Abby Smith, Christen Westphal, Kylie Strom, Natasha Dowie, Angela Salem and Brooke Elby are all in their second season in Breakers blue and white.

In addition to the rookies and that core of returning Breakers, Bostons added a handful of NWSL veterans in places it really needed them. None are particularly flashy signings, but all are big improvements.

Adriana Leon was a Breaker in 2013 and returns to Boston after stints in Chicago, Western NY, and Switzerland. Tiffany Weimer was briefly a Breaker in the WPS days and returns after playing just about everywhere else in both the NWSL and Europe. Amanda Frisbie, despite someones best efforts to make her disappear, joins Boston after stints in Western NY, Kansas City, and Iceland. Amanda DaCosta has played for both Chicago and Washington. Megan Oyster spent two seasons in Washington before being traded to Boston in November. Allysha Chapman spent last season in Houston.

Chapman (Bostons sole Canadian allocation) and Oyster are good additions to a defense that was at least partially responsible for a league-worst minus-33 goal differential in 2016. That Smith is back on the field after a suffering a season-ending knee injury less than halfway through her second appearance for Boston last year is more good news for a team thats been hemorrhaging goals.

Lavelle and Andrews are two of 2017s most promising rookies. And that Dowie will be around for more than the last month-and-a-half of the season is one of the best things that could happen to an offense that looked like it had all but forgotten the meaning of the word. Forgotten-like Dowie somehow led the Breakers in scoring in 2016 and she only scored three goals, including the game-winner in her debut, the whole thing leaving Boston fans to wonder what life wouldve been like had she been around for a whole season.

This year, well get the answer to the Dowie question, to the one about what happens when you keep your high draft picks rather than trade them away for players who turn out to be busts, and to the one about whether what happened way back when with A-Rod was a fluke or the start of a pattern thats taken eight years to develop.

Part of the answer to all those questions, probably, is that things wont change completely overnight. Boston likely wont make the playoffs this season, but the Breakers probably wont finish dead last for a third consecutive season, either. This whole building a soccer team thing is something of a puzzle after all, and for the first time, Matt Beard and Co. at least have the pieces that are the same colors as the picture on the box. Whether the cat comes in at night while they sleep and knocks the whole thing onto the floor and, like Amanda Frisbie, disappears under the couch again? October is a long way away.

Houston Dash vs. Chicago Red Stars, 2:00 PM ET, BBVA Compass Stadium (go90)

Portland Thorns FC vs. Orlando Pride, 3:00 PM ET, Providence Park (Lifetime)

Washington Spirit vs. North Carolina Courage, 3:00 PM ET, Maryland SoccerPlex (go90)

Seattle Reign FC vs. Sky Blue FC, 10:00 PM ET, Memorial Stadium (go90)

FC Kansas City vs. Boston Breakers, 6:00 PM ET, Childrens Mercy Victory Field (go90)

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NWSL Week 1 preview and fixtures: The Boston Breakers have hope again - SB Nation

Zach Britton stranded the winning run on second base in the ninth inning Thursday night, walking a tightrope through a wild final frame. But he still managed to convert his 53rd straight save opportunity in the Orioles 2-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Orioles closer allowed a one-out single to Troy Tulowitzki and then walked Russell Martin before both runners moved into scoring position on a wild pitch.

Britton induced a weak groundout from Kevin Pillar a ball that Britton pursued but retreated on because shortstop J.J. Hardy had a play at first to keep the runners idle. Britton then got former Oriole Steve Pearce to fly out to center for the final out.

Been there enough to where its been easy, its been hard, Britton said. I know that if I just make a pitch, I can get out of it. So that is really all Im thinking about. Its been a little easier obviously the more experience I get. But youre one pitch away most of the time and you just have to keep that in your mind.

I think you just slow the game down. You dont make it a bigger deal than it is. A rollover through the hole from Tulowitzki. So, OK, ground ball. Close pitch to Martin. Good at-bat by him. So just make a pitch.

The save was Brittons fourth of the season and gives him the third-longest consecutive saves streak in baseball history, trailing only Tom Gordon (54) and Eric Gagne (84).

For the second time in this young season, Britton had to retire lefty masher Pearce with the game on the line. Britton converted his first save of the season on April 5 by getting Pearce to ground into a game-ending double play with the bases loaded to seal a 3-1 win.

Ive seen him hit quite a bit now and faced him quite a bit now, Britton said. He hits lefties well, so make good pitches. He had a good at-bat right there, got a ball elevated; just hit a ball right at [center fielder Adam Jones].

The Orioles (6-2) tossed three scoreless innings in relief of starter Kevin Gausman, who allowed one run on five hits. Darren ODay, coming off back-to-back rocky outings, tossed a perfect seventh and right-hander Brad Brach retired all three batters he faced in the eighth.

Lefty improvement: One of the Orioles offseason priorities was improving against left-handed pitching, and facing Blue Jays starter Francisco Liriano on Thursday in their first game at Rogers Centre since last years American League wild-card game offered a quick reminder.

It was then, with Liriano in the game, that Orioles manager Buck Showalter turned to Ubaldo Jimenez instead of Britton in the 11th inning, playing for the long haul in a game that soon ended on Edwin Encarnacions walk-off homer that inning.

Over the seasons opening days, the Orioles have faced their share of lefties, with Liriano the fourth left-handed starter in eight games.

While its a small sample size, the Orioles have done just enough damage against lefties while fielding a batting order with more platoon bats, but its far from a marked improvement.

That was the case Thursday. All four left-handed starters have thrown quality starts against the Orioles Liriano (6 2/3 innings, two earned runs, five hits, two walks, 10 strikeouts) and J.A. Happ, CC Sabathia and Drew Pomeranz before him.

The Orioles scraped up just enough offense against Liriano, producing some timely hitting in the fifth inning on run-scoring hits by second baseman Jonathan Schoop and Hardy.

Schoop slugging: After going 2-for-19 in his first six games, Schoop had his second straight multihit game Thursday with a pair of doubles.

Schoop had the Orioles first hit of the night against Liriano with a one-out double in the third and then followed back-to-back singles by Welington Castillo and Trey Mancini in the fifth with an RBI double.

Castillo scored on the play, but Mancini was thrown out at home.

There wasnt much margin for error today and Jon squared a ball up, Showalter said. Liriano didnt make many mistakes. There was such a small margin for error and most times you are not going to come out on the winning end of a game the way Liriano was pitching. But Kevin was a tad better.

Hardy followed with an RBI single to score Schoop, capping a run of four straight hits off Liriano to lead off the inning. The Orioles entered the fifth with just one hit off Liriano.

Gentry struggles: Craig Gentry, one of the clubs platoon additions to play against left-handed pitching, made his third start in the past four games and was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

Gentry, whose playing time has increased with outfielder Joey Rickard on the disabled list, is hitless in 12 at bats and is 0-for-10 against left-handers.

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Orioles observations: Zach Britton dodges damage in ninth - Baltimore Sun

Melissa Russell mrussell@wickedlocal.com @WickedLocalStar

Winchesters School Committee took the initial steps earlier this month to address district overcrowding by submitting statements of interest to the Massachusetts School Building Authority outlining the need for the renovation of two elementary schools.

Committee member Chris Nixon said the board took the step seeking partnership with the MSBA to take advantage of a window of opportunity. He added that the SOI was "not a building plan" for projects at the Lynch and Muraco Elementary Schools, but a required early step with the state agency.

"If we didnt submit now we would have to wait another year," he said.

Nixon said the MSBA was allowing the district to submit SOIs for both schools, but as they were required to indicate a preference, the district put Lynch forward as the priority.

The MSBA privileges certain criteria for reimbursement, Nixon said, all of which are challenges faced by the Winchester School District. They include existing overcrowding, future enrollment growth, future overcrowding and physical plant age and condition.

"These are big for us," Nixon said. "Currently we are four classrooms short and are taking spaces that should not be used as classrooms."

Master plan

The districts facilities master plan, designed to identify needs and goals for the next 10 years, is currently being finalized, and information from the plan informed the SOI submission, Nixon said. The master plan working group is currently developing recommendations for space use at McCall Middle School and the elementary schools, as well as offering plans to relocate the districts central office, currently at the former Parkhurst School.

Nixon said that while all options for dealing with the space crunch are on the table, including using Parkhurst for classroom space, no firm solution has been as yet worked out.

"Any final master plan is going to call for the complete renovation, expansion or replacement of Lynch and Muraco because we know were going to need those two schools," he said. The 2007 master plan had called for renovation or reconstruction and expansion of the elementary schools and the current working group also considers the work as necessary, Nixon said.

Enrollment and growth

From 2013 to 2012, as statewide elementary school enrollment fell by three percent, Winchester saw its enrollment grow by more than 25 percent, Nixon said. This enrollment growth led to the MSBA agreeing to partner with Winchester on the

reconstruction and expansion of Winchester High School during the construction of the Vinson-Owen Elementary School. Elementary schools were redistricted in 2012 and the central office moved from Lynch to Parkhurst to free up additional classrooms.

Continued enrollment growth has stressed the elementary schools since the opening of the Vinson-Owen school in 2013. Nixon said Winchesters student population from kindergarten through grade 12 has grown 5.2 percent since 2013, from 4,396 students to 4,623. Elementary school enrollment has risen 2.3 percent, from 2,105 to 2,135 students. Adding to the crunch is the success of the Specialized Learning Center programs, which has grown and taken up more classroom space. These programs were created to keep special education students in district as much as possible.

Enrollment projections

The potential arrival of large-scale affordable housing projects spurred the School Committee to update enrollment projections, Nixon said. The master plan working group has identified projects likely to be completed in the five and 10-year timeframe and is accounting for them in enrollment projections. It has also been tracking demolition permits to see how many demolitions of older homes "result in new bedrooms," Nixon said.

"We are looking under every stone because we dont want a bunch of surprises," he said.

At present, the working group projects an 11.2 percent rise, or 240 students between 2021 and 2022 in kindergarten through fifth grade, and another 58 students between 2026 and 2027. They project a 12.9 percent increase, or 147 sixth through eighth grade students in the five-year span, and an additional 28 by 2027. The number the schools will be using for their planning is 200 new units of housing in the next 20 years, Nixon said.

Physical plant

There are significant capital needs at Lynch and Muraco, Nixon said, and these were included in the SOI.

"At Muraco, were looking at $4 million to $4.5 million of priority capital work including replacing fire alarm systems, windows, flooring, the electrical system. If you look at all of Muracos needs over the next 10 years, the figure is closer to $22 million," he said.

The most urgent needs at Lynch are replacing the boiler and heating piping system and window replacement.

"It adds up," he said. "When you look at all of the needs, it is closer to $30 million 10 years out."

Nixon said the building needs and enrollment issues are behind the towns need to partner with the MSBA if it identifies Winchester as a town to support.

"We may be fortunate to see the MSBA to reimburse us one-third to 40 percent of the cost," he said. "Thats why it was important we submit the SOI before the window closed."

Link:
Master plan will identify anticipated enrollment crunch - Wicked Local Winchester