Flooring Tile - How to tile a shower in many small sessions?

I have a shower that has been waiting to be tiled for a year and a half now. I need it to be done by autumn, but I have no block of time that I can take off from work/family. I have decided to try to take it a bit at a time. This would ideally be a little bit every night for a week or so, but may degrade into a longer span of time.

My questions:
- Should I push to do an entire surface in one session (i.e. avoid having a "cure seam" where I did half a wall one night, and the other half the next)?

- Should I finish all of the tiling, then all of the grouting, or would it be better to tile a surface, then grout it before tiling the next surface?

Thanks!
~john
- Is it (and this is more of a general question) better to start with the walls or the floor? I would think I should start with the wall so I can stand on the floor w/o worry, and not have to be as careful of dropping thinset.

For reference, here is a pic of the job:
http://iekdyg.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pDh-0tvXuSlRG6LldlaJ4xfQSdXVEjY3zn1aG6PyySaFtpR6O87ZgcIxFc6ovI28gEYvzOO3xGxLwjmtlkWhZCg/IMG_5411_sm.jpg

Looks like the hard work is done! I would do the floor first so the wall sits on it. Thinset wipes up, and if you are doing it in increments, it will have time to cure before you walk on it. You won't have a "cure line" with thinset. You can do half a wall, then another half, just wipe off the excess thinset with the flat edge of the blade so you will have a smooth surface to start again with. Now, grout is another animal, Mix it all at one time and apply it all at one time to get a smooth color rendition. You can have the floor done the first night.

I am getting ready to start this weekend, and I found a flaw in my logic. The issue is with mixing up the thinset. I have it in a 50 lb bag. For past projects, I have always mixed up the whole thing, following the instructions for the amount of water to add. If I only need enough to do, say, the floor, I have no idea of the proportions of mix to water. I have a bit of familiarity with what the consistency should be when applying. This is after the slake, however. If I mix it up and it is too wet/dry, can I add more mix/water? Do I need to let it slake again?

Thanks,
~john

Think "peanut butter". That's about the consistency you want in your thinset. I doubt I have ever mixed a full bag at a time with the proportions stated on the bag. You don't want to retemper thinset. I like mixing what I can use in an hour or so. That way it doesn't tend to dry out too much and I am able to keep a consistent ridge configuration. I am sure there are other opinions and ideas that may come along this afternoon, so stay tuned.

The point that I am hesitant on (due to inexperience), is does the consistency change after a 10-15 min slake? In other words, if I mix it up and it looks perfect, but then I let it sit for 15 min and when I come back it is now too dry, do I adjust, or just toss it and mix up a new batch?

Thanks,
~john

Actually, I just read this:
How To Use Trowels and Thinset (http://www.tileandstonetips.com/trowels.html)

Now pour in a half bag or less of dry thinset mix. Mix it a little with the beater bar attached to the drill. The mixer speed shouldn’t be more than 300 revolutions per minute, or medium to low on a variable speed drill. High speed mixing adds too much air. Gradually add more cool water until the mix is sticky wet, but does not slump or fall down when you stop mixing. Mix very thoroughly up and down, round and round, side to side until the mix is creamy smooth with no lumps. When you have it mixed to the right consistency, it’s time to stop and slake. Letting the mortar slake or rest is a very important step in a good thinset mix. Let the thinset rest for about 10 minutes. This allows time for the dry activators and additives to chemically do their work. The thinset will start to stiffen-up and get thick. Now re-mix the batch and the mix will loosen-up and return to its smoother and looser original consistency.

Key to the instructions is "re-mix". Don't add water. It will return to the original consistency on its own.