A few snaps from last winter.

Though no pictures to show, we enjoyed a spectacular show of fall color! followed by a delightfully frequent snows all winter...

Sisterly play took root this winter- a great gift!
With the build behind us, I finally flew to visit my western sisters, taking one daughter along for each trip.


Our home is full of experiements, play stations, music, and materials in use...

18 months and sturdy on her feet! Heads outside whenever she can.

This one builds houses all over,  for a pet fictional character

Daughters can paddle around w Papa now that we live where the projects are!

Sing

I've been singing this song since April 2015 after a major loss, and at the start of a huge uncharted journey. I'm singing it today with all the dynamics of real life, choosing Hope, Faith, and Love.
(song) Blessed are the ones...

Stream development- amazing therapy, gift, delight

May

May

Spring leaves me speechless every time. 
The thrill of the dearest wonder beneath tender 
greens I've never seen before breathes a hush into my soul. 

We can't think about it too much- the what if's...
what if the cosmic wonders ceased, the axel on the globe broke or the perfect spin ground to a halt. 
If Spring betrayed our vital trust all hope would implode!
Ah, but lest our lungs burn, we let the gasp of fear escape and sip 
another gift of 20.946 percent oxygen,  0.9340% argon, N2, CO2, trace gases, etcetera
and stride out into the bright sunlight.

Then sings my soul...!

Time Flies

Six months have tripped by since we moved into our homegrown abode with nary a post from me!

Life is finally finding a bit more rhythm and order, and so 
here, with our moved-in photo from October, is a advert that more photos will be forth-coming.


Button it up (posted out of order)

Well, here's a first: I found a draft from last winter that was never posted! So now just before we move in, here's a look back inside those walls...

***************
Wall-board and paint- what else could there yet to finish, right?! Well there remains plenty to button up this project- extensive trim, stair and loft railings, outlets, lights, counters, plumbing fixtures...and more! But I was encouraged by a friend yesterday: "You end up appreciating something more if you have to wait for it."  So we will!

Here's a peek at the progress. 

The batts of insulation...are wool!
Close-up
He knows it's his home.
this is a dynamic project with a wide variety of people involved- here a friend swapped lending us a hand for M helping put a hitch on their vehicle.
wall and ceiling board going up
This is a stack of wallboard made of magnesium oxide, a mineral. doesn't burn, doesn't rot. It's used as cement all over a huge asian nation. When we started exploring something other than gypsum (typical "drywall") 2 yrs ago, we could rustle up only 1 start-up distributor in this country. Now it's exploded here and marketed for exterior applications.
Last look at the insides of these walls and ceiling panels

Postures of Home

I have held many postures and pulled many non-ergonomical stunts and aerobics in this house-building project, during its nearly 4 years of active development.
  • I have certainly stood uncertainly turning toward it
  • my binoculars up scoping it out
  • hands on hips
  • hand in hand
  • sleeves rolled up
  • back aching
  • held it at arms length
  • treading water with nose barely above
  • paddling hard
  • bowed under a heavy load
  • head cocked in surprise
  • hands linked to others and staying afloat
  • head up making a plan
  • stumped
  • sitting
  • waiting
  • wanting to throw in the towel...

...and then as I spent two recent days on the property...with wonder, I found myself in a new posture:

with open arms, ready to welcome this place as Home. I am surer than ever that we will actually live there (within 3 weeks!). And I want to live there- we will have lots of fun living there! And we will have so much to share there. M & I agreed: It might even pay off (Though we have definitely wondered!).

Here's to flexibility, aerobics, and new postures!

laundry racks!

Trying out the new (ancient) phone

attic stairs

A friend details windows!

Taking a break
Month 44

Reality

Wow- a clean kitchen :)
At long last, we have a working kitchen with sinks and counters!
...and the reality is, we're still in a construction zone. It can feel like no matter how much time, energy, money and flexibility we throw at this project, it never quite ties up...

So much effort has gone in...




and there's lots to go...





So we feel desperate, done, very tired, and overwhelmed most of the time. But we will keep going and this is a good gift we're working towards, a gift we plan to share. Meanwhile, many are forging on, every day with no promises, little hope, and much more suffering along the way.

We're looking forward to a cleaning day and a moving day, when friends can come and make things things suddenly come together...hopefully in Oct (if possible) or Nov (for sure).

Transition

It's easy to crane my neck...
'lookin' around the bend' (a line from our new fav band) and longing for the promised improvements of the next season / location.  But this past season of 4 yrs has been full of stress and, not surprising, full of learning. I don't want to sound like I'm trying to be sage or trite- I don't feel like that. I'm just to write down reminders to myself as I head into the coming transition to our new home location.

Don't wish away the present.

Unstable housing consumes all extra energy- consider people in that super-stressful situation.
Robin's nest. They probably thought the sticks would leaf out! So I draped shade on top...



Things take time, especially good things.

8 years old


 Having to bear the process... makes the progress and rewards sweeter.
Final inspection celebration "out" to eat

Time is hard to estimate and we don't know the whole picture. Get busy relaxing in the saddle- you'll burn up if you're uptight constantly.




dance moves

can you canoe?


Arrival is a relative term.
we live with a lovely view. right where we are!



Families weather things together. 

on top of the ridge behind new house
Pictures serve as memory cues, but take no illusions of all happiness and fun from this blog. We're as real and imperfect as they come. Thanks for coming along.

Occupancy

On April 2016 we received our permit to build and Aug 2018 we received our permit to occupy!

Like a current of water that finally breaks up the log jam, suddenly, after pushing so long...we are moving... We may live in the house!

come on up!

M and our enduring friend/contractor

a view from the livingroom towards the kitchen

I belong here!

Inspector...moving on!

Looking out the south side. We swapped cabinet and wall space for windows :)

M's signature piece that finished the railings (not all oiled yet)

2nd floor den and that heirloom player piano- whose crazy idea was that?!


Fear not...the list of finishing and prep tasks is long, but now we're in a different gear. We're no longer building a house, but building our home...and we can stay. and host. and plant. and tend. and grow.

Lights...

Lighting the first fire, testing the chimney

Lights went on in our new house for the first time the other evening- at the flip of a switch! It was only a bathroom and bedroom, but that felt pretty excitingly real.

Last fall, we had relinquished the timeline of the build, but after taking stock this Spring, we have laid a plan to the finish. After Mark puts his vacation days into the house this summer, we will turn our efforts to re-locating our household through the Fall.

Like any plan, there are many  factors that could change the course, but hey, that means we can officially see lights not only in the bathroom...but at the end of the tunnel!

Big deal: Inspections

Last week, on the morning before Thanksgiving, we received a very good inspection, called the "Rough-In". That means the inspector came and looked over all the 'guts' of the house, everything we won't see again: wires, pipes, drains, framing, fire-proofing between levels, electrical codes, etc. It's all about safety.

After hours, months, (years, if you count design) and brain-banging behind this, M & G followed the inspector around as he gave it a critical eye. It's nerve-wracking, like taking a huge exam. At the same time, it's also pretty helpful to have a seasoned eye look over your shoulder at all the crucial stuff that makes a house function. It can also be affirming after all the hard work and design.

Everything exposed for inspection

Little M entertained herself pretending outside. She was building a mouse-sized fire. She has been such a champ!

Into, what I call, the bunker (the washroom), where EVERYTHING is.

This guy knew his stuff. He carried only a clipboard, no checklist. and the code book is now multi-volume, inches thick.


We did really well. The 6 items to fix were, as M said, child's play, in comparison to the what they've been working on. Oh the whole team was joyous! We got the stamp 'Okay to insulate'. Woohoo! This is a big deal. (in fact, at the writing of this post, a week later, insulation inspection is scheduled for tomorrow...and then the drywall goes up...and then, as outlined in my post 'Building Phases', we're rounding the final corner of the "Getting Inspected" phase. What remains is the Certificate of Occupancy (CO).

The gift: Here's the story behind the inspection. We did not know who would arrive, since our previous inspector had retired. Well...in walks JS. He greeted us by name and said, 'I spoke with you in my office 2 years ago exactly today, the day before Thanksgiving.' He remembered us and the unique ideas we had and he knew that things might be a bit unconventional. He also knew that the new and inexperienced inspector might look at us cross-eyed...so JS took it upon himself to do our inspection. What a kindness! It meant that he worked late, on a day when the holiday started at noon. It was a great gift, graciously and professionally delivered, and willl not be forgotten.