Looking back at my other posts, I haven't had an update on my cabin since January, so here are some things that have been accomplished in the last 3 months:
1. Cabinets are polyurathaned and installed- in the kitchen and in the bathroom (we have one more small one we want to install in the kitchen), and are thinking about putting some up above the fridge yet. I also need to build a small shelf between two cabinets for cookbooks.
2. Windows trimmed. All windows now have sills, and one in the living room, and the bathroom window even have the moulding around them and are completely done.
3. Walls are painted- one tan wall in the living room where we had sheetrock instead of pine, and a greyish blue in the bathroom.
4. Cedar half way up in the bathroom
5. Bathroom door is installed now....and the glass knob is put on.
Bathroom lights were put in last weekend, and the fan was installed quite awhile ago.
6. More lights in the vaulted ceiling, as well as a fan to blow the warmer air down.
7. Counter top! Our kitchen actually looks pretty finished now and is much more usable.
8. More shelves. I put an 8 foot shelf up near the ceiling above our couch and wicker baskets hold storage items such as cords, games, etc. I also put up 2 mini shelves above the stove where we are storing spices, and I brought my Amish made bent wood shelf home and have a place for books and papers now.
9. After painting, I put a rug down inthe living room. It is hard to keep clean with the dog, and sand and mud from outside, but makes it warmer for our feet when sitting on the couch and adds color to the room.
10. I have about half of the floorboards (along the bottom of the walls) installed. I need to buy more so I can finish that.
11. Our 5 gallon instant hot water heater....just enough for a shower. A quick one, but SO nice! Soon, and a couple days already, we have had enough sun to get more hot water from Jim's Solar Hot Water Panels. He has already taken a shower outside in our outdoor shower. I am waiting a couple more weeks I think.
12. We made the addition of a cat to our happy home. Kunguk has finally made it out to North Bend, as of around my birthday. She and Arlo aren't the best of friends, but they make do. Her and Jim aren't the best of friends either....she can be a bit of a terror at night while you are trying to sleep. But, she has been a lot better now that it is nice out and she is more tired. I am really glad she is here, I missed having a cat.
Our biggest things we now need:
A drain field for our septic tank, and a driveway. I also think I am going to get a couple chickens, so I need to build a chicken coop, we need to move our shed and set it on level gravel and fix a board on the bottom of it, we would like to add a screen porch, need to plant grass, and we need to get Jim's battery bank set better. There is still a lot of work to do around here, but compared to last year, when my field still had 4 foot weeds, it is amazing to me how far we have come!
Sunday, April 3, 2011
A Three Day Weekend
It is now Sunday already, and I am sitting on my couch wondering where my weekend has disappeared to again. How does it always go so fast, and with so little getting accomplished? You would think with an extra day this weekend more would have gotten done. But then I look back at even this morning and I can see it quickly filled up with drudging chores. I woke up and put away the dishes, went online to check my email for school and was reminded that I needed to fill out a 3rd form from my Observation...so spent 45 minutes filling that out, then also remembered I was supposed to take 3 online summary/classes about administering medication for students. Another hour and a half gone. Oh, those darn bills I keep putting off....another half hour, and I can't even get online to certain sites so I will have to finish later. Let the dog out, cuddle with the dog a bit, get some food.....try to check my email for the 4th time, nope- still can't access. OK, I guess I am done, and it is 2:00 already.....and I still need to make my presentation for a class I am taking this week. Ugh...procrastinate for another hour- what else can I do besides that? Hmm...appparently check other people's blogs and then decide I need to write something on mine. Maybe then I will want to do it....or it will be time to head into Winona to meet my Mom and Grandma for supper.
I did have a slightly productive weekend. Yesterday was beautiful out so I spent quite a bit of time working in my yard. I leveled dirt from the well and septic tank, tried to spread more dirt over the sandy parts, and even spent an hour ripping out raspberries that are crawling all over my lawn and have created quite the nuisance. I am beginning to think I will rid myself of all raspberries and find some somewhere else to pick. Focus on apples, blueberries and other plants without thorns! I cleared leaves and pine needles out of my garden, and my daffodils are now about an inch high. I then went over to my storage shed and helped my mom and brother clear some of their things out of there, so I can now get in the back to my stuff. I need to get rid of yet more stuff, and organize it better. I am hoping once I get more stuff out of the shed I bought last fall- using up more of the wood inside the house, I will be able to put some things in there.
I just made reservations for an indoor water park- so at the end of April Jim and I are taking a mini vacation to Wisconsin Dells, to swim and check out Cave of the Mounds. It will be good to just get away to where there is nothing I need to work on at all. Hopefully Jim will be caught up enough on projects by then. We were going to build some boxes for wind turbine parts last night- went and got the wood at Menards, but then the brake on the truck got stuck on the way back. So we spent quite a bit of time in the Taco Bell parking lot trying to fix it, until Wayne came by with the right tools to get the Caliper off...and fancifully rigged with a wedge of wood so we could drive slowly back to the shop. By then it was 11:30 so we just headed home. Oh well, at least the wood got delivered. Today has been rainy and cold, not a good yard day, so I figured I would get caught up on stuff I hate doing and just get it over with. We will see about that class assignment though- I might put that one off until tomorrow. It is due on Thursday. I'll post some pictures once I get around to getting them on my computer!
I did have a slightly productive weekend. Yesterday was beautiful out so I spent quite a bit of time working in my yard. I leveled dirt from the well and septic tank, tried to spread more dirt over the sandy parts, and even spent an hour ripping out raspberries that are crawling all over my lawn and have created quite the nuisance. I am beginning to think I will rid myself of all raspberries and find some somewhere else to pick. Focus on apples, blueberries and other plants without thorns! I cleared leaves and pine needles out of my garden, and my daffodils are now about an inch high. I then went over to my storage shed and helped my mom and brother clear some of their things out of there, so I can now get in the back to my stuff. I need to get rid of yet more stuff, and organize it better. I am hoping once I get more stuff out of the shed I bought last fall- using up more of the wood inside the house, I will be able to put some things in there.
I just made reservations for an indoor water park- so at the end of April Jim and I are taking a mini vacation to Wisconsin Dells, to swim and check out Cave of the Mounds. It will be good to just get away to where there is nothing I need to work on at all. Hopefully Jim will be caught up enough on projects by then. We were going to build some boxes for wind turbine parts last night- went and got the wood at Menards, but then the brake on the truck got stuck on the way back. So we spent quite a bit of time in the Taco Bell parking lot trying to fix it, until Wayne came by with the right tools to get the Caliper off...and fancifully rigged with a wedge of wood so we could drive slowly back to the shop. By then it was 11:30 so we just headed home. Oh well, at least the wood got delivered. Today has been rainy and cold, not a good yard day, so I figured I would get caught up on stuff I hate doing and just get it over with. We will see about that class assignment though- I might put that one off until tomorrow. It is due on Thursday. I'll post some pictures once I get around to getting them on my computer!
Thursday, February 17, 2011
The Elusive Mrs. Wishy Washy!
Well, I spent the day at home today.....no school due to Walker's campaign to end collective bargaining in Wisconsin. This also means that all the veggies I cut up for what was to be our "4K" pizza night with 130 people that I was in charge of, are sitting in my fridge and need to get eaten. Any good recipes for green peppers and onion- that uses a LOT of them?
Maybe I will look through my new "Vegetarian cookbook" this evening and see what I can find. A $26 book, which I got for $1.37. Thanks to my students who gave me gift cards to Barnes and Noble for Christmas and Valentines.
So, what did I do with my full day off? Did I poly my window sills, go for a hike in the warm weather, clean my house? Write up lesson plans for next week? woodburn my door trim so I can finish up my house? No...I sat at my table for an hour and a half this morning, finishing up my "Starry Night" jigsaw puzzle, which has taken me a lot longer to put together than any puzzle I have ever done (and texted my sister), then went out into the yard and shoveled dog poop now uncovered from that wonderful snow blanket and sinking up to my ankles in mud because we didn't have time to plant grass last fall after building our house. I then got tired of hardly being able to move around and then came inside and turned on my newly improved working computer. That is it...it is now 6:00! I got caught up on some emails- both work and personal (which I was over a month behind on), ordered a Mrs. Wishy Washy book, chatted with my brother for a little bit, got some ideas for class, found some pictures I needed for a unit I want to teach, and still managed to not get my finances figured out, which is why I turned on my computer in the first place. Why is it that one small little hiccup, like my purse being out in my car and across my sink hole of a yard stops me from being at all productive? My poor puppy has been inside most of the day because 2 times coming in like a mudball has been all I could handle....but, time to get a move on. I will take Arlo into Melrose where we can go for a walk on the streets, then stop and get some spinach to go with my veggie/egg meal I will make, get my free movie that I have a coupon for, and then work on cleaning my house and then finishing my "bear paw" mittens I am making for my students....so we can act out the Three Bears story. I guess it isn't the LEAST productive day...though probably the least productive in awhile. I do desperately need a walk though- I am going stir crazy in here- I hate the MUCK season part of spring- I find it way more confining than winter, when I can still walk in the woods, ski, go sledding...and my dog doesn't come in as a mudball and try to jump on my couch =(
I do have some beautiful potted and blooming daffodils and hyacinth sitting on my table though, a birthday present from Jim, which reminds me that this will soon lead to something better! =) And I am already planning my summer adventures!
Monday, January 31, 2011
skiing
yesterday i went out skiing with arlo along the snowmobile trail and skiied over to lacrosse county.....apparently my shift key and alt key donmt work on my phone for this site. anyways, here are some pictures.Sunday, January 9, 2011
Oh, the GREENness!!
I was just looking over some pictures, ad found these from a hike that Jim and I took up North last spring. I must say, I do miss all that color!! Maybe this spring Jim and I will be able to get out on more hikes again like we used to take.....I guess we went hiking a lot, right up to where we started building! Funny, how something small like building a home can consume your life =)
Anyways, here are some pictures, to remind us all, in the middle of winter, that it doesn't last forever!!
Anyways, here are some pictures, to remind us all, in the middle of winter, that it doesn't last forever!!
And 2011 begins....
So, where does that leave me?...or where am I beginning from exactly...
Well, as far as my house goes, things have been moving along again. They hit a bit of a standstill around Thanksgiving, and Christmas season as always was busy, but we have been making progress in the last 2 months since I have posted! Let's see....
1. The wall for the shower, and the shower itself are in (minus any plumbing fixtures)
2. My brother trimmed out 2 walls for me this week, the bathroom and one in the living room (which is wonderful, because while I know I could do it, it wouldn't look remotely as nice as it does!)
3. I finished the walls up in the loft (minus the polyurathane) and put in shelves for clothes, a small rug, and a brand new bed that Jim and I picked out! I have 2 beds in storage, and Jim has one next door....but his we would need to hire a crane to get out of his house, and mine have been in storage awhile (one is two small) and with his allergies we decided a new bed would just be best.
4. We got a new refrigerator! A present from Jim's mom for Christmas, we went and picked one out at Lowes that uses pretty low energy- not much more than the little one in Jim's house- so now we can keep leftovers, have a full gallon of milk and much more! It has also been nice to have a place to put pictures and notes. It is now displaying a very nice drawing made by Jim's 3 year old niece as well, with lots of colors! It does make it feel a bit more like home!
5. We got a new cookstove installed! With propane ignite, it has 4 burners and an oven....and we have been cooking away!
6. While we had our water pipes freeze up for awhile, Jim was able to thaw them out and we now have running water again. We are still working on the hot water, but to have water coming out of the faucet has been a wonderful thing! Just last night we took out our kitchen sink temporarily though because now we just got....
7. Kitchen cabinets!!! We went to Menards yesterday (leaving about 11:00 am) to go pick out cabinets for our kitchen. Around 8:00 we returned, with a different truck and freezing cold! Just after picking out our cabinets (oak-unfinshed ones-for literally half the price of finished ones) we went to take the truck around back to load them up (Jim's shiny new but used red one he bought and put a plow on)...but the power steering went out. So....we couldn't drive it anywhere, leaving us at Menards with a bunch of new cabinets. His mom came and picked us up and drove us to Jim's shop where we woke up the Isuzu flatbed from his long winter nap. He was very reluctant to wake up, but we eventually got him going, unstuck from the loading dock which was full of hardened snow, the bed cleared off in Menards parking lot, and loaded with cabinets. Jim pays to have snow removed from his shop, as there is no place to put it, and Menards has a HUGE parking lot with a big snowpile already. We figured, with the amount of time and money we spend there, they wouldn't mind helping out their esteemed customers. Before taking off again I went and bought some foot warmers, and we wrapped Arlo up in a towel....the Isuzu does not have what I would consider heat, so it was a cold trip home! From Menards, it is about a 45 minute trip, and it was barely above 0 at this time...and we were already starting out cold. We stopped at Kwik Trip and got some hot cocoa and a snack, and away we went. We made it home fine, and didn't even get the Isuzu stuck in the driveway (as I anticipated). The chunk of ice half blocking Jim's view never melted, and in fact his view got worse along the way, but we were home! We went inside to warm up for awhile before unloading the cabinets....the house was about 50 degrees with our new.....
8. Propane heater (with a vent to outside)! We still needed it warmer though, so we started up the pellet stove, and even took the little electric heater from Jim's house and crawled up to the loft where it is quite a bit warmer. After awhile the chill started to leave us and I fell FAST asleep. Apparently Jim tried to wake me up, but I have no recollection of this. I tend to sleep pretty hard sometimes. I woke up when I heard the door shutting though, and got up to help move cabinets. I'm not sure if Jim was irritated with me for falling asleep or the cold, but he was pretty grumpy. We got everything unloaded though and then we started putting a few cabinets in place. Our whole kitchen living room area is still pretty full of cabinets, but, they will be nice! We finally got to bed about midnight, slept about 8 hours and then Jim was off to work, and I started working on the cabinets. My mom also came over today and we got most of them polyurathaned. There are just a couple that need one more coat....and I guess there is one we left behind in Jim's truck I will still need to do.
The propane heater has been wonderful though, keeping our house at a much more constant temperature....and making it so we don't come home to a 35 degree house! We also figured it made a lot more sense than using propane to run the generator to get electricity so that we can run the pellet stove! We have been pretty disappointed with the amount of electricity our pellet stove requires....which doesn't work well for an off grid house in the winter!
9...Let's see, we also got a kitchen table from my uncle Jim's auction. Arlo's bed sits underneath it, and we even have 2 chairs for it now! I also like it for sentimental reasons, as it was always the "puzzle table" that Evelyne and Jim had in their kitchen at the "new house"- right when you first came in. The always had huge puzzles that they were putting together. I have a puzzle sitting upstairs I would like to put on it. Jim just asked the other day when I would have time to use it.....my response was "well, never, but it is a nice thought." I will get around to it eventually when my house is a bit more settled I think!
10. Ah, I almost forgot! We got a new shed!!! It is an 8x12 shed that is sitting next to Jim's house now, after a lot of drama getting it there! But, all our tools now hang out there, giving us a real house to live in! I no longer have the air compressor sitting right next to the couch, and I actually have a few small drawers of clothes in my house rather than the chest of electrical and plumbing parts! It has really helped me feel like I am in a house rather than a construction site! It also has a workbench in it and a few shelves that have rapidly been filling up with odds and ends building supplies and wood.
11. I have purchased the wood I am going to use in my bathroom- 4 inch tongue and groove cedar, which we are going to put half way up the walls....the drywall on top (which is already in and just needs a little more mudding) is going to be painted grayish blue.
So....we have a lot yet to do, obviously, but things are really starting to move along! Our house is really starting to feel like a home!
Arlo, is now 50 pounds and just over 5 months old. He is still adorable and he has been a lot of fun! I can now let him outside to wander around on his own (as we have a pretty big yard). He really hasn't wandered off very far, though he is starting to check out the ditch more, looking for sticks, and I did notice today that he had wandered into the neighbors field getting closer to the turkey flock that likes to frequent here. Some days I have noticed as many as 30 turkeys hanging out in the field next to us! I also see a lot of turkey prints on my land, and I think there may be a family of pheasants living next to our driveway (on the neighbor's land). At night I often hear an owl that seems to be living in the pines nearby...I love to hear it hooting! I have been feeding the birds lately off a dead pine limb about 15 feet from my living room window, and I have been seeing cardinals, blue jays, red headed woodpeckers, nuthatches, lots of chickadees and juncos. I really do like my land and living out of town!!
Arlo seems to be completely potty trained now, and has even spent a few days at home this week alone, all day, being out of his kennel (which we took out of the house for space reasons). Jim took a last minute trip to Utah for work this week, so "poooor" Arlo had to stay home =) He really is quite spoiled. He wasn't even alone much, as my brother and Dad came by to help me with some things during the day and let him out and played with him. This dog spends less time alone than any dog I know. At home, he is the most MELLOW and sweet creature imaginable! You can pile things on him, dress him up, and poke him, and he doesn't even care. He pretty much lets you do whatever you want to him. Bring over new people and especially other dogs though and he gets VERY excited! With other dogs he will run and play until he is dead tired....so some people think he is a hyper pup. Ha ha! Jim and I know better. He is also a big cuddler, which is exactly what I wanted. Another thing that he gets all excited about is when he hears the harmonica. Jim will play for him and get him all riled up sometimes- Arlo dances around and barks when he hears it.....great entertainment. I really couldn't have asked for a better puppy....he hasn't even chewed anything really expensive!...he's chewed a few things, but not much at all for a lab. I thought for sure, with how he went after our shoes as a puppy, we would lose at least one pair.
School is half way over for the year already! Hard to believe! I feel especially busy at school because I haven't really been able to come home and work on any school stuff....I am too side-tracked by other things that need to get done, or else I am exhausted. But, I have seen a lot of progress in my kids, and I am just starting a unit on the arctic right now! So, starting tomorrow we will be looking doing all kinds of fun things with snow, arctic animals and even crabbing through the ice! Getting things ready, and looking through pictures on Friday made me a bit homesick. I found a book about a boy who lives in Kotzebue (not far from where I lived in Shishmaref), and all the pictures made me think about all the things I had experienced up there and made me really miss it! I absolutley LOVED Alaska! I do really want to go back and visit soon....
Well, not much else that is new here....that is my life right now- WORK, build, dog, boyfriend, family and for the most part just not having enough hours in the day. But, I am going to go lay down and read now for awhile (for a book forum I am taking for credit) but still, more reading than I have done in quite awhile. I miss just relaxing in the evenings....so that is my one and only New Years resolution-to take more time to relax and do things that I enjoy.....even if they don't get me towards any goal. I was talking to my mom today and she said I am always one that gets my work done first before I relax and have fun. But, I think she and everyone else is right....there will ALWAYS be more work. Sometimes you need to relax anyways. As long as I get things done that I really need to, I'm going to try and stop feeling guilty about taking a couple hours to myself...and I am going to try and do it at times when I am not so exhausted so that I actually have some energy to do things that I really like to do- like hiking, skiing, reading, etc. Otherwise I just lay around watching a movie or something....mostly just falling asleep!! But, I am glad I worked my butt off this last year, because I wouldn't be where I am if I hadn't. I love that I own my own house- and one that I built myself, with the help of my family and friends! Thanks to all that have helped me!! Now this year I can work on getting a garden, taking down barbed wire, building bird houses, doing the "pretty" stuff to my house like the wood ceiling....replanting grass, figuring out my driveway, figuring out a few drainage problems in my yard using the tractor, starting a real compost pile, filling in trenches....yep, my mind is already working against my new years resolution! Ha ha!
a bit messy, and pre-cabinets....but this gives an idea of what our kitchen looks like!
Aw! Arlo's first Halloween! Dressed up like a spider, and carrying a spider! ha ha! His hood kept falling over his eyes and he would just bump into walls! But he never tried to get it off! What an easy-going baby!
Well, as far as my house goes, things have been moving along again. They hit a bit of a standstill around Thanksgiving, and Christmas season as always was busy, but we have been making progress in the last 2 months since I have posted! Let's see....
1. The wall for the shower, and the shower itself are in (minus any plumbing fixtures)
2. My brother trimmed out 2 walls for me this week, the bathroom and one in the living room (which is wonderful, because while I know I could do it, it wouldn't look remotely as nice as it does!)
3. I finished the walls up in the loft (minus the polyurathane) and put in shelves for clothes, a small rug, and a brand new bed that Jim and I picked out! I have 2 beds in storage, and Jim has one next door....but his we would need to hire a crane to get out of his house, and mine have been in storage awhile (one is two small) and with his allergies we decided a new bed would just be best.
4. We got a new refrigerator! A present from Jim's mom for Christmas, we went and picked one out at Lowes that uses pretty low energy- not much more than the little one in Jim's house- so now we can keep leftovers, have a full gallon of milk and much more! It has also been nice to have a place to put pictures and notes. It is now displaying a very nice drawing made by Jim's 3 year old niece as well, with lots of colors! It does make it feel a bit more like home!
5. We got a new cookstove installed! With propane ignite, it has 4 burners and an oven....and we have been cooking away!
6. While we had our water pipes freeze up for awhile, Jim was able to thaw them out and we now have running water again. We are still working on the hot water, but to have water coming out of the faucet has been a wonderful thing! Just last night we took out our kitchen sink temporarily though because now we just got....
7. Kitchen cabinets!!! We went to Menards yesterday (leaving about 11:00 am) to go pick out cabinets for our kitchen. Around 8:00 we returned, with a different truck and freezing cold! Just after picking out our cabinets (oak-unfinshed ones-for literally half the price of finished ones) we went to take the truck around back to load them up (Jim's shiny new but used red one he bought and put a plow on)...but the power steering went out. So....we couldn't drive it anywhere, leaving us at Menards with a bunch of new cabinets. His mom came and picked us up and drove us to Jim's shop where we woke up the Isuzu flatbed from his long winter nap. He was very reluctant to wake up, but we eventually got him going, unstuck from the loading dock which was full of hardened snow, the bed cleared off in Menards parking lot, and loaded with cabinets. Jim pays to have snow removed from his shop, as there is no place to put it, and Menards has a HUGE parking lot with a big snowpile already. We figured, with the amount of time and money we spend there, they wouldn't mind helping out their esteemed customers. Before taking off again I went and bought some foot warmers, and we wrapped Arlo up in a towel....the Isuzu does not have what I would consider heat, so it was a cold trip home! From Menards, it is about a 45 minute trip, and it was barely above 0 at this time...and we were already starting out cold. We stopped at Kwik Trip and got some hot cocoa and a snack, and away we went. We made it home fine, and didn't even get the Isuzu stuck in the driveway (as I anticipated). The chunk of ice half blocking Jim's view never melted, and in fact his view got worse along the way, but we were home! We went inside to warm up for awhile before unloading the cabinets....the house was about 50 degrees with our new.....
8. Propane heater (with a vent to outside)! We still needed it warmer though, so we started up the pellet stove, and even took the little electric heater from Jim's house and crawled up to the loft where it is quite a bit warmer. After awhile the chill started to leave us and I fell FAST asleep. Apparently Jim tried to wake me up, but I have no recollection of this. I tend to sleep pretty hard sometimes. I woke up when I heard the door shutting though, and got up to help move cabinets. I'm not sure if Jim was irritated with me for falling asleep or the cold, but he was pretty grumpy. We got everything unloaded though and then we started putting a few cabinets in place. Our whole kitchen living room area is still pretty full of cabinets, but, they will be nice! We finally got to bed about midnight, slept about 8 hours and then Jim was off to work, and I started working on the cabinets. My mom also came over today and we got most of them polyurathaned. There are just a couple that need one more coat....and I guess there is one we left behind in Jim's truck I will still need to do.
The propane heater has been wonderful though, keeping our house at a much more constant temperature....and making it so we don't come home to a 35 degree house! We also figured it made a lot more sense than using propane to run the generator to get electricity so that we can run the pellet stove! We have been pretty disappointed with the amount of electricity our pellet stove requires....which doesn't work well for an off grid house in the winter!
9...Let's see, we also got a kitchen table from my uncle Jim's auction. Arlo's bed sits underneath it, and we even have 2 chairs for it now! I also like it for sentimental reasons, as it was always the "puzzle table" that Evelyne and Jim had in their kitchen at the "new house"- right when you first came in. The always had huge puzzles that they were putting together. I have a puzzle sitting upstairs I would like to put on it. Jim just asked the other day when I would have time to use it.....my response was "well, never, but it is a nice thought." I will get around to it eventually when my house is a bit more settled I think!
10. Ah, I almost forgot! We got a new shed!!! It is an 8x12 shed that is sitting next to Jim's house now, after a lot of drama getting it there! But, all our tools now hang out there, giving us a real house to live in! I no longer have the air compressor sitting right next to the couch, and I actually have a few small drawers of clothes in my house rather than the chest of electrical and plumbing parts! It has really helped me feel like I am in a house rather than a construction site! It also has a workbench in it and a few shelves that have rapidly been filling up with odds and ends building supplies and wood.
11. I have purchased the wood I am going to use in my bathroom- 4 inch tongue and groove cedar, which we are going to put half way up the walls....the drywall on top (which is already in and just needs a little more mudding) is going to be painted grayish blue.
So....we have a lot yet to do, obviously, but things are really starting to move along! Our house is really starting to feel like a home!
Arlo, is now 50 pounds and just over 5 months old. He is still adorable and he has been a lot of fun! I can now let him outside to wander around on his own (as we have a pretty big yard). He really hasn't wandered off very far, though he is starting to check out the ditch more, looking for sticks, and I did notice today that he had wandered into the neighbors field getting closer to the turkey flock that likes to frequent here. Some days I have noticed as many as 30 turkeys hanging out in the field next to us! I also see a lot of turkey prints on my land, and I think there may be a family of pheasants living next to our driveway (on the neighbor's land). At night I often hear an owl that seems to be living in the pines nearby...I love to hear it hooting! I have been feeding the birds lately off a dead pine limb about 15 feet from my living room window, and I have been seeing cardinals, blue jays, red headed woodpeckers, nuthatches, lots of chickadees and juncos. I really do like my land and living out of town!!
Arlo seems to be completely potty trained now, and has even spent a few days at home this week alone, all day, being out of his kennel (which we took out of the house for space reasons). Jim took a last minute trip to Utah for work this week, so "poooor" Arlo had to stay home =) He really is quite spoiled. He wasn't even alone much, as my brother and Dad came by to help me with some things during the day and let him out and played with him. This dog spends less time alone than any dog I know. At home, he is the most MELLOW and sweet creature imaginable! You can pile things on him, dress him up, and poke him, and he doesn't even care. He pretty much lets you do whatever you want to him. Bring over new people and especially other dogs though and he gets VERY excited! With other dogs he will run and play until he is dead tired....so some people think he is a hyper pup. Ha ha! Jim and I know better. He is also a big cuddler, which is exactly what I wanted. Another thing that he gets all excited about is when he hears the harmonica. Jim will play for him and get him all riled up sometimes- Arlo dances around and barks when he hears it.....great entertainment. I really couldn't have asked for a better puppy....he hasn't even chewed anything really expensive!...he's chewed a few things, but not much at all for a lab. I thought for sure, with how he went after our shoes as a puppy, we would lose at least one pair.
School is half way over for the year already! Hard to believe! I feel especially busy at school because I haven't really been able to come home and work on any school stuff....I am too side-tracked by other things that need to get done, or else I am exhausted. But, I have seen a lot of progress in my kids, and I am just starting a unit on the arctic right now! So, starting tomorrow we will be looking doing all kinds of fun things with snow, arctic animals and even crabbing through the ice! Getting things ready, and looking through pictures on Friday made me a bit homesick. I found a book about a boy who lives in Kotzebue (not far from where I lived in Shishmaref), and all the pictures made me think about all the things I had experienced up there and made me really miss it! I absolutley LOVED Alaska! I do really want to go back and visit soon....
Well, not much else that is new here....that is my life right now- WORK, build, dog, boyfriend, family and for the most part just not having enough hours in the day. But, I am going to go lay down and read now for awhile (for a book forum I am taking for credit) but still, more reading than I have done in quite awhile. I miss just relaxing in the evenings....so that is my one and only New Years resolution-to take more time to relax and do things that I enjoy.....even if they don't get me towards any goal. I was talking to my mom today and she said I am always one that gets my work done first before I relax and have fun. But, I think she and everyone else is right....there will ALWAYS be more work. Sometimes you need to relax anyways. As long as I get things done that I really need to, I'm going to try and stop feeling guilty about taking a couple hours to myself...and I am going to try and do it at times when I am not so exhausted so that I actually have some energy to do things that I really like to do- like hiking, skiing, reading, etc. Otherwise I just lay around watching a movie or something....mostly just falling asleep!! But, I am glad I worked my butt off this last year, because I wouldn't be where I am if I hadn't. I love that I own my own house- and one that I built myself, with the help of my family and friends! Thanks to all that have helped me!! Now this year I can work on getting a garden, taking down barbed wire, building bird houses, doing the "pretty" stuff to my house like the wood ceiling....replanting grass, figuring out my driveway, figuring out a few drainage problems in my yard using the tractor, starting a real compost pile, filling in trenches....yep, my mind is already working against my new years resolution! Ha ha!
Thursday, November 11, 2010
more progress
Today we discovered a really nice, long walking trail just one mile from our house....this improves my whole outlook on life- it is just what I needed- and will be great for Cross Country skiing this winter. It is right along the river, so I can imagine the mosquitos in the summer, but for 8 months of the year, it will be great!
Today I got back to work on the house again- put some weather stripping on the door, spray foamed around the new window and one last wallspot, cleaned Arlo's stink box, and polyurathaned 2 wall sections 2 times. One more coat and they should be done! I could poly for a week and not be done in this place though....wood everywhere. I could wait on it...but everytime you hit a bug and it splatters, Arlo rubs against it, or whatever, your wall will look that way permanently unless you sand it. So, I have incentive to get at least the first coat of poly on soon so I can at least wash my walls.
The toilet is now back in, as of yesterday morning....I mean, put in for the first time....since Wisconsin code says nobody but a certified plumber can put anything in until you get an occupancy permit. I would never break the rules. We also have the parts bought for the shower, have a little bathroom sink my Dad gave me a long time ago and have a kitchen sink (though no cabinet to put it on yet). We will see what we can get done this weekend. A shower would really be nice, but the rest I am not too worried about, other than polying the walls. We have a sink next door in the meantime, in Jim's house....and I NEED to relax a bit. I have not been feeling like myself lately, and I know it is mostly because I am overtired and burnt out. With a good nights sleep, and an actual day off....not a day off work to spend more time on the house, will improve my mood in extremes...and I am not thinking just 2-3 hours this time. I need a real, full day, sit around and be lazy, read a good book by the fire, then take the dog for a long walk and then cook an actual meal and maybe visit somebody while not feeling rushed for time, kind of day!
This week I had a parent come in and ask when her son's Sharing Day was, saying that she thought she had missed it. She said she was just so tired, and she couldn't keep anything straight anymore! She seemed exasperated, exhausted, and at her wits end. I wanted to take her new baby for awhile and let her go soak in a tub and sleep....but I knew exactly how she felt. I have been feeling that same way all week....and I'm not even sure why. It's not like I have 3 kids at home like her, but I can't even get anything done because I have way too much to think about and can't even remember what I am headed off to do, as I am also thinking about the 10 other things I need to do, and what I all need to get them done. My motto has always been "Plug away and things will get better". Truth is, there is always more to do, and you just end up half dead if you try to do it all. I know this...I've learned this lesson again and again the last 2 years...yet I still think I can do it all, and I try to...because I don't like the alternative of letting things fall apart a bit. When you have some parts of you that like to fall apart no matter what you do, you try to be more in control of what you can.
All in all, I am happy- things are going great in all areas....but some things in my life need to start changing before I crash again.
So, my thoughts are....
1.enjoy the new trail- take Arlo for more walks. Spend more time with the puppy- getting exercise and training
2. get stove working and shower, walls done and then quit for awhile...take a real break.
3.take the time to read or do SOMETHING relaxing for half an hour each night.
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