Power Plan

Yesterday our esteemed electrician is hooking up temporary power to a pole near the house. This will allow Tilt to use his power tools in building the timber frame in the next few weeks. I had a request from my brother to see the plans, so here are some pictures of them. The basement is a walk out with a small efficiency apartment for Ed. He will have 2 entrances. One from the outside and another to the inside for easy access to the rest of the house. The first floor is a very open space. The entrance/mud room is big because I have found out Vermont seasons require lots of extra's (extra boots... extra clothes... extra storage... extra mud... extra sports equipment... extra garden equipment... extra hats... extra etc.) Hopefully we will be able to build in some shelves and closets in this space to fit the extras (except the mud... maybe a broom and dustpan). There is a farmers style porch planned on the front. It will attach to a deck that goes around to the back doors. On the north side where the distance view is we are thinking a covered patio might be nice. The building is only a story and a half (like a cape), so the bedrooms upstairs are a bit small, but thats okay by me. Less space to clean. These are our plans to start, but we are staying open to change. I suspect there will be some things that look good on paper but do not feel right in person. (notes: sorry, these are a bit hard to read this small... pic 1=basement 2=main floor 3=second story; house is 24x36 feet; timber frame with traditional roof structure; N=top of photos so out our south side windows will be a close view of the Mtn.)

Island of 'crete

As I sit here writing this the concrete walls are setting. The forms they were poured into will be removed early in the morning. It was two o'clock when the first truck showed up. We gave the crew a good audience. Tilt, Super-K, myself, Ed, Dad, and Super-M. We all watched from the sidelines as the three trucks and the crew mixed, poured, cleaned, pushed, pulled and floated the concrete. The preschool observers were very excited to watch the big trucks and the "working guys." By the time we slipped away for a much needed afternoon nap they were finishing up. It all happens so fast once it gets going. Tomorrow we will stand inside our walls and look up at the sky.

Feet

This afternoon we received a call that the footings had been poured. I had no idea what that meant, though I did know that the walls would be poured first. We hopped in the car and drove over to the site to see the progress. The footings are like feet for the walls. They have rebar sticking out for the walls which will be poured later. It is not a big house and it's footprint is bigger than the house we rent now, but somehow its new-poured feet make it seem small. It also makes it even more real. Yikes!! There is now a space in the earth stamped in concrete that will become our home.

Mighty Machine

I have been doing my best to stay cool about this whole house building thing, but unexpectedly my eyes welled up a bit when the shovel hit the ground for the first time. My focus was on taking photos then getting out of there so I could bring Super-K to daycare and work for a couple of hours in my studio. Watching the lush green grass and alfalfa so swiftly turned into brown piles of soil left me with a little lump in my throat for the rest of the day. Tilt had his ants-in-his-pants energy from the time he got out of bed (sometime before 6 AM). He mowed some lawn around the kiln shed to put his energy somewhere. Ed was there for the show too, it is always fun to watch a good digger! Not a move was wasted. The work was completed so swiftly and efficiently that less than a day we are ready for the next step: concrete walls. Yippeee more mighty machines!

Stake Out

We were lucky to get in a couple more days of calm... as if no big change were about to take place. The word calm may be a bit of a stretch with a 2 year old running wild in the house. Anyway, groundbreaking is tomorrow. Yippee!! or Yikes!! Tilt ordered the timbers (oak and cherry) for the frame yesterday. It looks like they will be ready the first week of June. This evening we went to the site and mapped out the house for the excavation crew that will be there tomorrow morning. Check out that big digger!!!

The Calm Before the Storm

Today is Sunday. We met with the plumber on Friday and the electrician this morning. The excavator emailed today that he will start on Wednesday. I am making a Chicken Pot pie for the first time in my life. I think I put in too much rosemary. Someday the act of measuring will sink in to my cooking skills. Thank goodness Tilt (my husband) is the carpenter for our house. He has measured and re-measured to add in my ideas into his timber-framed mind. We are breaking ground this week! Do we want a wood stove or do we just stick with our original plan of propane heat? What about those solar hot water panels? I just don't know, it is making my head swell. I think I will have some pie. Mmmm!