We burned leaves.
And snipped tree roots with tree trimmers.
We even had some help.
And now all that remains on our circle driveway is to bring in a load of white gravel and finish it off.
The kids keep building tree forts. And secret gardens.
And discovering forest creatures.
{A slug}
But even the hardest workers need breaks.
A quick family picture right before the footing crew arrived and dug our footings.
David worked tirelessly on a huge "three-seater" tire swing for the kids.
It is massive- and fast!
He also hung a small, simple version for Hollin, though she already prefers to ride with the boys on the other.
Our land gets the most beautiful, most heavenly light in the late afternoon.
Reading blueprints on the Jeep hood
Laying out the footings
{building yourself is so much work, but I can single-handily tell you every tiny detail about every tiny part of this house because David and I worked it out and laid it out together.}
First corner staked!
David walking in front of the someday front porch.
My mom and the kids
Blurry, but a fun action shot of the big swing gliding
{It feels very much like a barn swing}
Our side yard
I imagine I'll lose a few kids in there eventually.
: )
Our garden
Our front yard
Our quaint dirt road
A funny story:
When this was finally delivered, we all got excited because it felt like things were finally about to get moving. But, the kids, especially Henry, had no idea what it was. The first time Henry looked inside, his eyebrows arched up so high that we all got a good laugh. The boys were so used to going potty in the woods, that to them, it made no sense why the "boy" workers would even need one of these.
Ha!
Footings!
Our barn, I mean house, I mean barn was finally at the starting line!
Intricate wood pile about to be lit on fire.
The boys love nothing more than a bonfire on the weekends.
Henry comforting Harbor over some squabble.
: )
My sweet David
I love this picture- David working the fire and my mom with the kids
David comes out during lunches at work to check on the crews and we try to meet him if we can.
David built us a picnic table!
Construction power nap
Master bedroom view out over the hammock
Making progress!
The kids standing in the future family closet
{We are doing one really large family closet with the laundry room attached. I hope it makes laundry easier- I can wash all the clothes and hang them all up in the same room- kids' clothing included.}
It is getting colder by the week!
The kid's shared "bunking" room
The future laundry room
David showing how tall the closet will be- his rack is going almost to the ceiling.
And the master closet window- I fought hard to have a window in the closet. I need light!
Future powder room under the stairs- no wasted space anywhere!
Still life/art/wood pile
The barn we designed so many months ago is finally starting to take shape!
We might be crazy for building the barn first, but what is a farmhouse without its barn?
: )
Barn going up, up, up!
People always remark how tall it is when they come to visit the property.
I think the pictures are deceiving because our trees right in front are about 60 feet tall.
Today, all of our windows were installed and David met with the electrician.
The kids and I have a running joke with the song, Do you Want to Build a Snowman from Frozen.
We sing it to that tune with our own words and add new lyrics:
Do you want to build a Barnhouse?
And ride a tractor 'round our land?
A little lunch break is overdue.
I've stated munching on the sticks and rocks and sand!
{Hollin really belly laughs at that one!}
Ha!
