My new winter hobby

What, you ask, have I been up to this winter in my home of logs?   Welllll......

Mostly this:

And this:

And this:

And some of this:

Okay, some of this as well:

Aannnd, even some of this:

But mostly just sitting in front of the fire.  It is sublime.  If I had to pick a favorite part of this logaliciousness, it quite possibly would be that fireplace.  

I love it.  So.  Much.

You should come over and hang out with me in front of the fire.  It's super fun.   As long as you don't need me to pay attention to you.   And you don't mind my snoring. .

What?  I'm old.

Back steps

So last winter, after we moved into The Log House in December, the Hubs had to use the rickety temporary construction steps out the back door to feed the boiler.   In advance of the heating season this year, the menfolk decided to build a nice new sturdy set of steps.  I was expecting just simple little stairs, but I returned from work to this:

A wee little deck!   I *may* have squealed a little with joy.  

Over the following week, Bob - and an assortment of friends and family - completed the decking and the steps.  

No, the cat didn't help much.

Now I can grill on the deck like a real 'Merican and not in the woodshed.   And the Hubs won't fall to his death in a snowbank this winter.

Which would put a real damper in my plans for a new back door.  Heh.

Aaaaaand..... we're in!!



Hey, you guys!!  I've been absent from the blog for a month for the BEST of reasons...  okay, also because I'm lazy and have been without an internet connection...   but the main reason is that we MOVED INTO THE LOG HOUSE!!!  

I KNOW!   EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!! 

Thanks to a little push and help from our friends Bert and Lisa and my mother, we moved the big stuff out to the new house the weekend before Christmas.  Despite our herculean effort, though, we left quite a bit of detritus littered about the old house which we are *ahem* still boxing up in drips and drabs.  Yes, I know.  UGH. 

But, I digress.  Once we had that major load of schtuff moved out to the new house, The Hubs and I sort of looked at each other and said, "What the heck? Let's just ...  sleep here." 

And we did.  And there was much rejoicing.

My Pennsylvanian sister Ells arrived a few days before Christmas and helped us decorate.  The new house.  For CHRISTMAS.  It. was. wonderful.  You have not seen a happier girl than this girl right here.    On Christmas day, we hosted my whole family for gifting and eating and more happiness.  The only thing that could have made our full hearts even closer to bursting is if Bob's parents hadn't abandoned us and the cold northern winter for the alligator-infested warmth of Florida --  er, I mean, if Bob's family had also been present.  We can't wait for them to return and for all the cousins to experience the joy of log-a-riffic living this summer. 

 To illustrate said happiness, I submit this photographic evidence:

Cooking for the first time in the new house.  With cheese, appropriately.

Hey, I didn't say it was a full, fancy meal.  What's wrong with grilled cheese?

The dining room... with furniture sort of temporarily scattered about.  But - look - a table cloth!

The Boy and The Girl on Christmas morning.  In the log house.  For Christmas. 

EEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!   Sorry.  It's still just so awesome.

The stockings were hung by the (unfaced) chimney with care... by an 8 year old whose decorating ideas consist of hanging sparkly clumps of garland on those metal tab things like birds' nests.

Just a gratuitous shot of the interior of the house. 

(This is standing in the dining room, looking through the living room toward the arctic entry/front door.)

Bob and I, finally at home in logs.

Bathroom door

Nothin' like a good night's sleep and the sympathy of friends to help clear away the snares of self-pity.  Life is good and we have a bathroom door!

First floor bathroom door, leading into the hall

First the floor, next: the world!

I feel a bit like I'm Kate Winslet on the bow of the Titanic with the wind in my hair!   Except... not just before a disaster and a frozen iceberg death.  Just the happy exhilaration part.  Yeah, that.   Maybe I need to rethink my simile here..

Here's the takeaway:   Squeeeeeeeee!!!!!   The floor is done!  Time to move in!

Bob, FIL Jim and friend Dave install the last few rows of flooring in the dining room

The Boy and his Grandpa, working on the edge of the floor in the living room today.

I vacuumed up years' worth of accumulated sawdust from window sills, walls and ceilings today.  And I'm not even close to being done.  Whose idea were those exposed log joists anyway?  Too many dusty surfaces!

  

That strip of bare floor is where the half-wall will be built, separating the living room and dining room.  Squint your eyes and turn your head *like this* and imagine the wall for now.  

The Hubs at the end of the work day today, pondering the great mysteries of our age.  

And noticing how dirty the windows are.... in our dining room with a new floor!!   Wooo!!  

Sorry.

Just for some perspective, here's a picture from June 2012 side-by-side with one from Saturday:

Time to get packing in earnest!

More! Floor!

Look at all the floor that has gone in the last few days!

That full-length poster of Chris Hemsworth to cover up that door is on order...

Thanks to a generous helping of... help by FIL Jim and friend Dave, Bob has been able to lay down a ton of flooring yesterday and today.  I'm so grateful, I had to clap a hand over my mouth to stop from gushing so effusively as to send Dave running for the door.  

But, I may have squealed very loudly at one point accidentally.  

Their poor knees took a beating as they measured and cut and laid floor boards all day today.  

note the snowy trees outside the window...   

My role today was twofold:  clean the construction materials out of the first floor (and vacuum up the piles of sawdust and dead bugs and cobwebs) and be a dead weight.  

I'm really good at holding the floor down. 

We're making progress!! 

'Tis the Season..

... of Easter eggs and maple sap!

Here's what we've been up to the past few weeks:

The Boy's good friend moved far far away last fall, but came to visit us for Spring Break!  

And we put the friend right to work collecting sap.

And then The Husband put me to work.  

The syrup season started out as a dud.  We thought we were never going to be able to get into the woods to tap, as the snow was ridiculously deep.  Then, the snow started to recede SLOWLY, but the temps didn't get high enough for the sap to run.  And when the temps did rise, they rocketed up.  Ugh.  But, we ended up with a respectable amount.  Good news, syrup-lovers.

We also had a wonderful Easter celebration.

We dyed eggs.  

We made birds' nest cookies.  Super-simple, btw and for once in my life, not a Pinterest fail.

We had a lovely Easter dinner with family and friends.

 And the children were spoiled with THREE Easter egg hunts!   One at church, one after Easter dinner at our house, and one at the grandparents'.

Friends, family and candy.  They are very happy bairns.

Some work actually did happen up at The Log House too.   Just not really photo-worthy.  Bob and his father cleared the basement of its assorted... um.. stored items ... and then sealed the concrete floor.  Totally important, just not very visually impressive.   But, stay tuned, intrepid log-gawkers --   big changes are in the works!