April 13-14: Volunteering at Hawks Mountain Ranch

When we get out there, we are getting goats as our natural pasture/blackberry control measures. By golly, we're going to know all there is to know about them and have a clue!!  This year we were gratefully allowed to volunteer at Hawks Mountain Ranch during kidding season. Lisa, our very gracious mentor and hostess showed us city-fied folks the ins and outs of cleaning stalls, feeding, rounding up and most of all, marveling in the awesomeness of the Pygora goat. 

Ryan and ClairBell

We even feel in love with two little ones. I don't have the photo available of the little white boy but this is ClairBell and she stole Ryans heart. An orphan, she had a troubled birth and was not welcomed by her mom once she got better.

The little white guy was abandoned by his mom after a few days and was left. Nothing has ever broken my heart more than watching a little baby goat run from mom to mom and try to get some milk only to be kicked away as if he was poison. He just stood there and looked at the ground before gathering up enough strength to try again with the same results. Everytime getting a little weaker and a little more hopeless.  :(   The photo I took was so sad I can't post it here. Lisa intervened and worked some magic and he is stronger, bigger and doing better.

We had a great experience and feel so much more prepared for what lies ahead and inspired to go back next year.

The little ones are hiding

Ryan feeding the pregnant(?) mothers

We seldome have the opportunity to get photos of Ryan so I am extremely pleased that he was willing to be photographed doing something that he doesn't like to do... getting dirty.  LOL  Sory hun but it is SO true.

I am proud of you and know that you are going to be the best partner that I could have asked for on this adventure.

March 2012 Update

Not much to report I am afraid.  My new job has me working almost every waking hour, including the weekends. Ryan is still working on the second floor drawings but in taking up all of my slack, not much going on there.  We are still on track to turn in our drawings to someone by spring. Since spring starts this week, we have at least three months to get our act together.  Good thing is that my new job pays a living wage, so we are on track to have almost half the property paid off by next February. Which gives us a nice chunk of change to get started.  More when I can...

Our House... the template

We have finished the design of the house and are busy (Ryan is busy) re-drawing the sketches so that we can get them to the architect for a once over and some engineering help.  It seemed only appropriate to show everyone what the house is based upon.

Located on the title space is a photograph of a model of the 1995 Life Magazine Dream House created by Dennis Wedlick Architect LLC.  I spoke to him last year and let him know personally of our project. The initial inspiration for our house goes solely to him and his brilliant design.We owe him and the publishers of Life Magazine the credit for giving us something to dream about. I saved the original magazine in my desk for all of these years dreaming that someday, I could live in a house as unique and beautiful as this one. I can't believe that this might actually happen.

Here is the south face of the home in it's original iteration:

Life Magazine's 1995 Dream House

 

 Floor Plan Drawings:

Downstairs

Upstairs

Ryan and I have spent the better part of the last year thinking and troubleshooting and changing these original plans into something that works for this project and the way that we live.

I will post the finished drawings he as I have them. We assume that the counties architect is going to monkey with them, but we a hoping not too much :)

Cheers  :)

February 2012 Status Update

Here it is, almost spring. We are gettiing ready to make our 12th payment on the property. The way it is going, we will have this thing half paid off by the time we start construction in the Spring of 2013!!  We could not be happier about this development.

Ryan is working on the house elevation drawings and re drawing all of the plans so that we can submit them to the county.  That's about it.

Thank you to all of our new neighbors who are keeping an eye on the property and our fallen trees.  I start a new job on the 27th which is going to do several things for us:  more money so that we can pay this off sooner and I will be able to remote in from home on those "snowed in" days that we are sure to have when we finally get out there.

Stay cool and come back soon!!

January 2012 Status Update

I have started to feel a little guilty that I am not out here every week putting something up. I am just not motivated right now.  :(

The felled trees are still not done and we have gone up about once a month for the last two to chop, chop, chop some more wood off of them. We are getting to the bigger stuff that is testing the limit of our chain saw, so it's not motivating. We will continue to work on that in between storms and as our work schedules allow.

The House Plans are almost done!!!!  We are enlisting the services of a friends wife who will render them in 3D so that we can see what we have done before we hand them over to the counties Living Building Architect for a once over.  Our plan is to have submitted the drawings and gotten tentative approval for our design by summer 2012. Our house is going to be so awesome.  In case I haven't mentioned this, it is based off of the 1995 Life Magazine Dream House design by Architect Dennis Wedlick.  He just completed the Hudson Passive house to rave reviews and acclaim.

Here is the summary:  Basement (subterranean but in the heating envelope) housing the water room, electrical and the train room. First floor which has three sections:  a garage with a mud-room leading through double doors to a passageway that is transitional between outside and inside leading through a large door into the heated envelope housing the kitchen, dining room and living room. There is a wide stairway leading to the second floor that houses our bedroom, Shaelyn's bedroom the communal bathroom and the laundry room as well as a Pullman Car room located centered over the garage. All of the second floor is in the heating envelope except a large storage area adjacent to the Pullman Car room.  Both the first and second floor are passively heated with hydronic radiant floor supplement as well as a soapstone wood stove centrally located on the first floor. The chimney affect will be utilized for the first and second floors as well and the house will be zoned so that we can seal off certain areas when not in use. The house is large but there isn't a single place in it that is wasted space.  It really is awesome and we hope that the architect thinks so as well.

Loan:  We have paid off 17% of our loan to date. That's in 10 months and we are pretty happy about that.  By spring 2013, we are on track to be able to break ground and start with the underground cistern, the ICF and maybe even start framing.

Dorothy Rest In Peace

Early Monday morning, November 21, just before 1 AM, our smallest and most vulnerable duck suffered a tragic accident.  Something had been visiting the greenhouse at night and was raiding the ducks eggs. Dorothy appears to have fallen into the center of the greenhouse and landed wrong, breaking her leg.

Ryan found her and after much agonizing thought and many difficult phone calls, decided to put her down. She went very quickly and by the time the decision had been made, appeared to have accepted what was about to happen.  We buried her the next morning in the garden.



Dorothy (middle) at several weeks old

Dorothy in Front



The property is starting to look like itself again

October came and went. It finally feels like Fall. Ryan and I completed work stripping off the branches this week. The property is starting to look like it did before we had four huge trees drop upon it.

The house plans are also coming along as we started working on the second floor which will house the Master Bedroom and bath, Shaelyn's room, the Pullman Car and another bathroom. That's going to be a lot of composting toilets for one house!