We finished the board part of the siding. Working on plumbing now. Very boring part and nothing to show except a few pipes sticking out the ground.

Staircase and Siding

We finished the staircase this week. Pete built it with local pine. The stingers are stained to match the beams in the rest of the house. We left the stairs natural to match the flooring that we plan to install. We weren't sure if the staircase would need to be supported underneath. But it's solid! Pete and the boys raised the staircase themselves using a simple pulley and chain system.



Pete and the kids also finished putting the board part of our board and batton siding.

The Work Resumes!

We're back at it! After a long hiatus from house building while we were planning on selling our current house and using the proceeds to build our dream house, reality has finally hit. We realize now that the real estate market is very slow. I know, I know, we were the last on the planet to know. We knew, but were in denial. (Our house won 't take long to sell.) So we tried a realtor who turned out to be a TOTAL DUD! (She was hoping to just put a sign in the ground and get lucky, without doing ANYTHING). So we are back to For Sale By Owner. Which is just fine by me because it means no lock box and no unscheduled visits with dirty diapers and dirty dishes all around (not that we were getting any visits, but still.) Our plan now is to slowly build the house, saving up money for each step. If we happen to sell the house along the way, great. If not, no worries, we'll get it done anyway even if it takes another two years.

Pete started on the staircase for the office loft. He is building it out of heart pine and it's going to be beautiful. He has been busy this week sealing the wood and hand-notching out slots for the steps. He looks happy to be back to work!

Whew! It's been awhile since I last posted. that's because there just isn't much happening with the house these days. With this slow real estate market, we just can't seem to sell the house we are in. And we need to sell that one in order to finish the new one. So everyday I go outside and I look at the new house--one day, I tell it. But that hasn't stopped the kids from having a good time in the new house. Here is Charlie hanging out in the A/C ducts and the other kids skating around.



We have been working on a house though, just not the new one. We have been trying to get our current house in better shape. We even have the baby helping lay bamboo floors!

Framing Is Almost Finished

Pete has almost finished framing the interior walls. That's Charlie up in the loft that will be the office and school room.

House For Sale

Pictures of our current house for sale. It is a 2004 modular home built to withstand hurricane winds better than most site built homes. It has 1700 sq. ft., 3 bedrooms, and 2 baths. It is a lovely home with 9 feet ceilings and a 7/12 roof pitch. But the best part is the property! It is on 4 beautiful acres with gorgeous undeveloped pristine wetlands behind the house. The house is on a canal that leads out to the Ocklawaha River. The Ocklawaha River is part of the Harris Chain of Lakes. You can travel the river to numerous lakes. For more information about this house please visit www.forsalebyowner.com/listing/0B3ZR . If you know someone who may be interested, please pass this info along. We need to sell this house so we can finish our new one!

Framing the Interior Walls

After a short reprieve in which Pete and I got our current house ready for the market, we have started framing the interior. Pete was able to use wood we had stored years ago for this job and only had to purchase $50 worth from Lowes. It is amazing how much bigger a house looks when the walls are defined. Areas that I was worried about the size (like the living room) now seem huge. That square you see outlined on the floor will be my favorite room in the house--the pantry! I have always wanted a walk-in pantry.