Busy life = lack of blogging

I like lists, and that is the best way to recap the construction news over the past two months, since I have been very lax in blogging. There are luckily photos to accompany the list of changes.

1. Sauna foundation poured
2. Sauna walls, roof on
3. Sauna shingled
4. Chimney in sauna
5. Last parts of Border Lakes building demo completed with smashing and burning
6. Ledgerock discovered in basement floor
7. Freak-out over possible re-design of house plan due to ledgerock (I don't have a photo of this)
8. Two weeks of depression and indecision ( I don't have a photo of this either)
9. Solution to ledgerock: build over the existing slab, use some of the existing walls, step the basement floor up where the ledgerock protrudes
10. Slight re-design of house plan, with improvements!
11. Excavation of site
12. Basement walls formed in three separate pours

This photo off the sauna was taken right before a storm hit, and the wall you see braced actually tipped over in the wind. It was so funny to have just been standing and admiring the work, then be standing in the shop and hear a big boom after the wind knocked it over. Well, maybe funny now but at the time it was really maddening! 

In this photo you can see the chimney, as well as the shingles on the roof in progress, and the re-use of the old boards from the Border Lakes building. The hot room of the sauna will be paneled with cedar salvaged from the building, and two windows were also rescued. I know many people will understand our satisfaction of being able to re-use these parts!

 With the demo of the deck, stairs, and other basement rooms we could clearly see the evidence of ledgerock extending into the basement. Previous work had just left the ledge, created a wall around it, and covered that with sand (which is why we didn't notice it right away). Our solution is to keep the wall, and cap it with a slab. We are saving money by not blasting it out, and also saving the area from a huge disturbance. 

 

The area with ledge underneath will be a storage room in the basement with a 6'7" ceiling height. You can see the rock in the close up photo. It can be broken with a jackhammer, but that would be a crazy job.

All excavated and ready for the first forms to be constructed.

The first pour resulted in the foundation for the basement walls. Ready for the ICF's!

Raif has been hired to work with Mark, while Cora has been hired to take care of Fiona while I finish my Math Corps job which lasts through the end of June. Here he is showing off an ICF block used to form up the basement walls. The process is a bit like LEGOS, so he was a natural and enjoyed this job quite a bit.

Cora and Fiona have been having lots of fun hanging out this summer. Cora said recently, "She will be my best friend someday." Agreed, knowing how I feel about my sisters who are six and eight years younger than me.

We are so excited for our visitors to get to experience a sauna with a jump into the lake!

...Ok, you get the idea. Lots has happened, partly since I didn't write recently and also since we are now beginning to work on the house. Things are happening folks! It is crazy the amount of work that Mark has accomplished, with the help of Toby and now Raif. Of course David comes up frequently and helps as well. Ann even got in on the shingling of the roof on the sauna.

School ended on May 27. Dance recital and piano recital for Cora, Aladdin performance and Section track meet for Raif, galloping and talking for Fiona. Cora is an amazing performer, and she has been so lucky to have so many great opportunities to stay involved. Raif is a hard worker, and he experienced success as a part of the Sub-Section and Section Champion Track team! He was so excited to make it to sections in the 300 hurdles along with two other hurdlers from his team. Both older kids made the "A" Honor Roll for school which is both an accomplishment and a relief. They survived the transition, and flourished. Thanks to PF teachers for preparing them, and Ely teachers for supporting them - it all worked out!



Speaking of things working out, my big news is that I got hired to be a math teacher at Ely! It really was a relief to finally get that job. I guess Mark and I didn't realize how much we were thinking about that but when I got the call after the interview, we hugged and cried a bit - just some tears of thankfulness. Now, I am so excited to get back in the classroom! I also started an online grad program at St. Mary's University in May. It is a Master's of Education in Learning Design and Technology. No big deal - just start a new job, start grad school, and build a house in same year. I'll let ya know how it goes.




This spring has been a challenge, and made even more so by the news of the death of a close family friend. Adam Pfiffner was a member of my original play group from the time I was 2 years old. He is the brother of my best friend. He and Mark shared a love of wood and timber framing, among other things. It was a shock to hear that someone who lived life so fully would decide to leave here early, but we cannot know his struggles. We had a unexpected trip to Montana to attend the celebration of his life, and although it was a beautiful place with wonderfully supportive people, we came back searching for the meaning of life. We look to each other and find love. We watch our children and see hope. We keep in our hearts the thought that this day might be the last so keep living. We look to the light and feel renewed.

I wanted to share a poem I wrote that seemed to just come out of me after watching the Northern lights one evening soon after Adam's death.

You will feel his presence in the light.

In the brightest sunlight, warming the earth with its rays
Just as his smile warmed our hearts.
With the full moon’s shimmer on the water
Because wasn’t he mysterious and spiritual, connected to water.
Flickering in the flames of a fire, brought to life as a tree dies
His stories will live on in us, his love of wood in the creations he left behind.
Glowing and moving in the northern sky as you gaze in wonder
Reminding you of the music and dancing.

Some people’s light burns long and steady.
Others have a flame that is tentative and builds.
Adam’s burned hot and intense, consuming the energy and moving on
Leaving us cold and shivering, but yearning to find him again.

Look to the light and heal.