New Year 2015

January 2, 2015

     Joe and I hope everyone had a joyful Christmas!  We wish everyone a Happy New Year foe 2015.
We are excited that we are getting so much closer to having the plumbing and drywall in.   Mud and taping may be challenging, but we have made it this far so believe we can also tackle that job.
      The weather has been quite cold the past two weeks and even colder weather is predicted around January 5.  Thank goodness most of the work is inside for now.
     Joe and Wayne got the soffits and trim up on the high end of the roof lady week.  We had to hire a tractor with a lift to reach that high.  They wound up putting a ladder on our scaffold strapped to the lift to reach the peak! Thank goodness that part of the soffit is finished.  We probably won't put up anymore soffits or siding until warmer weather.  The house is wrapped in Tyvek so it is water tight.
     As soon as we can get the HVAC guy back out to finish the last vent and connect the system, we will have heat and air in the house!  Miracles never cease.
     My granddaughter, Meghan, and I are visiting my son and his family outside of Memphis.  It is my grandson , Jackson's, 3rd birthday on January 3.  So happy to be here for his birthday.  Little Evan who is 1 1/2 years old is such a character and so glad to get to spend time with him also.
     I hope our Red Wattle sow, Rosie, waits to have her babies until I get back home as I would like to be there to see the babies.  Joe is great at helping with animal deliveries if need be.
     The 12 foot sheets of drywall for our walls were delivered Dec. 31, so we are just now ready to start hanging it.  I can help Joe with the walls as that drywall is so much lighter than the ceiling drywall.
     Joe and I took a two day break and went to the Chateau Resort in Branson.  So wonderful to have room service and rest.  Really recharged the batteries to keep us working on the house. Muffin and Freckles even went to stay at a dog retreat in Branson so we knew they were safe and cared for while we were away.
     I decided to make some time to paint a 4 ft tall soldier to go by our front door for Christmas.  Callie and I made peppermint star shaped tree ornaments one day.  I misread the cooking time and our first batch cooked for 30 minutes, not 3 minutes!  That made pretty pink blobs , but they were not star shaped ornaments!  We  worked out the kinks and finally made some darling ornaments.
     Happy New Year and may your dreams come true !   
                           
 

Fireplace & Drywall

December 8, 2014
    The past few weeks have continued to be busy.  The TV cable is run through out the house.  We have been setting the kitchen can lights, running more electrical, and getting the fireplace up and running.   We are using the fireplace this week to make sure it works before we finish the wall framing and put up the stone facing.
    The kitchen wall next to the refrigerator had to be built out 8 inches so the cabinets are even with the refrigerator casing.  Customizing that took a little time, but it looks great.
     We have a little Christmas tree in the back room.  The tree really brightens up the house with holiday spirit.
      The heat and AC ducting is all in.  I finally finished stapling the attic air vent panels.
     Joe ordered the ceiling drywall and part of the drywall for the addition walls.  We'll put up the ceiling drywall first.  Once the ceiling is drywalled, the house should be so much warmer.  We have spent the last several nights bundled up in insulated overhauls , down jackets, boots, and fur hunting hats trying to stay warm enough to watch National Finals Rodeo on our big screen TVA in the addition.  Without drywall or insulation in the addition,  the fireplace has not been able to keep the room over 40 degrees.  Thank goodness the drywall goes up Thursday, so we might get a few nights of being warmer watching rodeo.
     The big event for me will be temporarily hanging the kitchen chandelier to see how it will look and see if 3 pendant lights will be too much over the sink area.
      Day temperatures this week will start in the low 40's but up to 60 over the weekend.  Great weather to get things done

Happy Thanksgiving 2014

     Big day at Leslie's house.  She is having Joe's 3 family members over, Bill's family, us, and a few drop-ins over for Thanksgiving.  I think the last head count was up to 22 people. We are taking a ham, pumpkin pies, green beans, rolls, and pistachio and ambrosia salads.  We bought a turkey roaster so Leslie could cook both turkeys at her house.  The roaster will come in handy for big get togethers.
     HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Girls and the mini horses

    I finally got the picture of when the girls came to dinner a few months ago.  Joe cooked chicken on the grill and we ate out on the patio.  So much fun listening to the girls talk and visiting with them.  Before dinner the girls were out loving on the minis.  They took some great pictures of each other.
   We are looking forward to all the Grandkids visiting and spending time here!

The new roof!

November 13, 2014.                     Just need to finish the roof trim!!

                               

Red Wattle Sow

October 25

     We bought a heritage breed of hog! The heritage breeds are rare and we wanted a pig that does well foraging for most of its food as opposed to one that is penned up and fed just commercial feeds.
We chose a Red Wattle sow named Rosie. (probably because she is red).  She is friendly but quite large so not quite what I would call a pet.  No, we aren't going to eat her.  Rosie is two years old and has been bred to a Red Wattle boar.  There should be about a dozen little piglets born around the first part of January.  Rosie will be kept in part of the barn and one of the cattle pens this winter so we can keep an eye on her and keep the piglets warm with a heat lamp.
    A Red Wattle pig has two wattles hanging from its neck.  The wattles don't do anything, sort of like our appendix.  They are just distinguishing breed traits.

Oct 30 - Nov 12 Roof on

Who knew there was so much involved with getting a new roof?  Not me, that's for sure.
      After removing the red metal and two layers of shingles and tar paper, there were hundreds of nails that had to be popped up.  Again, thank goodness for the proper tools and strong able bodied people.  Then some new bracing and sheeting was cut and installed.  The sheets of under liner went down and then the metal was put on the addition first so the metal would not have to be hauled across a finished roof.  Joe and Wayne had a few challenges with the 20 foot panels in the blowing wind, but they did great and got the job done.  Then the process started again on the old roof.  I don't know how the guys have been able to work on the roof as the temperatures are running about 25 degrees below normal.  This weeks high was about 31 degrees and low around 22 at night.
We now have a beautiful green metal roof ! The trim is on all sides except the high end of the house.  That will get put on next week when we have a tractor with a lift on it so the guys can reach the peak.
     Joe also put in the last two French doors.  What a difference they make in the way the patio side of the house looks.
     This week I have had a cold and have not been any help.  The cats and my Yorkie, Muffin, have loved snuggling in bed while I slept the week away.  I have basketball tournament week and homecoming.   Callie and Emilee borrowed Papa Joe's flatbed trailer and decorated it for the homecoming parade today.  He was out in the dark last night hooking up the trailer for them.  They didn't call until about 7 pm.
      Rosie, our Red Wattle pig has settled in nicely.  I have let her out to graze, but she seems to always wind up in the yard by us.  Very sociable.  She knows her name and comes when called, especially if she thinks food might be involved.  I added another strand of electric fence tape so that should keep her out in the pasture.  She has a house made from straw bales in one side of the barn.  She seems warm hunkered in her straw bed in her house.
    Joe's mom, sister and brother in law finally arrived from California.  They bought a beautiful place on acreage just across town.  It will be wonderful having more family back here!