One step forward, three steps back ...

Step forward - the kitchen tile, the stove, the bales of straw... they all meant we were one step closer to the "important stuff" being done.
Steps back ... as you read yesterday, the propane guy came & was a condescending ... well, he just wasn't a nice guy. We were informed (only after calling his office) that the guy didn't think our road was safe for a propane truck to be delivering on.So ... we had another company come out today & the guy who came expressed the same concern, though he didn't say they would not deliver. Until they decide, we are at a stand still & really wee this only going one of two ways ...

• 1) They get the tank here, set it & fill it up one time ... then not again until either the road is graded or our driveway is widened & stumps removed .... OR ........ 
• 2) We use the propane money that was set aside to get our driveway done & then have to wait until we have the money to the propane again (which would probably be about 2 months).

On a side note ... I wish we had the money to just do things all at once ... at least for this part of the cabin! It's all a little overwhelming at this point. We're not sure what to do first nor how to do it. I'm not complaining though ... just being real. We knew this would happen from time to time & were/are willing to accept that. In spite of the issues though ... we do love the life & are excited by every step ... backwards & forward. The backward steps aren't failure,as some would see them ... they are lessons & truly, we are learning!

My husband & son have fixed our (borrowed) generator 4 times. It's funny .. because my husband is not a mechanical kind of guy ... but when something is broken & you are going to have to replace it any way, there's no reason you can't open it up & fiddle with things. I mean think about it ... it's already "broken"... so what harm will you tinkering with it do? None! By tinkering, my husband & one of our boys has learned their way around the generator & fixed it each time. I am impressed!!!

Speaking of lessons ... here is an IMPORTANT one!!! Today in our area,we were given a NO BURN notice. Under no circumstances was anyone allowed to burn on their property ... not their trash ...not their weeds or brush ... NOTHING!!! Well ... the guy who owns the land next to ours decided to burn any way. In a matter of a minute, his fire jumped & got out of control. He doesn't have his home on the land yet. Nor did he have enough water to put a fire out!!! 

The only house on this side of the mountain is ours. His land adjoins ours. Well, the fire department was called ... they got the fire out but not before giving the guy a yellin' at!!! By the grace of God (and as we prayed), the wind died down & changed directions ... or our home would have been lost in the fire. I'm sure the guy will get HUGE fines ... and not to mention, all of his land has burned. So ... moral of the story ... when officials give your area a NO BURN notice ... it's for a reason!!!  

Plenty of work

Today was a busy day!

• Propane company sent a guy out to make sure our access road and/or driveway would be safe enough to get a 250 lb. tank up to us, as well as send a truck to fill it when ever we needed more fuel. Well, the guy never called before hand, as I'd requested (because we have dogs) ... nor did he follow directions & come to our driveway, park & walk up. He drove through our neighbors property & came up behind us. Not smart ... 'nuff said! As if that wasn't bad enough ... the man was one of those guys who talk down to women, as if they are uneducated eye candy. Ticked me right off. We are trying to decide where to put the hot water heater. he said we had to put it inside ... um where? There's NO room LOL I want it outside ... and told him we'd build a utility closet. His response ... "well, you can't keep it outside, rain and snow would ruin it!" .... "Um ... obviously!!! That's why I suggested we'd build a utility closet." I shook my head & said one more thing ... "I probably need to vent it too. The vapors would gather & we'd go boom ... HEH?!" (Said in my best Archie Bunker voice). He was supposed to give me prices ... never did, nor did anyone call from the company. I called & complained ... I think we'll be getting a discount!

• 50 square bales of straw were delivered to our house this morning. We're using them to build insulation walls around our cabin ... to give us a little more protection from cold winds. The kids had fun. See for yourself ... 

• Got part of the tile done in our temporary kitchen. I say temporary because we've decided that the addition will house a great room ... a combination of our kitchen, dining room & living room. It will be a step-down, 15x32 (or a 20x32). It will also have a second bathroom and two more lofts (to be used as bedrooms). Any way ... here's the tile "session" ... 

• We got enough floor done just in time for our new stove to be delivered

Well, we're all worn out and have another busy day tomorrow. I'm pretty sure the propane tank will be delivered, lined in to the house & filled. See ya next time!

What's cookin' ?

Ah yes ... a new stove will go perfectly in our little home, hidden amongst the trees. It is much smaller than we are used to, but it will work. It has a "Sabbath" mode. I had no idea what that meant but because my family observes Sabbath, I was very intrigued and went in to research mode. It will warm food for us, without having to "work." In the past we have eaten cold leftovers or salad on Shabbat. This range, with Sabbath Mode has opened up all kinds of menus for us! Our oven won't do much at one time but we'll get by! Our turkey sizes may have to change but we've found a way around baking. We'll be buying a full size "Perfection" Oven.

It adds space for more things to bake at once ... which, when you have a larger than average family, helps a great deal! Here it is ... not only can we bake in our "regular" oven ... but this one will go on top of our new range & adds a couple extra racks to utilize. YAY!
On a side note ... thank you to those who gave their opinions on whether to build two doors or just one, for the bath room & bedroom situation. You all made the same point & I agree. I definitely don't want to sacrifice our privacy! It's not really a cost issue, though I did bring that up. Really though, it's more of a wall space issue. In order to make a few adaptations to our plans work, we need extra wall space & a door doesn't only take up the space it's placed in ... but also the space it uses when needing to be opened. So ... I'm thinking stick with only one door ... but make that door go right in to the bathroom. Then inside the bathroom, on another wall, there could be a door leading in to my bedroom. The bedroom can be locked from the inside for privacy & from the outside, to keep people from going in when they shouldn't be. Does that sound like it would work better?

Making improvements

It's time to do some upgrades! We ordered our new, "cabin size" shower last night. Once we get the shower installed, we'll put the walls up. We still haven't decided whether we want a door on the living room side of the wall & in to our bedroom ... or just enter our bed room & then to the bath room. I'm thinking we'll just go with the one door, from our bed room. It has pro's & cons ... pro would be cutting costs. Major con is that everyone, including our children would have to be in & out of our room all the time. Just seeing that in writing makes me want to get two doors ... but the extra wall space is valuable too. It's all about where the most important sacrifice would be. Now I'm off to learn how to plumb it!

2012 Resolutions

Resolution - a resolve or determination: to make a firm resolution to dosomething.

I don't normally make resolutions. The thought of them has always plagued me with worry. I stress about the littlest things when it comes to committing to change. I've come up with a plan for myself .. I changed my idea of what my resolutions should be. I'm not sure I can really explain my thoughts or reasons for the change ... but for me, they don't overwhelm me & flow in to changes I feel are important.

1) Spend more time with my Heavenly Father. By this I don't mean reading the Word more (all though that's in the plans too) or praying ... I mean ... just sitting with Him, calm and still ... quietly admiring His creations. "Be still and know that I am God" comes to mind. 

2) No more buying from corporate bullies who move their jobs to different countries. If it's not made in America, I don't need it!!! In my hunt for gifts and items for myself or household, I will be looking to my  friends who have home businesses. I believe in you, your product & want to do everything I can to help you succeed! (So, if you have a blog, website etc showing your products or services, plesase send it to me)

3) Making healthier choices - not just with food, but in friends, acquaintances, committing to do things etc. I want my body healthy in the New Year but also my mind & soul..

4) "Stir up the gift of God which is in you" ... a beautiful piece I won in a GiveAway. I will strive to spend more time doing just that. I will spend more time feeding the creativity that God placed deep in my heart. I will write, sing, paint ... and take photos. I use the gifts he hjas given me to teach my children to use their gifts. I look forward to a creative year!

5) Take time to recognize the blessings & gifts in my life ... every day. It may not come as a FB post or even a word spoken outloud ... but I will be thankful!

6) Stop second guessing myself ... when I have a gut feeling to not go forward with something or someone, I need to stop talking myself out of it. That instinct is there for a reason! 

7) Health - yep, you knew it was coming. This is a priority for me. I have been doing good on my journey to lose weight ... but I know I can (and should) do more. My goal is not weight loss (though that is a perk) ... it's to be healthy ... eat healthy, get the proper amount of sleep, have a strong immune system etc. I get in a good routine & then stumble. I want the stumbling to happen less & less this year!

Pictures of our Promised Land :)

Short blog ... Ya right LOL ... not after being gone for this long. Grab a cup of something, sit down & enjoy the pictures (and small comments in between LOL) (Pictures are in no specific order)

The boys pulled this stump out from among the weeds when we were cleaning up part of the land

Our 4 year old trying his hand at building a log cabin out of sticks 

14 year old daughter helping with the caulking

12 year old helping with the caulking

Pulling protective plastic off the loft/bedroom window

Smile for the camera LOL

Peak-a-boo

One of our water tanks

See the heart in the trees? That is at the entry of our property ... How kool is God?

Pulling weeds

More weed pulling

Gathering rocks to line our driveway with

"Hillbilly" insulation ... clothing in walls, held up with sheets that are tacked to the wall

Some of our stuff in the cabin

The loft in it's "almost a bedroom" state 

Who is this space man?

Ahhh, insulation day. (Hillbilly insulation came down)

Tada!!!

A water heater we are borrowing

Our water tank stand

Some of our neighbors:

A little fun:

Target shooting with the B.B. gun

Bein' silly

Justice and Liberty for us (this is what they do after a hard day at play)

Something we found growing on the land: