Don't Fence Us In!

Lately we have been spending some long days working at the house and feel guilty about leaving the boys at home.  Joel fashioned this containment area out of dune fencing which suffices for now.  I have to be in their field of vision, however, or Striker starts to whine!  Staying in their sight hasn't been a problem for the last three days, though, because I have set up a work station outside and have been diligently painting long pieces of PVC trim.  I think I have completed 20 so far but have MANY more to do.  These will be used around the windows and as corner finishing.

On Thursday Steve installed the first of our upstairs small awning windows.  I was anxious to see how it looked from both the outside and the interior.  The verdict is a thumbs up!  The small wall space in those rooms is difficult to work with, and we debated over many different window styles but opted to stay with the original design.  While he was framing out the window, Steve came across a perfect example of a mortise and tenon joint.  He brought me up to see and explain the theory behind "timberframing" or post and beam construction.  Pretty neat!

Joel has been working hard both inside and out.  He broke through the wall between the dining room and the den and recreated the original doorway.  He also took down a built-in cupboard in the dining room which gives us more space in the side entryway.  Between his debris and the ceiling tear-down mess that Larry, Brian, and Josh made, we filled our 7th dumpster in no time at all:)  Since the weather has been so beautiful, Joel has also been down in the gully area clearing out brush and cutting down small trees to enhance our view of the lake.  Success!  The water is peeking through the greenery big time.  I will post a picture of the vista next time.

We had several visitors yesterday.  My mom and dad stopped by in the afternoon to see our progress.  They knew that I was painting trim work, so they brought lawn chairs and stayed for a couple of hours to keep me company.  A pair of crazy cyclists (and I am not talking about the Tour de France kind!) motored by then turned around when they saw us toiling away.  Heather is a nurse who worked with Joel years ago.  She and her husband, Danny, had heard we purchased a big old house on the north side of the lake so they took a mid day ride to find us.  I love it when people pop in, so if anyone is out and about and wants to come say hello please do so!