Getting Water

Life can change so quickly!  The basement walls that I had posted about last month are done and painted.  The water line has been connected from the well to the house.  The garden has been tilled and a few early crops planted.  The geese are sitting on their nests.  I have hatched out two batches of chicks in an incubator.  And I have started a new job during a pandemic (I am now an essential worker).

This well line trench is now all filled in and the dirt piles are only slightly smaller.  It may not look like much, but we had been dreaming of connecting the well for about 4 years now.  We are so much closer to being able to move in!  And not haul water for all the animals.  Geese ungratefully use a lot of water.

Gilbert wants you to know that he disapproves of everything.

Basement Walls and Root Cellar

This morning, Jon and I worked on putting up boards for the basement walls.  The cement walls have insulation and studs up and rough planed boards will make up the final wall.  This corner of the basement will someday be my weaving studio (as well as home to a hot water heater).

The middle section of the basement will be root cellar/pantry.  This section will be walled off on three sides with insulation.  The left side has drawers and shelves and the right side has shelves floor to ceiling.  I am waiting on a quote for a countertop.  All of the extra kitchen supplies will be kept here and I am very excited to have a place to stock up on bulk items and keep canned goods.  The temperature stays steady and cool.

The last section will be closest to the door and will be Jon's workshop.  There is only one wall to go now, and the weather keeps getting warmer!

Baking all day

I've been meaning to write here again for some time, but every time that I sit down at the laptop, I remember that the dishes haven't been done, there's knitting in the basket next to me, that laundry is still in a huge pile on the bedroom floor, Jon calls me over to discuss cabin plans again...or I am just too exhausted to fill a blank page before me.  My job at the farmstand is only part time.  That is quite enough for now.  I am only working in the bakery now and survived making hundreds of pies through the end of the year and now am figuring out how to make shelves look full without over-baking.  I still am having a very hard time waking at up 4:45 am and now eat two meals a day because my stomach can't handle being awake so early.  However, this is one of the best jobs that I have ever had and I am so very thankful to be paid to bake all day.  Even if it does mean that when I get home I feel like a blob and go lie on the couch.  And neglect cleaning and making dinner, especially baking again.

Jon is at home for now and very forgiving of my blob-ness.  There are some days that we only eat rice and kolbasa.  Tonight we are eating homemade baked beans and roasted butternut squash and anadama bread, not only because it is delicious, but we can also eat it for days.  I don't mind keeping this job for a while until we can save up or Jon gets a really good job.  I'm hoping that once the days get longer and warmer my energy will increase and I will once again be able to do everything around the house and keep up with my massive garden plans.

I think ahead to the future, a one room cabin, spinning wheel in the corner, bread in the bake oven and the warmth of the hearth.  Goats grazing the lawn, and maybe children playing on the porch.

Oh, and I finished the sweater-thing.

One step closer. House plans VS building codes!

Have you ever tried to plan a project that seemed completely above your level of skill without knowing all of the parameters?  I try this all the time with knitting (eg. Jon's sweater- I'm frustrated with decreasing the yoke right now, therefore it is sitting in a bag in the corner).  The house project doesn't quite work like that.

We have now not only met with the electrician, but a plumber, a timber framing consultant, the interim building inspector, the energy code people, a bank loan manager, and tonight we will meet with a roofer.

Each time, a new issue comes up or we need to alter the plans...again.  We had a big scare last night after we met with the energy people.  We are now required to seal the house up so tightly that we will need at least one mechanical blower system running 24/7.  This can be a bathroom blower, but it will need a special box with computerized dials and speeds that will be set specifically for our house.  We must also be extremely careful about humidity, because it will be SO TIGHT that it could get up to 80% humidity.  The guy estimated that we would have a usual humidity of 50-60%.  That does not quite work for a timber frame, where we use green wood in lots of places that will slowly dry over time.  He also said we would need to be extremely careful of mold.  *shudder*

This is because the town we will build in has opted to mandate the Stretch Energy Codes.  No town vote or anything, the town council decided this.  Jon's parents didn't even know.

So this information caused a subsequent panic attack for the both of us, that we could die of mold, lack of oxygen (especially in the case of a long-term power outage!!!!), OR of toxic fumes in the case of fire, because the foam board that they recommend to line the house with is extremely toxic and highly flammable.

I do not understand how any of this makes sense.  We can only hope that we can find ways of working around these codes that will allow us to stay healthy and afford to actually build this house.  At least we had good news at the bank.  As long as things check out and we can provide an estimate for absolutely everything needed to build the house, we should get the money to build it.

Thing have a way of working out, and the power of prayer cannot be underestimated.  We have pages of plans to re-draw, heating systems to reconsider, and joinery to research.  We might even consult a structural engineer to make sure that we can defend our timber sizing.  At least we found out that as long as we get a 'species letter', we can mill and hew our own wood.  For anyone out there considering building a house in Massachusetts yourself, it can be done!

Picture from the VT barn raising, but close to what our ceiling would look like.

Beautiful.

House building, hair cutting, and Valentine's Day

Last night, we attended the Valentine's Day Dinner at Old Sturbridge Village, a present from Jon's mom.  We learned about the history of Chocolate, valentines, and got to eat a nice dinner!  I asked the presenter about hearth cooking, and she said the best way to learn was to take a class.

By the way, I plan on using a hearth to cook after we build our timber frame house.

Something like this.

I might actually be a little crazy.  But, I have my reasons.

1.  I hate central air heating, baseboard heaters, etc.  The only source of heat that actually gets me warm is a wood stove or fireplace.  We plan on having both of those.  I am currently huddled under a shawl (wearing long johns, too!) and freezing.

2.  Things baked over a flame or in a brick oven taste better.  Instead of going out for those fancy brick oven pizzas, I can make them right at home!  Along with bread, pie, cookies, anything else that I could think of.  My only limit is that I need to heat that oven with coals for 2 hours, clean it out, and then sweep it with a wet broom before baking.  I think of it as an extended 'pre-heat' cycle.

3.  Off-grid.  And we have access to wood.

4.  Turning meat on a spit or string.  Practically gourmet!

5.  Back to my roots.  People have cooked over fire for a long time and I feel like it is a very satisfying way to prepare food.

I do plan on having an electric oven in the kitchen, unless I do take lessons and don't completely stress out about a complete lifestyle change.  A part of me, though, really wants to take that leap.  We'll see where that goes.

Jon and I met with an electrician this morning.  We had spent HOURS on house plans, the model...and there were still things we hadn't thought of.  The electrician is going to allow us to work with him to cut some of the labor costs and will give us a good deal, though.  I'm not going to think of how expensive it is going to be yet.  If I do, then I will throw that idea out the window and start begging Jon to not use electricity at all...which would probably not be a good idea with my love for using the internet/computer related job...

We did pick out our light fixtures.  They are handmade and very pretty.  Not that much more than Home Depot for cost, either!  They are all from Williamsburg Blacksmiths.

Sconces for by bathroom mirrors

Sconces by front door, in hallways

Over kitchen counter and sink

Light fixtures from ceilings

Chandelier by stairs

Chandelier in master bedroom with cathedral ceiling

Outside lights, one by front door, one by back door

I am very excited about these fixtures.  Makes all those hours of planning where studs go, figuring out beam sizing, drawing and erasing over and over....somewhat worth it!  I plan to keep updating here when we figure more things out.  Feedback and ideas are appreciated about any aspect of the house.  I would love to hear about feasible ways of keeping to old traditions/styles.

Also, I donated my hair to Locks of Love again.  No big deal.

Free haircut with donation at Mane Element Hair Studio in Concord, NH.

And then it snowed, just missing my birthday.  This was very unusual, because major snow storms always happened ON my birthday.  So much for making solid plans!

Cracked wheat bread and saving up for a grain mill

Today I sat down and skimmed Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book.  I couldn't believe that this book, given to me by my mother, was just sitting around for so long, and I had no idea how wonderful it was!  You should get this book.  Seriously.  Not only does it have amazing whole grain recipes, but it has instructions on everything to do and tips for ingredients and they are so healthy!  After getting to the section about milling flour yourself, I decided to sit down and really do some research on which one to save up for.

This site helped me rule out pretty much every model that I thought would do well.  The only one that they listed that they liked was WAY over anything I'd ever spend.  It cost more than our mattress did!  They did mention, though, that their absolute favorite mill, which they somehow forgot to actually review, was the Country Living Grain Mill.  I went to their site, read a ton of reviews, and fell in love.  For my purposes of milling flour to make bread, this is the best and most affordable mill out there.  They even sell 'blemished' mills for a huge discount.  The only problem: where to get the money to buy it.  I haven't even been able to afford to get new glasses (the frame is held together in the middle with industrial adhesive and the end of an art pencil, thanks to Jon!).  Money is scarce right now, and I can't justify using a credit card on this when I am having trouble paying my half of the rent.  Translating has been very slow recently, which is fine, but I'm going nuts.

This grain mill is going to be beautiful, produce more healthy flour because I will grind it as I need it (the most nutrient rich part of the wheat berry starts to loose nutrients right away), and I can finally stop relying on store-bought flour that has been sitting.  I can't wait to post all about my experiences grinding my own flour and finding local sources of grains!  If I start saving up my change now...

________________

Well, for today, I am baking a split wheat and whole wheat bread, made with all whole wheat flour, bulgur, and dates as the sugar.

 Bulgar, soaked in boiling water

 Dates, cooked to a mush with water

 Dough before rising

Done!  This is seriously the BEST tasting bread I've ever made.

House model taking up half of my work space.  After trying to cut half-lap with a knife, I slipped and sliced my finger open...No nerve damage, thank goodness, but I do have a new scar!  Jon's teaching me tool safety now while we are still at model stage, before I get to use big scary things like chisels.