Someone had a vision. 

This photo is filed as "tree house tree".  

 

The pic was taken early 2013 but the tree had been studied from numerous angles for the last 5 or 6 years.  Studied and drawn and visualized . . . upon.  Ha!  That is not proper English but I know what I mean : )

 





 

Joe either climbed or was boosted up to be the first to sit on this high perch but he climbed up himself next tree house visit. 

 

Someone else could visualize the end result and he helped set four, 4 X 4 posts in concrete and then the next day came back and climbed 30 feet into a tree.  He tied a rope on a big sturdy limb for a swing rope and then used the chain saw to cut off all the interfering, in-the-way branches. 

 

Is this Craig who has assumed the position of a tree frog?

I am keeping in mind that this is, again, 30 feet up

and if that were me in this pic, I'd be tied to the trunk of that tree 

-- not trimming limbs and branches. 

 

 

Then Master Carpenter Dana moved in. 

He squared up Nana's mis-appropriations with only a few grumbling remarks.  I tried to explain to him that it is hard to use the 3,4, 5 rule around a knobby tree.  I'm thinking he didn't hear me.  I measured it out three or four times and the last measurement was so much closer to square then anything I had come up with previously, that I pounded in the final stakes!  And Craig and I and Himself set the 4x4s in concrete.  Plumb and level.   

 

But if you climb the ladder and have a look, you see I was a little 'off' of square.  okay.  big deal, Dana.  hahahaha just kidding : )   

 

With Dana directing and Craig, Chad and Lanny providing muscle and their own expertise with hand and powers tools, the guys were getting the job done.  

 

oh dear; what is this?  Craig is sending hand signals and Dana is still trying to straighten out my 3, 4, 5' miscalculations. I'm sorry, Dana!  Really! 

 

Work, work, work. 

What a team!  What a crew!

They all worked with the end in mind. 

Ta Da!

Look at that!  A real life, good-looking tree house! 

Dana designed the railing and it is just plain neat and used up left over materials. 

 

Then it was time for the Show Down. 

Jack was the guinea pig.

  He was the first to take the plunge.

Brave boy. 

Down he went!  The look on his face made it all worthwhile! 

 

Maddie and Gabby and Hannah were right in line ready to try it.

You know it had to make their legs shake

 and their tummies turn, but they did it! 

And soon after, Joe too. 

 

Some like it more than others but they'll look back at their childhood

and will remember that moment. 

 

The moment they stepped off the ladder and soared.

 

I'm proud of each and every one. 

 

Then someone had a vision of a rope ladder.

 

Gabby drilled holes in 2X2 boards one day. 

Gabby had the vision.   

 

Maddie helped string the rope through the steps. 

We had to do it two times before

Maddie managed to climb the swaying ladder

 and help her Nana come to the conclusion that the steps needed refined. 

 

Back to the drawing board. 

 

Joey came on duty to finalize the rope ladder

and he helped install the hooks and eyes to anchor the rope. 

 

Now, later, both Audri and Bella have climbed the ladder.

They successfully reached the summit!

That rope ladder may stretch and shrink

 and have to be restrung or shortened,

 but it will help little and middle-sized people to build muscle,

  develop grace and coordination and, most importantly, 

make childhood memories.

 

And did I mention that Traci and Nana have climbed the ladder? 

 

 

After the glory of the tree house and rope ladder,

the one-rope swing remains popular --

even before breakfast and wearing a nightgown. 

 

 

Here we go again!! The final time. Sept 30, 2013

The first time we spray foamed insulation under the cabin, I was short about 10 square feet of finishing.  So in March, I rec'd notice that prices were going to go up, and since I had a 50 dollar coupon from the first purchase, I decided to go ahead and buy enough foam to finish the job. I knew it would sit and get in the way for 5 to 6 months, but the price was right, and I knew it would keep until I was ready to finish the job.

 

 

 

 

 I was a little better prepared this time and knew what to expect as far as the excess foam floating down onto anything it would stick to, especially me.

 

 

 

Although flat on my back most of the time, things went pretty smooth. Herself kept the pressurized tanks shook up and provided me with new spray nozzles whenever I needed them.

It only took about 20 to 30 minutes to finish this time, and although it was extremely hot in the tyvek  suit, we prevailed. It is done forever.

Now we are awaiting estimates for a heating/cooling system. That will be the last major hurdle for now.



Dear to my Heart

I didn't know whether to post this in Too or in Nana's View as this is a subject that is just innate in me. 

 

Saving, reusing, recycling, repurposing. 

 

I am pretty darn sure this obsession developed in my core and my soul as a child raised by parents who had, not so long ago, survived The Great Depression. 

 

In my youth, nothing was wasted.  Food scraps were fed to the dogs and cats.  Breakfast, lunch and dinner were eaten. 

 

Vegetable peelings were put back in the garden to enrich the soil.  "Gray" water (dish water especially) was carried outside to flowers and gardens during the dry years.  And excuse me if this is just too much information but little girls were taught that you only used toilet paper for #2 and otherwise don't wipe and don't flush.  Please remember this is just one step from the Out House . . . and during the dry years of the 1950s. 

 

Sometimes adult coats and clothing were cut down and remade into children's clothes.  Before my time but still within my memory, fabric Feed Sacks were collected and made into little girls' dresses and dish towels and pillow cases.   I have an old small table cloth, maybe a child's table cloth bought at a sale, made from a feed sack. 

 

Bed sheets were 'turned'.  When the sheets wore thin in the middle, they were cut into, the long way.  The 'good' outside edges were 'turned' in and sewn back together so as to get more use from the less worn fabric.  Socks were darned and shoes and boots went to the Shoe Repair for new heels and patches. 

 

 

I really like my old medicine cabinet.  Reclaimed and re-loved. 

Next time down, check out the toothbrush holders inside.

 

I'm enjoying my reclaimed towel holders and knobs and barn barns.

 

This reclaimed saw horse has a couple of stories.  I dragged it out of the burn pile below the dam.  It was the tallest and sturdiest saw horse I ever did meet and I'd met a few that were 'Dadbuilt".  This horse was partly burned up.  I hauled it home and it sat out back of the cabin for six months or so then a couple of weeks ago, Himself and I determined to replace the worst of the burned parts. 

 

If we had made video and put it on You Tube it probably would have gone viral.  It was a knock out, drag out fight.  We beat off the burned boards and pulled out about 80 old nails and screws.  We cut new boards and fit them.  Wrestling that thing all over the front porch, we recut boards again.  Sometimes the saw horse was on top yelling 'say Uncle!' and then we'd roll it over and bash it here and there with a hammer and regain control.  Or so we thought.  At least Himself and I could 'tag team' but it took the both of us to bring that horse into submission let me tell you. 

 

We measured and gauged it more than twice.  And then re-measured and recut again.  And after all that the legs weren't equal lengths! It wobbled!  But for now . . .

It stands on all fours. 

It is functional.

It is a story of trial and error and success!

 

 

Now this little stepstool . . . this sweet little stepstool has a story to tell. 

If only Wood could talk. 

The sign on it in the Second Hand Store said "very old stool".

And it is.  Very old.   Well part of it is very old. The four legs and rungs are very old and the legs are very graceful.  If what I can determine is correct, the legs once graced and upheld a child's chair.  A Quality Child's Chair.

But now, the step and the seat are plywood.  Yes, they are made of OLD plywood . . .  but plywood none the less. 

Someone took the legs and mechanism off of an old child's chair and rebuilt it using material on hand.  i.e. plywood.  That someone who would probably be near and dear to my heart if only I knew who.  Oh wait, it might have been one of my poor Missouri cousins back around 1900! 

No matter, I'm glad I stumbled across it and rescued it.  And Himself didn't even really yell at me. 

Quiet Weekend

Himself was called to Too this past weekend.  Too was calling him home.  We arrived to 97 degree heat -- inside and outside the little cabin.  Whew!   We carried in the groceries and cranked up the air.  We watered trees and flowers.  The ground is so dry I don't believe I have ever seen such large and deep cracks in the earth as I have this year at Too. 

Saturday, I went to Princeton where there were city-wide garage sales and I spent $9.00.  Himself puttered around the home place washing the lawn-mower, watering more plants and cooking breakfast for me!  and for he! 

In the afternoon, I puttered. 

And It pleased me to bring together elements from Dale G, my dad and my bro Marion . . .   When I was at Marion's estate sale I bought these door knobs on the spur of the moment.  I had collected a few other old knobs here and there over the years but this was a treasure trove! Bonanza! 

There are crystal door knobs, white porcelain, 3 beautiful brown knobs plus some other painted and tin run-of-the mill door knobs.  And then are some locks and key holes.  Oh boy! 

When Gramma and Grampa Hof moved into the Mulberry Street house, Dale found three of these old glass towel racks.  He knew how I liked 'vintage' and he gave them to me.  I kept them in the front coat closet for years and years and finally took them to Too to wait for the proper moment.

 

When Gramps built the cabin, he had barn boards milled or found some to buy.  He and Wilbur Ricks cut a lot of wood on an old (probably gas powered) sawmill.  They would have cut the tree then ran it thru the saw mill to square it up before slicing the tree into boards approximately 1" thick.  Some of the left over boards have been stored under the cabin since the cabin was built.   I dug one out the other day and took the hand sander to it.  See above.  That board has character!  I took a little stain and darkened the board a bit to make it more the color of my Hoosier cabinet.  Then I attached 3 porcelain door knobs.  This will go up on the wall to hold kitchen things. 

 

Here's one of the glass towel bars on the other side of the room mounted on a new board.  I may darken it up to match the barn boards. 

Here's the second glass towel bar along with a small porcelain cabinet knob -- all mounted on one of Gramps' barn boards. 

I worked most of the afternoon in 99 degree heat putting these together.  I enjoyed what I was doing, I love it that my family had a hand in the materials and that I came up with some useful objects.

Now, lets see?  does anyone need a door knob or two? 

Things R winding down Sept 7, 2013

We went to the cabin with nothing in particular this time. We watered the new trees and shrubs, then just piddled around. I worked on finishing some trim downstairs, and herself worked on some of her new projects, in which they just seem to come on, one after another. Door knobs this time. She will have to explain.
Still have to finish spray foaming under the cabin before it gets cold. Have been trying to get Fred to talk about a heating system he himself suggested, and when I mention it, he seems interested, then I hear no more. Same with the guy who installed our heat pump. No one seems to be in a hurry for business. May end up just installing one myself. Why not, we have done everything else.
Also looking forward to working with the son who is going to replace all the windows in their cabin. Just have to get him there for a week and see what we can get done.
the Boi

Things R amovin Aug.30, 2013

Things are going very fast, now, it seems.  The porch sealed and painted, a railing on the porch, a tree house has been built(first floor), the pine is up on the walls, and a new floor in the living room.  A very busy season. Now, we have started on the loft, but in order to do that, all the tools we had been using for the downstairs, had to be moved out.  So I spent almost an entire day clearing out the loft.  Then taped the drywall, mudded the same, and sanded.  All my favorite jobs.  Then it was time to apply the textured paint. I decided it was time to get herself involved in painting, so we got her an ergonomically designed paint roller handle, loaded her up with paint, and off she went.  Applying textured paint is not the easiest thing to do, as you have to go slow. But, off she went, and did a fine job.  We did run out of paint, so hopefully boy/son will be able to get us some more. 
Labor Day is coming up and hopefully we can finish the paint and then it will be time for some good food, and company.

Flowers at Too

 

This is the purple cone flower.  A native plant to the Midwest prairies.

 

This is the first of my Hollyhocks at Too . . . and more Purple Cone Flowers.  I thought I had yellow cone flowers started in this bed too but they didn't come back this spring.  I will have to go find some.  I will track them down and transplant them here. 

 

This is Purple Cone Flowers blooming away east of the steep bank, east of the bridge.  Perhaps this whole entry should have been titled "Purple Cone Flowers"  ???

 

 

This is a May Apple.  When they sprout in early spring they make me think of a newborn baby.  They are so delicate and pretty : )

 

 

This is "The Bank".  Himself has planted some new plants on this steep bank just about every visit this spring and summer.  He is determined (and rightly so) not to have to mow it anymore.  Eliminating this bank from the mowing schedule saves Himself about an hour each time he mows.  

 

That is significant and adds an hour to the Porch Sitting time. 

 

This is "The Bank" in April 2013 after a late snow. 

 

This late snow saved Himself an hour's mowing time. 

 

In this case that hour saved didn't impress us so much

 because we had an hour's snow shoveling and tree cutting time. 

Thinking about III

Click this link - - - >       and missing the adventures we had there . . .

and just practicing too . . . seeing if I can remember how to 'link back' to previous posts.  There is another, cleaner way . . . then this so I will keep practicing.  I hope you enjoy some of these links. 

THE NEW PORCH RAILING JULY 13, 2013

 

In the picture above, I am applying, finally, a coat of fresh, gray paint. I have wanted to at least get the porch floor painted, but other projects keep popping up that needed done more so than the painting of the porch.  The temperature is in the lower 80's, a little breeze, perfect weather for painting. Herself worked on her bookcase surrounding the stair opening to the loft. Please note the green shirt I am wearing. It must be at least 50 years old. It is my Army fatigue shirt, issued to me sometime in 1967. It was old when I got it.  It still fits (as long as I don't button it).

 

 



The picture below is the spindles we will use for the new porch railing. 

The picture below is after herself and I finished the first section of railing.

A fresh coat of paint, everything off the porch, it looks huge, and clean.

 

 

Another view of the first section of porch railing.

NEW WOOD LAMINATE FLOORS-INSTALLED-FINALLY!!!!

It is Monday, June 24, 2013  and I got word that my little granddaughter would not be coming to stay for the two days I babysit her for. So, I asked herself if it would be all right to go to the cabin and get some work done. It was agreed to, so all day Monday I scurried around getting the yard mowed, watering, cleaning, etc. so that Tuesday morning I could head for the cabin.
The first thing I did on arrival was to clean the newer metal storage building. I had some super cleaner to spray on, then had to scrub to get all the grime off. Then I applied the first coat of polyurethane on the pine.

Wednesday morning, I sanded, cleaned, and applied 2nd coat of poly.
Then, since it had been quite some time, I spent the rest of the day working on mowers and 4-wheelers, cleaning lubing, changing oil and filters, then went down and mowed the lake lots.

Thursday, I mowed Craig's lots and then our lot, then worked in the cabin on finishing up some molding around staircase so herself could finish putting up more pine. Then moved everything out of the living room and cleaned the sub floor so I could start the laminate flooring.  Then I rested.
Friday morning I fired up the mower and mowed a neighbors lots and did the weed eating for her.

About noon, I decided I just couldn't sit, I had to move on. So, I started installing the laminate flooring. And once I started, I just couldn't stop, and by the time herself arrived, I had most of it installed except by the staircase, which we finished up Sat. morning.

 

 
 
 

  

                                    


The dark wood flooring with the lighter pine on the walls has totally changed the appearance and the mood of the living room. It now has a cozy, warm feeling, just what we wanted. Also, notice the nice new, old fashioned curtains that herself has worked on. She picked out some nice ones, and they fit in perfectly with the woodwork.

 

 

 

I don't understand how the camera always seems to find me sitting in a chair, but somehow it does. 

 

 

 

 

So, now the downstairs is pretty much finished. We have a little bit of baseboard in the bedroom, and some finishing to do in the bathroom, but nothing critical. All the tools and saws have been lifted to the loft which will require a lot of work, mainly finish trim on the windows, and mudding the drywall seams to prep for painting. But before the upstairs, I want to put a railing on the porch, and before that we have to clean, seal, and paint the porch deck.

We will have worked inside for almost 3 years, mainly on weekends, and only in the summer, and we are now feeling like we have accomplished something.

Finishing Touches

We have learned a lot, had fun and, as usual working together, had a bit of a snit now and then but overall we worked together like a well rehearsed dance team.  We finished out this room with tongue and groove 4" knotty pine.  You will have to see it to believe it. 

We have all the pine up, all the trim done on windows, doors and floors.  Well, almost.  There might be just a bit to do around the bedroom door but Himself could set us straight on that. 

We have this little nail gun and it saved the day!  It made the installation of the tongue and groove (or is in tongue in groove?) pine boards a snap to install!  And will be put to plenty of use for building wooden projects and bird houses and furniture. 

This 'transom' above the bathroom door is made from heavy glass that I dug out of a ditch.  This type of glass was used on store fronts Quality Glass told me, when I had it cut to size.  

I remember glass such as this on our Rexall Drug Store in Afton, back in the 1950s and 60s. 

 

 

 Himself trimmed two transoms out, neat as a pin.  And created two little shadowbox-type structures for me to display little bits and pieces in.

This is one of Himself's favorite work shirts. 

It is a US Army work shirt with the sleeves cut out. 

Please feel free to borrow it. 

 

Please note above, that all the pine boards run horizontally whereas this short wall by the stairway runs vertically.  I really like that we did the change up.  It just seems like such a custom detail.

 

So now, we are ready to put the finish on the walls.  Himself will be going it alone this week, in an effort to try to finish this room by July 4.  He's got all the materials and tools he'll need.  We think.  We'll stock him up with plenty of food and coke and bacon and eggs and instant tea.   We'll turn him loose!  I can't wait to see the finished room!

 

He is there now, as we speak.  Stay tuned. 

 

A new hobby



I have always, all my life, coveted new pine boards.  Well, I have probably coveted walnut and mahogany boards too but as pine is more readily available and easier on the pocketbook . . . and as I am an amateur, it is better that I work in pine for awhile. 

I like wood working. 

I built a shelf in the new bath.  I wanted it to look cottagy to go with the little bear heads and the white wainscoting.  I just put on one coat of paint so the wood shows through.  I have little doodads sitting on the shelf now and I just 'like' it every time I go into the bath.   

Wish I had the photo with the glass items on the shelf.
But you get the idea . . .

 

I had built a temporary wooden bannister around the stairway up in the loft to keep little ones and Nanas from falling down the stairs.  It was time to put in something permanent.  As I had enjoyed making the shelf, I wanted to get some more pine and build something else so I designed a bookcase / bannister.  I started it last trip down and there it set -- on the level but definitely not plumb!  You can see through it, down the stairs. 



 

 

My camera has a definite 'out of focus' problem.  I looked it up on the internet and it is common with this make and model of Canon.  I will get a new phone soon and when I do, I will buy the phone for the camera.  Then I will put this one away and just use my phone. 

 

This trip down, I put backs in the shelves.  It needed to be "stiffened" up and with Himself's suggestion to use up the pine boards, I cut them to fit, one per shelf, and fastened them into two of three bookcases. 

 

The third bookcase sits against the wall and I used left over knotty pine to put in the back of this one and to cover up the dry wall.  I need one more package of the tongue and groove wall pine to finish -- so this project will have to wait until I get to Des Moines. 

 

I think I will finish the bookcases as I did the bathroom shelf.  I think I am going to like the way the bookcase turned out and I like that it is purposeful!  I look forward to more wood projects. 

 

I did enjoy working with the knotty pine in the living room too.  I can't wait to get the finish on the walls and to start on the dark wood floor!