Snow arrives early

Well, we didn't quite manage to get the house closed in before the snow arrived.  In keeping with the weather trend we had this year, we had plenty of rain and cloudy days despite promises of sunshine. Below normal temperatures continued too, and Rob began to worry about how he was going to pull this off. He continued to work, no matter the weather, and anytime that the sun did shine - we did a happy dance. The weather systems have been fickle though, as I would experience a glorious sunny day while I was at work, and thinking Rob would have had a good day, arrive home only to be surprised to find he had been fighting against sudden pop up storms all day.  Wind has been another factor (we try to avoid being up on a roof with a sheet of plywood in our hands in gale force winds). Still, the first layer of plywood began to go in, and whenever possible, Rob would tape the seams as he went along to air seal the shell. 

I don't do heights very well so my photos are all from the ground but Rob was able to take a few photos from up high. Below is a view from the "upstairs" (no, I won't go up there either - at least not until there is a solid floor.... and stairs...maybe a railing.)

The first time I looked up and saw the roof  above me, I realized how much this house has in common with our old dome. I've been missing high ceilings and a feeling of spaciousness, and this house will certainly have lots of both!

When the clocks turned back, I could no longer make it home before dark, and it was harder to see what had gone on every day. The flash from my camera managed to light things up for me a bit though. Although Rob felt like progress was slow, things were still moving along!

Rob rigged up a way of loading the plywood onto the tractor forks and raising it up so he didn't have to haul all the plywood up to where he was working.

Here is a view of the living room from the kitchen. Well - you have to use your imagination a little.

Looking from the living room, the kitchen is on the right.

Finally, the roof is in! Well, there are still lots of layers that will go over it, but the first layer of plywood is in.
Rob will be adding layers of foam, strapping and more plywood before the metal roof goes on but that will have to wait for spring. We had hoped to finish it this year, but weather delays and the extra time needed for sanding and finishing timbers put us a couple of months behind schedule.

Once the plywood was nailed down on the dining room and kitchen roof,  Rob moved on to our bedroom section. Each plywood seam is taped with a special air sealing tape which complicated the installation. Every time it rained Rob had to wait for things to dry out before he could continue taping.

As the temperatures dropped, Rob rigged up some tarps to try to block the wind and weather a bit.  Despite the tarps, the inside of the house was often like a mini swimming pool as the rain kept pouring in.

Applying the first roof underlay. This will allow us to get through the winter without too much water damage to the house.

The underlay is also taped to help hold it against the wind and to provide a second air/water barrier! Thank goodness for knee pads.  And the safety harness.

Our friend Bob (the blip on the roof) showed up on some pretty nasty days to lend a hand (he claims to like working in the cold)! Thank you, thank you, Bob.

With the tarps in place I could begin to imagine what it will be like with walls in!  We sat and had tea one afternoon, and the sunshine coming through the plastic even warmed us up a bit. The house uses passive solar design principles and maybe it might actually work as planned!

Rob and Bob often worked as late as they could into the evening but it was still a short day. They really pushed to get the roof wrapped because it would provide some shelter for the rest of the work (plus it is difficult to work on a roof in the snow).  As they moved around the building they had to keep moving the metal scaffolding, which meant dismantling it and building it up again. There was also wooden scaffolding that Rob built to circle the building which gave a good solid platform to work from. They definitely tried to make sure that work in one area was completely finished before moving to the next.

The plywood sheathing begins to go on to the walls, taped up the same as the roof!

Tea and cookies in the living room. A bit drafty still, but it's beginning to be a bit drier inside at least.

Looking through the door from our future mudroom, the house just glowed.  This is one of my favourite shots. I don't think Rob minded that I said it reminds me of a glorious barn. He didn't look so keen though, when I said perhaps we could keep a pony in it.

Our bedroom!

The plywood going on around the kitchen windows.

This is the north wall. As the house is designed to be energy efficient, there are fewer windows on this side. However, as it faces a beautiful area, often filled with wildlife, we had to put in a few!

Bundled up in my winter jacket one afternoon, I was admiring the oak tree leaves on the ground, and the soft autumn light.

And then it got a lot colder, and it snowed. And snowed. And then the high winds arrived again. Snow and ice on the scaffolding made it too dangerous to climb up so work continued on the lower levels.  

Rob rigged up a little shack on the concrete pad of the workshop (to the right), and set up a little kerosene heater in it to warm up his hands periodically. With wind chills of minus 14 this week, he needed a little warmth once in a while!

Jet has been missing Rob, and every evening tries to get a little sympathy (and a little treat tucked into his Kong "red bone"). He has the sad eyes down pat!

Rob takes a few minutes to go out in the snow, and together they play their strange game of Jolly Ball and Wubbas.  It's a cross between soccer and cricket - they both kick the ball around and Jet sometimes shakes his wubba toy and whacks the ball. It makes sense to them but Jet doesn't play this game with me. Must be a guy thing.

Ice is forming at the edges of the river, and on the rock  I'm not quite ready for this river to be frozen.  I love to listen to the sound of the water, and scan the shoreline for animal tracks.

Our firewood is now all stacked and ready for us. We are hoping that 8 face cords will be enough, as we ran out the last two winters. I split it all with a wood splitter, and Rob took some time one day to stack it. Which is a good thing as when I stack it - the piles seem to fall over. Snow tires are on the truck, and our winter clothing has all been brought out of storage and into the cabin, and swapped out with our summer gear. We're ready!

Sometimes it's hard to remember to take the time to admire the beauty around us. On a day that saw us unhappy with the cold and the snow, and feeling pressure about getting the house closed in, we took a few minutes to go out, and enjoy the first real snow fall. It is only mid November, so it seems a bit early, but the first snow fall is always lovely and worth celebrating. We took a walk in the woods to appreciate it and are both glad we did. After all, it isn't just about the house we are building, but also about the place we are building it in.

Weather, weather, framing, weather....

With the timbers all in place, Rob's next job was to make sure everything was fixed in securely, and prepare to do the framing. He took a little bit of time first though, to clean up the site, and then stepped back to admire his work. I don't think he could really believe that he'd actually pulled this one off...! But also, it would be the last time we would see the frame like this, as it was about to get covered in.

He didn't stop for long, as both of us were keenly aware that the seasons were changing, and colder weather was due to arrive. The push was on to try to close the house in.

Rob was eager to begin the framing around the timbers, but as always, there were still lots of details that had to be taken care of first.  There were some adjustments that had to be made, and then he set to driving in pegs, and tightening up the frame.

As always this year (and last year too!) the weather is a troubling factor. According to CBC, 5 of the last 6 months have been wetter than normal, and every month since November 2013 has been below average in temperature except for May and June. The good news is that September was "normal" for average rainfall and temperatures. Still, we had our share of rainy days in September, but at the end of the month some sweet warm weather arrived! It didn't last long, but we enjoyed it while it was here.

Rob began by framing in some of of the lower levels and windows. There is just something magical about staring out of a window frame, and imagining yourself doing it in the future when there is a window there - and like little kids we would run around saying "now I'm looking out the kitchen window, now the bedroom window...."

I don't know which windows I get the most excited about, but the dining room window here really is going to be lovely. (It will be in 3 sections of fixed glass). No matter the season, the view will be pretty...Of course I will love all the windows!

Our friend Bob came out on several occasions to help with the framing, especially the areas that were higher up. Rob spends a lot of time moving scaffolding, and climbing up and down it to retrieve tools, lumber, etc., so it was great to have a second pair of hands. (And legs!) Thank you so much, Bob!  He will be back to help when the plywood sheets go up over the frame.

I now work at least four days a week, and by the time I get home it is usually dusk, so I miss out on a lot of photo opportunities. On my days off, I try to stop by the work site more often with snacks and drinks for Rob, and camera in hand to take a few photos. So while Rob sometimes feels that he has made little if any progress, by the time I see the house it seems to me like it's gone through a lot of changes! Entire walls go up in just a few hours! (Well, on a good day) What could be nicer on a sunny day than some fresh homemade banana bread, and a good cup of Salt Spring Island Coffee, served in my most beautiful mug - a gift from my super sis...featuring one of her gorgeous paintings. Well of course it would be better if she and my brother were there to enjoy it with us...

As always, I love looking at the beauty of the surrounding area, and the more I am away from here, the longer I linger outside on my days off. I think I will never tire of the river, the fields, the forest, the views, the sounds, the scents, the wildlife.

I must say though, that I drive to work along stunning country roads, with amazing vistas of rolling hills, trees in full fall colours, old log barns, pretty sheep, cows and horses, and most days a glimpse of some of the local wildlife - deer, wild turkeys, hawks, ravens, crows, turkey vultures - and one day - an absolutely stunning view of a bald eagle.

The house site has it's own share of visitors. This week Rob saw 5 Sandhill cranes fly over, hovering right above him on the air currents, with their haunting echoing call. The wildflowers between the house and the river are now feeding flocks of chickadees and migrating juncos.  Further up along the road I discovered a small number of white crowned sparrows passing through.

We are both eager to sit in this lovely new house and gaze out the windows (not yet installed of course!) to see what other visitors pass by here.

Like the osprey... who hangs out in the trees along the river, and then dives down into the water in hope of snagging a fish.

Not unexpectedly, frost arrived in September and again in October. Rob has to wait on frosty mornings for the frost to melt, it is amazingly slippery on all the wood surfaces, and not safe to be clambering around the structure on those mornings.

Although most of the plants have faded with the frost, the hardy Black Eyed Susans continue to bloom in some areas!

We also have a "sweet spot" in front of the house that for some reason has Evening Primrose and Mullein blooming profusely even now.  We'll make note of that as a possible site for some herbs in the years to come!


And we have a new small clearing after one of the remaining dead spruce tree snapped in a recent wind storm. Funny, we thought something looked different, but it took a good look around before we realized it was a freshly damaged tree.

Slowly, despite the rain, the frost, the fog - and yes - the flurries - the frame is going in.  It is now almost ready for Rob to attach the plywood sheets. We were hoping for some clear dry weather during this time, but the earlier forecast for a week of glorious weather has changed to frequent rain showers. We shall just have to wait to see what happens.

Rob has moved into warmer clothing and continues to work as much as possible. 

It's hard to imagine that just a couple of weeks ago he was wearing shorts! (And not happy about the amount of rain water of course!)

When a warm front blew in again last week we were optimistic, but the colours in the trees inform us that it is fall after all, and we will just have to hope we can get this house closed in before the snow flies.