Happy Hallowe'en!

It's our first Hallowe'en, here. At 8 C in the cow pasture and after a couple of days of wet snow and rain, it's very muddy. Still, we were visited by some brave little "Trick or Treaters". There are 8 children living out here now...one is just an infant, three went to Beaumont and 4 came to see us before heading out for more loot from the neighbouring acreage subdivision that's been established for about 4 years. Sure a far cry from the 200 we had at the door when we lived in Winnipeg. As we are now country dwellers and the volume of kids is very low, I bought proper sized chocolate bars for the children and a bag of Hallowe'en treats for Jim...it's the only way to keep him out of the stuff for the little ghouls and goblins.

Pack On! Jim

A 3000 pad vibrating packer sure settles the garage down. The sand that's piled outside the door can now be spread and the cars can come in for the winter. This process happened a couple of days ago and I think Jims' teeth have finally quit chattering.

Zooming along

The siding continues. The garage is all done and the openings are ready for garage doors. With the aid of our neighbours zoom-boom, Jim was able to enjoy the early morning light whilst siding the south side. He didn't have it for long but every little bit helps his legs as it sure cuts down on the ladder work. When not outside, as we had some poor weather, Jim put the finish coat of paint on the bathroom and mounted the towel rods and toilet roll holder. The rods and roll holder have also been installed in the ensuite bathroom along with the sink and vanity. I have been spending my spare time sorting out the kitchen and I believe that all the stuff from kitchens past have found a home. Note the leger board above the basement door and windows. Next spring, when Jim has nothing better to do, he can build the deck.

Jim Blows

Saturday, Jim, I and our friend Mark Austin spent the day blowing Weathershield insulation into the flat ceiling areas of the house and garage. 75 bags of insulation later, we were done. Now the house can really heat up...OK...I know...how much heat can two 56 year-olds generate? Well, at least the furnace generated heat will stay in the house rather than escape through the roof. As the blower unit only came with 50 feet of hose, Jim very cleverly, accessed the attic areas through the outside eaves. He took the hose up into the roof areas while Mark and I fed and broke-up the bales of insulation in the machine. In the garage, he used the old "ladder on the scaffold" trick to get into the area that needed insulation.


Jim completed the bat insulation in the rim joist area of the basement. Last step in the insulation world is to cover it all with 6 mil poly which he will carry out in the coming evenings.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Our first Thanksgiving in our new home was celebrated with Jim, Allan and I and a lovely brined turkey. Our thanks go to the kitchen that is up and running and to everyone that helped us get to this stage. Lots of friends and family...we are truly grateful.

Oh My, Canada

A week and a half ago, it was summer with temperatures at +34C.

Yesterday it was fall.












Today it was winter with our high at -3C. Oh, Oh, Oh Canada. This is downright depressing.
















Jim had planned on siding today but the weather just wasn't going to co-operate so he continued on boarding the garage. Just a few more little pieces and he's got another job done.

Bringing us up to Date

Work has continued but blogging has failed to keep up.
So here is a status report as of today. Jim sends

Kitchen.

Counter tops installed, sink drain and traps working fine, Katheen is happier.

Siding and fascia
North wall and veranda complete. One piece of sofit to reinstall due to very high winds.
Rest of pieces now screwed in place, should be no further problems.
West wall almost complete - some fascia still to go.
South wall - half way up
EAst wall - half way up

































































Garage

Completed installation of insulation, vapour barrier in/on the walls and ceiling.
Completed dropped insulated area in ceiling for the loft area floor.
Completed most of the drywall on the ceiling and walls.















































Veranda
Completed installation of deck boards to the front edge, need to procure 2x8 material to finish