It's been a little slow around here during the holidays, but today we're back on it!  We had gutters installed before Christmas, right before an inch of rain fell.  It sure helps with the mud problem!  Mom and Mike have started installing tongue and groove pine boards on the soffetts, or porch ceilings.  They finished the back of the garage today.

We had a quiet Christmas.  The thing I had to teach Osker was that all presents are mine.  Even if his name is on it, it's still mine.

BTW, the "keep Osker out of the chicken house" project seems to be working!  We're getting 2 to 3 eggs per day now!  Don't worry though... he's still in trouble.  He pulled a 13x9 cake pan off the counter and scarfed about a quarter of a carrot cake!!!

Merry Christmas to all our friends and family!


We hope all your dreams come true!


With Love,
Zoey and Osker

Carpenter Mike helped us nail up the first row of siding on the house so it will be straight and level!!!  Still working on staining exterior trim, but it's too cold most of the day to get much done.

Me and Osker were digging a hole that was next to a batch of burrs.  He got em baddd.  He also got caught eating a chicken egg!!  Mom and Dad figured he's just small enough to get in the little chicken house door.  Now Dad is on a mission to determine how the chickens can have free range while keeping Osker out.  He's conducting chicken IQ studies on how well they climb ladders, jump from hay bale to hay bale, and fly through narrow openings!!  At least they figured out what was causing Osker's badddd gas!!

We started digging the sewer trench, but after moving a few of the boulders, a link on the chain broke; then Dad discovered that the sprocket bearings were worn.  So now the digging bar is apart in the barn getting machined, welded, and new bearings.

The last door has been installed so the house is chicken proof!!!  Note the nice big guest room window!!!

This is our "sit on the stump together" trick.  We get a treat when we do it, so whatever...

BTW, Osker's library book cost $15.00!!!  The folks are being a little more careful about what they leave on the table!

This is a section of the air vent system.  It's just a fan that will move warm air near the wood stove to other rooms, or move cool air from the basement upstairs.  It would also work for air conditioning in the future.

The exterior doors have been installed and trimmed except for one more on backorder.  The porch ceiling still needs to go on before the inside is closed in, but we need to decide on recessed lights and wiring first. We bought a wood stove so we can work inside this winter.

Wonkette thinks we've upgraded her hen house!  Hope the last door arrives soon!

Osker ate a library book.  He won't be getting an allowance for a long time.

The forest green metal roof is finished!  Right before the rain and snow.  This was our goal for the year!  Things will slow a bit now during the cold winter months.  

We're sitting on the 12x12 log that was at the bottom of the foundation pit providing support at the footings when we were loading DG with the tractor.  Now it's a bench looking north of the house over the vineyard (far left), and the hot tub (far right). We romp around the field every day!

We had a couple inches of wet snow on Sunday morning.  Osker's first snow!  Easy to see all the critter footprints in the woods.

This must be the slowest metal roof installation on record!  Last week they got the garage done in two days.  This week they've worked on the bottom row of metal on the house, but the foreman got called to jury duty and the other guys don't seem to have the where-with-all to take the next step.  They've missed 3 days of good weather.  We've been staining and trimming the windows to get ready for siding.