We’re getting excited up here in northern Minnesota! It’s been above freezing every day now although it has dipped below freezing at night. And that’s a good thing so our driveway thaws out very slowly. (When it remains above freezing at night the drive quickly breaks up, leaving slush and ice to try to drive through.)
As David was off work this weekend, he and Will set about framing up for installing the floor joists on David’s new cabin. Will had tips on how to quickly mark out the spots for the floor joists on the rim joists so he and David got the rim joists in place, leveling and squaring as they went. Lookin’ good, guys!
Then we got a surprise call; Bill and his family were coming for a visit! Yep, we halted building when they came but it’s always fun. I quickly roasted a couple of chickens, made potatoes augratin to go with them and, ta da!, dinner.
Ava, our granddaughter, is crazy about animals and seeds. She promptly went to where I had my bean seed laid out and started “snitching” some beans from this pack and that for her own garden! Of course she had Grandma’s permission … and encouragement. I feel gardening is an easily cultivated interest in young children and can lead to a lifetime of healthy enjoyment. (If you’d like to read more about children’s gardening, check out my article in the Twelfth Year Anthology.) Ashley also brought down a tub of baby ducks, which she is raising up in the bedroom. Ava and Mason loved them!
Luckily, after Bill and his family left, Daylight Saving Time had come so David and Will still had three hours of daylight left to work on the cabin. Now they’re all set to start installing floor joists. After that’s done, the subfloor is ready to go on, which will take little time. Exciting! — Jackie
The baby ducks are So Cute! They are so personable and they work as a team unlike chickens which are out for themselves. They remind me of little girlfriends. Spring is coming ? . I to like it to melt a bit slower so our drive isn’t so muddy. Mud bogging can be fun but i don’t prefer to do it with my small car ?
Was 60 the last 2 days mom
And dad with a nice warm breeze blowing from the south unusual for this time of year in southeast Alaska
Wow, Don, 60! Impressive. We haven’t hit 50 yet but we’re sure not complaining. And we’re still expecting the other shoe to fall….you know the spring blizzard.
Yup, I do kind of relive the Starting Over time while we’re building on David’s cabin. It’s getting exciting as things are popping along now the weather’s broken a little. Yea!!!
I just checked our forecast here in Iowa, and darn if we don’t see snowflakes Friday and Monday, boooo! Hubby has seedlings down in basement under lights and I tease him that everything is so big I can make a salad while I do laundry! Lol!
Yeah, we’re going to get plenty of wintery weather yet, too. We always get a blizzard and foot or more of snow in March or April. But I’m planting our first tomatoes on Monday.
So glad to see all of the happy times at your homestead and the progress on David’s house!
We’re always tickled to have friends and family pop by. Work will always wait for that.
Little Ava sure is growing up fast. Glad you got to spend some time with her. She is beautiful. Spring is slow getting to western North Carolina this year. Sometimes it just skips spring and goes to summer. I know you are all looking forward to the new house going up. Spring sure is a busy time. Love your blogs and looking forward to each and every one.
Last year it did that too, here. One week it was 45 and the next, 75! It sure was a crazy summer, for sure. We’re hoping for a more “normal” spring and summer.
Here in Copper Basin Alaska it has gotten above freezing the last two days but we have been getting an inch or two of snow every couple days. Both hoop houses are completely covered and the green house has a foot on top and four foot deep piles on each side so it will be a while for us to get started. I’m going to start my tomato plants a week or so later than usual but i’ll start peppers and cellery this week. We have more snow in the woods than any time in the twenty plus years we have had this place and bent and broken trees in many spots so I plowed out a couple log piles so we can work on refilling the wood sheds while we wait for snow to melt.
Wow! Although we have piles next to our hoop houses, none is on tip and none are threatening to squash in the sides. We had moderate snowfall, which came late this year; first we got really cold weather and finally lots of snow. But at least we’ve had melting and Will was able to get out and cut more trees out of our new garden spot today. Sounds like you’ll have plenty of firewood next winter.
So glad you had company and enjoyed your time with them. It won’t be long down here in Oklahoma before we can plant the remainder of our gardens. Your granddaughter has a good example to follow when it comes to gardening. Here’s hope David and Ashley can get to work on their cabin soon. Take care of each other and be safe.
Sub-flooring soon – that is exciting! I’ve recently been re-reading your Starting Over book – you must be reliving some of that as you see David’s place going up. I helped my Dad build our house, it was a lot of work but so rewarding.
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