We have scrimped and saved wherever we can to keep our costs to a minimum. To say that the Mountain Farmlet is costing us a mountain of cash, might sound scary to some, but we are managing and doing so much of the work ourselves. It feels intimidating, and to be honest overwhelming at times, but we have been researching and learning by doing and each time we tackle a new job at the old place we feel better equipped for the next bit that comes along.
Yesterday Bob left for work and then came back saying that his car transmission was acting funny. We took it into the transmission repair shop and got the verdict of $1,400.00 to rebuild it. We are not elated, but we will survive this too.
Now I am going to share with you some of our outlook on life. I have no intention for this to be preachy, so please don’t take it as such.
I mentioned to Bob that some people would look at what we are going through (car repair, our sick Little Dog expenses, hidden damage in the old farmhouse) and might think:
“God is punishing us.”
To which, after some deep thinking, he later replied:
“(paraphrased) You know some people would think that, but I believe he is preparing us and teaching us to live more frugally. Look at how much we are accomplishing by learning to do the work on our own. Yes, there are some projects we can’t do ourselves, but none of this is insurmountable. He is making us stronger, smarter and wiser.
We have always dreamed of living in the country and owning a bit of land, and this dream is becoming a reality. We are just having to work for it, and that is not such a bad thing. It will take us longer than we anticipated, but we will accomplish our dream.”
Today, after a parts delay, the construction of the new roof begins. It has to be done, it is expensive, but a sound roof will protect all our hard work on the inside. And while we have found some really rotten wood behind the walls in the kitchen and bath, we now have a brand new floor in the bathroom. We have also discovered that under the badly damaged sub-floor in the kitchen there are relatively new, and pristine beams to hold up the new flooring when we install it. That was a welcome surprise that will save us much labor and money.
As we worked away the day, and along our journey home, I took these photos to share with you. Be patient, they may take a moment to load…
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- The light and pattern here facinated me. (Of course, your POV may differ!)
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- What lies behind this patch in the outside wall?
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- A little window who’s top only reaches to my waist!
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- It is about 18 by 24 inches. I will repurpose it and my chickens shall have light!
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- Massive oak planks 14 in. wide by over 8 ft. long. The fire explains the smoke and water damage on the outside wall in the previous picture. Even these will be repurposed, and have a future in my plans.
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- Beauty is where you find it and depends a great deal on how you perceive it.
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- An old cedar fence post and forgotten hand plow out front of the house.
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- The days work done, we head out. What a lovely surprise we found at the side of the highway. The sun was a bit too harsh for a good view, but you get the idea.
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- The road home
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- Day is done, and tomorrow holds promise for attainment of our goals..
I leave you with a message found on a church notice board near where we live…
“The task ahead of us is never as great as the power behind us.”
To which I respond…
Selah!
~*~*~*~
NOTES: The Amplified Bible translates *selah as “pause, and think of that” I like that translation.
Reference: Selah in the Psalms ~ http://ancienthebrewpoetry.typepad.com/ancient_hebrew_poetry/2007/07/selah-in-the-ps.html
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Life on the Farmlet 
I especially liked “the road home” picture. I have a thing about telephone/telegraph poles running along a country road.
Lillian
Thank you, Lillian. I do too. I am glad that you enjoyed it! I have another one with the lines following along a railroad track in Indiana HERE.
Trudge along. And always look for the good in everything. It is there.
I relish hard work when it has a purpose. Your Mountain Farmlet has great purpose!
Joan, sometimes I think about the other potential buyers of this place. They were very single minded about what they wanted to do, and the end result would have been to level the place and build new. In all practicality it would probably have been more efficient. However, for us, it comes down to saving the house for its history, and because we want it to be our home.
You are so wonderfully right, and though sometimes it takes us a long time to attain our goals that also teaches us that working for the goal is a goal in itself. You are already living the country life. How wonderful, your pictures show such a beautiful area.. c
Thank you for your affirmation of what we are trying to do, Celi! We have a man coming to bush hog the pastures for us, and then I plan to get out and take some early morning and/or late afternoon photographs to share. OH yes, and I want to share that new roof too! It promises to be quite stunning when it is all done.
I am not a religious person per se, Lynda, but I believe we are given lessons to learn in life and that we are never given more than we can deal with. Life’s little ‘bumps along the road’ make us all the stronger and able to face the future.
Love what you’re doing with the little old house and glad to hear you are able to re-use the old parts.
I wonder why that little window was covered up?
Vicki, I understand why it was covered up. In the early 1900s when kitchens began to be an inside room instead of a separate house, the kitchen was furnished with freestanding cupboards and workstations. Over time, we began building kitchens with integrated storage and work surfaces. Early on I imagine it was much like this! http://media-cache-ec3.pinimg.com/550x/ff/39/f0/ff39f0d92a45fc15662d64f085c81307.jpg
When the house was refurbished by the Octogenarian and her husband they made built in cabinets with a Formica counter top. The longest stretch in which to place these additions was on the outside wall, hence the window was covered up. What I really wonder about is why that window was placed so low! The top of it only came up to my middle! ‘-)
I feel there is a silver lining to everything in life. You and Bob are open-minded and see the good… the value in what you are experiencing.
We have had a couple of months of numerous breakdowns and repairs. Probably about 5K worth! We’ve coasted along for a while now without too much expense around here.. it’s all normal wear and tear stuff. We will manage, and we’re happy to know there are answers to all of the problems. Life is full of challenges, and with wisdom and some cleverness, we will prevail!!!
I am certain we will, Lori! Thanks! Also, sorry to hear about your expenses overload. They are never welcome, aye?
Bravo. There will always be problems, but with the right spirit “we shall overcome”.
Thank you, Viv. Yes, we do overcome our trials with the right spirit. Funny, Bob mentioned this morning that the reason it seems to take so long to get anything done is because we can only get over there to work once a week. So, the days we’ve actually worked come to about eight. He added, “This spreads out the cost over a longer period and gives us time to breathe in between expenditures.” He’s so pragmatic. 😉
🙂
Even the poison ivy looks gorgeous in your photos. Seems like expenses come in threes. Maybe since you have one big one, the little ones will slow to a small stream instead of a river.
Margaret, that vine is an imposter! The Virginia creeper around here always gives me cause for pause when I see the ends of the vine, but if you look closely you will see that some of the leaves a bit further down have more than three in their sets. 😉
Even so! 😉 I think we have had our ‘three’ plus! The dog tests and (ongoing meds) tires for the truck (yikes) added expenses for the house (YIKES) and now the transmission on Bob’s car. Enough already, LOL!
Maybe it was a children’s window?
It is a mystery, Julie. In this section is the added on rooms that span the back of house. Each section had a window, all are different sizes, and all were set in very low. The addition was a kitchen on one end, and this was moved to the other end presumably when the inside privy was installed. The distance between the floor and the ceiling is the same for all of the windows. Maybe they just thought it looked more balanced?
All in all, I do love your suggestion about the children’s window!
I like how you two stay positive. That’s that best way. Not everything is easy and just think when you’re done how much you’ll love it.
HA! We do try, TBM, but in the thick of it, when we are becoming steam cooked in Tyveck space suits, wearing respirators and protective eye wear…
Well, not only are we not feeling positive – You wouldn’t even want to know us! 😉
Then, at the end of the day; we drive home and shower off our trials, have dinner and relax. However, it is the showering off of the day that really revives us and then we have all week to get ready for the next marathon.
And yes, when we are done there is to be a PARTY! We have to celebrate this tour de force! (The skillful part of this performance will be learned as we go 😉 )
I can SO relate! Before we built our house, we took every opportunity we could find to come down to the farm to do some work. Without fail, we would drive home tired, dirty, but so happy and at peace. Building your dream with your own two hands – or at least your own hard-earned funds – is a rewarding task. Keep at it and enjoy the journey.
It is a journey, isn’t it? Thank you, for your encouragement!
The old business about taking one step at a time, and not looking too far ahead, is so important. I’ve always found that if I look at a big project too often and too long, it seems impossible. Keeping a shorter focus, with just an occasional glance at the horizon, seems better.
Love those 14″ boards! I had a table up in the cabin that was made of two 16″ boards. You hardly can find lumber like that any more, apart from architectural salvage and such. As for that little window – could it have been a cooling window? There were such in houses in my grandmother’s town. They were places you could put a pie to cool where it wouldn’t take up counter space!
I keep reminding myself that the only way to eat an elephant is “one bite at a time.” It seems silly, but it works.
This is very possible! Before the deck was added this would be far enough above the ground to keep pesky little fingers out of it too! I noticed that the way it was ‘set’ into the wall allows it to be slid up to quite easily open it. You would of course have had to hold it open with a brace, but it did open. 😀