June 4 - 6

That's right!  A three day weekend!!!

Day one, put new window screens in every window. I'm sure there was other stuff (like a trip to Fort Payne for materials, and jockeying the trailer load of cinder blocks into position) but this is the big one.

Day two, have fun with guns. Sorry, no pix this year (except for this one of the "fire brigade" - I leave the rest to your imagination).

Day three, get started on the "pig pit". Of course this involved some preliminary mowing and site preparation.

Labor Day Weekend

Yes, for most of you, it was Memorial Day... a weekend to relax with a BBQ, a few beers, sports, cutting the grass maybe. For us, it was a weekend with plenty of labor and lots of projects getting finished! We finish-mowed the field (road coming in, tall grass and brush previously cut with a brush mower) with its future garden spot, blackberry patches and parking. Also:

-painted the planned screen porch ceiling, touched up spots in the main cabin
-finished the limestone counter (it just needs trim)
-installed screen on the screen porch
-just cleaned up and put away a lot of stuff
We arrived home last night at 11PM, exhausted but gratified.

Screen porch ceiling painting, two coats, by hand


Limestone counter: cutting tile (we sealed it but it was still crumbly and hard to cut):

Laying out the counter, dry then with thinset:

Grouting and the finished product

Here's the new kitchen corner!

The future screen porch has had house wrap over the screen openings for two years. We have been using the area to store things and for other projects. Now we're ready for a screened porch. We emptied out all the building supplies, cleaned up:


Removed the exterior trim around the openings, cut and trimmed the house wrap, put up the screen (each opening is a generous and panoramic 48x50)

and it looks great! Can't wait to start eating dinner out here!

Also, Russ relocated his solar equipment to the full sun field. He has two batteries that run our lights, fan, radio. We plan to grow vegetables in this area eventually... that will be some years down the road.

How to Get Rid of the Jungle

The grass by the gate and across the field was getting high. Also, we've never cut back from the road going through the woods. Earlier this season, we picked up all the dead wood and cut down some trees and saplings that were dead or damaged then rented a chipper to chip it all (see Beautification post). Now it was time for a brush mower.

... and a weekend of hard work! You would think it was easy, since the mower is self-propelled but the terrain was rough, there were rocks and stumps and unexpected holes. Carolyn did the field early Saturday before it got hot, including around the big blackberry bushes so we can pick in July then we took turns cutting in the woods along the road. No chiggers yet thank goodness.

It was a beautiful weekend but next year we will do this before everything leafs out. Easier to see what you are doing.

We also spread chips around the fire ring. Will use them around the cabin too. Putting down the chips stops erosion.

Here's the new, cleaned up look... in the woods and along the road. And still some acres left untouched for wildlife habitat.

Out every window, green.

On Sunday afternoon, getting ready to go, we saw a luna moth. Look at its feathery antennae.