Building time!

It seemed like it took forever to get construction started on our cabin but once we did, things have been moving quickly. Our basement was dug June 23, 2022 and while the Tomans and Mudricks were both out of town the basement footings were poured and wall forms set up. We were sent lots of photos from our contractor and our new neighbor who has been almost as excited as we are to see this progress. In July we got out to the property twice to camp and check out the progress. After the basement walls were completed a plumber came in to do the underfloor drains and pipes to septic. Next up: slab floor and the septic system!

The basement is going to be left unfinished for now with plumbing for an additional bathroom and utility/laundry room. In the future we'd like to finish the basement to include a storage/tornado safe room (yikes!), utility/laundry room, bathroom and the remainder of the basement will be one big open area - maybe with bunks, a futon and plenty of space for fun.

Excavator:

Finished hole:

Footings:

Concrete forms for walls:

Concrete going in!

Curing time:

Walls are finished and underfloor plumbing in:

View from the driveway:

Trail Time

 Both families were able to meet on our property for a day right before Christmas. And the weather was pleasant (for December especially)! We marked out a 1/2 mile loop trail that keeps above the cliffs and visits two overlooks. The kids were excellent trail workers - cutting, trimming, raking and moving logs without complaint. It was useful to have so many feet on the ground to get an idea of trail placement. It was also nice to do trails marking during leaf-off season so we had better site distance and didn't have to plow through vegetation. Took a break for s'mores and roasted starbursts (Mudrick thing). We were also able to meet with an excavator who checked out our driveway and the work that will be needed there to get construction equipment (mainly the cement truck) back to the property. It's exciting to get plans in motion!

Most of us at the main overlook:

Master s'more maker Owen:

Cadie's looks pretty good too:

Group around the fire pit:

Maren and Sonny liked rolling in the leaves. Trail crew in the background:

Smaller overlook:

Dan balancing a rake on his chin:

Our trail mapped out! Color indicates elevation (red highest, blue lowest):