Heat!

All the drywall has been hung and the heat has been turned on. It's a totally different house over there.


Living room area.



Kitchen area.




Master.



This is all they are finishing off of the basement because the electrical isn't finished down there.

Going shopping

Don't mind me guys just doing a little grocery shopping.

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Watching the world pass by.

Lauren watching Grandpa and daddy clean up all the snow this weekend.

Drywall

The drywall is going in and it makes the house feel so much more like a house! They are working on the garage and the house at the same time so they first completed both ceilings. The insulation guys were able to come back today and fill in the attic. It's time for some warmth in that house! They are probably 1/2 way done with the insulation inside the house and have started working in the garage.

Getting rid of the bad stuff.

My goals for last year were simple. Get rid of the bad stuff.

Well, that is NOT a simple goal. There are many aspects to getting rid of the bad stuff, many ways to go about it, so much research to be done, and many different levels you can take it to. So I accomplished a few things and the goal of getting rid of the bad stuff has carried over to this year.

The things I accomplished last year were:

1. Clean up the cleaning products. I'm talking simple homemade solutions(vinegar, baking soda, peroxide,  etc). Those things that I don't make at home are free and clear and from eco-friendly companies. It's taken me a while to figure out what I like and what works and I'm sure that I'll still end up changing a few things here and there.
2. Make a conscious effort to create less waste(grab Tupperware instead of Ziplocks, Silpat mats instead of parchment paper, of course cloth diaper, wipe Laurens nose with cloth wipes, rags instead of paper towels, etc.) and to be creative in using what I have to do what I want(I want to organize? Use the cardboard boxes I'm always getting in the mail and cut off the flaps instead of buying new matching tubs. Etc, etc, etc.)

My goals for this year are to clean up our food. This I believe is going to be quite the journey. My first goal is: If I can make it, make it I shall. Get rid of processed food. This is a way to get rid of all those nasty ingredients on the sides of prepackaged foods that none of us can pronounce. I think this is first and foremost. 

Then, 

1. I may switch out a few things for organic.
2. I may buy raw sugar instead of bleached/processed sugar. That sort of thing.
3. Use unsweetened applesauce when recipes call for oil. Hiding veggies in food. That sort of thing.
4. Slowly, I hope to start making things as healthy as possible. Switching out sugar for other natural sweetners. Soaking whole wheat so your body can process it better. Maybe. Maybe I'll decide that as long as we get rid of all those crappy ingredients we can't pronounce that is all we need. 

All those things among others I'm sure.

A lot of these things make sense to me. When you make stuff, all you need are a few basic ingredients and you really can make MANY items. I also like knowing how self-sufficient we can be. Getting back to the basics. Things seem to fall into place. If you make yogurt, it's super easy to then make cream cheese. Guess what? You can also make mozzarella cheese pretty easily. Cool huh? This also means I will be stepping up my gardening/canning/freezing game. 

So, I'll be taking you along with  me on this journey and showing you what I've cooked. So far this month I've made the following from scratch:

1. Tortillas (1/2 whole wheat)
2. Biscuits
3. Make your own yogurt! Essentially follow this. While looking around I learned a few other things and I used less yogurt starter. 2 T per quart of milk. Also heat milk to 180 degrees to begin and cool milk and keep at 130 degrees while culturing. 
4. Healthy snack. Fruit leather in the dehydrator. Unsweetened applesauce with blended strawberries picked from Adams parents patch.
   
   
   
   Use saran wrap, NOT waxed paper. If you use waxed paper it'll stick. In the interest of switching out for something re-usable, I ordered the fruit trays from the dehydrator manufacturer since I hope to make this often.
   
5. Pop-Tarts (but eaten for dessert). I put strawberry preserves that I made last summer in as a filler.
   
   

That's what I'm up to. Hopefully you'll be seeing more food tutorials this year once again. I haven't done one in a while.

Eatin snow

Only lucky little girls get their very own bowl of snow to eat!

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Insulation is finished.

Garage


Hole where the netting was pierced to pump the insulation in.


Up close of what the "netting" looks like.


What the blown in fiberglass insulation looks like


Insulation around the rafters.


All holes were filled with foam



Floor trusses were insulated.


Exterior basement wall insulated.


Drywall starts on Monday!

Insulation!

Blown in fiberglass insulation. They staple a sort of netting all over the house around each stud and then the hose has a pokey end they just stick through the netting and pump the insulation in. It fills up each hole pretty quickly!







And for fun - Lauren trying to eat with her own spoon.

House update

Wow it's been a long time since you've seen any updated house pictures huh?

Well, the main reason for this is the the last 3+ weeks, the stuff that has been going on doesn't make a big visual impact. I'm happy to now say that the electrician and plumber are done and the HVAC is almost done. Time for insulation and drywall!

Oh and I guess the roof went on since the last pictures you've seen as well! That's pretty important eh? Garage door too. I'll try and post a better picture of both later. I don't have the best pictures so far.

For the last week however, there has been something picture worthy going on. Siding, soffits and facia!






Lots of other little things have been going on as well.
The footings for the porch were poured.


Drywall between house and garage, garage door and landing/steps.


For now the inside of the house looks pretty much as it has for the last three weeks. With the addition of some very important wires/pipes/ductwork of course.


In other news, despite an ear infection, Lauren had lots of fun at Christmas!


I'll try to post more Christmas pics tomorrow.

(In case anyone tries to google real world pictures of products they want to put on their house like I did, I'll start including specs here so hopefully the search engine will pick up my blog.)
-Ash Gray Premium Pro-Snap metal roofing from Menards
-Fiber cement siding purchased from and installed by Millard Lumber.
-Gerkin casement windows with prairie grill purchased from Builders Supply.
-The front door is Therma-Tru Classic-Craft American Style Collection. 3 light stain-able fiberglass with 4-block dentil shelf. Builders Supply.
-Garage door: North Central Door Company, Northwoods Prestige Collection: Aspen Ridge. White.