Walking Therein

So Many Projects, So Little Time

*2 pregnant does, 1 who will be kidding any day

*Our Horse Project
It was great to incorporate math into another “project” we have going. As most of you know, we are getting *our* (and I emphasize OUR because Amanda keeps saying they are hers!) fillies next week. She posted pictures on her blog.

    The Project: build 2 horse stalls. Now, there are 2 awesome blessings we already have as we do this:
    1. We already have a huge barn with 3 stalls areas underneath.
    2. Matt works at Lowe’s and not only gets his discount, but can sometimes work out some deals on things like lumber.

    Anyway, onto homeschooling it: Amanda, Rachel, Eric and I went to the barn and measured it all out: walls, doors, gates, beams, troughs, everything. Then, I, who love to draw and draft, etc. got out the graph paper and drew a scale model of the present barn. I then drew a new model, with the stalls included. Amanda and Eric went down a couple more times with me to get other measurements and see if that is what we really wanted.  I wanted to plan it so it was the least amount of tearing down and building up possible, but we need access to each stall from inside and to the pasture in front.
    So, the math came in handy as Eric and I worked the inches he and Amanda measured into feet and inches. We got out our calculator and I kept making him tell me how many inches in a foot and showed him how to find the feet and inches. He did the simple math on paper. It was fun that he stood there for quite some time, figuring it all out because it made sense and he wanted to.
    Do you remember ever saying something like “ WHY do I have to learn this??? I’ll NEVER use it!!” Well, Eric knows we’ll use it!! YAY! for home educating!

We have trudged through the snow to get to the barn several times a day for the past few days, measuring and re-measuring. 
    Matt and Amanda were going to go to Lowe’s last night to get the materials, but it got too late. Besides, I needed Matt to check out the plans against the actual barn and see what he thought.  We decided to go ahead and use 1x6 boards horizontally, for the stalls and doors instead of OSB, because (and I agree with her) Amanda want the rustic, barn-look intact.
    Then, there’s the whole issue of electricity. Matt already ran the wire out there from the garage that is about 20’ away, so he just has to wire it. The goats are being heated via an extension cord, so it will be nice when he installs the outlets and light fixtures. We should get that done this week too.
    So, now I have to go and count up all the 1x6x16’s we need and do that math... where’s Eric??

*Refinancing our home, Finishing our Addition
    Ok, so, are you a skilled craftsman? We are not! We sure have learned a lot about building though.  We have been working on this project for about 5 years... well, almost. We are finally going to move forward and get it finished.  Praise God!  We signed all the papers and can get the rest of the work done. The appraiser set it at 70% finished. The good thing is that we have a lot of the unfinished supplies already - things like sinks and floor coverings. We did all of the inside drywall, so that is good. We do have to finish the garage, though. I am looking forward to having an actual bedroom and 2 more baths. It will be nice.

*Training Pemberley
I will be posting more on this later, over at SR on the Homestead.  *Not* comparing our children to dogs (as Amanda asked if I was), but training puppies is a lot like training children and has been a good lesson in love, patience and diligence for me and our children!

*The Weather...
    And, what is up with this weather? We have 2-5 feet of snow in places and it is snowing again this morning.  It’s really fun walking Pemberley all the way out to do his business a dozen times a day!  I am going to start taking him down with us to the barn, though, to get him used to it, so he feels like it’s *his* barn, not just the goats’ and horses’.
    Of course, driving into town yesterday, seeing them pile snow into the back of a dump truck made me realize how much snow there really is... Our temps are supposed to be in the 40s next week... what a flood that will be if they leave it setting in 6 foot piles on every corner!
    And, then, waking up again this morning, it was, of course, snowing!

Thanks for this post

6:19 AM, Monday, February 19, 2007 .. Posted by JocelynJames

Hi Jacque,

Thanks for letting us know that you were just too tired to write. I sometimes feel tired just catching up with your blog - you are able to put down so much. I have recently felt challenged to put down more "real" things, not just a chronicle of the best.
Blessings from Australia,