The year sped by and it brought some new things to the schoolhouse. Some years you look back and think – well, we didn’t really do anything. Thank goodness for photos! It’s a good feeling to find out the year was full of news!
Early in the year, we focused on the basement. If you’ve been following us long, you’ll remember we spent a couple of great years living in the semi-finished basement. Now with the upstairs all done, the basement is free to be my creative space. A nook for a sewing machine, a stationary bike, a couch, mini fridge and TV – it’s the new She Shed. Nothing fancy, but all mine.
We also added, yes, another dog. Meet Miss Rose, cousin the Betty. She is a charmer!
The biggest – literally and figuratively by far – was the new garage. Up until now, outdoor storage was a couple outbuildings and a bunch of sheds. It was a several year effort, but has been quite the upgrade. We even hosted our square dancing class!
Of course, building a garage meant cutting down some trees – and all the chopping and splitting and stacking that goes with it. But that meant plenty of firewood for heating the schoolhouse – which we do successfully about 20 hours a day. This little stove is amazing – Jax agrees!
Late in the year, we decided that it was time to recreate the schoolyard. So we have Paragon Excavating come out and level out all our lumps and bumps and reseed.
And what does every respectable schoolyard need, but a merry go round. Dad found this one for us and brought it back with him from vacation in Nebraska. Now we just need to figure out where to put it.
Last but not least, 2023 brought several chances to see the northern lights. I’ve caught a few amazing pictures with the schoolhouse in it, but this was the most spectacular in the whole area.
Looks great and thank you for sharing the progress. Last weekend I saw your panels are installed as well, look forward to checking them out at some point.