What a Day!

Yesterday was a big day!  We got so much accomplished!  Jared fed cows first thing in the morning and after he was all finished the kids and I went out to help him work on our house.  We finally put the permanent beams in place to hold up the front of the house, the roof over the front porch.  When we had the guys put the roof on our house three years ago they put temporary supports up to hold the roof and told Jared that this would not last a winter.  Amazingly it lasted three!  Jared has fretted for quite awhile about it staying upright, especially with all the wind we have been having.  As soon as we got one beam in place Jared let out a huge sigh of relief.  The first one took us quite a bit of time but once it was up we got the other one done in record time.  We then went to Buck and Arren's to pick up an old set of cement steps from John and Roxanne's house.   Last summer they redid their entrance by building a pergola and decided to build a ramp and steps up to their door, they couldn't justify taking the cement steps to the dump when they were still in great shape so they stored them in their yard.  When we saw them we asked if they were being used for anything and they told us they didn't know what they were going to do with them and if we knew anyone that needed them they could have them!  We just so happened to need them so it worked out perfectly, even if they didn't fit perfectly Jared was going to make them work.

Emry was such a big help and such a good sport despite having a horrible cold!

This was so cute to see! 

Awhile ago Jared bought an old one ton from Buck and John but hadn't picked it up yet, so yesterday we loaded the stairs on it and took them both home.  Once we got home we had to level out the dirt in front of our house, I put Armin to sleep and we went at it again!  The kids and I picked up all the shingles that blow off with every wind storm we have, while Jared used the little tractor to smooth out the dirt.  Once that was done we had to add a couple 2x10 boards to the wall as a ledger for our deck, which we will worry about when we are completely finished everything else!  But we got it ready so when Jared puts the siding up next Friday and Saturday he can focus just on the siding.  Finally it was time to place the stairs.  It was touch and go for a minute when Jared lifted them with the front end loader, harnessed by chains, we weren't sure if some of the smaller chains would hold the weight of the stairs.  Despite the look of fear on my face, all went very smoothly, and they were level and fit perfectly!

I couldn't believe how happy I was over a set of cement stairs, they are so much better than the silly ramp we had going into our house, and they will definitely serve the purpose for a good long while until we build our deck!  Putting up the permanent beams made such a difference in appearance to the front of our house, and adding the stairs makes it feel like an actual house, not a construction zone!  We are so close it seems unreal!  All the green siding will most likely be up next week and then we have to put up the white shingle siding in the peaks.  It has been a long process and I know I will never build another house (thankfully we won't ever have to because we are where we want to be for the rest of our lives!!), but it has been a fun process, a learning experience.  And no matter how many people have told us that building a house can tear couples apart, it has brought Jared and I that much closer!  I truly enjoyed being by his side yesterday helping him, and having the kids there playing was fun too!

So Beautiful!