You’ll get a kink in your neck if you stare too long at today’s interior work. The finished ceilings look great. There! Knock another “to do” off the home completion list.. along with the installation of our furnace and duct work, and the stunning brick work across the back of the house. Brackets on deck footings and a “just delivered” stack of pressure treated posts and cedar boards tells me there’s a deck on the way. Call me Mr. Obvious.

Country boys get down and dirty

Front porch stonework continues so you will have to wait until next week to see a full frontal.  Relax. I am talking about the house. But speaking of well hung, drywall was installed on the ceiling and walls of the garage today. On Day 62, we will keep Blog followers in “front porch suspense” but we will take you inside to see the skeleton structure of our great room’s pièce de résistance, a wolf’s creek fashioned stone fireplace. Here’s to the weekend and to three amazing couples (Matt & Emily, Matt & Jenn, Jaime & Joe) who will tie the knot tomorrow. Wish we could make it to all three “big days.”

Timber! It was worth taking a vacation day to conquer a massive maple today. It came half way down in a windstorm last summer and its heavy limbs spring loaded a few balsams around it. It scared the hell out of me to start processing it without the assistance of an experienced chainsaw-slinger. Thanks to our friend Ron, it took no time at all to safely set down a winter’s worth of good burning. Cathy can’t wait to fire up her splitter. Yes, it’s HER splitter.

Meanwhile, back at the house, the Prinston Homes team, brick layers, drywall mudders,  an electrician and heating guys, were hard at work. Even Mary Jane, our interior design consultant/flooring expert from FloorTrends made a visit today to confirm our tile and carpet selections. The front door installation moment that I have been waiting for happened while I was running the chainsaw in the back 40. The front door looks awesome but I refuse to share it with our Blog readers until the front porch stonemasonry is complete. Oh the suspense!!

Here are a few pictures from Day 61, my first full day onsite since Day 1 ground breaking. It was a great day spending time in the woods as well as onsite to see talented trade professionals doing their thing. I can’t wait to share photos of the completed masonry work. Stay tuned.

Lots of bear sign this year like this fresh bear skat.

If our new kitchen looks this great in drywall dust, tape and mud then we really can’t wait to see it with tiles, stainless appliances and alder cabinets. The construction dust is scheduled to settle soon, and after the liquor cabinet and wine racks are fully stocked, we hope that everyone following our Blog will find an opportunity to join us for drinks served around the kitchen island. Until then “cheers” to Day 58 of construction.

Among all the special moments of our house-raising experience, here is one that I will always treasure the most. When hand chisel meets stringer, I think about my Grandpa. He was a World War II Veteran, a carpenter and a Master Stair Builder. He passed away in April. After we broke ground on our new home, my Aunt Cathy told me that she believed Grandpa Pye would oversee our stair case construction. She was right. Today, it felt like Grandpa was there.

“R” is for R-value and this week our new home is getting plenty of it. Who says that Studs don’t look pretty in pink?  “R” is also for race which is a good word to describe the speed of activity inside and out. That’s not to suggest that speed means a sacrifice in quality. Prinston Homes’ and its team of contractors are doing an amazing job. Today, Chad Hope Excavating put the finishing touches on some backyard landscaping (it looks awesome!!) while, inside, contractors built the ultimate en-suite shower as well as installed insulation, bath tubs and the wiring for life’s basic needs — internet, satellite, phone and in-ceiling sound system.  Let’s crank it up.