tile

A tour of the upstrairs

Drywall!!

Insulation

sheet rock

More fire wood

insulation

Firewood

roofing the back porch

painting the house

firewood

we got a bunch of firewood (there is more then pictured) so we chopped it all up and left it out to dry

Lydia chopping firewood

Kevin chopping wood

Papa'O taking a break

after leaving the firewood out to dry for a couple months, it was time time to bring it all in because of the coming rain storms. so while Dad and Kevin painted Mom and the gir.ls brought in all the wood, and was that a hard job or what, anyway all of it is now under our covered porch, ready to keep us warm all winter. :)

siding

Kevin and Laura doing the siding.
two fingers mean very happy in Taiwan.

Dad looks on

Dad cutting the siding

Kevin and Laura siding above the porch

Kevin and Laura, our faithful crew putting on tar paper

snack time! Maria trying to be just like Daddy

Electrical Continues

Michael French providing direction

Nathan Straub and David French wiring g.irls bathroom fan
Kevin French and Kevin Straub installing light boxes

Plumbing

Dad and Kevin are pictured working on plumbing. This was a long project (in the process 50 gallons of water flooded our downstairs), but is finally inspected and finished!

Dad and Mom

Dad and Mom. Jan.2007. 

Inside our House: kitchen

We remodeled our kitchen area several years ago. At least this part of the house is not undergoing major construction. Mom's happy about that! 

Inside our House: dining room/kitchen

 

Inside our House: boys' bathroom

Nathan converted the section designated to be a commode into a temporary library. 

Inside our House: boys' room

Looking into the boys' room upstairs. 

Inside our House: hallway

Looking from the school room doorway down the hallway.
On the left is the playroom/exercise room that is currently a tool room. Beyond that is the laundry room, then there is the master bedroom.
On the right, on the other side of the staircase, is the project room for sewing and crafting, beyond that is the boys' room.

Inside our House: school room/girls room

Walk up the stairs and immediately to your left is the doorway to the school room and library area. This picture was taken in the doorway. The framing to your left is the girls room where the kids currently play badminton. The lower left corner will be a school supply closet. 

Inside our House: girls room

How many Straub girls can you fit into one bedroom?
For dimensions, the pine bunkbed is two feet away from the closet, which I am standing in. The closet is organized with shelving and bars for our clothes.
This room will eventually be a guest room and the girls will move upstairs.

Inside our House: the gathering place

This is where all corners of the house come together. Mom brought over her favorite rocking chair and Dad got out the "honey bucket" to sit on (the warmth of the fire keeps the honey soft).
For October, November, and December, we sat around the fire in the evenings and cracked many 50 lbs bags of walnuts which we gathered from under several neighborhood trees.
In the background you can see into our dining room and makeshift pantry. 

Inside our House: music/school corner

We took out the boys' bedroom and the fireplace, enlarging our living room. For the time being, we are using this corner as our music and school area. Our plan is to leave this part of the living room for musical pursuits and move the schooling upstairs. 

Inside our House: stairs

Looking down from the top of the stairs. 

Inside our Home: front door

When you come to our home, the first thing that greets you is our new front door. We chose it specificly for the cut-glass cross. It's a reminder of Who owns our home.

Maple: the finished pile

 

Maple: the trunk

 

Maple: pic of Teresa

 

Maple: pic of Dad

 

Maple: pic of Kevin

A maple tree in a nearby cemetery was cut down and our family was asked if we wanted to take care of removing the tree. Dad, Nathan, Teresa, and Kevin spent a couple of days chainsawing and hauling the logs. Hauling was the humorous part! We loaded the bed of Dad's little dodge ram till the bumper was inches above the ground and the logs were higher than the little cab, all carefully wedged together for space conservation. Then three of us would cram into the cab, shoes on the dashboard so Dad could operate the stickshift, and we would tootle down the country road, bumping and scraping in the "little engine that could"! What a sight!
Then the little gi.rls came out and helped clean up the small branches and brush. It is fulfilling to work hard together and reap the fruit of our labor.