Bee~ Journal of then...

Beekissed

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I'm excited about tomorrow! Not only are we going to have a repeat of today's weather for the next three days~or so the weather station says~but we are having a "working" out here tomorrow and the next day. My eldest son and his little family~wife and my two grandgirls! :weee ~and my middle son are coming out to assist us in tearing down the old outhouse that's been standing here over 25 yrs now and with rebuilding a new one.

The old one is small, dark and when it rains hard the floor floods with water. The door sticks on the ground when it's opened too. It's sturdy enough still, as it was built by my Dad and things tend to stay built when he builds them, but it is showing signs of wear at the foundation from the flooding.

We don't use it often but when we do have to use it during periods of power outages, it's nice to use something that is pleasant...and this cramped, dark, brown house is not as pleasant as it could be. I'm thankful that we've had it available all these years but it's time for a change.

I'll take before and after pics so you can see the differences, but suffice to say that before it was a man's outhouse and after it's all painted and finished out, it will be a lady's outhouse. At least, one that ladies don't mind using. ;) Light and bright inside, functional without being froo-froo, and more attractive outside as well.

I'll be grilling some stuff and having a campfire in the yard tomorrow evening so we can admire the stars and enjoy the cool night air. If folks aren't too tired, we'll play some cards after that. They'll stay all night and finish up the build the day after. Can't wait!!!! :celebrate :weee :ya :woot
 

Beekissed

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It's so nice when your family comes to help!

You bet it is! It doesn't happen too often, so when it does we savor it. More and more it would be nice if we had a few strong, young men around to help us with one thing or another but it's a rarity to get that to happen. Naively we thought that, as we aged and become physically weaker, that they would naturally see that and offer to help us out here with firewood and such....

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

....yeah..it's like that. o_O
 

frustratedearthmother

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I know.... I have two children and only my son lives close. But, he bought a new house last fall and is ALWAYS working on something either with the house or fences or laying new floors or painting or about a zillion other things so I only ask for help from him when I have a major problem. He always helps if I ask - I'm just trying not to overwhelm him! (*yet*)
 

NH Homesteader

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It can be really overwhelming for us because my husband is the only son in the family so his mother (and until recently, sister) assumes he needs to do a whole bunch of stuff for her. He just doesn't have time. But he always helps with big things.
 

frustratedearthmother

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That's why I try to be respectful of my son's time. He works long hours and has his own place to deal with so I reserve him for the really important stuff like the water well or the tractor. He doesn't mind helping with the tractor because he uses it more than I do, lol. And he's a guy and what guy doesn't like tractors???
 

baymule

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Our son works on construction jobs as a crane operator. So when he is between jobs, he drops out of the sky to visit for a couple of days. It was one of those when we moved-he trailered my horses up here, then helped us pack, move and unload. Lately, he showed up and helped us finish the fence, which was a God send.
 

Beekissed

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Our son works on construction jobs as a crane operator. So when he is between jobs, he drops out of the sky to visit for a couple of days. It was one of those when we moved-he trailered my horses up here, then helped us pack, move and unload. Lately, he showed up and helped us finish the fence, which was a God send.

What a blessing, Bay! A skilled son AND he helps! :woot

Well, I can't say much negative about my boys this time around...they tackled this job and did it well, though they did bicker a lot. I'll post pics of the before and the during when I get back this evening...it will be awhile until I can post the finished project~that will involve a lot of finish work, painting, staining, etc. done by Mom and I.
 

baymule

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They might have bickered, but they worked! And I know Mom appreciated all their work! Can't wait to see pics!
 

Beekissed

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Oh, yes, we appreciate the work....would have taken Mom and I a month to get that done and it wouldn't have been done quite as well, either.

Before and during pics....this little outhouse is 25 yrs old and has an antique commode in it. We were going to reuse that commode but it cracked as they were removing it, so now it's going to become a planter.

Your basic little brown house...

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Demo begins...
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We're trying to go as cheap as possible by reusing some materials, using materials we had on hand and also getting some free or cheap items. The window screens above were $1 ea. at the Habitat store. We were able to reuse some of the lumber from the old outhouse as well as some old 4x4s from my son's house where he took down a few old gates.

This old screen door(below) was in the basement of my brother's house that was built in the early 1900s. I love it! We were going to repaint it, but I love the patina on this door and will leave it as is.

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