Houses old and new

Too much to do, not much time for keeping up with my blog. I haven't been doing much online except checking the radar-feeling pretty exposed in that camper I guess. The chicks are 3 weeks old and happily (?) in their tractors on the hill. I am relieved to have them out of the coop.

Recovery and Discovery

Thanks for the public (and private)words of support. There should be a law against stressful news at certain times of the month :)
I think my biggest stress was in putting myself 'out there', pushing my comfort zones a bit. You see we do have the money to do this (I knew there was a reason for driving an 8yr old Saturn!), I just didn't think we would be called upon to have to use it. I was assuming we could have our comfortable cushion to sit on.
I AM breathing again and thinking things through rationally again. Tom and I will do a little brainstorming about how to proceed -the construction loan has a 12 month term, so we can continue to save and accumulate money as we go through the next year. Perhaps the garage will get built this fall? Perhaps we get another bid for the garage, with us doing more of the work? I'm not sure what we will come up with , but there is nothing like a campfire and a couple Mike's Hard Lemonades to help you think outside of the box.

uggh

I want to vomit. I have too many things weighing on my mind. This is no way to live. The bank called yesterday about the construction loan. The assessor (appaiser?) valued our future home at $187,000. That is basically an evaluation of what our property would sell for in the current market. Problem is, the market here has really tanked. The bank will loan us 75% of the assessed value or $140,000. The estimates we have collected to build a 1400 sq foot house, 2 car garage, mound septic, well and to run electric out (1,000ft!) is 175,000. That is a big difference.
Do you remember that post about 'when i retire'...well we need to decide if that is all talk or will we put our money where our mouth is. Last night talking it over with DH and a bottle of wine it seemed pretty obvious- we do it, but I am worrying this thing to death (that's what i do). Time for a little yoga and then I will transplant my little tomatoes and see how things feel then.
Oh yeah, I also had a post on HWW about technoloy and commuting.-see side link to HWW

I'm a BAD Blogger

Now that things are getting interesting I have not been posting very much! BAD BLOGGER! Land purchased, work commencing. I drew up a couple house floor plans and we arrived at one which was workable. Small passive solar ICF construction, very open living space. Three bedrooms, 1 3/4 bath, built on a slab so we want/need a concrete 'safe room' for tornadoes. The plan I workd out has 1150 square feet-no walk in closets or master suites here!

The idea is to really force us to pare down our 'stuff'. I have been taking steps along the way to get us to 1200 sq feet (plus garage!). Many, many trips to donate at Goodwill, getting rid of holiday decor that is not special to the family. The homemade nativity set made by great Grandpa Carl stays, the plastic, plug-in, snoring Santa and outdoor light displays are gone. I'm down to 4 boxes of christmas stuff, 1 box for Easter (mostly the kids baskets) and 3 for Halloween; but I know I can do even better than that! I also got rid of my clothing dresser last year. All my clothing fits in 1/2 (okay, okay 2/3) of our standard sized closet with organizer. The little house will be a challenge as our possessions have grown to fill the space we occupy now -about 2400sq ft -including partially finished basement and 1 car garage.

Anyway, we signed on Friday and met with the builder on Saturday. He will turn my grid paper scribbles into a real code upholding floor plan for the loan officer. They will then loan us 75% of the assessed market value. The assessment and paperwork usually takes 3 - 4 weeks during which time I will be arranging well drillers, septic system installation and the public utility to run electric from the road. When we get the go-ahead from the bank in the beginning of May I can be ready to pull the trigger -so to speak.

I also talked to the real estate broker I wish to list with and told him I would like to list May 1st. So now I (WE) have 4 weeks to pretty things up. It is certainly do-able but this will not be a house to pass a 'white glove' test. It is what it is, a decently maintained older ranch in a really sweet family neighborhood in a great school district. It is lived in, has a butt ugly kitchen, a kick-ass deck and yard, its a HOME not a showpiece. Hopefully we can price it to sell before our new mortgage kicks in!





The beautiful pictures I had in my mind of the land have faded a bit with the realities of the work in front of us. It is a 10 or 20 year marathon -not a 2 yr sprint, I continue to remind myself of that.

Thursdays at Home

I have post at HWW today about homemade taco seasoning and why our family has taco salad at least every other week... :)
It's another Thursday at home and some how the whole morning has gone and I haven't even begun to clean up the house or bake bread or (insert boring chore here). However I DID have brunch with my father and his girlfriend/partner (hmmm Stoney what do I call you?? -live in spiritual advisor??). We haven't talked for a while and it was really good to do that! They were ale to help me with floor plans and lessons learned from their experiences building in the boonies!
We sign (and pay for) our land tomorrow. Four acres for cash and the remaining 15 on a land contract with Mr Nice Farmer. Saturday we are getting together with the builder. The loan officer (construction loan) will be out of town until after Easter, so hopefully we can have drawings submitted to her the first or second week of April so she can begin the process of securing our construction loan. That process will take 3-4 weeks. Even thinking positively it will be middle May before funds are released for us to build. Garage and well first, then list house. Whew.



Thursday mornings we do Dr meetings at work. They always depress me. It should be a collaborative team building session, but increasingly I'm finding myself wanting to not be on this team. The most meaning I am getting from work lately is the paycheck, it's a nice paycheck and interesting work most of the time -but the small animal-pets as children -best medicine model is crushing me. I want to help people by helping their pets not cover my ass all the time.
Acck, time to knead some bread, open the windows and let the spring air blow through the house.
Kris

Finish What You Start

I have a problem finishing things. I love to see the possibilities in things. But sometimes when you finish they are crap; all possibility is gone, the potential is never realized.

This winter I began art lessons-one hour a week with my Mom. I am a pretty talented amateur artist in my medium of choice-charcoal. I have been wanting to try something with vibrant color, so we began working with oil pastels. At first I felt as if I was coloring with my kid's crayons, but I have stuck with it and am on the verge of creating what I would consider art (something which would give me pleasure to hang on my own walls). But I have frozen, I don't know how to go forward without wrecking the potential.

This is the metaphor for my life right now; on the verge and afraid to go forward-what if the reality doesn't live up to expectations, what if I really suck at this? What if I never try-that would be the worst. This is a piece of art I will finish (both the pastel and our homestead attempt), even if it is not a magnificent piece of art -it is me trying and not giving up.

Some of my previous art-currently gracing the walls of our home:







In other news: we may be land owners next week!! Now I can START to think about calling the real estate agent, well driller, and the building contractor. I also let the bunnies have a 'date'. We should have a litter of Florida Whites in 30 days. The female got very fat over the winter-I guess the girls were doing a very good job in feeding her. A fat bunny doesn't usually have sizable litters-hmm we will see what happens. I figure her litter will be about 6 weeks old when school gets out for the summer and we move to the camper on the land, they should be able to handle the stress of a move at that age. Spring is here-I'm just not quite ready for it.

Hello Old Friends

I can feel the sunshine flowing through my veins, waking up my sleepy brain. I uderestimate the effects of the long dark winter on my psyche. My focus turns inward, to the bare necessities, and just placing one foot in front of the other. I am sitting in the east bay window letting the morning sun pour over my face, ahh, warmth and awakening.

Things are becoming REAL on the future farm front, we had a successful soil test performed last fall-for a mound septic system, the land was surveyed and the stacks of old ginseng rafters disposed of. The purchase contract is in the mail to us as I type.

We are buying 4 acres plus a 800' x 33' driveway easement for $3,000 an acre. This is a little higher than the $2,000 to 2,500 which seems to be average for farm land in this area-but it is adjacent to dad's 40 acres and that was important to us. We will also have a land contract for the remaining 15 acres of farmfield at the same price at 3% interest for 10 years, with the option to pay off early.

This is a little convoluted but the bank assessed the property at $2,000 an acre which meant to get a bank loan we would have needed to place %15 percent down PLUS the $19,000 dollar difference between assessed value and purchase price. We decided to buy the building site and driveway outright to make the bank happy when we do the construction loan and final mortgage, and Mr. Nice Farmer will finance the remaining 15 acres at a very NICE interest rate while allowing us full use of the acerage. Now all we have to do is live in our camper while the house is built, sell our current house and start the girls in a new school!


(Picture from last fall-view towards the south-the house will go about 100 feet down this south facing slope with a view of Dad's woods-to the left of this shot- and slough.)


More tomorrow about my ideas for the farm!

Sans Microwave

Three weeks ago our microwave bit the dust. My gut reaction was to moan and groan and then check the sales fliers for a good deal, but instead we decided to try going without. Initially it was very hard, I mean how else do you warm up a cup of coffee, or make a couple Morning Star sausage links for breakfast? Microwave popcorn, quick defrost of meat, melt white 'chocolate' for our traditional xmas pretzels?

However humans are adaptable creatures and thrive under adverse conditions! I have learned that warming water for tea is almost as fast on the stove, taking meat out ahead of time is a wonderful thing, the stove *gasp* works great for breakfast links, and we don't eat the prepackaged 'must microwave' stuff anyway-except sometimes for lunches at work. I think we will try the old fashioned popcorn in a kettle tonight (with REAL butter) for a new years treat. I will need another small sauce pan to make this work long term.

We have decided to go without -our future (off grid?) home will be small and spare; cutting back on electricity use and the extra clutter of bulky appliances is how we explained the situation to our curious mom-in-law but maybe it was just plain old contrariness-I'll never tell!

Signed, Sealed...

The Offer to Purchase has been accepted, and I take it to the bank tomorrow!! I am beyond happy. I feel as if I am finally at a place in my life where I am doing and not just flapping my lips. Very empowering and it is spilling over into other parts of my life-taking the reins so to speak.
According to the loan officer it should take 2-3 weeks until we can close. I have already been sketching floor plans-we are planning an approx 1100 square foot house for the 4 of us. I am looking forward to building a house which really fits our family's needs now and with an eye to the future. Passive solar design with a very open design. We really like the idea of very small bedrooms and a larger central space that can be used for multiple activities.
Redundancy is big for me-if no power is available via the grid, whether peak oil or just an ice storm; how will we heat, cook, pump water, etc? We will certainly take advantage of the great incentives for installing PV and solar hot water. There is some uncertainty about whether we will try for off grid or net metering-it all comes down to $ though-many of the incentives are offered by the utility provider. No provider=significantly lower incentive. Fun times!
We had a good visit with my sister's family this weekend. It was decided that our Christmas exchange would be different this year. We will each bring a wrapped homemade gift, draw numbers and either select a present or 'steal' someones gift. It should be fun, with less stress and less cost. Now if only I could convince my DH's family to do the same. Sigh.
Putting the pumpkin whole into the oven working very well. I will certainly do that again. I didn't puree it however and it had the consistancy of snot. Lesson learned! I had 4 quart bags of the cooked pumpkin/squash in the fridge and my seven year old came to me wondering why I was thawing out so many eggs? I think she was hoping for many quiches. It is true that our pasture raised eggs were the same color as the deep orange squash-the things kids notice!

This is two 'homemade' eggs compared to a store bought. The color is poor in the shot, and these were January eggs-no pasture, no bugs, and they are still kicking butt!

Scared-Addendum

The driveway

Yesterday was fun -tromping around in the mud, imagining the possibilities...but i am also scared sh@t-less! It's time to put my money where my mouth is-literally. The 20 acres passed the perc test -marginal- but a pass. So once I have the county's paperwork in hand (next week) we will take the plunge. I have butterflies! I am getting out of my comfort zone. Am I really going to follow my dreams and take responsibility for creating my own life vision? Yes, yes I am.
Time to start thinking about floor plans and farm layout. And of course continuing to save, save, save!

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Further thought on this subject...I have bundled all my anxiety about making fundamental changes into this land purchase. Buying and building -not such a big deal, moving family to the sticks -still not such a big deal, selling my share of the clinic and (while still working part-time) and turning away from a high cash flow lifestyle -well that is where things get a little dicey! The journey starts with a single step and we are taking a very sane approach to this. The point is happiness, security and sustainability. When we find our 'happy spot' we will know it!

Something Simmering in the Kitchen...

...and it's not the soup! It was ME. This weekend I realized I was getting resentful about spending so much time in the kitchen; making bread, cooking healthy food, doing dishes by hand, packing kids lunches and wrapping up the food storage. I was getting pissy about my self imposed kitchen duty. So I'm done-kinda, sorta. The garden is done, the girls can make their own sandwiches and put in the freezer Sunday afternoon, next pay period I will get the broken dishwasher replaced, and I will stop trying to be Martha Stewart in the kitchen (until I think it is fun again). It started out as a lot of fun but I began putting more and more pressure on myself, somewhere alot the way it became not fun and just something I should do-those damn shoulds get me every time. I remembered that the purpose for slowing down my work schedule is to ENJOY the things I have- not add more to my plate. (take the power, Kris)
Once the weather co-operates and stops raining I will get my garden put to bed, lay that project aside and turn inward to the home, my relationships, and ART. I have neglected my creativity for a long time and I can hear it calling to me (with a little outside help-thank you).

This is what I want to get back to:








Property update: we are trying to purchase the fixer-upper for a price that WILL allow us to fix it up and not necessitate two full-time working parents! The fellow who offered us the low, low price is apparently not the final decision maker and he is now waffling. I nicely and politely (we will be neighbors either way) to knock it off and give us a purchase price by this weekend or we will buy the open field! (I really don't want that, but I won't let him know !!)

...Or Door No. 2

I'd love to see her make it through another 80 years


To continue my previous topic, choice number 2 is a real fixer-upper. 10 acres with 30 yr old house, 50x90ft metal pole shed in okay shape, barn which needs a new roof ASAP and some structural work (est $18,000), garage type wooden building which looked rough to me (but our builder friend said actually seemed pretty sound), mature apple trees and raspberry bushes, established gardens, well probably not code ($7,000), original hand dug well which will need to be filled ( $$??), and septic system which will need to be replaced, thanks to a new county (state?) law ($15,000). The interior of the house will need to be gutted (it's icky, really). Despite all this we are considering it. The asking price is the same as the 20 acres of vacant farm field (which would also need a well and septic). God help me but this is the one I am leaning toward.
It is also right next to Dad's place, the previously mentioned 20 is directly behind this 10. We will eventually want more than 10 acres, but this is where having a family member right across the fence who has more than they want to care for comes in very handy. We are having visions of some type of cooperative family farm. Raising pasture meat chickens and turkeys.



South end of house (white) and stand alone screen porch (summer kitchen?)



Pole building- in better shape than most things on the property but also holds alot of misc crap from 20+ years of hard use.



The garage type building-the 'lean to' ends are really leaning aren't they?

Behind Door No. 1...

Looking from Dad's woods to choice #1

For anyone new to this site here is our summary...family of four in NC Wisconsin. Two daughters ages 7 and 11, public school education with no plans to change that-the girls are creative, happy and healthy. We are both working professionals-my husband is Materials Manager for the engineering division of a company which makes (among other things) control panels for hydroelectric projects (think Hoover Dam)-as much job security as you can find these days. I am a small animal veterinarian- partner in our group of two small practices, I am working part time right now, pulling myself back from the slippery slope of career burnout. We are looking for something simpler, something more meaningful. I am nervous about peak oil, collapse of our economy, etc, etc. We have had some small experiences with growing our own food-chickens, rabbits and garden and have found it very rewarding. I want to spend time with my girls- I let strangers care for them through daycare and after school programs for too long, I do not want to look back and regret it.
We are looking at two different pieces of property. They are both adjacent to my fathers retirement farm, about 30 minutes from our current suburban home. He has 40 acres, a mix of meadow and slough and woods. He wishes for my sister and I to inherit this property eventually and short term he wants to 'share' or lease some of his acreage with us. We have been camping out there for three summers. It has given us a glimpse of what is possible and I am so thankful to have had that confidence builder available to me. However, we do not want to wait until we retire to create our farm. We want to do the work now while we are strong, and raise our children learning where their food comes from. I suspect this may be a life skill more important than a bachelor's degree. There will be no retirement for us just a shedding of our outside careers.



Shot last week toward to rear of the 20

This is choice number one: 20 acres of southward sloping farm field, no road frontage to speak of just a 20ft x 1000 ft lane back to the 20. The site is only 500 feet wide but 1/4 (?) mile long. We build an off grid solar powered home 1100 square feet, no immediate plans for outbuildings but over next few years would build a workshop for DH and a small barn/shed for me and the girls (horse, goat?, pig?).
Pro's- new construction, built how we wish, off grid (or $12,000 to run power back there) sounds very cool, very green in theory until we hit the third week of cloudy winter weather and have to run the back up generator to take a shower, can't even see a neighbor from back here.
Con's- start from scratch-no trees, just thick slippery clay soil, expensive-even without considering the PV required -because we really have no idea at this point what we will need, adjacent 100+ acres of farm field -large tractor traffic spring planting/plowing, spraying god knows what, harvesting, then fall spraying liquid cow shit. The driveway to tractors/trucks use is right next to our lane running back.


This procession of trucks and stink happens every spring and fall. Because of the narrow width, our proposed building site will be within 200ft of this.

Overall my concerns are cost-one of my considerations is to not spend a huge amount of money- i want us to have the option of being a single income family. But I sure love being hidden back here and going off grid.

I'll post the second option tomorrow-we are winterizing the camper today aand i will have pictures of what's behind door no.2 then!