Finished Dormers on West side and Shower Valves

This week Gary began installing some of the electrical boxes and wiring around the cabin. He also installed the first two shower valves in the master bathroom. The following picture shows the valves for the rain shower (which will come out of the ceiling) and the shower valves for Debi's side of the shower--the shower head on her side is lowered for a "vertically challenged" person! Gary's side of the shower will include shower valves with four body sprayers. (His valves haven't been installed yet.) Gary will also make a small built-in bench seat so that Debi can sit and shave her legs easily. We have chosen "oil-rubbed bronze" fixtures from Moen's "Kingsley" series, which will complement (not "compliment"--I know the difference) the slate and rock that will be inside the shower. The dimensions of the shower are about 5' x 10'--which is bigger than the typical 1950's bathroom!

Gary installed the fireplace in the master bedroom this week. Although this propane fireplace puts out plenty of heat, we are installing it for the "romantic atmosphere"!

This is the pocket door (pushed into the wall) going into the master bathroom from the master bedroom.

And here it is in its closed position:

The dormers on the west side are finally complete with window glass!

We are getting there--slow and steady wins the race!

Finished Dormers above the Garage

This week, Gary has been working on the dormers. He made five frames, stained them to match the logs, and then added green paint to match the trim on the other windows. After he installs the frame in the dormer, he inserts a pane of window glass and caulks it with silicone. Here is a sample of his "smart jamb"--we copied that term from Middleton Timber, the company where we got our logs for the cabin.


The three dormers on the west side are still not complete. Gary will work on these this upcoming week.



Here are the two completed dormers above the garage. We went so far as to install wooden window blinds so that it would look like there are bedrooms upstairs. The dormer on the right even has a Dalmatian in the window, which makes me want to sing, "How much is that doggy in the window?"



This is the view of the new finished dormers as seen from the "Crow's Nest".



Guess what we did this weekend? We made up a bed on the cement floor of our master bedroom and slept there on Saturday and Sunday night. It was exciting to be able to sleep in our bedroom. There was a nice breeze blowing over our heads coming in through the window.

Happy "Blog-a-versary": One Year of Log-Blogging

Happy "Blog-a-versary"!
I've been blogging for one year now.

The above picture shows the area of the front door before the door or framework around it was installed. Today Gary applied a scratch coat to the area around the front door and the gable in preparation for the stone that will be installed in the next month.

The following picture shows the tar paper around the front door before the scratch coat is applied. Tar paper was also installed in the gable area prior to the scratch coat. (Notice that the ship lap isn't installed under the eaves, nor are the eaves painted in this picture.)

This next picture shows the scratch coat around the front door and the gable. The next step is stone! We plan to purchase river rock from a company called "El Dorado Stone". The name of the river rock that we like is called "Yosemite", so you know it will look great with a log cabin. (Notice that you can see the ship lap under the painted eaves in this next picture.)

Earlier this week Gary finished the dormers above the garage. He used half-round logs above the window area, and painted the trim green to match the fascia, roll-up garage door, the walk-through garage door, and window trim.

Our Little Log Shed

What do you do with leftover ship lap? You cover your garden shed to match, of course! We had some leftover ship lap and thought it would be cute if we covered our old garden shed. Gary painted the fascia and the door the same color green as the cabin's fascia and put new matching shingles on the shed. Maybe we could call it the "guest cabin"--what do you think?

Below is a view of our little log shed from the house. Look through the trees, past all the tools on the picnic bench!

Close up view of the garden shed--just ignore all the junk out in front of it!

Painting the Fascia Above the Eaves

If you look closely, you will see the white stripe of primer along the fascia of the garage wall. George and Charlie Kayser primed all the fascia around the entire house before they painted it the same shade of green as the garage door and the trim around the windows and French doors.

George and Charlie painting the fascia of the eaves above the garage.

You can see the white primer on the dormer. They will finish painting the dormers next week.

Ship Lap is Complete!

Today marks a significant milestone in our log cabin journey--Gary finished installing the ship lap under the eaves of the house (with the help of George and Charlie Kayser.) He still needs to install trim where the seams meet, but the hardest part of the ship lap is complete! Gary had to buy a new ladder just to reach the east side above the garage (shown below.) The height here is about 20 feet off the ground. The eaves under the rest of the cabin are six feet wide, so this was quite an undertaking. The wide eaves will make nice shade in which to hide from the summer's heat, and a fun place to sit outside (and still be protected) to watch the skies when it rains or snows in the winter.

The west side:

South side:

The northeast corner:

The north side:

Mormon Pioneer Handcart Reenactment

Oak Hills Ward Young Men and Young Women and Leaders

Over the weekend of July 31-August 1, 2009, Gary and Debi portrayed "grandparents" to a group of 10 high-school aged youth from our church. We went on a Mormon Pioneer Handcart Reenactment in Miller Canyon near Silverwood Lake. We pushed and pulled handcarts for over five miles as we encountered Indians, anti-Mormons, and other actors who told true stories from our pioneer heritage. We were assigned a family name and Debi was excited to get the name of "Stucki", an immigrant family from Switzerland, who left on their handcart journey to the Salt Lake Valley in 1860. Here is a picture of the Stucki Family as we began our handcart trek.

Our first encounter was with some hostile Indians who threw water balloons at us and hit us with super-soakers.

This Indian is hidden behind a rock and some trees.

The Indians shot and "killed" Joseph, our "grandson", so we carried his body with us until we could find a suitable burial spot.



Next, we encountered a group of anti-Mormons who threatened to "kill" us if we didn't turn back. We turned around and found another way along the trail.

This actor portrayed a member of the Seeley Family, who actually helped to settle the San Bernardino area. Seeley Creek is named for his ancestors.

Seeley Creek

This actor portrayed B.H. Roberts, who later became a church historian. He told us several stories from his boyhood, which included a humorous encounter with Indians.

At one point of the trek, the men were asked to join the U.S. Army and march with the Mormon Battalion to San Diego. The women were forced to push and pull the handcart themselves.

The women bid farewell to their menfolk.

A grave along the trail marks the final resting place of a young married man, who died in his sleep one cold winter night. His wife had to lie next to his dead body all night long until he could be buried the next morning.

This actress told the women of our family about the struggles she and all other women faced along the trail.

This grave marks the place where a 10-year old girl and her little sister had to bury their parents.

This actress told us of the frostbite and infection she got in her feet, and the amputation of her legs, just above the knees.

The STUCKI Family ROCKS! We made it!