Sagebrush & Solar

We severely underestimated the amount of dirt we’d (we = Keith) be moving from spot to spot during this build. Between the driveway, build pad, excavating the house hole, moving all that dirt around some more, buying more dirt to build up areas for concrete, looking at our “backyard” and deciding what to do…I’m starting to get the sense that moving dirt is going to be the name of our game for quite some time.

Our concrete guy squeezed us in this week and poured our front porch and back patio. I’ve never spent much time imagining the front door, but it’s really cool to see it come together.

We have, however, spent a lot of time daydreaming about our back patio. That dream — sipping a cup of coffee in the quiet morning hours, sitting in chairs and watching kid(s) play in the backyard, having quiet moments after kid(s) go to bed — have been the fantasies that keep us going.

Once it was poured and set, we brought out two patio chairs and were able to get a feel for how it will be someday — minus the quiet, as our feral toddler ran around squirreling away screws and scraps.

Our next priority is prepping the garage for its own concrete pour. In an effort to save money, we are doing the prep work ourselves. This includes building up material (aka moving dirt) and compacting it.

Once that’s done, we will shift our focus to the roof. Keith’s parents are coming to town this week so his dad can help lay the underlayment on the roof. Keith’s friend Cam will be coming in several weeks to help shingle the roof. We’re borrowing a generator from one of my coworkers (thanks, Ken!) because ours is still being held hostage in a small engine repair shop. It’s difficult to adequately put our gratitude into words for the amount of help and support our friends and family have offered to us — we wouldn’t be able to do this without that help.