This Ain’t Your Grandma’s Renovation (Except It Kinda Is)

Although the weather made everything feel especially gloomy this past week, the renovations are moving quickly—both inside and out.

Once the barn came down, Huelskamp Excavating cleared out the wood and concrete to make way for digging the new basement. We decided to keep the old concrete because, like most big projects, we’re making the most of having the crew and equipment on site. We’re putting in a culvert to help facilitate moooo-ving cattle (sorry, couldn’t resist!) across the bridge into the south pasture fields, and the concrete will help fill in some of the gaps on that expansion.

One fun discovery during excavation? The old sheep dip! I had to look it up myself, so you might want to do the same. Luke and Uncle Larry remember Bobbop using it for the sheep back in the day!

Meanwhile, inside the house, Ty, Grady, Landon, Mason, and Cole continued the demo. With school officially out, I think it speaks volumes about their work ethic that they chose to spend time helping us instead of being out doing their own thing. Uncle Larry stopped by to help, too. I can only imagine what it must feel like to tear down the walls of your childhood home. While we haven’t uncovered any hidden treasures (yet!), it’s still pretty incredible to see the bones of this old house.

We’re trying to do as much of the demo ourselves as possible to help cut costs. As you can imagine, nearly 100 years of insulation makes quite a mess, but these boys jumped right in—just like they do every baling season—and we’re beyond grateful.

This coming week, the plan is to get the footers installed, because the house is scheduled to be moved the first week of June! Interestingly, the concrete for the basement won’t be poured until after the house is placed on top of the footers. This helps ensure proper placement and a solid foundation.

Speaking of foundations… as a family, we’ve definitely had our doubts over the past few weeks. I’m not sure who decided it was a good idea to tackle a massive renovation at the start of farm season, but some days I’d love to find that person and give them a good smack! Oh wait, was it me? hahaha On top of that, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes—personal battles, injuries we’re managing, and a never-ending to-do list.

We are definitely not complaining. We knew this would be a leap of faith. We prayed over this move more than a year ago, and God opened every door for it to happen. These past few years have taught me that no matter how chaotic life gets, God is in control. He knows the plan—it’s already written. We just need to trust Him and hand over our worries (easier said than done, right?). But every single time I surrender, He moves.  That trust—that unshakable faith—is the kind of firm foundation we’re praying this house will be built upon.

This coming week we have lots on tap. Finish the inside demo, unhook all the utilities from the house, remove the front & back porches, continue culvert work, start on the well and septic, hopefully flip the switch on the new electric (AES, where are youuuu?) and somehow stay sane.  Oh and guess who scheduled an out of state training seminar for the week the house is being moved?  This gal. Yeah, so I get to figure out how I can be in two places at once because I’m not missing this epic house move for the world!!

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Have a blessed week!  ~ Kristin