We met with the builder and excavator and staked off the foundation. As soon as the excavator is available we will be breaking ground, likely mid-February. All the paperwork has been submitted to the power and water company so that ball is rolling too. Everything is also set with the building center who will supply all the materials, we have largely picked out the roof and siding colors, windows, exteriror doors and tubs at this point. Pretty much everything we need to get it framed, under roof and weather tight has been picked out. We did talk to our builders brother in-law (both Amish), about building us custom cabinets and vanities out of hickory, as soon as we are framed up we will have him out to measure and give us a price.

Ready to Move Forward

We are on target to break ground in Ferbruary-March. We have the builder selected, the bank is taken care of, we have all the initial sub-contractors lined up, etc. In a couple of weeks we will be meeting the builder/excavator to stake off the exact building location. The weather will dictate when the footers are dug, concrete poured and block work laid.

Below are some picture before it all begins (click pictures to enlarge):

The pond filled up in Ferbuary 2011, stocked it with Fathead minnows in May 2010.
Stocked it with Large Mouth Bass and Redear SunFish in May 2011.

Danial with a Large Mouth Bass - November 2011
They grew from 2-3 inches to 6-8 inches in 6 months!

House site, set up for fall 2011 bow hunting "Deer Camp".

The Excavation

In March-April 2010, we had Jay Myers and his crew cut in the driveway, clear the house site, put a pond in and clear some areas for deer food plots. Here are some pictures (click pictures to enlarge):

 

Driveway Before Excavation

Driveway After Excavation

Pond Site Before Excavation

Pond, After Excavation, Before Water
Note - Danial is standing down in the Pond

House Site Before Excavation

House Site After Excavation - Pond is to the Far Right

Some History

Today marks the start-up of the blog for our new home project in Gallia County Ohio.

Lorrie and I purchased 73.5 acres in Gallia County Ohio in 1999 and about 4-5 years ago purchased another 3.6 acres adjacent to it and decided we were going to build a home on the property and move there. It is our intention to live out the rest of our years in this home, moving out only if our health does not allow us to stay.

We selected 2012 as the year to build and move, as 2012 is the year Danial is graduating from High School. We made a commitment to the two boys that we would not move while they were in school so they could attend the same school system from grade school to high school, we kept that commitment.