March 17, 2007

We took a day trip up to the house Saturday morning, after work. We left at 7:45 a.m. and I was in bed by 4:15 p.m. What a drive! The only thing that makes a day trip difficult is working the night before and the night of! But it was a beautiful, sunny, warm day and that made it perfect!

What a difference a week makes. The entire area was covered in snow and the river was frozen. Now the river current is moving and it is pretty deep. Can't see a sand bar anywhere! The majority of the snow is gone - except for the low areas of the property.

WARNING: DON'T EAT ORANGE SNOW! At the left is the location for the shed that we desperately need. We hope to build it - soon! At the right is the location for the new propane tank. We're getting a bigger one and getting it away from the house. The stairs you see lead to the outhouse, which I still haven't seen the inside of yet!

And here is my bears "In The Woods" rendering! We don't have bears - that I know of!

March 5, 2007

Snow all over the front of the house!

(below) The road heading away from the cabin. The road has about 1 foot of packed snow on it.

(right) The road that appears straight ahead is actually the right fork of the road when on the way in...good thing the cabin isn't down that road!

(below) The house of a neighbor at the end of the private road and the county highway. I just love this view!

March 3, 2007

I've been working on the bathroom. At the left is the big mess. At the right, I've already painted, added the trim and added a pine cone switchplate cover. The tile goes up in April!

While outside, the snow was very deep. This was from the previous week. At the left is a donkey cart that is about 24" at the top of his hat. On the right, the snow is up to the seat bottom of the swing!

Who buys a gas grill and rockers in 2 feet of snow????

I do!

The rockers will be a great addition to the front covered porch.

February 24, 2007

Our first night we got hit with about 8" and the next night it snowed for over 8 hours in a row for about 12" more. The Tahoe got stuck and we had to shovel the driveway! It was a gorgeous site!

Inside there was a lot getting accomplished. Here's the before and after shot of the bathroom ceiling!

January 5, 2007

The river was starting to freeze at the shoreline and it was getting cold.

We had taken some anti-mice pre-cautions to find the little buggers and eaten their way through the container of bait. Haven't found any dead mice, but found a dead squirrel on the porch...I won't attach a photo of that!

December 12, 2006

Carlo, Dad and I made a day trip up to O'Wich. Carlo hooked up the satellite. Yeah for TV!

December 2, 2006

Rick, Jackie and Alex ventured out to O'Wich with me once again.





Alex talked on the phone...











Rick brought in firewood...









and that night we all slept like "bugs in rugs"....the three beds were delivered in the early evening!

November 26, 2006

What a busy weekend! I cleaned up branches and twigs and brush along the property line. Then Carlo cut down a tree - and we have lots of trees - and we stacked it in the firewood rack and had our first open burn! Those are the stairs from the teardown that are burning!










There was inside construction done this weekend too! Carlo moved a 220 line (zzzzzip) and framed in the bedroom wall for a door. Then log by log we made an opening and now have access to the bedroom from the kitchen...no more going outside to get to the addition!!!
Here's the before and after photos. I hope to totally redo the kitchen in a couple of years!

November 11, 2006

Rick, Jackie, Alex and I headed up to O'Wich in time to see the first snow. It was beautiful!

This is a view looking south toward the river. At night, you can see the lights from Cascade Mountain above the tree line of the Pine Island Refuge.

Rick and I (and if you notice Alex donned a bandana and a flashlight for the chore) worked under the house to clean up too much left behind debris. When you buy property sometimes you get more than just a mortgage!












Rick and Jackie were diligent in removing a set of useless stairs from the front of the house. My kids are incredible. They worked into the dark of the night, standing on the snow covered ground. Once they thawed out Rick helped me (or should I say I advised him) on the installation of insulation in the addition which will be a bedroom. Then they both helped clean and rearrange furniture and didn't complain once. I love these guys!!!

November 4, 2006

Jackie, Alex and I spent the weekend at O'Wich. Most of the leaves were off of the trees and Alex found them to be rather weird and crunchy! With Alex laying in the leaves, it was like a page from the 'Where's Waldo?' book!

We enjoyed the fresh fall air and Alex tasted the swing to be sure it was safe for eating! We took in some of the Wisconsin Dells sights, visited a mall where the Greyhound Dog Track used to be and enjoyed spending the time together.

Once back at the house, Alex got busy by re-arranging the kitchen! When visiting O'Wich...everybody gets put to work!

September 30, 2006

Visitors!!!!!

Jackie, Tom, Alex and Zoe came up to visit Carlo and I. They helped us insulate the addition - inside and out.

Alex is 9 months old during his first visit. I don't think he cared much for it - probably because there wasn't much for him to do! However he did mention that the ride from the county highway down the 1 mile private road to O'Wich was rather bumping and very muddy!

September 20, 2006

After too many set backs - too many to even want to recall, I am finally a cabin owner! Between being sick and dealing with an idiot of a mortgage broker, things finally came to an end with the closing.

On September 20th I was able to visit the cabin and took Dad along for the drive. We made it a day trip and enjoyed the serentity of the property.

Look at this view...I'm putting a bench near the river in time to enjoy the summer breezes and beautiful sunsets!

August 12, 2006 - First Visit

The first visit to view property just outside of the Wisconsin Dells. The sellers had sent photos of the property prior to making the trip up there. Although the amount of work was eminent, it was exactly what I was looking for...maybe a bit more and a bit less! The cabin is on 2 acres of 125' of Wisconsin River shoreline (that's the bit more). And the cabin is 3 rooms and a short loft (that's the bit less!).

However, first impressions ARE everything and while I sat there on the swing overlooking the river - without my glasses it was just a bunch of trees - I knew this was the place for me. Even before setting one foot inside and thinking there may only be an outhouse and no indoor plumbing (thank goodness I was wrong on that) - I was never more comfortable.

After being at the property for 6 hours...who looks at one house for 6 hours???? - an offer was made while on the ride home. Within a 1/2 hour after that, the sellers called me back and accepted!!!