Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!  We hope everyone is having a wonderful, safe holiday with family and friends!

Kyle & Julia came to spend the holidays with us - they arrived on Sunday afternoon and left on Christmas Day.  They were off the next day to visit Julia's parents in Chicago.  We had a great time and were so happy that they could come up and spend time with us!

On Monday, we went and visited the lot to show them the progress on the carriage house foundation.  We had had a couple days of warm, rainy weather so our snow pack was definitely much smaller! 

We just had a relaxing visit - Jim & Kyle spent the day together on Monday going to the barn and loading up the extra pipe in the car for an eventual trip back to Ohio.  Meanwhile, Julia and I headed to the Lake George Factory Outlets for a little exploration of that area.  On Tuesday, we spent time exploring downtown Saratoga Springs a little - had lunch at Druthers, a fun brew pub tucked in between some buildings on Broadway, and just wandered through some of the unique stores.  We ate way too much, watched an interesting combination of lots of Christmas movies and Duck Dynasty, and went to Midnight Mass (well, it's 9:30 here!). 

 

Since we had no room for a Christmas tree in the apartment, we had to do some improvising!

 

Last year, we read online about a unique Saratoga Springs tradition - the Peppermint Pig.  We ordered one and did it after dinner last year.  We felt it helped contribute to our very crazy but exciting and wonderful 2013 so we had to continue the tradition. 

The tradition of the Peppermint Pig goes back to the early 1880s and they are still only made here in Saratoga County.  The head of the household starts by sharing a tale of the past year's good fortune and then tapping the pig with a little hammer.  Then it continues around, with each person sharing their thoughts on the past year and giving the pig a tap.  Julia, Kyle & Jim preparing to break the pig!

This is supposed to bring prosperity in the coming year.  But it really is a wonderful time of reflection.  And we have much to be grateful for this year - good health, new adventures, goals reached, and love and support from family and friends.

12.19.2013

As I was walking to the Post Office, I finally got a better look at the cool machine that takes the snow from in between the sidewalk and the street.   I still am on the lookout for a photo op with the sidewalk plow machine!

This afternoon, Jim and I dressed in our new boots and coveralls and trekked up the hill to check on the machines.  Oh my - what a workout that was!  And I'm sure it was a couple of inches down since Jim originally went up right after it snowed.  But it was a tough hike up the hill - showed me exactly how out of shape I am I guess!

Once we made it up the hill, it was so gorgeous.  The snow was pristine - not a mark on it except for ours.  The sun was setting and it was just beautiful.

Jim started up the Bobcat and after playing around with it a little bit, got it to move!  It had been so frozen that it wouldn't budge but he got it going, so that was a big relief.  He went a little way down the hill plowing like this but when he turned around, it didn't want to come back up the hill!  The tracks on it are perfect for working in the mud and doing what we need to, but on snow, the wheels worked better.  Jim eventually got it going and then it went back up the hill fine.

Here's our carriage house foundation all covered in snow!

In the evening, we went down to Saratoga Springs to use our gift card that work had bought for us at a restaurant called Maestro's.  It's such a beautiful old building and they have these great outdoor heaters that shoot flames in the air.  There were even some brave souls sitting outside.  However, it was cold so our seats inside were just perfect!

Again, we had another great meal and a fun night!

12.16.2013

More snowfall pictures....

Jim braved the elements, put on his new boots and trekked up our giant hill in over a foot of snow to see how things were faring at the property.  He found quite the winter wonderland.

Where is Mr. Honda?

He started up all of the machines but the Bobcat was frozen solid and wouldn't move.  All the mud from digging froze solid as a rock - it's going to take some thawing to get it moving again.  Which means that there is no digging out by the road happening for awhile.

Everything looks very peaceful under its winter coat.

Temps are supposed to get to -10 degrees tonight!  Brr....

 

12.14.2013 - first snowfall!

Well...we got our first snowfall of the year!  And quite the snowfall it was - probably about 12-15"!  It was a real fine, pretty snow that started about 4:00 last night as we were going to church and just continued all night. 

Jim had to use a broom to try and find the car...but look how the roads are just wet.  Obviously they are used to snow here.  They even have a cool machine that drives on the sidewalks plowing them and dropping sand!

 

 

However, Jim went out to the land and there was no getting through the plowed snow at the end of the driveway!  Definitely snowed out!

The deep snow made us realize that we had procrastinated getting some hearty winter weather gear.  Certainly we are used to snow being from Cleveland, but then all I had to do was go out to my nice garage, get in the car, drive to work, get out in a shoveled parking lot and go to work.  Jim had boots that he used when he was shoveling or plowing, but as soon as he stepped out of our apartment, he knew the time had come to get higher, waterproof boots!  Plus I've been enjoying walking to the post office and store and want to continue doing that. 

Since obviously our new landlord doesn't have shoveling at the top of his list, you can see how deep the snow was!



So off we went.  We decided to go to the outlet malls at Lake George.  We had only driven by once when we were still looking for land with Kyle and Julia.  Then it was summer and that whole area is crowded.  But look how gorgeous it was!

The mountains, pine trees and snow were really pretty.  And we both found good boots so mission accomplished!

 

When we got home, they had come through the parking lot with a plow - and piled up the snow behind the cars.  Good thing I don't have to go out anywhere!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

12.11.2013 - done digging for the year!

Today was definitely a red letter day for two reasons - first, it is our 24th wedding anniversary!  Happy Anniversary, Jim - I love you much!  We will be celebrating tonight at a local restaurant compliments of Kyle and Julia.  It also happens to be Saratoga Restaurant Week so all the local restaurants have 3 course dinner specials - we are looking forward to it!

Then...drumroll, please...even though it was pretty cold with wind that made it even colder, Jim finished up what he wanted to on the rough foundation.  As you can see from this picture, he pulled back the dirt from the top to create a safety ledge to hopefully curtail any collapse during the winter.  It looks amazing and I still can't believe he got all that done so quickly and in December, no less!

 

Jim spent a little bit of time putting the excavator away and getting it ready for its winter hibernation period.  Weather permitting, there will still be things we will do on the lot - I don't think Jim can stay away from it for too long - but this is a big accomplishment checked off.

 

Update:  We just got home from our wonderful anniversary dinner at The Wishing Well.  We each had a 3 course dinner - Jim had pork osso bucco and I had crab-stuffed salmon. The food was really incredible!  Plus the restaurant was really nice - and old house with all the rooms decorated. Everyone was so nice too. It was just a perfect night!

 

12.10.2013

Jim was able to dig today too - it was definitely cold but the conditions are okay for digging as long as the operator can stay warm! 

When I took lunch out, I was amazed at how great it looks.  When I first came up the driveway back to the carriage house, Jim was in the excavator inside the foundation area.  It was so deep that I could only see the top of the machine!  Pictures just don't do it justice!

 

Here I am inside - you can tell how deep it is compared to me!

When Jim got home tonight, he said he is just about 95% done with the digging area.  He would like to pull back more of the dirt from the top where it will undoubtedly collapse some during the winter.  The temps are supposed to get really cold on Thursday so we'll see if he is able to work tomorrow.  But all in all, he's extremely happy with the status of everything as it is.  I'm still so amazed that he was able to get all this done in such a short time in December!

 

12.9.2013

Jim has still been heading out to the land in the afternoons to do more digging.  This was how it looked Sunday after he worked on Saturday.  He basically has the footprint of the carriage house done although he will have to dig where the stairwell goes as well as get all the dirt out from inside.

Today we woke up to the most snow we've had since we've been here - and it was maybe 1-1/2"!  Then it warmed up a little bit so the streets are all clear.  Jim had to meet with the insurance agent this morning so he didn't head out until after lunch.

This was the picture he took before it got too dark...Today he took the excavator down below and started loosening up the step of dirt that couldn't be reached from above.  He then used the Bobcat to scoop the dirt.  And, as you can see from the picture, he mounded some of that dirt on the areas where the footers will go to keep the ground stable throughout the winter.  Otherwise, the freeze-thaw cycles will loosen the compacted dirt and may cause the carriage house to eventually settle.  Which we obviously don't want. 

12.7.2013

We woke up to a dusting of snow on the ground - just enough to coat the cars.  Temps were cooler but Jim headed out to the land again this morning.  Every day that he's able to dig like this in December is a blessing.

Because it's dark when he leaves, I always ask him to take a picture first thing in the morning so I can see what it looked like when he stopped the day before.  So these were the pics from Thursday night...

It's really getting big and deep!  Especially when you think that he's using an 18" bucket and has only been doing it for about a week and in crummy weather.

Actually, even though it was colder, Jim said it was better digging conditions today because it wasn't so muddy and sloppy.  I took this picture when I got there for lunch today.

Jim took this picture as he was leaving today.  With just our rough estimates, he probably only has to go back another 3'!  Obviously since he is stepping it up like he is there will be work digging from below, but having the footprint about done is in sight!

Jim called it quits early today - we decided to go to church this afternoon.  We've found a church we like in Queensbury - which is probably about 25 minutes away or so. 

This afternoon in Corinth was their annual Christmas parade.  It leaves from the elementary school which is right up the street from us and goes to the center of town, Corinth Beach.  There they do the Christmas Tree lighting and shoot off fireworks on the bridge over the Hudson River when it gets dark.  I just walked down the street to see a little of the parade...small towns at their best.

12.6.2013

This is one of the reasons why I have no doubts about Jim doing this project - no matter how long or grueling the day before was, he wakes up the next morning positive and ready to go again.

So even when it must feel like Groundhog's Day, he was pulling on his coveralls and getting back to work.  The driveway was really muddy when he went - in fact, he called me and said to call him when I come for lunch and he'll just drive down to meet me so I didn't have to attempt it in my car.

This is the picture he sent first thing this morning - this is how much he got done yesterday!

Of course, what would digging be without finding a few little rocks?  This one was so massive - check out how it tipped the excavator - scary!  But Jim is so happy with the performance of this machine - it's able to get these rocks out of the ground which is amazing.

It's really hard to tell depth in pictures, but here I am standing in what will eventually be the bottom floor machine shop!  The ground was probably 7 feet above me!  In fact, Jim has started stepping up the digging because it's too deep for the excavator.  When he's done, he'll have to get the rest from below.

Jim spent another full day digging - he didn't get home until it was dark.  No rest for the weary!

 

12.5.2013

Jim really worked hard yesterday in bad conditions - even though he's so excited about digging right now, it's just not so much fun in the muck.  He went out pretty early in the morning because the temps were already about 40 degrees.  But the temps were kind of deceiving because it was a really foggy, damp, drizzly kind of day.

When he first got there, he took this picture so that I could see what he had gotten done the day before.  It's always dark when he leaves and it takes him quite awhile to get the machines put away for the night so he's racing against the clock.

I went up with lunch but then couldn't get up the driveway!  This was the first time for that experience.  I got up fine most of the way but when I got to the really steep part before the driveway bends, my car got stuck, even in 4WD.  I couldn't get it to do anything, so I just got out.  And discovered why I couldn't move - I was on a patch of totally slick ice.  You couldn't even stand up on it.  I got over to the side and went up to get Jim to rescue me.  He was able to get it turned around and parked it down at the end of the driveway.  That's going to be a challenge this winter!

We ate lunch and Jim was anxious to get back to digging.  But it was a long day for him - that damp cold battling either the frozen or muddy ground takes its toll.  Plus now that he's getting pretty deep, it takes a lot longer - more dirt to scoop and more dirt to move.

But he's quite resilient...he didn't get home til about 5:00, took a few minute breather, and then we went ahead with our plans for the evening - to go and work out and then to eat at a restaurant in downtown Saratoga Springs for which I had bought a Groupon.  We want to try a few places every once in awhile to explore our new world.

When we got close to downtown, they had the main road, Broadway, closed and there was lots of traffic.  As we got closer and they were announcing on the radio, it was their annual Victorian Streetwalk!  They had street performers, vendors, tree lighting, and of course Santa - tons of people just enjoying the warmer evening and the event.  The parking was crazy - we had to park kind of far away and walk.  But that was fun too - downtown has a lot of these type of events that draw families and it's fun to just see the crowds having fun.

We enjoyed the restaurant too - The Irish Times Pub and Restaurant.  They had a live band playing that was good but kind of loud (or are we just getting old?).  The restaurant had brick walls inside, which I really like, was 2 floors and the food and beer were good! 

12.4.2013

Today didn't feel quite as warm as yesterday, but Jim was really excited to get back to digging today.  When I got there at lunchtime, I was amazed to see how good it looked!  It's hard to get the feel of the depth from this angle...

...but you can see how deep it's getting from this viewpoint!

Here's a giant "dirt-sicle" - a piece of frozen crust!

Jim has to plan out where all the dirt will go when he's digging.  After he digs for awhile and gets a big dirt pile, he gets the Bobcat out and pushes it away.

These are just some of the dirt piles!

 

Tomorrow is supposed to be a little warmer but may rain.  So hopefully the rain drops will stay away and Jim can do some more digging.  At this point, he probably has about half of the footprint done which is really exciting since we thought we would be shut down by this time of the year.

 

 

12.3.2013

Today it got into the 40s so Jim was very anxious to resume digging.  He went out mid-morning but I got there around noon.

The crust of frozen ground is pretty crazy - this was actually one of the smaller pieces, but Jim just kind of breaks it off and removes it so he can dig underneath.

Good progress is being made - it's really starting to take shape!

After Jim digs, he pushes the dirt over to the side to deal with later.  The Bobcat really barrels through the mud to push the big piles.

Speaking of mud - I believe that mud is strictly a boy thing.  I don't mind getting dirty, but the thick, slippery, oozy, mud is another thing all together!  And since all of the top layer of ground was frozen and then is melting plus Jim's huge machines are driving all over it - yuck!

We did lots of surveying today too - it's weird how deceiving this dig area is.  One area looks lower than the others, and it turns out that it's high.  And vice versa.  Jim has quite the eye and is always really accurate when he scopes it out but this has some weird illusions.  In fact, at one point we thought maybe the laser level wasn't working so I went home to get the optical one.  It duplicated the readings so we're good even though it might not look like it.  Jim spent some time really getting the dug area flat.  Looking good!

 

12.2.2013

The weather warmed up a little today - if you can call in the 30s warm!  Jim was anxious to go to the land after lunch to see how things were. 

He had gone one day last week and the ground was so frozen that he couldn't get the excavator bucket to even break through the dirt - it wanted to pull the excavator into the hole!  So definitely had to stop trying then.

But today, he was able to work a little.  This picture shows how the first 8" or so is totally frozen - it lifted up like a piece of concrete!  But once that was off, he was able to dig some.  Every little bit will help!