One More Itsy-Bitsy Cabin Project

[NOTE: Oddly, I’m not able to post a 2016 date, so I’m changing the date to Dec. 31, instead of the Jan. 3, when the project was completed.]

 

Before:                     Almost After:

 

We can’t help ourselves.  Back at home on Wednesday evening, after two nights in Leavenworth, I mentioned to Dwayne that since we were heading to Whidbey to do the Polar Bear, we should retile the master bathroom floor.  And if we had the floor up, we might as well think about getting a new vanity.  Dwayne, kindly, madly, or thoughtlessly, agreed.

Thursday morning:  Spend money at Home Depot.  Pack car(s).

Thursdsay afternoon: Travel to cabin. Bathroom looks like this.

Thursday at 4pm:  Start demo.

Attach HardieBacker board to subfloor.

Thursday Midnight: finish demo and prep.  Clean thinset buckets, etc, outside in 28 degree weather.  Sleep until 10 the next morning. Talk myself out of Polar Bearing.

Friday: Tile. 

Praise Piper for making us snacks to get us through the day.

Friday evening:  Dwayne and Jen drive an hour to nearest Home Depot to return previously purchased vanity and buy a new one. And since we’re replacing the vanity, we decide to replace the medicine cabinet.

Saturday: Grout. Put toilet and new vanity in.  Go to store several times for various plumbing needs.  Look at vanity lighting and decide it needs to be updated, too.  Discover no South Whidbey stores carry a selection of lighting options.  Realize that we won’t finish early enough to go home that night.  Feed kids. More clean up. 

Post “Almost After” Picture:

Collapse on couch while composing a list of what to get on the mainland before we come back to finish up.

Saturday Midnight: Realize toilet  shut-off valve is leaking.

Sunday morning: Denise takes kids home.  Dwayne stays behind to work on leak, hoping to save us the time and money of not contracting a plumber.  Add this to my list of 1000 reasons I love that man.

Hi, Santa!

 

After the parade, I picked up the other kids and took back to the Island Fairgrounds. Santa must have a cabin on Whidbey Island as well, because we caught up with him in a barn.   He was pretty jolly, and we hope we see him again soon!

Awesome Whidbey Island at Christmas

It was raining, it was cold, it was gray.  And it was the Langley Christmas parade.  So of course I went!  I was able to talk Wesley and Piper into coming with me, but Kyla and Aubrey stayed behind in the cozy cabin.  They missed out!

I love the exterior (and interior, if I’m to be honest) of the Saratoga Inn. 

It was a small parade—girl scouts, marital arts, and a pony.

Piper grabbed her Santa hat and American flag, but is probably still kicking herself for not having more and deeper pockets.  Again, for all the candy.

But Santa showed up, and if I say it was on the back of the ambulance, don’t feel worried about his health.  Those aren’t real raindeer and they needed the help.

Next to Santa, and lots and lots of candy, I loved the bagpipes the best.  I actually loved seeing our friends down at the parade best, but the bagpipes were amazing.

And to top off the parade, the rain ended and a rainbow appeared. 

See, it’s always better on the island. 

New at the Cabin

It didn’t happen until the end of July, but we have a new deck!  It’s made of a Trex-like material, is about twice as big with a bump-out just begging for a picnic table, and could support an elephant.  Please don’t test this theory, but I’m a bit giddy about not falling through the boards anymore on the way from the kitchen to the grill!

The same company that tore out and rebuilt the deck also put in a firepit.  Dwayne used up some old pavers lying around to finish the edges.  We had to wait several weeks for burn ban to lift, but earlier this month, we got to christen it with hotdogs and s’mores.

 

My awesome dad gifted us with an old set of horseshoes and built the wood frames for the pits.  You’d think he was a smart old man until I tell you he rashly came over to the cabin last weekend to “celebrate Dwayne’s and Kyla’s birthdays” and ended up putting them together and digging out the dirt to set it up. Shoulda waited unitl all the work was done before venturing over, Dad—you should know that by now! The poles are a regulation 40’ apart, and so far, Dwayne and I can comfortably throw about 38’.

“We” also completely disposed of the stumps, brought in topsoil, covered grass seed with some peat moss, and in an afternoon, the days of Stumps and Pissy Wives were over.  Just a note, instead of grinding the stumps for $700, we decided to take 100 times as long and probably twice the cost and did it ourselves. Lesson learned.
But the good news is that Pissy Wife was completely transformed into Happy Wife when, while I was getting peat moss and seed, I spotted our new deck furniture.  It’s not the picnic table I want to get, nor does it follow my rule of being used, recycled, or handmade, but I like it, it fits perfectly on the deck or around the campfire, and now it’s ours. Currently, it is in the shed, waiting for a coat of marine-quality varnish…and spring, but I’m excited to sit out on the deck without having to drag out living room furniture!

 

  

It’s only interesting to us, as the owners, but while we were having a load of topsoil delivered, we also ordered 3 yards of 5/8ths minus with binder (note to self: get 4 yards next time and the same gravel) to fix up the driveway. 

 
And this little guy is our new mascot.  He supports a special needs group on the island and looks forward to greeting guests and also more seasonally appropriate neckwear (next time, Benet*, I promise).

* Benet is the bodyguard in The Magic Thief trilogy by Sarah Prineas.  The cabin’s name, Heartsease, also comes from the this series. 

Ebey's Landing

I’d heard from two reliable sources that I should explore Ebey’s Landing, up near Coupeville, so I took the kids up there for a Day of Adventure.

The Ebey family settled about 160 acres --- years ago, one of the first white settlers in the area.  The family has all died out, but the homestead has been preserved as a historical site.  Kyla and I really liked the house-cum-museum, and then we walked the mile trail across the fields, to the bluff and down to the beach.

Kyla entertained herself, and me, by curating a seaweed collection.

Look for this shot to make it into the cabin’s collection of island photographs.  There was such a heavy fog bank that it was hard to see beyond the grass in front of us, but when it cleared, we could see Port Townsend across the water.

 

I didn’t love Ebey’s Landing as much as predicted, but I’d go back again.  Central Whidbey is beautiful with much to do on that part of the island!

To-Do(ne) List

1. Install the cell phone booster.  Check!

That’s a small, non-descript box on top of the pantry.  I now almost always can take and make a call or text, and often even get email on my smart phone.  Dwayne still wants to do some small adjustments to it and needs to finalize it’s installation, but it works!

2. Install new kitchen faucet. Check!


It has a pull-out nozzle and adjustable spray, which is about 20 generations beyond the original model, and since we do not have a dishwasher, this makes the job much easier.

3.  Install large screen TV. Check! 

 
4.  New Washer/Dryer.  Check!


Look, it actually rinses and spins the clothes mostly dry! And then the dryer actually dries them…in under in two hours.  It’s a modern miracle…and necessary for actually leaving the cabin before the last ferry leaves.

5. A new thermostat.  Check!


I arrived at the cabin on a cold November evening and the main propane stove wasn’t working and the back up wall heater also wouldn’t turn on.   Lots of phone calls (before my cell booster or my smart phone so I had to pack up all the kids and drive a mile down the road with a phone book), lots of time, lots of money, and ahem, once I plugged in the stove, the thermostat connected was broken.

6. Taking down the alders trees in the front corner of the yard.  Check!



These trees were nothing but a caterpillar attraction, and a convenient way to litter our yard and our neighbor’s.  Dwayne will eventually dig out the stumps, but it’s a first step in getting the yard to a more pleasant, less upkeep state.


7. Repurposing old wall heater space.  Check!

Since “we” (thanks again, Jim!) just did this today, it’s currently my favorite project. When we took out the broken wall heater, we’ve had a big hole in the wood wall as well as a extra electrical wires. “We” built an alcove bookshelf to house the XBox, DVDs, and games and most impressively, installed an outlet in the hobbit hole to plug in all media behind the scenes.  We were able to take out the tangle of wires and the old TV cabinet.  I love it!


8.  New deck.  Not yet. In June, hopefully.  Right now, theree are about 3 spots that you almost step through when you walk on it. 



Wow, cabins take a lot of ...resources. Still like it, though!

Spring Break Adventure: Port Townsend

Looks like a postcard?  It is.

After exchanging the cousins for a little extra sanity by meeting Julie at the ferry dock at 11am, the kids and I went on a very spontaneous adventure.  Originally, we thought about driving up to Coupeville and hanging out in town, when I remembered that the Port Townsend ferry is up that way.  We drove there with no preparation but coats, and nearly-dead phone (so no pictures of the day), a granola bar each, and a credit card. 

It was meant to be, because we parked and crossed the street with exactly 3 minutes to purchase my ticket ($3.25 one way, kids under 18 free) before we boarded.  It’s still winter hours, and the ferry leaves only every 90 minutes. 

It’s a longer trip, a full 30 minutes, and it was a rough sailing, which is perfectly pleasant with a cup of hot cocoa and several half-finished puzzles at window tables. 

Port Townsend is a perfect destination because the ferry lands within yards of the main street.  There’s cute shops, restaurants (that do not accommodate gluten-free, as we discovered), a small, delightful museum, and probably lots of other things to do with slightly dryer weather. 

We’ll go back again this summer and explore the second street, the intriguing stair steps up the steep hillside, and look for a few more Port Townsend adventures!