First Report

A year ago, Matthew & I decided to move in with his mother. Okay, not exactly move in with her, but move to the property that she and her husband own in Northern California. We were living in Charlottesville, Virginia at the time and needed to make the move back to our home turf. We were to make a home out of an old quonset hut, used by loggers decades ago. When I saw pictures of the property in April, 2010, I cringed and thought, "Cancel the plans! I'm staying in my cozy house with central air!" The photos captured the rotten insulation, rusted windows, well webbed corners, and plywood floors. Matt was even a bit skeptical that a home could be made of this building.

We arrived in Shingletown (population 2,625),tired, hot and dusty from our eleven day trek across the United States with our 6 and 4 year-old daughters, and Hank the cat. We tent camped at state parks which was both challenging and fun. The highlight was finding a hotspring in the middle of a dried up lake bed in Eastern Oregon. It was July 1st when we arrived in Shingletown, and I was relived to be at our final destination.

After the hugs went around, we walked the cedar & pine tree lined path up past the horse corral to where the quonset hut stood. We had our work cut out for us! The metal siding and half-circle shape make it look like a tin can cut in half. I was a bit concerned, my first thought was, "we have way too much stuff!" All our belongings were being shipped via PODS and at this point, I felt like we only could fit a 10th of it inside the Hut.

During Matthew's initial trip in April, he put in a vegetable garden and helped replace all the insulation in the Hut. The space would be livable but it will take some doing. Our idea was to downsize, live simple, try to live off the land as much as possible. And it does feel good to slow down, work hard, and to create a healthy lifestyle for the children.

We set to work right away, patching drywall, sanding, drilling, cutting, wiring, taking breaks to discuss where shelving would go, or outlets. Hot and dusty! The outdoor shower that we put in last year on our visit, was a welcome relief on the days that reach 95 degrees.

Its been 3-weeks since our arrival here, and we have made great strides. We moved in the Hut five days ago and on our fist night a four-point buck welcomed us by strolling through the backyard. The girls giggled with delight.