More Progress

Well, it seems that we have finished clearing the land!!
Scott has a few more trees to cut at the bottom of the driveway for the power company, but everything else is cut!! What a feeling!
We have spent many nights and every weekend at the land for the past 3 weeks. To watch it unfold, knowing it is the work of your hands, and your children's hands is extremely satisfying.
We have been so very blessed by the help and dedication of our fathers, also. In their mid-60s and mid-70s, Scott's dad and my dad have insisted on helping whenever they could. We have been very moved by their willingness and even eagerness to help us with this back-breaking work.
Over the Labor Day weekend, we were blessed to have the (unsolicited!) help of two friends, Gordon and Alan. A great deal of work was accomplished that day. Alan's family even joined us the next day AND made dinner for us!! We were so blessed by this act of friendship.
'Thank you' doesn't express the depth of gratitude we feel for the help of our family and friends.
The pics below were taken on different days, and hopefully show the progress of the work.
It is a beautiful piece of land. The more time I spend there, the more I love it. There are many different varieties of trees on this land, which is a bit unusual. We have identified pine, hemlock, oak, maple, white birch, yellow birch, black birch, beech and ash! The kids and my favorite is the beech. When it is cut, it gives off a wonderful aroma -- almost like wintergreen. The air up in the clearing was always heavily scented with pine and beech. We cleared about an acre of land and had to take down some beautiful trees because of their placement (in the middle of the septic system or the kitchen!), but our new house will be surrounded by these beautiful hardwoods and some softwood trees. I think it will be very nice. I love trees, can you tell?
So, for now, the kids and I have a break!! The stump-pulling, loam-stripping and foundation-digging is all machine work and dear hubby is anxious to get to it to see how the land is going to shape up.
The kids and I are "laid off" until it is time to waterproof the foundation and lay drainage pipe, and after that, for me, there will be painting, painting and more painting, and some laying floors. The little boys started soccer this week, so the "lay off" came at a good time!
Enjoy the pics!