Our lovely house has a sill problem. It’s only one of a host of projects to complete in our restoration, but it was huge, and so it desperately needed to be done. Basically, the sill was built of pine back 185 years ago or so. Time and moisture and the nature of pine beams led to what you see here. The corners sagged, and the sill beam shows its rot and age. 

We called a local contractor who does beautiful work to come rescue it. He grew up with one of the kids of the family, and knows the house. He also appreciates old houses, so we liked him right away.
   
Inside the basement, there were frame walls, a corner barbeque, and a room that still had a dirt floor, all from a much previous start as a finished rec room. Ground seepage from the 2011 flood soaked the wood and insulation and sagged the ceilings and walls, so it all had to go.
 
Getting the new sill in place straightened up the front of the house (breaking a painted-in window, some plaster, and some floorboards in the process). I really can imagine the house as a person taking a sigh of relief at being able to stand up straight again after being hunched over for a long time. Kind of like me, after sitting at my computer all day long…
  
It was an expensive project, which took more of our saved funds than we would like, but it was worth it. Here's some photos of the basement work and the sill-jacking, which was a HUGE job; those were 55,000 lb jacks on top of all that massive cribbing. It looks scarier than it is. At least, that's what they tell me.  
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We did it! Almost 8 months to the day after putting the contract in, we closed on the farm. It's been a long road, and we know more than we ever did (or wanted to) about surveys (now done) and gas leases (thankfully released) and flood plains (we're not really in one, due to the elevation of the house. This beauty was built in the 1830s in Bainbridge, NY. We have 37 acres bordering on the Susquehanna River, and the house is within the village of Bainbridge, at Exit 8 of I-88. Someday, we will retire, and this is where we will go. Oh, the plans we have...

The house needs extensive work, with a sill replacement first on the list. That list of things we want to do is 4 single-spaced pages long, by the way. We've met a wonderful contractor, who is beginning work on Monday. I look forward to working with him. It turns out he was friends with some of the eight children who were raised in this home by the previous owners, so he knows the house. Actually, it seems like everyone in the area knows the house--the previous owners were veterinarians, and everyone seems to have been a client! If you're reading this and you know the area, yes, it's the Benson house.

The property includes a separate garage/apartment, which we will be fixing up pretty soon, because that income will come in handy. I also have plans for the downstairs garage/clinic space, including education and retreat offerings. There is a barn as well, which needs some new doors, siding and paint, but it seems pretty sturdy. It will serve to dry lavender very well.

The lavender part of the equation will begin Spring 2016. I hope to put in at least half an acre this year. We are planning to manage at least 3 acres eventually. One of the fun plans is to build a lavender labyrinth, but we will wait until after the spring flooding to figure out the exact location.

I have no doubt that this is going to be quite an adventure. I plan to post all our work here, and share the adventure with you. Come back soon...



 

it seems we have found a property. Negotiations are underway... 

We are cautiously optimistic that this property is the one. We are in the "wait and see" mode right now, and, frankly, we are experiencing a range of emotions I've only ever experienced before in pregnancy. Dread, heartburn, excitement, daydreams about the future...

You see, this wasn't supposed to happen yet. Looking for properties online was a research exercise: What kinds of places are available? What kinds of selling prices are we looking at? What places would work best for what we want to do? What does our wish list really look like, once we see various properties? We were supposed to be saving more money, and getting another property completely sold. We were supposed to have the business plan in place, and be closer to having more time to implement it. We were supposed to be utterly convinced that this was the right time. We were supposed to be a lot of things, and be in a better place, timewise, for this. 

What this unexpected turn of events has done, is that it's helped us refine the dream. It's helped us take a good look at our finances. It's helped us identify what we truly want. It's helped us figure out what we don't want. 

And it may turn out after all that this is not the right place. The sale may fall through. The sellers might not agree to our terms. The inspection may turn up hidden horrors that we can't address. Who knows?

Right now, all I can do is trust the dream and see what happens.