From Bare Land to Built…Our Barn with Living Quarters

In 2016, The Lumberjack and I were sitting in our 350 square foot RV living room in Vacaville, California, dreaming up our future. The dream started small as we tossed around maybe one day buying a piece of property around 40 acres so that Blake could hunt, and it would be another place to go with the family.

The dream didn’t start as an idea to start over. You see, we went to Cali in the first place to pay off our house and go back to Michigan debt-free.

At almost 18 months in Cali, we accomplished paying the house off, and it was bittersweet. It was a fantastic feeling to have that debt paid, but it also came at a cost. Blake worked so much that we rarely saw him, maybe 3-5 hours sometimes. No, I’m not exaggerating; it was brutal. The family unit suffered greatly. I had decided at almost 18 months I’d had enough and went back home to Michigan. Blake followed a few months later after selling our  RV and tying up loose ends. It was a hard time in our marriage.

Once back in Michigan, we started to remodel the outside of our old house. It was a Cape Cod on not quite ten acres that was red with a tinge of Pepto pink. The previous owner trimmed everything in gray, so we went with a darker gray-blue to compliment that.

Our girls were horse crazy around this same time frame, which had this ex-suburbia girl horse hunting.  It wasn’t long when we found our first horse, a craigslist 500 dollar special. A  black and white Paint Horse named Behr. At first sight, he broke my heart as he was underweight. The couple was divorcing, and they were out of hay.  It was dire she sold him. I knew I couldn’t leave him, not like that. So he went home to my in-law’s barn. Because of owning Behr and Blake wanted to buy a sawmill, we decided to build a barn. Doing all this was making the days go by, but at the same time, we knew something was missing.  Our old house though beautiful, wasn’t our style. The Lumberjack and I have old-fashioned tastes, as we love an old rustic wood look.

Our friend/neighbor owned all the land around us and would never part with it, which we understood. But that left us landlocked, which motivated us to look for some more property—pondering maybe a start over.

One day on Blake’s drive home from work, he almost missed a small for sale by owner sign on a hidden side road. He had never noticed this road before, even after working plus living near that area his whole life. He swore it said 40 acres for sale, so he turned around. He went to check it out and immediately came home to pick me up to see it.  As soon as he turned down the road, I saw it was lined with old maple trees on both sides. I looked at the gorgeous canopy above us as we drove, and I said to The Lumberjack that the road alone was selling me. As we pulled in the drive, it was gorgeous.  Ten of the acres had overgrown bare land with trees all intermixed in. The other 30 acres are solid woods. We drove the hunting trails all around as I kept saying I think this is it, The Lumberjack agreed. One requirement was that it had maple trees so we could harvest syrup. We had dabbled in that for fun with maples around our old house. It had that and so much more. It was so quiet and peaceful. Instantly we knew this wasn’t just for hunting; we were selling our house and starting over from scratch. So we bought it.

The same friend that owned all the land around us was thrilled to buy our old house, so we didn’t even have to list it. But we weren’t in a hurry to sell as we had nothing to live in as we built. We knew we would need to get a loan to start building.  Our friend heard that and offered to buy it then, and we could live in the old house until the new place was finished. It was a massive decision as it meant things were final. We were doing this. It was a wise move for our friend, as we understood his want for our house as it backed up to all his property. I also say it was smart because we could have easily postponed our build or even canceled it as sick as I became. A lot had changed right after we sold our house, and not for the better. We had no choice but to build still in the spring and were committed.

Blake had gone out to Cali for the winter to make some money and be able to take months off when he got home to start the build. It was during those months with him away my health started failing. Click here for the story.

Our bare land right before we started building.

We knew we had a lot of goals for this property. To do all the building around here to save on costs, we knew The Lumberjack would mill many wood materials. Having a barn to store machinery and put his mill in was essential. We also knew we wanted to build a horse barn soon down the road. We had adopted two miniature horses at this point, bringing us to 3 horses, and we knew we would outgrow the lean-to we had for them we moved from the old house.  We decided all these things were more essential than the house. After all, we want a rustic Appalachian-like place with lots of details and knew that would be costly. If we decided to build the house, it would deplete our funds to just that, leaving us no barns or a spot for the mill. It just wouldn’t work. So we decided, seeing we have done tiny living in a camper at 350 square feet, we will do just fine in a 650 square feet living quarters off the barn.

So the idea for Maple Mill Cottage was born. A bump-out off our big barn with two bedrooms and one bath.  We got creative and put a loft above the girl’s room for their play area. We put laundry in the big barn area with a half bath. The Lumberjack was determined to keep it lower cost and small in size. I still wish I had convinced him to go bigger, but he reminds me all the time it’s temporary.

We broke ground in the spring. Blake, his dad, my dad, and Amish friends started the build. It went quickly, and we were in by November.

The horse picture I bought at an antique festival for 25 dollars. I picked it up six years ago. Little did I know this cottage would be the perfect place for it!

The design of the cottage had to be small. To fit a more functional kitchen, I gave up a window, which I’ve come to regret now. I wish I had tried harder to get a window in that kitchen for natural light. But I can’t go back.

The Lumberjack got a great deal from the Amish on shiplap. I was sick of seeing the white shiplap everywhere, not to mention this girl likes cozy and color. So we painted the shiplap a khaki color and did white trim. Having had white cabinets in a previous apartment, we were not game. They were always dirty, and we were constantly cleaning them. Though I think white can be beautiful, The Lumberjack loathes it. I found some affordable faux laminate wood cabinets lighter in color, and they look great. Followed by the white backsplash and counters, the cottage was finished.

Our funds were dwindling by the end of the build, and we had nothing left for flooring. So we stuck with concrete and did a coat of finish on them. I hate them (they show every bit of dirt) and wish we had budgeted better. But as the Lumberjack loves to remind me, this is temporary;). Concrete floors are all I get. Lol. Oh well, I’m still thrilled with how it has turned out. After all, we can’t always have everything we want.

The Lumberjack and I love collecting salt-glazed crocks and cobalt blue antiques. I got the fantastic spice rack at a local antique shop where they imported it from Germany.

Yes, that’s a fish tank! Our youngest wanted a parakeet. We settled for fish instead. I thought they would die in a few months, and we would be rid of the tank in my kitchen. But, it turns out we are great fish owners! Spaz and Willie are coming up on their first anniversary at the farm. Spaz plays dead daily, but he seems always to live another day. ;)

We had hoped to use furniture from the old house to furnish the cottage, but nothing fit in that small space. That meant I had to go shopping, bummer;). The chair and ottoman I found at a resale shop were brand new. I paid 125 dollars for them both. It’s not a pattern I would have picked out, but at that price, I was thrilled, and the pattern has grown on me. The cabinet I shopped for two years till I found one the right size, I got it on my birthday, and you couldn’t wipe the smile off my face.

What’s the cutest thing in this picture? I mean, how could I move him? August is too cute!

As we are going on our third year living here now, the big barn has been insulated and is heated by our outdoor wood boiler. We are hoping to start finishing the big barn this fall by fixing up The Lumberjacks shop area and giving our overflow area a facelift.

The Lumberjacks mill is in the lean-to off our big barn, which works well for now. But he hopes someday soon to move it into a separate building. So that may mean the construction of another barn soon in our future!  

The Lumberjack’s sawmill.

Overall, we are thrilled at the progress around the farm and our choices. We have done things a little backward building the house last, but in the end, we know it was the best decision for us.