Barn Building Series: The Cowboy In Me

"I don't know why I act the way I do, Like I ain't got a single thing to lose. Sometimes I'm my own worst enemy. I guess that's just the cowboy in me.

I got a life that most would love to have, But sometimes I still wake up fightin' mad. At where this road I'm heading down might lead, I guess that's just the cowboy in me."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFVpezv_Caw

The barn has been coming along and going real well, however, it's been getting a bit taxing in the midst of this summer swelter.

Nearly every weekend since the start of the summer has been spent constructing. What this translates to is a lot of time spent apart for the Homestead Husband and I, a lot of sweat equity from various family members who are likely pretty worn out too at this point, and all of us ready for a break. The afore mentioned Tim McGraw song felt relative - we're grateful for the life we're able to lead right now, but man is it a lot of work these days! We're all very much looking forward to the day we can call it complete, and get back to enjoying some time off again.

So far, we've gotten the main structure and lean-to framed, and the windows and personnel door installed. The roof is in place, and one side wall has been completed with the brick red steel.

It's important to note that usually projects of this nature, when you're doing them without professional help, result in some kind of overage or scope increase. We've gotten through it close to unscathed, but we did result in one sprained ankle (keep your worksite orderly, folks!), and a little change in the roof design. However, in the grand scheme of things, it's gone very well.

What's left?

• More Siding

• More trim work

• Ridge Vent

• Cupola & weathervane

• Garage Doors (2)

• Paddock

• Barn Interior

• Utilities

This is still a fairly hefty list of to-do items, but we've come a long way from where we started. The paddock will allow us to bring the horses home, and the interior of the barn, including utilities will likely be completed after that point. We had initially hoped to be finishing things up by mid August, but when we quickly realized this was only going to be able to be worked on during weekends and two workers was the minimum requirement, it became evident that our dates would need to be moved into the fall.

Tip: It's really important to maintain patience with a project like this, and roll with the punches. When you don't have a contracted team to build it for you, it's key to keep in mind that you are doing everything you can, and it will take time (our mantra as of late) because it can get frustrating really easily.

When all is said and done, it will have been worth it, for sure. What has been completed looks really sharp - and the barn itself is made of quality materials that we feel confident will last us a long time, and was a good investment.

When the day is done we often spend some quite time dream talkin' about how nice it will be to see our horses in the paddock, or how great it will be to walk to the barn and have everything we need in it's place. Soon.