The South Wall - Basement Insulation

This is the view from the mudroom as you enter the house. The quilt on the right is covering the planer. We have started to apply the protective finish on some of our wood surfaces, and you can just make out the wet shine on some of the main floor posts. After some spot-testing and lots of discussion, it seems we all like the natural wood the best. At this point, we don't plan on staining any interior surfaces. We are using a Minwax polycrilic water-based sealer to protect the wood. There will be a few walls where painted drywall will add a different surface and color to break up the solid wood view. Plus there will be toys everywhere, spaghetti on the walls, and Christopher sliding down his firepole to add some aesthetic appeal.

The underside of the loft and the dining room ceiling - this has been treated with the Minwax as well. It will take a few coats before everything is sealed well.
Karen is busy in the loft, though sadly is without her hat this weekend.More siding boards have been painted this week, and our stack of Pepto-bismol wood is gradually changing into a stack of Cranberry Zing.
The insulation is up on the South wall in the basement. This is the half wall, and there will be a 16" window-sill here soon. We won't finish the insulation on the full walls until the plumbing and electric has been run along the sill plate.

Ahh, craigslist. We have a serious weakness for free materials, and despite the rolled eyes from Karen and Mindy, Chris and Andy picked up a few loads of bricks this week. They will become a patio, a walkway, a built-in dutch oven, or a whole host of other options. Not this year, though.We have had a lot of big rainstorms this year, and our partially completed driveway has really taken a beating. It has become clear that we will need some tools of our own to maintain it, especially this corner between the stream and the road. For reference, the water bottle is about 10" high, and the deepest ravine in the picture is about 16". One day our site company will come back and finish this properly. Maybe this week, maybe not. It's the subcontractor shuffle, and you never really know when they're going to show up.