Barn project is no easy project!

So.... we have taken a little break from the tiny house. We have some trim left, our bathroom not complete and our kitchen isn't complete. Our bathroom and kitchen are function able just not complete yet. It is mid December here in the Ozarks. We have had some really strangely nice days but it is getting pretty chilly. Our other BIG project is our barn.

The barn needed a lot of LOVE and work. We cleaned the old hay out, trimmed the trees and branches, nailed down the wind blown damaged tin, replaced a beam, tore out old stalls and rotten wood. The barn hasn't been used in years... except to store old hay.

We even did a little decorating on the old barn :)

None of this could have happened if it wasn't for the man of dreams!! TJ has been such an anchor in my life! He was right by my side when I was sick. He was next to me through the surgery and recovery. I know this is crazy but he has had my blood on his hands... my spinal fluids on his hands.... ugh!!! :) My point is this... even while our house is on a break.... TJ doesn't stop making my dreams come true. He doesn't stop. The barn was in pretty bad shape and now it housing 6 chickens, 21 rabbits, and 2 peacocks. :) Yep... he is pretty amazing!

About the barn again: We have 26 New Zealand rabbits that will be raising. The primary reason for getting them is for meat. This will provide our family with a lot of meat that is nutritious and delicious. We are eager to have meat from the rabbits and honestly... I am excited to try a new recipe. I'll post all about the recipe too! I'm also looking into their pelts and tanning the hides. Not sure what to do with them or what I can make but I'm sure I'll come up with something! :) Message me if you have any recommendations. 

If you haven't found us on Facebook... we are here > https://www.facebook.com/poordevilcreations

or 

Find us on Google+ under "House of Atlas"

Thanks for reading our blog and sharing our story!!

Stephanie Thompson

Here at the "House of Atlas" we have been very busy!!! We have both bathrooms up and running and usable! :)

WOOT WOOT!

Not only have we been extremely busy but we have also had a lot of fun getting our bathrooms complete. In the washroom we have a shower/tub, sink, toilet, hot water heater and washer/dryer. The wash room sees a lot of dirty clothes and washes a lot of dirty butts. :) With 5 kids... I did not want to down size on the washer and dryer. I felt that we needed full size units and let alone... it is running all the time. We also decided that we wanted and needed a 65 Gallon water heater. With total of 7 of us... we did not want to run out of hot water if we needed to take back to back showers. We also decided to go electric so that we did not have to vent a gas water heater. Our goal was to put NO holes through the roof for vents. We didn't have the room to put vents through the roof anyways because the kids lofts are there. The vents would have been going straight through their space. So... we did electric water heater.

We had the opportunity to use some items that we have carried around for awhile. Items that most people considered junk or trash.... but we see STUFF!  :P We used TJ's great grandfathers suitcase as our vanity in the washroom. Harvey Jones carried that suitcase for years and would be tickled to see it as our vanity top. We also bought a little galvanized bucket for 5.99 at Tractor Supply here in Harrison AR. We then picked out the faucet at Home Depot along with a sink drain setup. Then... we put them all together. After it is said and done... we have $70 invested in the sink vanity.

 

We did a very similar set up in the main bathroom. However, we found an awesome old wash tub at the flea market. We paid $12 for the wash tub. TJ's pawpaw had the old wood hoarded up in the barn. We bought the drain setup at Home Depot and the faucet from Lowes.  With a tiny house, you also have less storage of course. For our main bathroom vanity, we used an old toolbox that TJ had. I cleaned it up real nice and lined the drawers with mats. We used an old Mobil Oil Can to hide the plumbing and used the other piece next to the toilet for extra toilet paper and cleaners.

Oh and I can't forget the shower/tub excitement! We had to make custom shower rings for the tubs. This only took a little thinking... we wanted to make sure that the shower curtain rings would moves all around the ring and be free from the anchors. So, this is what TJ designed and made.

THE BUILDING HAS ARRIVED!!! 


Today at 11:30am we welcomed a new bundle of joy into this world! He is 16x40 with 2 lofts. Weighing about 11,000-12,000 lbs. His name is "House of Atlas"

Atlas was a Greek mythology Titan who carried the weight of the world on his shoulders.....but if you want to be technical "celestial sphere" on his shoulders. We don't know what that is... so we are going to go with the weight of the "world"on his shoulders :) We feel as if we can relate to him in his battles and stress. We have been faced with so much yet we still carry the weight of the world on our shoulders. Life doesn't stop. Bills do not stop. Hungry kids do not stop. ;) So... we present you the "House of Atlas" (storage building...LOL)

We woke up this morning to rain! It is raining and storming! Our house should have been here August 27th but the delivery dude had truck trouble... it was moved to Thursday and then Friday and now September 3rd! Everyone keep your fingers crossed!!! This has been the hardest thing... waiting. We have been ready since last week and we are in a bit of a stand still waiting for the building. Once it arrives, we have the deck to finish on it, plumbing, electrical, insulation, etc.

We are overwhelmed by the positive feedback and the kindness that you guys have shown us! We really appreciate all the support and good vibes! We have the wonderful folks at TinyHouseBuild.com that featured our story. If you haven't checked out their website... I ask that you do. They have a website full of GREAT information and resources. Lots of ideas, floor plans, videos, and a link to their facebook as well!

Here is a link to their website with our story:
http://tinyhousebuild.com/tiny-houses-for-large-families/

Also, here is the link to their facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/tinyhousebuilddotcom

We hope to have another post tomorrow about the arrival of our home!!! Keep those fingers crossed!