We are THANKFUL - November 27, 2014

Thanksgiving is a time to give thanks.  This year we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude and appreciation to all of our friends and family for their support and help during our homebuilding process!

Steve and Katie - February 22, 2014

Since the purchase of our building lot in February of 2012, we have been diligently working towards our goal of building our own home.  The official house design process started in September of 2013 and we broke ground on April 3, 2014.

We have been in full building mode for 8 straight months and have been totally immersed in this project, with little time to do much of anything else.  It's a sacrifice, it's hard work and it's intense.  It's also our dream, it's what we want to do, and we are making it happen one step at a time.

Although we try to express our thanks each day to those who help us, we wanted to take the time to express how THANKFUL and GRATEFUL we are for the support of our family and friends.  This post is dedicated to all of YOU who have helped us to get this far, and have supported us in this endeavor.

This dream started for both of us growing up and hearing stories about our Dad's building the homes that we were so fortunate enough to enjoy growing up in.  It was inspiring then, and it still is now.  Our Dad's have both been helping us with this project 3-4 days a week, and often more.  We are thankful that they both have the time to share with us, the ability to help us, and the desire to work alongside us in this project.  And most of all, thank you for believing in us, and helping us to turn our dream into a reality.

Our Dad's have helped us every step of the way -  from excavation, to building forms, stacking ICF blocks, pouring concrete, building walls, placing beams and trusses, shoveling dirt and stone, digging trenches, helping solve problems, working in the heat, rain and cold, and so much more - THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF OUR HEARTS.

Steve's Dad - Mike

Katie's Dad - Barry

Steve and Barry

Steve and Mike

Although our Mom's can't be out helping all day, without all the food that is sent out to the building site each day, the hardworking guys would not be able to survive!  Thank you for sending your support in the form of  thoughtfulness, caring and FOOD!  :)  And thank you for helping when you can…from picking up materials, cleaning, sweeping, showing up with a surprise afternoon Starbucks coffee or a three course meal….we couldn't ask for better Mom's…. You are the BEST and you are APPRECIATED!!!

Steve and his Mom - Marie

Katie and her Mom - Marilyn

From the first day of our house building project, we have had the help of friends and family.  It started with Katie's cousin Kim and our house design.  With our ideas, and her expertise, we were able to come up with an incredible home design that both met our needs, and stayed within our size restrictions. Thank you Kim for your extreme hard work, time, patience and for guiding us through this process.  It is awesome to see the design go from paper to real life!

When it came time to apply for a construction loan, we were thankful for Steve's Aunt Denise!  This was a big process, and even more difficult for us, since we are not only the homeowners, but also the  the General Contractor and builder.  This is uncommon, and makes it difficult to get a construction loan.  Without Denise's help to navigate this path, getting a construction loan would have been almost impossible!  Thank you!

When we were ready to break ground and start excavation, Uncle Mike offered the use of his mini-excavator, and Katie's Dad brought out the Kubota tractor.  What a huge help!  This gave us three machines, and we needed them all to get the job done!

Breaking ground with Uncle Mike's Mini Excavator - April 3, 2014.

Barry and the Kubota

We have had the help of lots of friends and family members…. from Joel's help with excavation and concrete, Mike's help with ICF (and concrete), Uncle Raymond and Uncle Alain's help with carpentry, Kevin's help with the concrete pours, Cousin Nathan's help with electrical supplies, just to name some of the projects.  We are lucky to have such AWESOME and TALENTED friends and family!  THANK YOU ALL!

Steve, Joel, Mike, Barry during the excavation phase - April 5, 2014.

Mike, Uncle Raymond and Steve working on the subfloor - June 7, 2014.

Steve, pump truck operator, Joel, Mike and Kevin getting ready for the big concrete pour - July 21, 2014.

Mike, Steve, Joel an Ed working on the garage floor - July 11, 2014.

Uncle Alain helping install the ceiling joists in the garage- August 1, 2014. 

And of course, we have had lots of visitors thus far… and I am sure more to come!  We enjoy showing friends and family our progress, and we appreciate your visits!  Here are some photos of our visitors from near and far!  (Note: we are missing some folks in the photos, so come back again, and we'll take more pictures!)

Kristin's visit from CO in November 2012 with Memere, Mom, Dad, Steve and Katie.

Celebrating Dad's Birthday in April 2014.

Sissi and Kristin in May 2014.

Memere, Sissi and Tante Cecile in June 2014.

Paul visits from D.C. with Memere and Laura in June 2014.

Karen and Alainna visit during Alainna's summer vacation in CT from Iowa (August 2014).  

Aunt Sue and Melanie Visit in August 2014 (with Kristin, Marie, Steve and Mike)

Aunt Joyce's visit from Florida in September 2014.

Debbie and Carson's visit from Virginia in September 2014.

Also, a special thank you to all of our good friends who have remained close to us, despite the fact that we haven't been able to spend much time together.  Thank your for visiting us at the building site, listening to our crazy stories, laughing with us, offering help, caring about what we are doing, and just being there for us!  We are blessed to have you in our lives!    

On this Thanksgiving Day, we are thankful for so much, but most of all, the LOVE and FRIENDSHIP we share with our family and friends.  THANK YOU ALL and Happy Thanksgiving!