Well, it seems nothing is easy. It may be doable, but not always easy…..
The goat barn has been at a near stand-still as we battle with the County Inspector’s office about permits. As part of having the deck put on the house, the County Inspector came out and took it upon himself to look at every single building on our property. I’m not going to go into a lot of detail here, but the bottom line is he looked at the goat barn we had just started building and informed us if it is bigger than 12 X 12 it needs to meet code and be inspected. Meeting code involves anchoring the barn with metal straps and digging 2 foot holes every few feet and pouring with concrete to sink the metal straps. Ridiculous doesn’t come close to how we feel about that. So we’ve filed with zoning for “farm use”, and are waiting to hear back on that. In the meantime, we are working to finish a 12 X 12 section. And this is where we are this afternoon:
This section is the milking area and feed/hay storage room. On the right is the door, and we’ll frame in three windows.
Once we get the “farm use” approval, we’ll add the goat room and stall to make it a 12 X 24 foot goat barn. Off the front will be a 8 X 24 foot lean-to.
The deck is coming right along! They’ve got the front portion of it finished – minus the steps that lead to the front yard.
They’re still working on the side – this picture is from the backyard and shows the side deck that ties into the front:
Construction is always a mess, but with all this snow on the ground that’s starting to melt…. well, Bernie says we have a yard full of “snud” – snow mixed with mud. And he is right. This is the front yard, in front of the deck. If you follow me on FaceBook you may remember that they sent a Bobcat up here to clear the snow away from the front and side of the house so they could begin construction.
Bernie says he’ll be mowing around that mound of snow in July…… The deck guys have had a cement truck and a huge lumber truck up here. It’s taken a toll on our poor driveway.
Driveway repair is certainly in Bernie’s future…..
And the big trucks have widened the driveway at the end where they turn onto the road.
The mail-lady is surely concerned when we get mail.
But, the good news? We are getting a deck! A really, really nice deck.
And I’m certain we’ll have a 12 X 24 goat barn in short order for my three baby goats to come home to. Thank you, Angie for being an angel about how long all this is taking.
We have snud. We’re getting a deck. And the goat barn is under way. Sometimes things aren’t easy. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t doable……..
It’s looking GREAT, Penny! And, look! You’ve got sunshine…spring is just around the corner – I’m certain!
When do you think you’ll be ready for your goat babies?
I love all the pictures, Wonderful!! That deck is Super!!
Can’t wait to come spend the day there to sit out there enjoying a day with Great Friends !! love ya.
How exciting for you… you probably can’t stand it!
Sounds like your Inspector guy doesn’t have much of a funny bone, perhaps takes his job just a tad too seriously. What a schtick.
With your new deck and your goat babies, you’re going to have the best summer ever, sitting on the deck with an iced tea and watching the babies play!
Everything is looking good. And that deck…wow! Was that a rooster I saw under the deck in the backyard?
Farmgirl – I am starting to believe that spring may be just around the corner! But they are calling for snow next week here……..
And I’m just afraid to say when the goat babies will get here. I had *hoped* it would be this weekend…..
Charlotte – I can not wait for you and Tex to come spend the day on the deck with us! And visit with the goat babies…… love ya.
Oz Girl – Inspector In-schmector. We’ll get past this – and you are right! This will be the best summer ever! Yay!
Lilla – you are very observant! That is Pico under the deck. He called his girls over to check for worms. Under the deck is tore up from the boys and their girls checking for worms!
So, when Bernie is done with the goat barn, would y’all like a working vacation in sunny Texas.
It all looks wonderful! The deck is rockin!
Curse the county inspector!!! He needs a dead skunk in the back of his pickup.
Ha Cee Cee!!!! You are a girl after my own heart! Gotta go hunt up a dead skunk……….
Hey, I’ve got a skunk for you–it’s just not dead yet! Comes to my ground birdbath to drink. Love your deck, Penny. I just knew you all were working hard when we had not seen hide nor hair of you for awhile! You’re going to have such a neat place and will love watching your kids from the deck–or maybe they will be up there with you!
Blessings!
Penny, I am so happy for you and Bernie! Boy it has been a year, huh?
The deck is so nice and it does seem like a wonderful spring and summer is in store!
Looking forward to hearing and seeing the end result of the goat barn and the babies bouncing around in it.
Love you Cuz!
Julie
WOW look at that deck! you will love it.. i know that everyone says it but really its like having another room. sorry about the hassle with the county…ugh! but a great start nonetheless. cant wait to see pix of the goaties… still no babies here but today my mini-mancha looks like she is making an udder! we are going to be swimming in goat babies soon.
happy saturday (well almost sunday)
You are going to enjoy that deck when the weather warms up. Too bad your inspector was hard to please, but you will have your baby goats in your new goat barn soon.
Lookin good!
So maybe you could build TWO 12×12 buildings right next to each other and skip the B.S.??? lol
Hope you make great progress today with the sunshine.
Hi there,
Love your website. We are starting our own self sufficent place here in Canada. Started last year, hubby built our house and plans on the way this year for garden (seeds already for planting) and chickens. 10 acres of lovely land which is surrounded by apple trees. Debt free to boot! I want to let you know that there are people here in Canada that want to live to stress free leave the rat race behind life.
Love your outlook concerning the issues with the goat barn. Others always want to drag you back and I think it is wonderful the outlook you have taken and pushing through. Sending you my best thoughts.
Gosh that deck looks amazing. I bet the goat babies have grown so much and can’t wait for your to bring them home to their wonderful new home. We had a nice couple of days around here, but guess what? it is raining again so we also have that dreaded SNUD also, so much so that i am hoping the summer will just start and skip spring. (just kidding) I love spring and I hear we are supposed to have a wet spring. Goodie!!!
Penny,
Love the deck and can’t wait to see the goat barn! I just love all of your ideas. The whole permit process stinks! There’s always some hoop to jump through. Thanks so much for all of your help with our chicken questions. You are such a wealth of information. I feel so fortunate to have “stumbled” onto your site.
-Staci