Chicken soup for the soul ...

It's fall and the nights are colder, daylight hours are shorter ... Nothing like a big pot of chicken noodle soup to bring the family together! :)

We keep learning ...

There it is ... the conduit ready (in the future) for our electrical lines ...
Level of difficulty: HIGH.

These home projects are so crazy - they teach us (again and again) about the power of persistence, belief, hard work and patience ...!

The chainsaw vs. the axe ---

The roots down in the ground were so hard to remove! One night, we rented a chainsaw and tried to cut them out. It worked for a few of the roots but when it came to the ultra, big final root, we had to hack it out - with an axe!

This project was incredibly time-consuming, stressful, dirty and expensive. We rented a bobcat, a chainsaw, a digging machine, and even hired our neighbor to help us dig.

WE are so glad that the conduit is now in the ground and the roots and rocks are gone!

Way to go team! Moving on ...

Sometimes I think ...

WHAT WERE WE THINKING??! But most often, I find myself in awe - "WOW, look what we've done so far!" The positive thoughts are always way more productive. :)

The backyard on a rainy day in October ...

Who invented the Wheelbarrow? Thanks - b/c we use it often! :)

The trench ... up next: lay the pipe, fill the trench back up with dirt.

Check that out - the last section of the trench that needs to be cleared away. It's full of gnarly tree roots ... Yes, we'll be happy when all that pipe is buried and the electrical lines are tucked away down under the rocky ground.

A new meter box ...

There it is - the NEW meter box. It was crushed in last week (by the gravel truck) ... I always like to see the broken stuff get fixed! One thing off the check list. Moving on.

Just keep digging.

The trench ...