From the peak of the north gable a friendly Swedish Gargoyle offers its impish grin and welcomes good spirits to come in and rest upon our home.

The contemporary gargoyle was the finishing touch to the north side of the house. After installing the battens and putting a final touch on the paint, the front side of the house is officially completed! And it only took a little over a year! (Now to get back to work on the east, south and west sides…)

As work continues I am inspired to paint a little faster as I am cheered on by this smiling face of one happy homeowner.

Making the kitchen completion project a top priority was a smart move as can be attested by yet another delicious dinner- Swedish meatballs and slyt lingon berries, courtesy of Gary Langenback and the Seattle IKEA. Thanks Gary!

Speaking of kitchen highlights, we are now enjoying fresh eggs for breakfast delivered by our own young flock out back. Audrey the araucana was the first to lay an egg on July 20 and now Lucy and Lacey (White Laced Wyandottes) have also got into the production mode.

Discovered this sink at the Helena Farmer’s Market. Handcrafted by local potter Lisa Ernst (lisaernstpottery.com) and knew it would make an excellent center piece to the upstairs bath.

Project paint progression.

Painting the peak of the north gable required a little ingenuity in scaffold design and construction.

Welcome to our garden!

Prior to installing the batten strips around the house, all 75 pieces (2 inches wide by 16 feet long) have to be primed and then painted.

All painted and ready for installation.

On rainy days the paint project gets put on hold and I move back inside. Here is our cardboard model of what our kitchen island might look like. We bought a large piece of old bowling alley material from a friend of Steffen and Julia and plan to cut and fit it into this shape.

Even while essential work on the siding and trim continues to be a priority, I can’t help but put some time into landscaping projects as well. Our plan is to replace the sagging and broken white face out front and create a nice perennial garden behind a deer proof barricade. With nice rain this summer the ground has remained workable and so I am digging up and pulling weeds as a first step toward new gardens.