Making the grade........................

The driveway was started today by grading & spreading stone. Now there truly is an Earthwood Drive. The road sign was originally for our street, but the county made the developers change it to Earthwood Court.

Got marshmellows?.....................

This morning was sub-freezing, so the workers built the first fire in the pit.

One of the workers was the job janitor- I mean refuse & recycling engineer.

Not playing with a full deck.......................

From the master bedroom & breakfast room, you access a modest sized deck. It's angled to face a good view of the creek.

Stairs, & an eventual ramp will lead to the backyard.

On the deck will be our barbeque grill.

Below the deck will be the grill's gas tank & rain barrels which will hold water from the living roof.

Foam for the home......................

The attic & exterior walls are sprayed with open-cell foam. Windows are masked with plastic for protection.

The foam expands irregularly, but is scraped by hand to provide a smoother surface for drywall installation.

Ultimately, the house will be like a sealed thermos bottle. To prevent mold, the heating & cooling system will mechanically bring in needed fresh air. Of course so will opening the windows.

MEP.......................

In construction MEP stands for mechanical, electrical, & plumbing systems. While the exterior was being built, these systems were installed & finally inspected as "rough-ins".

After passing inspection, the exterior walls can be insulated, & eventually drywall can be hung on all interior walls.

Shake it up, baby....................

This is a cement fiber product that resembles shakes, but will never need painting.

Glass block provides light for anyone working in the crawlspace area. This will be a conditioned space.

Final roof in place....................

Though there's not many spots where you can see it, we now have an aluminum roof over the master bath. Technically, we are now "dried in".

Got water???????????????????

Tanks a lot.......................

The septic holding tank is lowered & backfilled. Then a tank which will pump the waste to the drain field is likewise installed.

What a bunch of scrap.................

The final shingle roofed area is being installed.

Adjacent the street, waste materials are separated so the steel & aluminum can be recycled. Unfortunately, as of now we don't have any good local options for the wood.

And in the "car porch".....................

Saint Sophia has found a protected place, & hopefully will not continue to weather.
She had 3 daughters, Faith, Hope, & Love. Those three qualities were definitely needed in building this house.

Meanwhile, on another part of the house.........

Prior to nailing down the conventional shingle roofing, aluminum soffits & fascias were applied.

Then the roofing bundles were hoisted & readied to be installed.

Up on the roof.........................

Epoxy is applied to the steel decking that will soon be the living roof.

Then 2 layers of rigid insulation are applied.

Finally, the plastic membrane is adhered to the rigid insulation.

The cat's meow..............................

The stonework is almost complete on the exterior. The cats in the openings are decorations from our current home, but now are permanently installed. Perhaps they'll keep birds & bats out of the "car porch".

Stone cold great.....................

The stone colors go great with the site's natural colors.
As Marisa Tomei said to Cousin Vinny " Yeah, you blend!"

American graffiti......................

Below the watertable stone we've tried to create a foundation that looks fairly old. The masons had a little fun expressing their artistic side.

Windows of opportunity.................

The wall openings are weatherstripped & windows of recycled plastic are installed.

Sweet November........................

Here are the views from the driveway and future living roof.

The fire pit was built from excavated rock & unused block.

Looking a little blue...............................

Blue styrofoam insulation is attached to the metal studs because metal is too strong of a conductor of heat & cold.
-------------
On the exterior cement fiber board is placed over the blue board to receive the stone.

Nearly framed in.......................

Under the future "living roof" an arched opening separates the kitchen from my office.

------------------------------------------------------------

The chimney for the wood burning stove is sheathed in cement fiber board to receive stone.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By walking across the living roof you reach the attic over the left side of the house. Inside, I can bring plants during the winter. The skylights crank open & have screens for nicer weather days.

We've switched to wood framing for the attic areas since continuing the steel framing get time consuming & expensive. If termites ever make it that far, they deserve a treat.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Oh, deer.................................

Our cast iron friend has now been moved to Harris County.
---------------------------------------------
Bar joists have been set in place, awaiting the metal decking for the living roof.

Progress continues.......................

The roof is almost fully framed over the " car porch".

-------------------------------------------------------------

Stairs in the tower are roughed in.

------------------------------------------------------------

By walking across the "living roof" you can enter an attic space. I'll probably use it as a greenhouse & workshop. It will have an operable skylight

------------------------------------------------------------

From the upstairs bedrooom window, you feel as if you're up in the trees.

Roof framing begins......................

The ridge beam & rafters are placed over the left wing

of the house.

.......................................................................................

I'm working on the earth berm against my office wall.

Piers for the rear deck are ready for the synthetic stone.

.......................................................................................

Beneath the deck will be the barrels that store captured rainwater from the roof.