Hot WATER!

I came back from an amazing Christmas vacation to HOT WATER!  Hot RUNNING water!

My hard working husband has installed the new hot water heater and it is working!!  There are still some small things he needs to finish up but I am so thankful he worked hard to make sure I had hot water when I came home.

He even turned on the Christmas lights for me so the house would feel cheery :)

Shortest post ever for a VERY BIG BLESSING! :)

Happy New Year!

These are the Best Things

You CAN make 2 different kinds of fudge and Chex mix, create gift baskets of fruit, wrap presents with children, cut up and dry eight trays of pineapple while hosting 2-8 kids for the afternoon WITHOUT hot water.  In fact, you can do it without RUNNING water.

I don't suggest you set out just to accomplish the feat BUT it can be done!

I feel like I need one of those "feeling accomplished" or "on an adventure" options right now.  These Tiny House construction issues were not factored in when I set out on this adventure.  Yet, how many of us anticipate all the twists and turns to come our way in this adventure called life?

I think back to my post from just the other day and I can't help but be thankful for the "best" things in my life.

Yesterday my son and I were able to "sneak" a fruit basket to the neighbors.  We used 2-way radios and had a blast!

Two of the neighbor kids joined us when we took gifts to another family and sang a carol (well I sang a carol and the kids laughed at me but it was fun).

We heard of 3 kids who wouldn't see their parents or have Christmas presents from them on Christmas; we have a tiny house with no mortgage...we went shopping and wrapped presents!

Eight neighbor kids descended on our tiny house.  They played on the swing and cargo net, wrapped presents, helped me make Chex mix and prep pineapple to dehydrate, delivered goodie packages and just sat around and visited.

I made two trays of fudge - chocolate pecan and coconut and chocolate mint.  I like fudge.

Tackled the laundry chore at the laundromat.  Check.

These are the "best" things in life.  

These experiences are the things that don't depend on hot water or running water.

These "best" things bring joy and peace to our hearts through tough times and easy times.

Join me in thanking God for the "best" things through this Christmas season and into the next year!

Sanity in Question

My dad recently told us, "I thank God for showers and hot running water every time I take a shower."

Friends, I encourage you to do the same.

Hot water is a privilege.  I don't know the number but I know there are a lot of people around the world who do not have hot water pouring out of a faucet in their home.  Humans can survive without hot water running water.  I know we have.  I boil water with my electric water boiler for "showers", washing dishes, you name it.  The electric water boiler has been my lifeline to sanity.  I'm having a hard time imagining life without electricity, but, hey, most people don't go 6 months without hot running water either!

Long story short with our hot water heater:

• Rinnai sent a replacement unit to the service company and paid to have it replaced. 
• Tri-tech (service company) replaced the unit but charged extra and then tried to overcharge the extra charge (Tri-Tech had the worse customer service I have ever experienced).
• The new Rinnai unit works great - it's the "best" tankless propane hot water heater out there!
• I didn't want to use it because we want to sell it and, frankly, I had anxiety every time I took a shower (I kept thinking it was going to code again - ok, ok, so maybe I get a small form of PTSD over strange things!).
• We bought a unit much more adequate for our Tiny House (5 Gallon Per Minute- instead of 9 GPM).
• We have listed the Rinnai unit on CL and Ebay.
• My husband is installing the new Bosch tankless propane hot water heater.

I still don't have hot water.  

I actually don't even have running water now.

It is 3 days before Christmas and I don't have running water.

I am beginning to lose my sanity.

As with everything in building our own Tiny House, when my husband is working his day job the work on our house just takes longer to get done.

I really wish I could blame someone else (part of losing my sanity!) but right now I can only blame myself for not doing more research on hot water heaters last year.  But then "you don't know what you don't know" and I didn't know there was more research to be done.  I really don't "blame" myself either.  I didn't know what I didn't know and now I know more.  I know a 9 GPM tankless hot water heater would be "great" for a house with 3-4 bathrooms (very different from our house...just clarifying...).

I now know and have experienced first hand: "the best out there" doesn't mean it's the "best out there" for us.

My loss of sanity now leads me to philosophize about how this applies to Christmas.  There is so much "best" around us!  Everywhere surrounding us is stuff, stuff, stuff and more stuff - the "best" stuff money (or our credit) can buy!  I might notice the stuff more now but I'm sure I'm not the only one to be overwhelmed by the vast amount of "best" stuff!  I have felt myself slipping down the slippery slope of stockpiling stuff.  There are so many good deals on the "best" stuff!

It might be "best" for someone but "the best out there" doesn't mean it's the "best out there" for me - or you!  

Hang in there friend and "just say no" to stuff, even if it's the "best"!!

Then....I encourage you...go take a nice, long, hot shower/bath and be thankful, not just for family, friends and food, but for hot running water.

I must say though, I AM very thankful for family who we can stay with over Christmas.  We are leaving in less than two days and can't wait because I love my in-laws!  They are fun, loving, giving, accepting, compassionate, gracious, hilarious, hopeful, joyous and they have hot running water!!!!!!!  

Today there was no school due to the snow.

I don't like no-school-snow-days in our Tiny House.

Thankfully we have neighbors who came over and helped entertain my daughter (she tends to need constant entertaining).  Two neighbor girls came over this morning and played in the snow for a couple hours with my daughter.  Not long after they left, two other neighbor girls came over and spent the afternoon and evening with us.

The day actually wasn't so bad.

I did the dishes this morning while the kids played outside.  After that we did our traditional advent calendar (new Christmas socks today!), read Christmas books, ate cheese sandwiches and drank hot cocoa for lunch, went Christmas shopping, took snow pictures, made stew for dinner and made no-bake cookies for dessert.

My daughter had A LOT of energy but having lots of incentives in the form of friends, cookies and Christmas shopping helped keep the day positive :)

On the Attack

Imagine: 

We cozy up on our big pillows in our nice, neat, clean seating area.

We are ready for some great conversation, books, games, a project or a movie.

Almost instantly our gazes are caught by this sight stationed not six feet in front of our seating area: 

Lovely, isn't it? 

And this was after I put the large pile of dirty clothes (usually piled up next to the machine by the vinegar) into the washing machine.

 Oh, the joys of finishing a "room" in a tiny house: 

you can still see all the other "rooms" that aren't finished.

My husband "went on the attack" this weekend and began plotting, planning and preparing this area for shelves and "cupboard" doors.  I never can tell what something will look like ahead of time; I just listen to him talk and tell him if I have any preferences.

My only preferences for this area is shelves that fit my kitchen aid and other appliances and doors.

It's the doors that are going to give him the most trouble but I think it will make the place feel less crowded.  I like the "open cupboard" concept but only when things within can look uniform: plates, cups, bowls, serving dishes, etc.  

Just looking at the wood crates we're using now drives me crazy.  The space holds way to much variety: cans, fruit, potatoes, bread, box foods, appliances, pots, coffee...way to much variety in one space in a tiny house!

Fortunately, the attack has been halted by the Tiny House Queen.

When the holidays are over, when hot water runs freely, when school begins again, when the Tiny House General/King is not needed (mentally or physically) at holiday functions, we will launch they attack again! 

After all, I DO want that area finished! 

But, meanwhile, I am happy to have an understanding and considerate husband who can join me mentally and physically at holiday functions and who will postpone his attack till a more convenient time. 

Stay tuned :)

Have a Seat!

I pulled all the containers out of our storage container.  

I was bound and determined to make all of this fit into our storage seating.

 

I did get rid of about half of one of these rubbermaid container of stuff: old baseball glove, books I love but will probably never read again, and actually I don't remember what else.  If I don't remember what I got rid of I probably never needed it in the first place!

There are some books, files, papers and memorablia that I just can't part with and I was really hoping it would all fit into the storage seating.  

 

The scrapbooks are completely non-negotiable; in fact, the storage seating bookshelf was made to fit them.  I lined them up and my husband created the shelves and seating to store all of them.

  

Here's the in-progress testing for fit and workability.  This is pre-sanded and pre-varethaned.     

These next pictures show some of the stuff we pushed off to the side to get the shelves in.  The edges of this entire area of the house was about knee-deep in our stuff before we put the seating in.

 And here is the ALMOST DONE seating area....

just waiting on the lids!!

 

Close up of the storage seating on the right:

 Close up of the corner storage seating...with the lid!!!  This is my husbands box, his space...only his space...he reminds me often...I am not to use this space.  Thankfully he gave me three times more space so I'm totally fine leaving his space alone!

THE FINISHED SEATING AREA!!!

CHECK OUT 

this PERFECT end cap for our homeschool supplies!!

Brief break from seating area pictures for my adorable little "Moosetivity". 

 Little did I know on my honeymoon 11 1/2 years ago when I bought this little tiny nativity that I would live in a little tiny house!

Not only do we have a "Tiny" nativity 

but we also have a "Tiny" Christmas tree!

The seating area has the perfect corner for our tiny tree!

Everything we wanted to store in this area is stored!  This area makes me SO happy!  I love the storage, I love the seating, I love the neat clean look, I love my homeschool and scrapbook spaces and I love that I have a Christmas tree!

  

Eventually we will get cushions of some sort but for now we're using a couple old pillowcases stuffed 

with a sleeping bags and some old pillows, oh, and a round exercise disc which is so far our favorite! My chair still fits too, although it has been moved over to the place in front of the tree.

Come on over, have a seat, drink some cocoa/coffee/tea and stay awhile, after all we have somewhere for you to sit now!