Kayaking into nature

I think one of the best things I ever did was purchase kayaks for our log home. It lets you slip quietly into nature without the roar of a boat motor. It allows you to hear the birds singing and the wind rustling through the trees. I am able to get much better photographs of the wildlife that I love so much.

I purchased recreational kayaks as I don't see any member of my family having the desire to go down cliffs with rocky rapids that require a helmet! They aren't that expensive - Price ranges from $180 - $900+. And just seeing my husband and stepson's smiling faces as they glide on by the log cabin and wave to me definitely made it worth the purchase.



Big Greg and Little Greg enjoying the day.

















Good Morning Mr. Heron. You look very nice today.

















Hello Mr. Loon. Glad you decided to make your home on my lake.












Well hello kitty cat. How is the fishing today?

Log Cabin Projects

I just realized I need to start paying attention to finshing the log cabin projects in the basement. Hopefully we can finish it entirely by New Years.



I have a bathroom that I've neglected. This one is decorated in a loon theme but is missing a mirror and a shower curtain. I just can't seem to find a Loon shower curtain anywhere - if anyone knows where I can, please let me know!











We finished the staircase on the main living level but we also have a log staircase that goes to the basement that needs to be completed. We called Sashco the stain company we used for the exterior and interior logs and they instructed my hubby on getting started. He finished the bottom three stairs - looking good honey!

A book for the log cabin nook

I've created my own little nook in the log cabin for reading. I have my comfy chair with a pillow, a stuffed moose to sit on my lap when the cat won't, a window with a great view and an inspirational painting hanging above me. I need a fuzzy blanket for the winter and some good reading material. What are your top 3 favorite books you would recommend for "log cabin" reading?
P.S. I've read the Gift of Deer, Alone in the Wilderness and the Woodswoman books.
P.S. I am guessing the following people will have some great input:

• Bobbi at Bobbi's Book Nook will have some great ideas. Her site offers very insightful reviews of a wide variety of books.
• My buddy (I think Rob) at The Cottage Chronicles. He is a great resource and reviewer on so many things such as getting rid of mice, hooking up a cottage water system and great links to furniture and so much more. His site is a must see if you own a cottage or cabin.
• Wendy at "It's Just Me." She's a pro at poll questions so I figure she must have some great answers too. The pressure's on Wendy!
• Jen at Unglazed - she's funny and just seems to know so many things!
• Jessica at Five Pines. She always finds the coolest things (such as weird objects and antique aprons) so I figure she knows about some cool books too.
• Sandy at Birds, Bees, Bugs and Blossoms. She's very artsy so I'm counting on her for some "artsy" recommendations!
• Michelle at New Beginnings - she has a passion for life!

If you visit any of my blogging friends above, I guarantee you won't be disappointed!

This was painted by Greg's cousin. Greg's brother Alfonso purchased and framed this as a gift for us. I treasure it greatly!

The log home needs a dog...

I figured out another thing that our log home is missing - a dog! We have our cat Marvin who I love dearly....but I don't think he wants to swim in the lake with me. Nor accompany me in the snow when I'm snow shoeing. And I doubt he would protect me from the bears on my walks thru the woods. Yep - I need a dog. Greg agrees but he wants a hunting dog such as a Brittany or English spaniel. I on the other hand want a big working dog and I already know what I want - a Bernese Mountain Dog. They weigh between 80 - 100 pounds, are a good watch dog, loyal and loving to their family, LIKE CATS, can herd (maybe there are goats and ducks in my future!) and loves the snow. They are also easily trained as a search and rescue dog (maybe another career for me?!) I tell my husband all these wonderful qualities and he persists with the following 2 questions: "Will he point?" and "Will he retrieve a bird?" The answer is no and no unless the bird is shaped like a ball. My next tactic is reminding him he only goes pheasant hunting once a year and can borrow the hunting ranches dogs and that when he goes deer hunting, my big beautiful Bernese Mountain dog will happily sit beside him in the deer blind in the cold of winter to keep him company.
Meanwhile, when I was at the wine festival this weekend I saw some people with a Bernese Mountain dog that I have pictured below. It's a sign, I know it! I almost pole vaulted a fence to get to these people's dog to ask them a million questions and pet this sweetie. It's only a matter of time before my hubby succumbs....

Why you should check the trees around your log home!

We had a bad storm a few weeks ago and the limbs of an old Maple tree came crashing down. As you can see from the photos below, this is good example of why you should check the trees around a log home (or any home for that matter.) These limbs fell within 3 feet of our log home. We were lucky it didn't go through our roof or windows. A local tree service company came out and removed all the fallen branches within a couple hours. They made woodchips out of the old limbs and I was glad we were able to use it for our path to the lake. Now I'm checking the other trees - especially to make sure no branches are touching our logs so that tree sap doesn't get on them and compromise them. I am a big conservationist at heart so I try to remove as little as possible. After all, my original dream was to have a log cabin in the woods - not a log cabin on a bare lot!

Log Home Moment

Kayaking has its advantages. I was able to shoot this picture of the lakeside view of our log home. There is still a little more clearing to do. I'm trying very had to balance that with my love of wildlife habitat (as well as obeying the DEQ guidelines.) There are still some trees that are too close to our cabin that will need to be removed. Tree sap can compromise the logs so I have to make sure the branches don't touch our log home. Additionally, the last storm we had brought down some large, heavy limbs which ended up about 3 feet from our home - we got lucky that they didn't smash through our front windows. Oh the joys of log home ownership...

Path to the lake

Due to wetlands between our log home property and the lake, we have to follow DEQ rules for accessing the lake. We are creating a path 75% of the way to the lake with mulch that was created from a storm damaged maple tree. The tree removal service chipped them up for us and hubby has been diligently cutting away the brush. Once he completes the path to the boundary we are allowed, then we have to find a rolling dock system that will enable us to access the lake directly. For now, we've been using the public boat launch for our kayaks and fishing boat. I cannot wait until I can take a dive into the water from my own dock!