A Banged-Up House

To start this off I would like to state: my house is DONE. Yes, yes, yes. I know. Who would have thought I would finish? Not me. Just kidding. (Kind of) My second statement is this past weekend was the first official Tiny House Conference (THC), and I was there! And I presented. *whispers* the video should be out soon; check here. You will notice if you have been following the THC  I was supposed to bring my house. But for those of you that don’t know: I was supposed to bring my house.

 

My house did not make it. And you can thank the expletive hauler. The horror story started last Tuesday. The hauler e-mailed my mum and asked if he could haul my house on Tuesday instead of Thursday to which we replied no. The house is not done yet. He showed up anyway. And leave us with the comment, “Pretty good for a couple of girls.” At this point my mother and I had a bad feeling about this guy, but we didn’t tell each other. Why? I have no idea.

 

So Thursday night arrived, and it was time to move the house. Take note that the house was finished about one hour before the guy came, so it was practically like our newborn baby. The moment he took off I instantly regretted having him come. He lurched forward and I could hear all the pops and cracks from the wood shifting inside. The biggest heart attack happened when instead of backing straight off the slab (as we told him) he went off the side, and as soon as the first wheel came off the slab, it popped off. No, I am not joking. Most sane people at this point would have said, “Put it back on the slab; we aren’t moving the house.” Not me. I thought, “Oh I can just pull it into the neighborhood and fix the tire and it’ll be great!” Then he started running into the fence. Not once, not twice, but three times. Which in turn banged-up the edges of the house. Then he ran into the branches from the tree just outside our gate, peeling and bending back the metal roofing.

 

At this point both my mother and I told him to put it back in the yard. We didn't trust him to take it to the conference. He totally ignored us and pulled it into the neighborhood. Then stepped out of his truck and said, “Well, I don’t know what to do with it now.” If looks could kill at that moment, he would have been ten feet under. I am proud that neither my mother nor I laced our sentences with every curse word imaginable when we said, “Just put it in the yard; we aren’t taking it.” To which he replied, “If I can.”


Let’s just take a moment to comprehend this. Imagine all of this and throw in a condescending voice and looks. Anyone would be ready to fly off the handle.  He finally forced it into the yard and left with the comment, “I’m sorry you couldn’t get your house out.” After the anger had gone away, the hurt set in. It hurts when you work so hard, for so long and somebody comes in and (basically) trashes all you have done.


On a lighter note: the THC was great. I got to meet so many of the people I have been following online. For example I got to meet Dee Williams who is basically the queen of the Tiny House Community, and Macy Miller with MiniMiller, the first Tiny House baby.  I have to admit I was a bit star struck.

But I think that wraps it up. Upcoming blogs will include a better version of a tour, budget, and my first actual night in my house. It’s unbelievable that just a few weeks ago it looked like this:

 

 

And now it looks like this:

 

 

 

So now that I’m finished with my house…which one of you is next? What’s holding you back? If a thirteen-year-old girl can do it, why not you?

Tiny House Conference Wrap-Up

Standby for a wrap-up: stats, facts, and figures about La Petite Maison. We just got back from the tiny house conference and I have a few things to finish up on the house, but I will post a total budget, a better video, and lots of pix!

La Petite Maison: She is Finished

The last video we posted was the stairs.

Fast forward two weeks, and here we are, La Petite Maison, finished for the most part:

We will post a better one in a couple days, but we couldn't wait. This weekend is the tiny house conference. In the next couple days, we will explain exactly why LPM isn't traveling with us.

For now, thank you for your support and following our story.

Stairs Nearly There!

Getting closer....

Closing the stairs/storage area with burlap coffee sacks, thanks to Deek's suggestion!

Progress!

From Mama to La:

We are building faster than I can update, so these are a little behind.

Bathroom, with wall and tub installed:

 

View from the back to the front; only one coat of paint so far:

 

 

Full shot of back wall; dark wood will go all the way to the top:

 

 

La building the base for our kitchen cabinets:

 

 

 

 

On tap for today: another trip to Home Depot, kitchen counter framing, math, French, and catching practice. Busy!!

Quick Update

From Mama to La:

So much going on, so much progress, so little time left!! We are racing the clock and the calendar; the tiny house house conference is upon us, and we are in the final push.

Some quick pix.

Loft ceiling with interior siding:

First wall for the bathroom:

Since these pictures were taken we have nearly finished the interior siding and trim and are getting ready to install the bathtub and build walls, stairs and kitchen counters.

It has been a little over a year since we started the build, a year tomorrow since La's papa was killed in a car accident, and just over a year and a half since La started to draw her blueprints.

I never knew a year could simultaneously go by so quickly and so slowly.

We will try to be more diligent in our updates. In the interim, please enjoy La's TEDTalk from last year. It is short and sweet. Almost like her, except she is nearly to her mama's height.

Love and gratitude to all of you who have been following us on our journey.

Updates!

Hello everybody! As I was stumbling on Facebook this morning, avoiding my work, I decided to give everybody an update!

My first snippet is the fact that I gave a TED Talk! I spoke at the TEDYouth conference in New Orleans. It was an amazing experience, I met two girls my age; I think one of them as my long lost twin (that was a year older than me). We even have the same birthday! I also met a 16-year-old DJ, who is really famous. This was the first time I have ever publicly spoken, so to say I was nervous is an understatement.

My second snippet is....I was published on the Huffington Post! Thanks to the TEDYouth team, I was offered to write an article for Huffington Post Teen.

Last but certainly not least, I am going to Seattle for Christmas. I will be seeing my dad's side of the family, and I am so excited. It has been seven years since I visited my birthplace, and we are going to be taking a tour of the best places in the city. Maybe, we will even stop by my first home! Throw riding and airplane into the mix (I have a not so secret love of airplanes and airports) and, needless to say, I am ecstatic! I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Here is a happy video to put everyone in the holiday spirit: