patrick has been out there every day, rain or shine.

beau (who is now off hiking the appalachian trail), alex, bradley and myself have dedicated quite a lot of our time to getting this structure under cover.
randall joined us for a week and then came back a few weeks later to be on the svi staff for the spring and summer. he became incredibly proficient with the power drill and is now in the garden every day.

didi, chad and their 2 month-old daughter, pippi, joined us for three wonderful weeks. they successfully juggled childcare, cooking (every day) and helping out on the structure.

andrew donovan was here for 9 days, bouncing between bringing new life to our computers and helping out with the building. we are so grateful to him for his help and gentle nature.

david del vecchio joined us for a fun-filled week. what a treat!

a group of past interns traveled together for a weekend of construction – sean, brian, melissa, berea and adam – they brought along their friend monica, too. hop, adalila, ayanna and sarah were here that weekend, also – we all got lots accomplished during the days and had lots of fun playing games together in the evening!

meli came up from florida for 5 days during her spring break – she was enthusiastic, helpful and a pleasure to have around.

and then there have been a few successful work days – some with one helper, others with a dozen. many thanks to jon, trish, melony, jeannie, caara, gilbert, chris, will, aurelia, jake, nada, willy, ashley haley, kelsey, sean, danny, trae and jerry!

and here are the pictures!

getting the logs from the ground up to the third floor as posts was a fantastic dance of bodies and wood.

anyone who wanted to sling a drill had plenty of opportunities. the posts were drilled into place while others drilled braces between them.

it takes a village to raise a building!

beau’s final project before heading out on the trail was maybe the most challenging job he took on during his two plus years at moonshadow – the stairs from the second to the third floors. will helped get the job finished.

after the posts came the beams.

then the rafters:

and to make the structure safe for the little ones – railings (soon to be followed by a fence):

and, yes, the most important accomplishment of all – the third floor roof!

now we’re ready for april – fencing below the handrails, the stairs from the ground to the second floor, bracing to ensure more stability and our opening event on april 12th – a tour of the grounds, two performances by david rovics, a pot luck dinner and more.

- ashley ironwood and the moonshadow crew

we are now up to the highest level we will attempt.  the third floor has been laid and it’s time for us to work towards the final gable roof!  WE ARE ALMOST COVERED!  there are only about 20 more posts and beams to raise and we would like to get them in place with your help the weekend of the 8th and 9th of March.  we need a big group for this final raising!  the following weekend will be our rafter-raising – this weekend only needs a few extra hands from folksho enjoy heights (safely)…

here is the february building update:

first of all, let me fill you in on all of those who helped build during this month…  patrick and beau were out there almost every day – even when it was raining.  alex and i participated as much as possible, juggling eldercare and kid care along side building…

many thanks to bradley and nada for their consistent support.   you too, logan!

carl evertson was here for 6 days, lending his building expertise to the mix.  he got right to work within minutes of his arrival and even stayed longer than he had planned!  carl built braces between the post and beams on the second floor – what an incredible difference this has made in the stability of the building!

the rest of our helpers came for day-trips.  davis spent a day milling lumber.  anne, ravi and chris came out just in time to cook, eat and run one day – that was such a treat.  paul came for a day of milling and moving lumber around.  christine bock spent a day in the garden with the kids.  dane and ellen joined us for a day – dane spent hours with a hammer in hand while ellen and their two little ones, quetzal and sorrel played with sage and anakeesta.  trae helped build while katie hung out with the kids – thanks so much everyone for your help!

johnny,  as always, has been waiting in the wings, available for the complicated task of the moment, bringing up freshly-milled logs, shopping in chattanooga for much-needed supplies and is bright and cheerful at the early-morning check-ins with patrick and beau, going over plans and talking about possibilities.

and now, the pictures!

ready for a roof and ceiling for the second floor:

     

on goes the roof!

  

i learned how to rip lumber:

patrick got the gutters up and working – seriously working on the edge:

     

carl with his braces:

on goes the third floor:

     

and now we’re covered up for the rain again while beau and patrick build the stairs:

     

– ashley ironwood

well, we got back into it mid-january with a super-great work-weekend full of positive energy and lots of progress. we got over half of the posts up on the second floor and had enough strong backs to lift all of the beams into place. that’s the kind of work we just can’t do alone – it’s really taking a community to build this community structure! special thanks to trae and his dad-in-love, jerry, for their help that weekend. kelsey, noah and ryan showed up just in time to help lift beams, too!

all of the beams were in place on their braces, waiting to be notched in over the next quiet week… it was cold – BUT IT WASN’T RAINING! much thanks to anne and her son, ravi, for helping us in the kitchen and playing with sage and anakeesta while we worked.

patrick, alex, ashley and bradley got the beams in place and began notching the floor joists… johnny milled the rafter beams – i even learned how to use the chainsaw… thanks, marjorie rose, for hanging out with the kids!

here’s a new perspective for you – gives you an idea of where the structure is and it’s size – and we still have one more level to go:

then the rains came again and the great cover-it dance ensued…

while it was raining a whole crew of folks joined us planning a very full week of progress. and progress was what happened – in abundance! anthony and paul came from indiana with many skills and an incredible work ethic. horrace and sasha were the fairy queen and king of large and delicious lunches, all the while keeping an eye on all of the kids – including two of their own – and the kids played hard!

the weekend brought more folks – lots of them – we counted 13 kids and 13 adults at one point – it was amazing. jon cable brought his tools and his fearless attitude – he got sent out to the edges a lot. the harlins came from chattanooga – tadd helped build, marissa cooked a huge meal for everyone and they added to the kid count by 4. bradley helped build while nada and logan did their thang. joel jumped right in the building process and michelle and lannea watched in awe as the chaos swirled around them. thanks, marjorie rose, for being with nana so alex could build. thanks, michelle, marissa and nada, for hanging out with the kids… it was a party!

now – check this out! all of the floor joists are done – ready for the third floor… and the rafters on the side are almost ready for a roof. we can hardly believe how much we got done in such a short period of time… i’m exhausted!

so, now it’s raining again – the structure is all tucked in -

patrick is at his desk mumbling about weather reports, making plans to roll up the sides of the tarps to finish the side roofs during the breaks in the rain next week… thank goodness the rain will stop before too late tonight so he can get some sleep… alex just called to find out how the tarps are holding up… beau is home now and has already put in a couple of full days of work – he’s planning to rip all of the wood needed for the second floor by the time the rain ends.

and here i am asking you again for your help. we’d love to have you here – building, cooking, cleaning, childcare. if we could get the roof on this thing – ahhhh, we would all breathe a HUGE sigh of relief. we’re willing to help with your travel expenses – and room and board are on svi. there’s something for everyone who wants to help.

some jobs mean just sitting around:

some jobs simply need a few more hands!

it’s a ton of fun – let us know if you can join us.

thanks,

ashley and the moonshadow crew